When World Hoop Day began on 7/7/7 we knew we were set through 12/12/12. After that was a mystery, one that is currently being solved. When will World Hoop Day 2013 and beyond take place? Hoopin’ Annie O’Keefe of WHD told Hooping.org, “We’ve been looking at weather trends, holidays, asteroids, the BIG picture. We’ve narrowed it down to several possible dates and the time has come for a vote.” What are we deciding between? Let’s take a closer look.
Of the six options, first on the list is 10/10 every year. Early October is a great time for World Hoop Day in that it is typically reasonable to be outdoors regardless of whether you are in the Northern or Southern Hemisphere. An obstacle that we do see with 10/10, however, is that Thanksgiving in Canada is held on the second Monday in October. That means that every now and then World Hoop Day will be sharing the date with Canadian Thanksgiving. If you’re Canadian that could be a problem. #2 on the list is 3/14 every year, a date we love in theory for it represents pi and pi is the irrational mathematical constant that we use to calculate the diameter of our hoops. 3/14 is actually Pi Day already and while we love the significance, mid-March relegates many to be celebrating WHD indoors from here on out, seeing as March can still be very cold in the northern lands. 3rd on the ballot is to have World Hoop Day celebrated on 1/13/13, then 1/14/14, then 1/15/15, etc. While it certainly has a nice numerical flair to it, it would be World Hoop Day in January, right smack in the middle of winter.
The fourth option on the list would be to celebrate on 9/22 or 9/23 – the fall equinox. Late September is a good time of year for it regardless of where you live on planet earth. This seems workable and we don’t foresee any obstacles, other than WHD more often than not landing on a weekday when kids are in school and adults are at work. The 5th option is another progressive date series: 3/1/13, 4/1/14, 5/1/15, etc. We like that it is similar in it’s intent to the original World Hoop Day theme and that it moves throughout the year. There could be potential conflicts, but they would be a one year only thing. And finally the sixth option is to have World Hoop Day be the first Saturday of October every year. One of the things we love most about this option is that World Hoop Day would always be on the weekend and weekends mean kids aren’t in school and more people can participate. Early October is also good time of year. The only drawback we see here is that we wouldn’t have a regular date, but then World Hoop Day never has.
Have your mind made up? Cast Your Vote Here.
A couple of years ago Natallie De Leon Brooks met Nicky Jansen van Vuuren online, a woman that had been volunteering as a translator at Nthebe, a farmschool in South Africa. After learning about the schools conditions, she felt compelled to do something. For the past five years Nicky has been throwing a Christmas party for these kids. She collects used toys, treats & donations of any kind to try to make it the best possible Christmas she can, on her own time. This year Natallie used World Hoop Day as the perfect opportunity to be a part of it. She raised the funds for supplies, gathered a team of lovely souls to make the hoops and the hoops from Casper, Wyoming, were distributed at this year’s Christmas party in Nthebe. Natallie told Hooping.org, “Maybe Im a little emotional, but these kids have written me letters as my friends. Through videos and photos I’ve become so inspired to do more for them. I’ve always known with all my heart that Africa would play a role in my life. Little did I know, it would be through 150 smiling faces inside hoops! I feel blessed beyond measure.”
