WNBA Star Visits Gwen Cherry Park

On Saturday, April 3rd, 2021, WNBA star Erica Wheeler returned home to Gwen Cherry Park to donate basketball shoes to all of our Gwen Cherry Bulls for this season. Erica is a professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA). Wheeler grew up in the Miami neighborhood of Liberty City, where she played basketball at Gwen Cherry Park. Liberty City is one of the most underserved communities in South Florida, and in spite of her circumstances, Erica achieved in basketball and in school and earned a scholarship to Rutgers University. The daughter of Eric Wheeler and Melissa Cooper, Wheeler grew up in her grandmother’s five-bedroom home with a dozen other siblings and relatives until she was 11. Her mother steered her away from playing pick-up ball in local parks, toward organized basketball in high school, college, and the Professional League. Erica Wheeler is the first player in franchise history to win All-Star MVP in 2019. Now, one of her life goals is to give back to her neighborhood and instill hope in the kids who live there and are facing the same setbacks that she fought to overcome. Her visit left a smile on every face as our Gwen Cherry Bulls showed off their fresh kicks!

Written by Zhia Henderson