PeacePlayers US Storybook 2021 - Flipbook - Page 16
2021 UNITED STATES STORYBOOK
2021 UNITED STATES STORYBOOK
TIME HEALS ALL WOUNDS
For six excruciating years, Tee Buchanan was practically tethered
to her apartment.
understandably took time for her to reach a decision. But in the
end, her choice was clear.
A seemingly innocuous knee injury, suffered when she fell while
trying to break up a fight at the Department of Children and Family
Services home where she was working, had made her essentially
homebound for over half a decade. Tee has always given her all
to helping young people who’ve fallen on hard times, even to her
own personal detriment.
“This is the work I want to do,” said Tee, who joined PeacePlayers
Chicago as its new Program Coordinator in January, 2021. “I
always said when I get done playing basketball, I want to work for
non-profits in the community, being an inner-city girl working in
a community to make a difference. I feel like that can be impactful.
The kids feel like they have some type of hope when they see
somebody like me who has done different things. And it was just
literally picture perfect.”
For anyone, this would be difficult. But for Tee, a basketball
star at Chicago’s Westinghouse High School who later won a
national championship at Division II Washburn University, it was
practically unbearable.
But she knew this wasn’t the end of her story. And it wasn’t, not
by a long shot.
Enduring eight surgeries over the course of a decade, Tee finally
regained some mobility and in 2017 began a rewarding career as a
P.E. teacher. Not long after, PeacePlayers Chicago Director Andrea
Johnson, who had once recruited Tee to play at the University
of Illinois-Chicago, approached her about doing some volunteer
work with PeacePlayers’ new Chicago program.
Two years later, Tee, happily settled into a life of teaching and
service that only a year or two earlier seemed unimaginable,
received another offer from Johnson–would Tee be interested in
joining PeacePlayers on a full-time basis?
It would require giving up a career she adored, and it
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Although her decision to leave teaching for PeacePlayers was
the right one, Tee remained close to many of her students and
has continued to be there for them through difficult times. One
of her former students died of cancer, another was killed and yet
another was shot in the arm but survived. As someone who grew
up surrounded by a tribe that ensured she remained on track, it
was only natural that she showed up for her surviving student by
providing meals and emotional support not only to the student,
but to their siblings as well.
Being the kind of person who builds relationships and develops
trust within the Roseland community is why Tee was a perfect fit
for PeacePlayers Chicago. One of the kids she began to help when
she first joined PeacePlayers was dealing with all sorts of troubles.
His mom was battling cancer and he was making bad decisions at
school and in his personal life. Reaching him became her mission.
“I told him how I grew up, my story and my upbringing,” Tee said.
“There was a lot for him to relate to. I told him you don’t have to
stick to your environment. You can overcome what you’re going
through if you allow PeacePlayers to work with you and help you.
You will see the difference.”
Tee describes her formative years in the inner city as being
defined by community. There was a certain level of respect that
even those who were gang affiliated had for the path she was on.
They often went as far as to provide protection on her journey
to and from practice, because ultimately, they wanted better for
her. Her neighbors looked out for the young people, and held folks
accountable. “If anyone was out of line, it was acknowledged”, Tee
says.
By sharing her story and not giving up on a young man facing
difficulties, Tee was true to her word. She made a difference, which
is all she ever wanted to do when she was stuck in her apartment
waiting for her body to heal.
“You see this kid now, he’s an honor roll student, made the varsity
basketball team, getting recruited by colleges,” she said. “He tells
me all the time when he sends me a message just thanking me
for having those conversations with him all the time. I’m always
checking in to make sure not only he’s doing well, that his family
is doing well. I’ll do those things in a heartbeat for anybody.
“I feel like being in the classroom for eight hours a day
you’re impactful. But the time I’m able to spend here is more
impactful than what I can do than being in the classroom.
And that’s when I knew I made the right decision.”
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