Together in peace and friendship

Stephan Deas, a 15-year-old hoops star from Haverhill, has been invited to travel to Europe in June and compete with players from all over the world.

Deas is a member of the HoopGains AAU team, an elite program at Cedardale Health and Fitness. He is also an active member of the Haverhill Boys Club and was named MVP of its basketball league last year.

This year Deas was accepted by the People to People program as a sports ambassador. For 10 days, he'll be in Austria competing in the sport he loves while meeting teenagers from a wide range of cultures. As a group, they'll also travel the country and learn about the region.

Deas has been playing basketball for 10 years — since his father gave him a ball and taught him to dribble with both hands. Now his abilities have made him a stand-out guard on the court.

To be eligible Deas had to be nominated by a coach of a national youth sports program and survive the application process.

About 10,000 youths will be participating as ambassadors in many sports. They will live together in an Olympic-style athlete village for the duration of their stay.

And though there will be language barriers amongst the many cultures, they will all speak the same language on the basketball court.

People to People was founded by President Dwight D. Eisenhower with the belief that if people from different cultures come together in peace and friendship, nations will eventually do the same.

The only thing standing in his way is the $6,000 it costs to make the trip, so he is seeking contributions.

Deas attends the Fellowship Christian Academy in Methuen where there are only eight students in his grade.

"I just want to try making it to the NBA," Deas said, without hesitation or a doubt in his mind. In order to get there, he hopes to play for a solid college team, Minnesota being his favorite.

"This is a hard-working guy, right here," said Anthony Taylor, one of the cofounders and president of HoopGains, as he grabbed Deas playfully on the shoulder. "He's a very, very hard worker and everyone here loves him."

His enthusiasm for the game is easy to see as he runs up and down the court at full speed during AAU practice. Even off the hardwood, Deas seems to always have a basketball with him, bouncing it in any open space or spinning the ball in his fingers. However, his favorite part of the game is when the ball is not in his hands, but instead when it catches nothing but net as it swishes through the basket.

His mother, Lee-Ann Deas-Martelle, said her son is "willing to try anything," and she is incredibly proud of him for pursuing this opportunity. She believes the experience will better prepare him for the real world, but she's anxious since it will be her son's first trip alone and his first trip out of the country.

"I will be a nervous wreck with him all the way on the other side of the ocean," she said.

But his only worry is that he might lose his luggage. Other than that, he just wants to play ball.

"It's cool that I'm going to a different country," he said, "but the fact that I'm going to play basketball is even better."

If you would like to help Deas participate in the People to People program, contributions can be sent to Stephan Deas in care of HoopGains, Inc. at 931 Boston Road, Haverhill, MA 01835.

Photos

Stephan Deas was accepted into the People to People program as a sports ambassador. He will travel to Austria in June if he raises the $6,000 to attend the 10-day event where he will compete against teens from all over the world. Staff photo