by Jisu Sheen The New Haven independent
“DCB4LIFE”—that’s Dallas Cowboys for Life!
Free school supplies from the CT Cowboys station.
If there was a national showdown for football fan clubs, categories might include “most dedicated” or “rowdiest.” But I’ll venture to guess the CT Cowboys, the Nutmeg State’s Dallas Cowboys fan club, just might take home the prize for “most community-oriented.”
On Saturday afternoon, under their star-emblazoned tent at the Edgewood Youth Block Party, members gave out free school supplies, water, and juice. The New Haven-based club does all the regular sports club things: watch games together, travel to visit other fan clubs, and dress in their team’s colors. On top of that, they respond to their community’s needs.
“We feed the homeless four times a year,” said Gardner. “Our motto is giving back to the community.” Describing themselves on their website as “a group of passionate Cowboys fans coming together to support something greater than just football,” the group has been helping Edgewood Alder Evette Hamilton with the Edgewood Youth Block Party for the past four or five years.
“We just like the Cowboys,” CT Cowboys founder Juan Gardner said of how his group came together. His favorite player is linebacker Micah Parsons, who he said the team needs to play. Another fan club member shouted out #88, wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, who she said is a “bad boy” on the team.
The CT Cowboys set up their tent near one of the barriers blocking off Edgewood Avenue between Winthrop and Sherman Avenues. Block partygoers of all ages took the opportunity to rollerskate, bike, dance, run, and stroll down the stretch of open road.
The event is an annual group effort sponsored by Hamilton and fellow alders Frank Douglass, Jr. and Tyisha Walker-Myers and put together by local partners like Edgewood Avenue bookstore Possible Futures, the New Haven Coalition for Active Transportation, and the Greater Dwight Development Corporation.
Inside Possible Futures Saturday, the Golden Radiance Village held a maternal health hub meetup with sound healing, care talks, and giveaways. Outside, people handed out hamburgers, soda, and cupcakes for decorating. Tables and racks displayed all the items a kid might need to start a new school year.
Everything was free — from the food to the school supplies to the backpacks, clothes, and even books (thanks to a partnership between Possible Futures and the CT Association of School Librarians).
“I like it,” said Malaya Rivera. She pointed out the slime on her finger, courtesy of Youth @ Work and the Slime Factory. Rivera’s slime was hot pink, like her outfit. Her mother, Rondraya Barron, said it was Rivera’s favorite color. Barron, who is working on starting her own kids’ spa, paid special attention to her daughter’s sensory experiences with the slime, asking about the scent and consistency.
The New Haven Coalition for Active Transportation set up tiny orange traffic cones as a bike course for kids and adults. Drummer Brian Jarawa Gray led a drum circle where participants could hop in whenever the music moved them. Local author Winsome Bingham read from her book Fish Fry Friday as kids sat on a collection of rugs in front of her.
Block party attendee Angelica Burgos watched as her 1‑year-old nephew Rychaud toddled back and forth from the blocked-off road to the “cool-off” station of water misters. Rychaud had come last year too, but he was just a newborn then. This year, he was old enough to enjoy more of the block party’s offerings and start to understand this was really for him.
“I just love that he’s having fun,” said Burgos, noting that there’s “something for everyone” at the Edgewood Youth Block Party.
“Any organization that reaches out to us, I just tell them yes,” Garder told me. That’s how he and his fellow Dallas Cowboys fans ended up giving away sturdy bags of crayons and pens, folders, and snacks Saturday afternoon.
The club holds monthly meetups, “but we always together,” Gardner said. The fifteen members often get together outside their regular meetups to have happy hour and just hang out. Gardner said the club is “all family; sisters and brothers.” As a big family, they have disagreements and squabble sometimes.
But when it comes to the Dallas Cowboys? “We good on that,” Gardner said, laughing. It’s one of the few things they know they can all agree on.
Another is the importance of helping out community members who could use help with things like food and school supplies. “I love it,” Gardner said of the club’s activities. “I get tired, but it’s worth it.”
To join or talk to the CT Cowboys Fan Club, you can contact ctcowboysfanclub@yahoo.com or (203)-410‑4668.
(From left to right): CT Cowboys’ Juan Gardner, Lauryn Kearney, Gina Williams Foreman, Marie Williams, Lorise Brown, and Calvin Nelson.
Winsome Bingham reads from one of her many picture books, which were also available for free for the kids.
Malaya Rivera: “It smells like strawberry.” (Her mother, Rondraya Barron: “I think you’re just being creative.”)