How basketball and a grandmother's love helped a high school grad overcome life's challenges

Louise BigEagle · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 27, 2025 3:17 PM EDT | Last Updated: 5 hours ago

David Crowe ne'er imagined the time helium would beryllium walking crossed the signifier to person his Grade 12 diploma, but hoops came into his beingness and changed each that.

Crowe, 18, from George Gordon First Nation and lives successful Regina graduated from Scott Collegiate connected Wednesday. 

"I judge hoops is simply a healing sport," said Crowe. "I judge the mode radical attack the crippled is however they'll attack life, and conscionable having an outlet from somewhere, conscionable fto that worldly spell is truly important."

Crowe grew up successful foster attraction successful British Columbia and started playing hoops erstwhile helium moved to Regina astatine 11 years old when his grandma gained custody. He said helium started playing to get person to his 3 older brothers and fell successful emotion with the game.

He said didn't cognize however to woody with the traumas helium faced arsenic a kid but hoops gave him a spot to heal.

"I had a precise mediocre aforesaid presumption of myself and I didn't person aforesaid belief. So it took a batch of years to refine that, physique that and I'm truly blessed due to the fact that conscionable from my ain idiosyncratic travel and however acold I've come," said Crowe.

Now, he'll beryllium going to Briercrest Christian Academy College and Seminary successful the autumn to be their Junior Varsity Basketball Program and prosecute a large successful psychology. 

"I wanna assistance radical and I'm gonna beryllium going into it becoming a therapist conscionable truthful I tin springiness backmost successful my ain way," said Crowe.

Daniel Stonechild, Crowe's hoops coach, said helium uses the athletics arsenic a mean to present his squad to the ceremonies of the Cree culture, similar sweat lodges and fasting.

He said he's seen changes successful Crowe from erstwhile helium showed up 4 years ago, struggling to enactment successful basketball, to now, being 1 of the hardest working player on the floor. 

Stonechild said helium helped Crowe physique the skills to header and woody with things that hap disconnected the court.

"To play hoops astatine antithetic levels different than precocious school, I deliberation that's immense and particularly coming from wherever he's travel from for himself," said Stonechild.

"I anticipation that helium continues to unrecorded beingness the champion mode helium can."

WATCH | This precocious schoolhouse grad shares however hoops helped him heal and reconnect with his Cree culture: 

A grandma's love

Crowe's grandma Melody Constant (Crowe) is 1 of his biggest supporters and was arrogant to spot him locomotion the signifier to judge his Grade 12 diploma.

Constant, primitively from The Pas, Man. but joined into Piapot First Nation, said she's taken attraction of implicit 22 grandchildren implicit the years. Three, including Crowe, graduated from Scott Collegiate this week.

Constant said her grandson needed an outlet to woody with things that happened to him successful the foster homes and was blessed hoops seemed to alteration however helium dealt with life.

"I conscionable was 1 of his biggest fans, I conscionable can't judge that he's going to places similar Briercrest, but helium ever talked astir it and he's making it happen," said Constant.

Constant said she and Crowe have specified a adjacent bond, she jokingly said she is going with him to Briercrest in Caronport, Sask., 86 kilometres westbound of Regina, but it's a bittersweet feeling for them both.

"She has raised maine into the antheral I americium today," said Crowe.

"I tin ne'er repay her for that."