What to know
- Toronto Tempo guard Marina Mabrey visited a North York summer camp run by the Black Women’s Institute for Health (BWIH).
- Mabrey raised $6,500 for BWIH through a partnership with Under Armour, which donated $500 for every basket she made during the WNBA All-Star three-point challenge.
- The donation is helping BWIH provide school supplies, backpacks, shoes, meals and snacks for campers.
- BWIH’s Village Rising Summer Institute serves about 20 children ages six to 13 and is largely free to families.
- Mabrey joined the North York campers for basketball activities, a meet-and-greet and autographs.
- As a player on the WNBA’s first Canadian team, Mabrey said she wants to be a visible role model for girls in Toronto who aspire to careers in sports.
- BWIH founder Kearie Daniel hopes the visit can grow into a long-term relationship between Mabrey and the organization.
Toronto Tempo star Marina Mabrey showed up and showed out for a group of young people attending a camp in North York, following a recent donation to the organization running the program.
The Toronto Tempo guard and local hero spent an afternoon trading the WNBA court for a North York school basketball court, joining a group of young people for basketball activities, a meet-and-greet, and autographs. The group were part of the Village Rising Summer Institute at the Black Women’s Institute for Health (BWIH), a local organization that recently received a donation from the guard thanks to a partnership with Under Armour.
Mabrey partnered with the athletic equipment brand during the recent 2026 All-Star Game, making a $500 donation to the BWIH for every basket she sank during the tournament’s three-pointer challenge. The result? A $6,500 donation to the organization, which is dedicated to transforming health and wellness outcomes for Black women and girls.
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Kearie Daniel, founder and executive director of BWIH, said the campers had been following Mabrey’s All-Star Weekend performance after learning about the donation.
“They were watching highlight reels of her, and they’ve just been really excited,” Daniel told Queer & Now. “When we heard about the donation with the three pointers, we told the parents, and they all went home and were following along and watching the All-Star Game as well.”
Daniel explained that Under Armour has also donated backpacks and shoes for the campers, while the $6,500 will help BWIH purchase items such as geometry sets, pens and crayons to fill the backpacks.
Funding for food
The donation has also been partially allocated to one of the less flashy but important parts of running a summer camp: feeding children.
BWIH’s Village Rising program is largely free, with an optional $50 registration fee. The organization provides campers with a morning snack, afternoon snack and lunch each day, with some children also taking leftovers home.
“Food costs are so expensive, and summers are really hard for parents,” Daniel said. “Most camps are paying like $300 a week. Plus, you have to pay for food, so we’ve been really mindful of that.”
The camp serves about 20 children, sometimes increasing to 22 depending on the week, ranging in age from six to 13. While the program is focused on Black children, Daniel emphasized that BWIH does not turn anyone away.
Showing up is as important as shelling out
During the event, Mabrey told Queer & Now that for her, showing up to the camp in person is just as important as donating.
“I think it’s one thing to kind of put your money somewhere and donate, [it’s] another thing to be of access to them and show them your face and let them get to know you, ask questions, pick your brain, and kind of be somebody that they can look up to,” she shared.
She explained that having the opportunity to connect with young people in the community carries particular significance as a member of the Toronto Tempo, the WNBA’s first Canadian team. Mabrey explained that she wants to make an impact on girls in Toronto, particularly because they now have access to a professional women’s basketball team and players they can see themselves aspiring to become.
“They haven’t had the chance to look up to women who did make it to be great in women’s sports,” she said. “So now that they have that face, that person that they can come and be motivated by, see some inspiration. That’s kind of what my goal is.”
“I think it’s a big honour, but also like a big responsibility.”
Daniel added that having a WNBA team in Toronto could potentially have a major impact on girls and women interested in sports. She hopes the recent visit is the beginning of a longer relationship between Mabrey and the organization.
“I hope that we’re able to form a long-term relationship, and that the girls can kind of bond with her and learn from her,” Daniel said.
For Mabrey, that kind of connection is part of what motivates her community work.
Bringing attention to the systemic issues Black women
She said supporting BWIH was also about bringing attention to the systemic issues Black women continue to face.
“It’s one thing to be disappointed, and another thing to kind of like try to make a change and try to put yourself out there to bring awareness to it,” she said.
Her message to young women hoping to pursue careers in sports is similarly straightforward: start moving toward the vision they have for themselves.
“When you see something, a vision for yourself, the way that you can impact the community, just go and do it, and the rest will take care of itself,” Mabrey said.
For the Village Rising campers, that message came with a little more than words. They left the afternoon with basketball memories, new gear and the chance to meet a professional athlete who hopes to help them see what might be possible.
And for BWIH, the donation means the organization can continue providing some of the practical supports that allow children to participate in the first place, from school supplies to meals and snacks throughout the summer.
