By Ryan Makuch
It was a massively busy weekend for AFC Ann Arbor. In addition to a trifecta of home matches, two for the men, and one for the women, there were also community celebrations on all three days. In case you may have missed any of these special events put on in conjunction with our partners, we spoke to those on-site each day to elaborate on the events and the importance of bringing the community together for moments like this.
Friday – Formula 734’s Halftime Performance
Live music at community events is nothing new, but this was indeed a first for The Mighty Oak. Formula 734 is a collective of young people working together to make music. Made possible by Washtenaw My Brother’s Keeper, and a project helmed by Jamall Bufford, the group is preparing to release their second album, as well as a documentary that is already premiering at independent film festivals around the nation.
But on Friday they were at Hornet Stadium, on the deck at the south end of the stadium, performing for the AFCAA crowd in attendance.
Bufford explained this, saying, “A couple of months ago Bilal [Saeed, Club Chair] reached out and said, ‘Hey can we get Formula 734 to perform at halftime of a game? I said for sure … we wanted to try and do it during the Juneneeth weekend, and we settled on Friday the 18th.”
Hosting the performance on that Friday meant that Bufford and the rest of the Formula 734 performers got to see an intense and physical showdown between The Mighty Oak and the Flint City Bucks. And, believe it or not, the match itself is what Bufford found himself enjoying most on the day.
Talking about his favorite part of the afternoon, Bufford said, “Seeing them react to the game, how physical the game it was, and a couple of them want to go back! I had other obligations, so I had to leave early, but a couple of young guys really did not leave, so they were like ‘Can we come back?!’
But, as a whole, Bufford saw the entire performance as a rousing success. “The young men did a great job,” Bufford said, beaming with pride.
Bufford would continue, “I think the crowd received it well. We got some great footage from Andres as well, with his drone, and we were also able to capture some additional footage that we’ll be using for our documentation of Volume 2 as well. I thought it was great, the weather was great! It all went well.”
Mansa RR, Vanni, and AnimeKing were the performing representatives from Formula 734, with Lewy Seifer unable to attend, and DJ TJ serving as the DJ. Of those young men, Bufford noted that Mansa RR (real name Reese) had a real enthusiasm for the match. “He was super excited about the game,” Bufford noted, and he was leading the charge for Formula 734’s return back to Hornet Stadium to take in another match from The Mighty Oak.
Saturday – CLR Academy Kick-Off
CLR Academy has become a flagship program of the summer for the AFC Ann Arbor Family as a collective. And on Saturday, the 2022 summer officially began with CLR Academy being hosted at two of its four locations, featuring plenty of food, friends, and fun. The Academy took place at Sycamore Meadows first, the initial spot of the Academy, before moving on to Park Ridge in the Southside of Ypsilanti in the afternoon.
Justin Harper, CLR Director, and Bufford, who serves as the WMBK Director for CLR Academy, have both put countless hours into the preparation for the expansion of CLR Academy. With three new locations this summer, the hope is to continue to assist in putting on engaging and fun programming for the residents of our community who may be overlooked.
Bufford had some time to reflect on a project that (like Formula 734) he called his “baby” and seemed overjoyed at the growth that the project had undergone in such a short period of time.
Harper also was exuberant over the day’s activities, with both settings having their own distinct feel. At Sycamore Meadows, Harper noted, “It’s a community getting together and having fun together, the vibe was more of an ‘I’ll get to know you, you get to know me again’ type of launch.”
On the Southside, attendance was more sparse given the lack of initial local knowledge, but, as Harper notes, there was an event near them at The Magic Square, which, “Gave us a chance to engage with people from the community, and so we were able to chat about the things we had going on, and advertise for the programs we were doing and will be doing all summer.”
AFCAA players were on-site for both sessions, and Blake Corum also made an appearance at Sycamore Meadows, where he has previously appeared and spent time with the kids. Harper said that this also served as an opportunity for The Mighty Oak’s men and women to simply play and act like big kids.
Harper would elaborate on the enthusiasm of the players: “Just bonding with the kids and building the relationships with them, and I can tell from the attitude that they had was very high-energy.”
Harper’s final thought on the matter was this. He would say, as a statement of intent for the summer, “I just really hopeful of bringing the community together, having as many people come every weekend as possible, building that bond amongst peers and staff, and working on the strongholds of relationships and continuing to have them grow.”
So far, that can be considered a success after the first weekend.
Sunday – The Fitness House’s Juneneeth Wellness Fair
The weekend’s off-field activities would conclude on Sunday, Juneteenth, with The Fitness House’s annual Wellness Fair. This year’s Wellness Fair would be The Fitness House’s second annual, and it serves as an extension of Brian Young’s mission with The Fitness House.
Young’s intent with the Juneteenth Wellness Fair starts around the holiday of Juneteenth itself. “Once I had the idea to do the Wellness Fair, the next question was ‘okay, what’s a good time to do it?’”, said, Young.
Young thought about centering it around the 4th of July, or around Thanksgiving, but then, “For me, I and my wife have decided, over the years, to reinvent and reassess our holidays, and our traditions, and what they mean to us. And Juneteenth, it’s not the most important, [but] it’s one of the most important for us. Being a Black family, and acknowledging that date in history, is huge because, without the official end to slavery, I and my family wouldn’t be in this position.”
The event itself being a Wellness Fair also highlights one of Young’s most important principles, fostering a healthy, active, lifestyle, even from a young age. Young noted his delight at seeing plenty of kids running around and enjoying themselves at what he also noted was an event designed to be kid-friendly.
A father of three himself, Young noted that it’s vital to “show your kids the experience of fitness, and making it something so that when they grow up they don’t think of fitness as a chore.”
It wasn’t just children enjoying themselves, but many of Young’s clients also attended and made the fitness challenges ones remember. Young notes that the sled push gets very competitive, and this year the winning sled pushee pushed over 900 pounds on the sled, up from 790 pounds by last year’s winner.
The sled push, as well as other more doable activities for some of the younger attendees, like push-up and wall-sit challenges, were an essential part of the day, as well. “For us, it’s fitness, it’s health, it’s wellness, so we’re not necessarily gonna have rides and attractions … we’re gonna make it wellness related,” Young said, about the events at the fair.
More important than the flashy rides that other “fairs” may entail, Young centered his event around that fitness message, while also wanting to raise more awareness for the holiday of Juneteenth, as well as make connections between the community and other local businesses.
Young said in that regard, “I also want to use our platform to highlight other businesses that may not have a storefront or following or are new businesses.” He would add, “My idea was to have them come out and provide some of their services to people so that people can learn about them.”
A jam-packed weekend only further shows the strength of our AFCAA Family, and our Washtenaw County community. Formula 734, CLR Academy, and The Fitness House are all just a few of the groups making a crucial difference in our community, and The Mighty Oak are proud to support them in the work that they do.