Trojan Candy and my husband Jim were already in downtown Los Angeles. We attended the first "Older Adult Summit" earlier in the day. Now, we were the first two guests to arrive in the Galen Center lobby for the Men's Basketball Banquet. Sitting at a table with a clear view of the check in table, no player was going to get by Trojan Candy.
When Trojan Candy saw Jonah Mathews walk away from the basketball autograph table, I was able to catch up with him and ask him if I could take his picture and interview him. He said, "Yes." Jonah is majoring in Communication. His favorite books are "Harry with Friends" and any sports book. Jonah said that he would like to become a Mentor to high school basketball players. His favorite food is Alfredo pasta. As for his favorite movie, Jonah likes Disney movies. His two favorite movies are "Jungle Book" and "Lion King." Jonah likes two music artists---rapper Drake and R&B artist Bryson Taylor. Lastly, Jonah told me that he is very close to his family. FIGHT ON, Jonah!
After the interview, Trojan Candy took Jonah, who is from Santa Monica, over to talk with friend and fellow Trojan Guild of Los Angeles member Jean Ann Holbrook. Her husband Bob is a former mayor of Santa Monica. Jonah wanted to see them again after I took a picture of him with Bob at his first scrimmage on Wednesday, October 19, 2016. Bob was nowhere to be seen, but Jonah posed with Jean Ann and her friend Susan Caldwell.
Trojan Candy walked back to the basketball table and saw De'Anthony Melton and his family. They gathered for this cute picture. There is De'Anthony holding his brother Damani, brother Damauri, mother Monique, and sister Destiny. Monique played Power Forward in high school. Their family is from Texas, and De'Anthony's Nanny lives in my home town of Houston. Now, here is my interview with De'Anthony. He chose USC so that he could be close to home in North Hollywood, his family could see him play, and he said that he felt "at home" at USC. De'Anthony is majoring in Communication. More personally, tacos is his favorite food. De'Anthony said that he could eat tacos all day! His hobby is playing video games, and his favorite game is NBA 2K 17. "Creed" is his favorite movie, and "The Flash" is his favorite television show. He likes Hip-Hop music and Chance is his favorite rapper. FIGHT ON, De'Anthony!
Trojan Candy finally saw Senior Charles Buggs! I followed him and reached up on my tippy-toes to tap him on his shoulder. Charles turned around, looked down at me, and smiled. He agreed to let me interview him. Charles earned his M.S. in Communication at USC. As for his two hobbies, he likes to hang out with friends and go shopping for clothes. You can see he is wearing a very fashionable bow tie! Charles loves Asian food. As for movies, he likes dramatic films as well as action films. Another Trojan after Candy's own heart! Charles likes R and B music and Jazz. Drake and John Mellankamp are his favorite artists. FIGHT ON, Charles! I interviewed Charles in the nick of time....The Spirit of Troy marched into the lobby to encourage the guests in the lobby to get in line for their food.
I made it back to my table just in time for the start of the program.
Athletic Director Lynn Swann spoke first. He thanked the parents, fans, staff, support people, and coaches and advised the players to practice teamwork and fellowship. Next, Steve Lopes, Senior Associate Athletic Director, told the audience, "We are just getting started!"
After the audience cheering from the two videos died down, Coach Enfield tantalized everyone about "good news and bad news." His "good news" was that this team set the school record with 26 wins. Then he told us the "bad news." Coach Enfield, with a somber face, told us that USC had the most number of players to declare for the draft. "Nine players are declaring for the draft." Then he showed a picture of the nine players. Audience laughter drew a big smile on Coach Enfield's face! What a tease! In the picture, some of them were players; others were USC Road Warriors. Pictured left to right were top row: Elijah Stewart, Grant Nichol, Bennie Boatwright, Sue Cimbuluk, and Sam Dhillon. Bottom row: Lynn Swann, Shaqquan Aaron, Kurt Karis, and John Colich.
Next, Coach Enfield spoke fondly of Elijah Stewart and Jordon McLaughlin, who were part of his 1st recruiting class. He said, "They came to USC on a dream." Trojan Candy is so glad that they chose USC.
Now it was time for the awards. They are as follows:
Congratulations to all of our Award Winners!
As guests were either leaving or lingering to talk to friends, Trojan Candy took two pictures of three dear friends.
What a fabulous evening!
FIGHT ON, USC's Men's Basketball!
Trojan Candy can be in two places at once! While I was walking and walking around Swim with Mike taking pictures, my husband Jim was at the Women of Troy Tennis match with Colorado. Unbeknownst to me, it was Senior Salute Day for the Women of Troy.
Head Coach Richard Gallien allowed Jim to come onto the court to take pictures. Thanks, Coach Gallien!
Using my Canon G16 camera, Jim took these beautiful, memorable pictures.
FIGHT ON, Zoe! FIGHT ON, Ines!
Our Women of Troy Tennis Team beat Colorado 7-0.
Trojan Candy stayed after the match and saw Ines Guinard just as she was walking out of the stadium. I ran after her and asked her if I could take her picture and interview her. With a beautiful smile, she obliged. Ines majored in Industrial Engineering. I asked her why she chose USC. Ines said that USC is excellent in engineering, the academics overall at USC is also excellent, and she was awarded a Trustee Scholarship. Trojan Candy is so glad that Ines chose USC! Her parents live in Madrid, but Ines had lived in the United States before she attended USC. That must be why her English is impeccable. Ines told me that her favorite food is paella, which is a Valencian rice dish. As for movies, "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" is her favorite. The Spanish book "The Time In Between" is her favorite book. As for hobbies, Ines loves to play golf. Thank you, Ines, and FIGHT ON!
Trojan Candy was so fortunate to be able to interview Ines.
FIGHT ON, Women of Troy Tennis!