Seven Evanston Baby Boomers who found a common love of playing basketball are participating in the 2005 Senior National Summer Games, part of the Senior Olympics, which began Friday in Pittsburgh and end June 18.
Hoopla, a seven-member team of women age 50 to 55, met at an Evanston Park District class and discovered all but one of them had been frustrated by restrictions on women participating in sports when they were in school.
“This is the first opportunity most of us have had to play basketball,” said Heidrun Hoppe, a Hoopla member. “It’s more than just physical activity for us. It’s a huge stress reliever. You can’t focus on anything but the game.
“It’s a huge joy, and a lot of satisfaction” to be able to participate in the games.
Evanston Mather LifeWays, a not-for-profit organization committed to helping older adults age well, is sponsoring Hoopla for the senior games. The team members–all shorter than 5 feet 8 inches–qualified for the games at the state tournament in Springfield in September.