ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada: The UNICEF Office for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, in collaboration with other partners in Grenada, will host internationally known NBA player Ethan Thomas -- recently named NBA Champion for UNICEF -- who will be visiting the island as part of the NBA/UNICEF partnership to promote HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention among young people from 4-8 August. Thomas, who is of Grenadian heritage, is one of a group of dedicated professional basketball players and coaches who are part of a UNICEF/NBA voluntary programme, which seeks to involve young people in sporting activities to promote healthy lifestyles. UNICEF’s Representative for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, Jean Gough, noted that Thomas’s visit could not be more timely. “This visit is very opportune, because it comes at a time when UNICEF as an organization is promoting the use of sport as essential for the overall development of young people,” said Gough. Thomas’s visit to Grenada is the first overseas visit by any of the UNICEF NBA Champions and while in Grenada he will meet with the Grenada National Basketball Association and with a group of Grenadian young people who are part of Xchange – the Caribbean movement against violence. In addition, Thomas -- who plays for the Washington Wizards -- will also be the guest of honour at a luncheon hosted by UNICEF, St. Georges University and the Ministry of Education to recognize a group of 600 volunteers who worked in the Return to Happiness Programme which was implemented to provide psycho-social support for 10,000 children following Hurricane Ivan last year. Thomas will also pay a courtesy call on the Grenada Minister of Sport, Adrian Mitchell, and will visit Grenada Community Development Agency (GRENCODA) community projects, which teaches lifeskills to young people. Reprinted from Caribbean Net News caribbeannetnews.com