The youngsters and teenagers attending Chris Duhon’s Summer Basketball Camp this week got to hang around for a special ceremony at the end of Thursday’s drills.

Slidell Mayor Ben Morris and other city officials presented Duhon and his Stand Tall Foundation with a certificate of appreciation for donating $37,000 worth of playground equipment to Possum Hollow, Fritchie and Griffith parks.

“Chris, you are a blessed man with your talent, and we are blessed to receive this generous gift,” said Morris.

Duhon has been conducting summer basketball clinics in three different cities for the last four years. At each clinic, toiletries are collected to send to poor villages in South Africa. (Staff Photo by Anne Lautzenheiser)

This is the fourth year that Duhon, a 2000 graduate of Salmen High School, has conducted the camp. In addition, he conducts camps in Durham, N.C., where he lived while playing for Duke University, and Chicago, where he spent four seasons as point guard for the Chicago Bulls.

Chris and his mother, Vivian Harper, made the contribution after seeing a presentation from Team PLAY, a group of Leadership Northshore 2008 graduates committed to improving recreation facilities for St. Tammany’s youth. Duhon and Harper will also refurbish five outdoor basketball courts in Slidell as part of Operation 21, a project to overhaul 21 courts in the New Orleans metro area.

Duhon is more than just a figurehead at his summer camps. He maintains a continuous presence, providing hands-on instruction along with his team of local coaches. With three summer camps and a lengthy NBA season, however, he doesn’t get back to his hometown as often as he’d like.

“It’s always good to be home,” said Duhon. “Coach Carlin and all these guys are like family to me.”

Duhon will soon trade his number 21 Bulls jersey for one bearing the logo of the New York Knicks, with whom he recently signed in a free agent deal. There he will wear number 1, but in the hearts of Slidell youth, he already holds that spot.