One Robbins family had members of three generations enjoy Dwyane Wade Day on Sunday.
ZaVon Christopher, 15, took part in Wade’s basketball camp in the morning and the sophomore at Shepard High School got to meet the Basketball Hall of Famer.
“I got to take some pictures with him,” Christopher said. “It was really cool to meet him.”
Christopher’s mother, Roshelle Doty, said she’s a few years older than Wade but remembers seeing him playing basketball on the playgrounds in town.
“He was on the court playing and I was on the power wheel with my sister,” Doty said. “I watched him then and all the time when he was on TV.”
Alita Henry, Christopher’s grandmother and Doty’s mother, also kept tabs on Wade from the beginning.
“He was a little kid on the court that wanted to try so hard to get it right,” Henry said. “He didn’t care that everyone else on the court was bigger than him. He didn’t care that everybody else was stronger than him. He kept working until he got it right.”
Many think the 6-foot-4 Richards graduate got it right. Wade had a 16-year NBA career that included three NBA championships, an NBA Finals MVP Award, an NBA All-Star Game Award and 13 NBA All-Star game appearances. After graduating from Richards and playing at Marquette, he heard the criticism that he was too small to be an effective NBA player.
His day on Sunday was full of pomp and celebration with bands and cheerleaders and included the unveiling of a street being named in his honor — Dwyane Wade Boulevard.
Robbins Mayor Darren Bryant was quick to point out to the hundreds in attendance at a makeshift stage area on the boulevard that this was not a symbolic street name, it is a full change as it replaces Claire Boulevard in the town.
“I had to go to Cook County and change their records,” Bryant said. “Driver’s licenses will change. Addresses will change. The whole shebang.”
Wade said he was honored with the sign but apologized to those on Claire Boulevard who will have the hassle of changing their addresses.
More Top Picks Best Cymbals For Beginners
“When people gotta change their licenses and the addresses for their mail … I know you all rolled your eyes and saying ‘why do we have to do that?’’’ Wade told the crowd. “I’m sorry. But it’s for good reasons, man. For good reasons.”
Wade said he had a hard time putting into words how to talk the street he grew up on being named after him.
“I’ve traveled the world and played in front of thousands,” he said. “I won championships. I’ve experienced moments that I could never dream of.
“Before the world saw Dwyane Wade, Robbins saw me first. Yes, yes.”
Wade said when the family moved to Robbins, he sat on the trunk of his father’s car and listened to the peace and quiet at night.
Seeing his name on street signs brings back a lot of thoughts and emotions of the community he grew up in.
“When I look around, I don’t just see a street sign, even though it’s a beautiful street sign,” he said. “I see memories. I see neighbors. I see best friends. I see bikes riding up and down the block.
“I see basketball being played in the backyards. I see kids squeezing every last minute outside before the streetlights come on.”
He said he sees himself at age 9 playing and he sees his family.
“I see that little boy who had no idea where life was going to take him,” Wade said.
Before the presentation, his father, Dwyane Wade Sr., said he hoped for success for his son but never thought all these years later there would be a sign in his son’s honor.
“We finally arrived,” he said. “But never in my life did I think this would happen. I never dreamed we would have a street named after us so this is a surprise and I’m glad to be a part of it.”
For those who wonder how the two Wades picked up the unusual spelling of Dwyane, Wade Sr. said it was his mother, Rochelle Wade’s, idea. People thought it was a mistake but he said she intentionally skipped using conventional spellings Duane and Dwayne.
“She wanted to make us different,” he said. “And she succeeded as you can see.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.