Testimonials
Macpro under the aegis and founder Michael Carty, has been at the cutting edge and leading edge of providing youth service delivery through sports at the Damilola Taylor Centre, Peckham. As a young man growing up in the vicinity of Peckham, I spent most of my time playing sports combined with my academic studies under the auspices of Michael et.al, which shaped me mentally and physically preparing me for the outside world. I’ve also witnessed young boys taking their assignment into the centre whilst playing sports.
In 1997, Southwark Council wanted to close the Centre and I was called upon to make an impromptu deputation as to why the Centre must be open, and the good work of Macpro and other football projects that were keeping young men off the streets and in particular, that crime rates dropped whilst the Centre was occupied by young boys of all persuasions. Not only did I make a successful argument for not closing the Centre down, the council rebuilt a new state- of -the -art sport complex with new facilities catering for different age ranges for the community.
After spells of academic excellence at The University of Oxford; Keele University and Birmingham City, I continued my relationship with MACPRO, and I currently serve the community in a political capacity and as one of the youngest Magistrate in the South London Bench administering justice locally.
In conclusion, the work of MACPRO is invaluable in giving hope to youngsters from underprivileged background, and acts as a catalyst for social mobility in economically deprived areas like Peckham and Brixton. The mentorship of Michael is second-to-none, and it is in this regard that the training and discipline has helped produced some of my colleagues working for blue chip companies, voluntary sector organizations and others are valuable members of society.
Donald Cole JP; M.A., BA (Hons), Ad. Dip. L.Hist (Oxon)
"The Macpro initiative is a big part of my life and has helped me become the young, ambitious man that I am. Macpro has acted as a platform for me to hone my basketball talent and life skills over the years and opened doors for me to progress myself. I have gone on to play in the British Colleges Tournament with the Richmond College Academy in 2005-2007, I have played National League basketball with three teams and I have received a scholarship to play and study from a college in Chicago in 2009-10.
"Ever since, I joined the Macpro program as a young boy it has given me the opportunity to develop myself on the court. However, I have also learnt the value of its intention – creating an positive outlet for young people to turn to. It has helped nurture my creative mind and given me a blueprint of what kind of projects I want to run and the purpose of it. As I have grown older, I have become involved in the program itself as a mentor – under the guidance of Michael Carty - to the younger generation and the ethos of taking ownership has encouraged me to be actively involved in bettering young people through sport.
"Through Macpro, I have met loads of friends and some that I can call my brothers – with our special bond we created our own basketball team the Controllers. As a team our ambition has grown over the years and with that money has become involved. However, this is not a negative as it refused to deter us from our ambitions and drive us towards making it happen. We are now registered as a small society which entitles us to raise money towards our goals like playing in tournaments abroad. For example in February 2011, we held our very first non-related event – Miss London NABA Beauty Pageant – which helped us raise money and also open doors to another demographic of young people to get involved in creating a youthful, innovative event for all to enjoy, we managed to generate an enthusiastic crowd of 800 people at our first event."
Banj Abeleda (March 2011)
“I am writing in support Macpro & development of Flaxman Sports Centre, as a centre for basketball delivery. Macpro’s involvement at Flaxman has continued the legacy with the community, regarding basketball. I owe part of my own successful basketball career to the sports centre for helping me to reach my dreams.
Let me introduce myself my name is Head Coach Steve Bucknall, Former GB/England captain and currently chairman of the London Coaches Association. I came through the Crystal Palace Youth Basketball Program in the1980’s and went on to become a professional basketball player for 17years in USA & Europe. Along the way I undertook a sport Scholarship in America and attended the University of North Carolina under the legendary coach Dean E Smith, who coached Michael Jordan, and there I became the first English player to play In the NBA with the Los Angeles Lakers.
As a younger player I use to play a lot of basketball at Flaxman and this venue gave me and many other young players an opportunity to learn and develop their skills. Finally, The Macpro company has taken over this legacy and continued to offer a service to our community and I give my support for such good work to continue”.
Steve Bucknall
"I have known Mike Carty for as long as I can remember and he has always had venues for kids to get off the streets and play basketball which is a very good thing. Through basketball I have made lifelong friends, stayed healthy, travelled to many countries and venues, learned the value of hard work and I am in FULL support of anyone who helps brings people together in such a positive light."
Benjamin Lawmann 2011
