Members of the Opp Housing Authority basketball team have been hard at work preparing for the 25th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. SERC Basketball Challenge in Bowling Green, Ky. on Jan. 13.

“For the past 25 years, young men and women, their coaches, chaperones, parents and members of public housing authorities throughout the Southeastern Region have traveled to various host states to take part in the Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. SERC Basket Ball Challenge,” Opp Housing Authority executive director Beverly Barber said. “In addition to the tournament, the team will tour the National Corvette Museum and the Western Kentucky University campus. The team will also take part in the tournament banquet that will be held in at the National Corvette Museum Banquet Facility.”

Barber said that overall it’s an experience that kids look forward to.

“It’s a really great opportunity for these kids,” Barber said. “Most of these kids don’t get to do a lot of traveling and participate in things like this. They are really excited about going dressing up for the banquet.”

Barber said that the trip is about much more than basketball.

“It’s not just about playing ball,” Barber said. “These kids are required to keep a “C” average in school and that is something that I verify with the school. There is a big educational component to it as well. While in Bowling Green, they will also get a chance to visit the campus of Western Kentucky University.”

Though they are required to keep a “C” average, Barber said that most of the players are “A” and “B” students.

“These are really great kids and they put a lot of importance on their education,” Barber said. “We just really want to thank of the people that donated and contributed to makes this trip possible for the kids.”