I went to RISSE yesterday to meet five of the eight members of the new RISSE (refugee and immigrant support center of Albany) women’s basketball team, scheduled to hit the courts in several weeks. I can tell  you that they are feisty, energetic, funny and full of grit and determination.

Rachel, on the right, is the new Team Captain. She  has fire in her eyes.

They are also charismatic and very eager to play. I would not want to play or bet against them.

Taking their photographs, on the other hand, was great fun.

They pestered me and Ali to know the starting date, they are ready to go. They have decided – once again, over my protests – to name their team the Bedlam Farm Warriors, just like the soccer team did.  Their shirts will say “RISSE” on the back.

I agreed to raise the funds to buy their new uniforms, I suspect they will be colorful and very strong.

The soccer team’s uniforms cost almost $1,000. Soccer in America is not a cheap sport.

I hope to be able to support them in other ways. Playing will be simpler for them than the soccer team in some ways. They will have access to numerous school gyms, they don’t need big fields outdoors or expensive shoes.

They will be playing urban as well as suburban teams and will face some of the same class issues as the other Warriors- outfunded and unmanned. They will not be outcoached. Ali is wily and dedicated, and he is getting an assistant for the basketball team.

“We can’t wait to play,” said Rachel, already the spokesperson for the team. “We are ready.”

Some of the younger refugee women are shy and guarded, wary of strangers with cameras asking to take their pictures, reluctant to say much.

No such problem with the basketball team.

They posed with attitude and confidence, then swarmed around my camera to look at the photos and tell me what to use and what not to use. They have good taste, they made good choices, they will be formidable as a team, just as the soccer boys are.

This is going to be fun and worthwhile. All of these girls came from Africa, their parents fled the awful genocide and conflict in the Congo and spent many years in refugee camps. They know pain and suffering in a way few American children do. Their parents support them with love, but don’t have too much more than that.

The girls identify as Africans, but also as Americans.

These are kick-ass women, they will make for impressive Americans, they will add much to our lives and communities. They are filled with the spark of life. They are bursting to go.

They will practice hard and play hard, and they are already coming together as their own devoted community. Sports are part of the great American assimilation. So is playing against opponents with a lot more money.

So here we go, and about time.

At the moment, these young women just need uniforms, and I don’t think they  will need too much more than that, perhaps some good basketball sneakers – they have no clothes or equipment of any kind. The basketball league fees are much smaller, the leagues are less suburban than the soccer leagues. Those parents put everything into their kid’s sports.  But the basketball games are much more accessible.

Every school in and around Albany  has a gym.

They are not all that interested in soccer or retreats, and certainly not one they will share with boys. I suspect they will appreciate some other kinds of outings, I hope to help with that.

If you wish to help with the uniforms,  you can donate to my uniform fund, Jon Katz, P.O. Box 205, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816, or you can contribute via Paypal, [email protected]. Please mark those donations “basketball uniforms”,  and thanks.

I hope to get to their practices when they start-up in a couple of weeks. I also want to get a full photo of the team. The other three members were still in school when I came to take the pictures.

Thanks for your support and encouragement.