Sometimes, things just fall perfectly into place—and this is one of those moments.A once-in-a-generation opportunity has opened the door for SAY Detroit to rebuild, reimagine, and reinvest in the iconic St. Cecilia Campus and Gym—affectionately known by Detroit basketball legends as “The Saint.” Today, live from the 2025 Radiothon, we are thrilled to announce a new chapter:
The SAY Detroit Play Center at St. Cecilia
SAY Detroit is launching a transformative investment in Detroit’s future: the acquisition and redevelopment of the historic St. Cecilia campus into a state-of-the-art youth development, academic enrichment, leadership, and recreation center serving the city’s west side. This bold project, funded by a multimillion-dollar campaign, will restore one of Detroit’s most iconic cultural spaces and convert it into a modern, high impact resource for thousands of young people and families.
The announcement was made during today’s SAY Detroit Radiothon, where SAY Detroit invited Mayor Michael Duggan, former Mayor Dave Bing, former Chief of the Detroit Police Department and Deputy Mayor Isaiah McKinnon, and Judith (Pickop) Cureton and Sari Cureton, widow and daughter (respectively) of Earl Cureton to join in the festivities. Mayor-Elect Mary Sheffield called in from her honeymoon.
SAY Detroit is committed to honoring this historic campus while bringing it back to life as a vibrant community hub focused on academic growth, workforce readiness, healthy youth development, and long-term neighborhood stability.
For a decade, the SAY Detroit Play Center at Lipke Park has shown what’s possible for our city’s young people. Our proven model tackles the barriers families face every day—like limited academic support, lack of safe recreation, and too few opportunities for college and career exploration. Through year-round programming, engaged mentors, and community partnerships, SAY Play has become a place where students thrive.
- Our senior Class of 2025 earned a 100% graduation rate, with 4 students heading to four-year colleges
- We are creating readers: 100% of youth enrolled in literary cohort improved reading proficiency during the school year
- It’s six-week 2025 Summer Discovery program boasts a 92% retention rate of youth participants
- More than 70% of students who participated in our afterschool program were provided transportation from school and to their homes each day — this service is essential for consistent attendance
- Enrollment and programming serves youth from more than 50 schools
At Lipke Park, every student completes academic support sessions before stepping into arts and athletics—ensuring school success always comes first. Teachers and coaches serve as mentors, guiding students on and off the court.
Now, we’re ready to bring that same success to Detroit’s west side.
St. Cecilia Parish was founded in 1921 and the parish school opened in the mid-1920s; the high school addition (which included the gym) opened around 1930. The building that contains the famous gym — a near-sacred space where basketball legends including Magic Johnson, George Gervin, Jalen Rose, Derrick Coleman, Isiah Thomas, Earl Cureton, and Chris Webber sharpened their skills — started life as part of the parish/school complex. It converted in the 1960s into a rec center, driven by urgent community need for a safe gathering space, under the leadership of Fr. Ray Ellis and Sam Washington Sr.
“If there is one center that means something to longtime Detroiters, it’s St. Cecilia’s…That gym and that school have been sitting vacant for a long time… You want to do something that would mean something to the basketball tradition of this city, the neighborhood tradition of this city—this is it.”
MAYOR MIKE DUGGAN, LIVE FROM THE RADIOTHON
The redeveloped St. Cecilia campus will carry on this tradition of nurturing talent and building SAY Detroit’s mission to provide pathways to success for those in need. The ambitious vision for the project — 25 classrooms, over 25,000 square feet of learning space on a combined 8 acres (approximate) of space includes multiple purpose-built spaces to support academic growth, workforce readiness, healthy youth development, and community stability:
1. Academic Success Wing
2. STEM & Digital Innovation Labs
3. Arts, Music, and Cultural Development
4. Athletics & Health
5. Workforce, Leadership, and Life Skills
6. Family Empowerment Hub
7. Community & Multi-Use Spaces
We can’t wait to welcome youth into the SAY Detroit Play Center at St. Cecilia, where they’ll learn, grow, and take their place on the beloved hardwoods of “The Saint.”
If you are interested in lending your early support to this ambitious capital project, please contact Executive Director Richard Kelley at rick@saydetroit.org.
