VIDEO: A humid day in Mattapan did not slow the pace of an intense basketball game between teachers from Mattahunt Elementary School and a team from the Boston Fire Department.
Kimberly Hogan, part of the teacher’s team, said her student spectators were thrilled to watch.
"The kids are all amped,” Hogan said. “They're very excited to see the firefighters."
That's the idea of the Fire Department's Community Enrichment Program, or CEP, to get young people excited about the fire service. The outreach effort started with a friendship on the court.
Jorge Diaz, one of the two department members who started CEP, spoke at halftime.
"Larry and I met playing basketball,” he said. “We used to play pickup basketball in the mornings."
That was several years ago. Diaz and Larry Smith then started visiting local community centers and mentoring young people.
CEP became an official department program last October, after the two pitched it to Fire Commissioner Joseph Finn.