Thornton’s first annual Wildcat Classic offers ‘a sense of home’

Purple, black, and gray balloons adorn Thornton’s gymnasium. Renowned hits such as The Jackson 5’s “I Want You Back” and Bell Biv Devoe’s “Poison” reverberate across the court. Ahead of the big game, a small dance party emerges in the middle as the room fills up with many more familiar faces.

The upbeat vibe stretched into the bleachers with alumni grooving to the music and hyping up their graduating classes.

“2001 in the building! ‘03 in the building! Let’s go!” cheered alumna Chimeka Heard-Powell, class of 2007, encouraging the crowd to shout out their graduating year.

Heard-Powell and 2003 Class President Jason Clark organized the first annual “Wildcat Classic: Battle of the Decades,” bringing former and current Thornton students together for a day filled with wholesome activities and Harvey pride. 

The schedule included a morning fitness session, a mental health panel, and an alumni basketball game hosted by the class of 2006’s very own Harvey native LaRoyce Hawkins of NBC’s “Chicago PD.”

The Wildcat Classic vision

Clark and Heard-Powell were next-door neighbors growing up. Clark had previously asked Heard-Powell, a leading lady of Chicago’s Drill music scene and graphic arts designer, to join a couple of projects to share her marketing and event production wisdom, but the Classic resonated with her the most, “clearly.” 

The event was initially going to be just a basketball game that would promote Clark’s programming. However, after Heard-Powell joined as the creative director, it became much more. 

What “started as a conversation” transformed into “generations of people that all came back together in the same place,” Heard-Powell said.

Prior to the extravaganza, alumni had already started to become familiar faces for Thornton youth. Heard-Powell would visit the school and mingle with students, and now they are getting used to casually seeing alumni around the building. 

“[The students] started to treat us like big cousins,” Heard-Powell said.

The excitement for the Classic was evident, selling over a thousand tickets in just two months. This year’s extravaganza was made possible thanks to efforts from Thornton alumni-founded companies and the Harvey community, including WDB Marketing and MeanStreets Sports.

‘Trying my best’

Mielle Cares, a nonprofit started by Harvey native and Mielle Organics haircare founder Monique Rodriguez, sponsored the morning’s panel “MiMental Mindset” with 2003 alumna Tiffany Chestine as the moderator. The initiative provides dynamic programs like MiMental Mindset to empower teens and champion youth mental health. 

Mental health was a rare discussion back in the day, Chestine said. She recalled having trouble identifying her own anxiety until grad school. “We were navigating through challenges of living in this community, dealing with family, doing classes and trying to prepare for our future on our own.”

A recent study from The Lancet, an international medical journal, found that 83 percent of teens with a history of mental illness said the pandemic worsened their condition. 

Thornton senior and cheerleader Qiara Alexander is applying to colleges while balancing academic and social responsibilities. “I’m one of those kids who felt the need to give up because my senior year is not the best so far,” Alexander said. “I’m just trying my best.”

The panel reminded her to not give up and to focus on her future goals, like joining the cheer team in college if it’s the right fit, Alexander said. She also enjoyed seeing former graduating classes return to Thornton and relive their high school days. “Being a Wildcat means being lit and being very fun and not a negative person, and just staying positive, always.”

Uniting the decades

The basketball tournament wagers alongside the camaraderie between former classmates, current students, their families, and other attendees. They catch up with one another. Some talk across rows of bleachers after spotting a familiar face. 

People filter in and out of the gym, bracing the cold weather to the nearby food trucks. The buzzer keeping the game’s score cuts through to the outside. Hawkins delivers playful court side commentary, often referring to one player as “Black Jesus.” Heard-Powell helps announce the game as the tournament advances. Double dutch breaks out on the gym floor.

A moment of silence to honor the late Keithan Holmes, teacher and coach of Thornton’s girls varsity basketball team. The hosts present Holmes’ family with a plaque embellished in photos of the beloved coach and a special message immersed in gold.

“[Coach Holmes] ran around us, raising all of us since we were in elementary school,” Heard-Powell yells. “This entire tournament wouldn’t even be able to happen because he structured us to be able to structure this.”

After two nail-biting games between the four teams, the purple and gray teams advance to the championship. The gray team emerges victorious, taking home the first ever Classic championship trophy.

Event organizers hope the Wildcat Classic inspires Thornton youth to keep the tradition alive for years to come. “Our goal is to just keep this going,” Chestine said. “We want to integrate our older alumni…into being here with these students now. Every event that we do is going to be for [the students].”

The turnout and the community’s positive response surpassed Heard-Powell’s expectations, but it reflected Wildcat pride and Harvey’s close-knit community, she said. 

“The majority of us who did end up in Thornton have known each other since kindergarten,” Heard-Powell said. “We know each other’s parents, grandparents. It’s a sense of community versus just overall Wildcat pride. It’s a sense of home.”