Waltham Girls Youth Basketball showcases successes at Parks-Recreation Board meeting

The Parks-Recreation Board heard a presentation from Waltham Girls Youth Basketball president Ken Doherty during its meeting Wednesday night. The organization held its first game of the season last Sunday.

Waltham Girls Youth Basketball has 138 players this year and holds practices at Kennedy Middle School, the Waltham Dual Language School at 617 Lexington St., and Northeastern Elementary School. Doherty noted there had recently been issues with the Kennedy gym floor being “too slippery” but athletic director Nicole Viele arranged for the gym floor to be resealed this weekend,  which should fix the problem.

Waltham Girls Youth Basketball serves players from first grade through middle school, and many players go on to play basketball at Waltham High School. The program collaborates with high school varsity coach Marc Lovett to get the high school girl’s team involved as coaches for the in-town league. The girls also run youth skills clinics. Later this season, Lovett is going to provide an adult coaching clinic for the adult Waltham Girls Youth Basketball coaches.

All registered players are included in the in-town league and for an additional fee can participate in a travel team where there is opportunity to play against other towns. Fee waivers are available for families in need and there is a $50-per-child discount for families that register multiple children.

Most of the players in the program come from MacArthur Elementary School, a situation which board member John Graceffa would like to see change. He suggested that Doherty speak to the principals at the other elementary schools to see how they can get more students involved. Doherty noted he has reached out to PTO organizations to try to bolster recruitment from schools across towns.

In other business, the board:

• Approved the FY 2026 capital budget.
• Approved a request from the Friends of Waltham High School Hockey to hold the annual Skate with the Hawks day at Veterans Memorial Skating Rink on Jan. 4. The program takes place during a public skating session. All profits benefit the Waltham High School hockey program, and attendees get to take pictures with players from the high school hockey teams.
• Discussed a request to add standing garden beds to the Wellington Fields property. Due to a lack of utility access and the fact that the space proposed was already voted to be used as open space with wildflowers, the request will not be considered further.