HONOURED: The life of the late Louise Brandon (kneeling front right with her fellow Basketball New Zealand referees) will be celebrated at a tournament in Whanganui this weekend.
HONOURED: The life of the late Louise Brandon (kneeling front right with her fellow Basketball New Zealand referees) will be celebrated at a tournament in Whanganui this weekend.
The tireless work of a former Whanganui basketball stalwart will be remembered through an inaugural tournament at Springvale Stadium this weekend.
The Louise Brandon Memorial Tournament will celebrate the work of the long-serving member of the Whanganui Basketball Association who was involved in the sport of many levels.
Former WhanganuiBasketball Association president and working committee member Marie Joseph said Brandon was the backbone of basketball in River City who played a pivotal role giving up her time at the drop a game she loved.
"Louise (Lou Lou) was a long serving member of the Whanganui Basketball Association as treasurer and committee member, a former player of the Vogue Basketball Club and a Basketball New Zealand Referee. Louise was the backbone of Whanganui Basketball keeping operations flowing to perfection, she has been dearly missed," Joseph said.
Brandon passed away suddenly on April 18, 2014 and the Whanganui Basketball Association asked members of Brandon's whanau to host a tournament in her honour.
Originally planned to run over Labour Weekend, lower than anticipated numbers have limited play to Saturday only starting with a karakia around 9am. Many of the junior teams have opted to compete at the annual HoopNation tournament that will debut in Tauranga this weekend after moving from Whanganui earlier this year.
It is expected that the Louise Brandon Memorial Tournament will be an annual event with other grades including Master (40+) implemented next year.
