(Photos by Cliff DesPeaux)
7-year-old Damar Johnson was among the first tonight to aim for the net at a new basketball court dedicated tonight at the South Park Community Center. The event, covered for WSB by photojournalist Cliff DesPeaux, was more than a dedication; it was a tribute in honor of Teresa Butz, killed a little more than a year ago during a desperate, and successful, bid to save her partner’s life during a vicious attack in their South Park home; tomorrow is the anniversary of a memorial attended by hundreds, also at SPCC (WSB coverage here). The Fight the Fear Campaign has been active in her memory – helping create new opportunities for South Park youth, like the new basketball facility:

Fight the Fear provided $5,000 seed money for the court. The Seattle Storm – co-owned by West Seattleite Anne Levinson – is a partner in the project.

Storm players came to tonight’s event to present a basketball clinic, and to meet fans like 9-year-old Fernando Cruz:

Here’s Fernando with Storm forward/center Abby Bishop:

All that basketball worked up an appetite for a barbecue on the beautiful summer night:

Among the dozens who attended tonight, Teresa’s partner, who spoke with our partners at the Seattle Times (here’s their story about the event), calling the dedication “healing and hopeful.”