Dyett High School Wins ‘The Support Group’s’ All-Star Game Championship During Its Annual Safe Summer Celebration

It takes a village to evoke change. Members of ‘The Support Group’ pose with team players before their 2026 Annual Basketball event. Photo courtesy of “The Support Group’.
It takes a village to evoke change. Members of ‘The Support Group’ pose with team players before their 2026 Annual Basketball event. Photo courtesy of “The Support Group’.

Dyett High School Wins “The Support Group’s” All-Star Game Championship During Its Annual Safe Summer Celebration

 

By Citizen Staff Writer

In 1988 Bennie Henry and NBA Hall of Famer Tim Hardaway Sr., formed ‘The Support Group’ organization with the mission in mind of shifting the narrative for young people in Chicago.


To date the organization has served more than 150,000 young people by providing not only extra curriculum activities to keep them busy but ‘TSG’ provides tools that enrich their academic skills as well.   The Support Group provides programming for families that includes mentorship, academic enrichment, violence prevention, emotional wellness and youth leadership.


Recently, the young men of Dyett High School basketball team captured a victorious win with a season record of 1-1, allowing the team to walk away as 2nd place champions in their division.  


The ‘DHS’ players emerged victorious in The Support Group’s All-Star Basketball Game competition during the organization’s annual Safe Summer event held on Wednesday, July 29th at Walter H. Dyett High School for the Arts (555 E. 51st St). The FREE celebration brought together Chicago youth, families, community leaders and organizations for a positive day focused on safety, unity and community engagement.


In addition to the basketball game, participants enjoyed other youth activities, inflatable games, and complimentary lunch for all. Participants also received giveaways and access to community resources.


The Support Group has nearly four-decades of commitment to utilizing sports, mentorship and leadership development to create safer environments for Chicago’s young people. The remarkable end to this season is a testament to the dedicated work that ‘The Support Group is are providing for the young people in the city. 


The All-Star High School Game victory was not only for the team players but for every young person who came out and experienced the support of their community,” said Bennie Henry, co-founder and executive director of The Support Group. “When we create safe spaces where young people can compete, have fun and connect with positive role models, we show them that their community believes in their future.”


The Citizen Newspaper Group had the opportunity to ask “The Support Group’ co-founder and Executive Director, Bennie Henry a couple of questions and here’s what he shared with us about the event:


CITIZEN: Can you tell us the names of the teams that participated in the All-Star Game Competition which Dyett High School defeated, earning them championship status?


(HENRY)-The Support Group:

1st Place – Hyde Park: Won both games. Undefeated record.

2nd Place – Dyett: Won 1 game, lost 1 game.

3rd Place – Richard’s: Lost both games.


Grammar School Division Note:  

A special shout out to our Grammer School players from Beasley Elementary School.  With such a large team they split into 2 squads for an intrasquad game.  This allowed all players to participate.


How the Winner Was Determined:  

The tournament used a win-loss record format. Hyde Park finished 2-0, Dyett finished 1-1, and Richard’s finished 0-2. With the most wins and no losses, Hyde Park is the All-Star Champions


Congrats to our All-Star Tournament Winners!  

🏆 1st Place: Hyde Park – 2 wins, 0 losses 

🥈 2nd Place: Dyett – 1 win, 1 loss 

🥉 3rd Place: Richard’s – 0 wins, 2 losses 


CITIZEN: What inspired you to form an organization with a mission of giving back to the community?

(HENRY)- ‘The Support Group’:   My entire life story has been about giving back to youths.  My Inspiration comes from my personal experience as a young boy who did not have the benefit of having both of my parents because they passed away by the time I was 12 years of age.  But I experienced the blessing of having a village to look after me and I made it my life’s mission to pay it forward to other young people in similar circumstances or to those who are just in need of a helping hand.

 

CITIZEN: Why did you choose to start a recreational organization like basketball instead forming an organization that would focus mainly on helping young people accelerate in school subjects like Math, Science or Reading?  


(HENRY)-‘The Support Group’:  Growing up in the streets of Chicago at a time when gangs and drugs were running rampant, I understood that unfortunately academics alone would not garner young people’s attention.  So, I used sports as the carrot to reel them in and then expanded programming to include academic achievements, conflict resolution, leadership, nutrition, and overall wellness. 


For more information about ‘The Support Group’, visit www.thesupportgroup.org.

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