The basketball courts at Shelly Bay and Jones’s Village Community Field have been restored to their former glory thanks to a partnership between the Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation and the MoonGate Group.

The two parties joined forces to invest in newly fabricated metal backboards, rims and signage for each of the public facilities.

“It is quite gratifying that we are able to give back Bermuda in this manner,” Leon Bascome, the MoonGate Group chief executive, said. “I am from Hamilton Parish and grew up running countless laps around Shelly Bay Field; thus, it is only natural for me to invest in my own community.”

The distance runner and basketball enthusiast said he was “very excited” to see youths playing basketball on the courts the very next day after the restoration project had been completed.

Bascome added: “I would like to thank the Minister of Youth, Culture and Sport, Dr Ernest Peets and Dr Freddy Evans for their shared vision, the Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation, Department of Parks, and Chantel Simons, of MoonGate, for collectively making this happen.”

The restoration of the courts is a cornerstone of efforts by the Ministry of Youth, Culture and Sport and the Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation to ensure that the public have clean and safe recreational spaces to share and enjoy.

It is envisioned that community groups and national governing bodies, such as the Bermuda Basketball Association and the Bermuda Netball Association, will use the facilities to train and stage matches.