Hoops, History, and New Horizons: Gael’s Global Exchange Experience
May 7, 2025
SHARE
Gael Cruz sat in the airplane seat on the way to Durban, South Africa. Seventeen hours. That’s how long he had to think about what lay ahead at the PeacePlayers Global Exchange, where he would spend 10 days with PeacePlayers from South Africa, Northern Ireland and the U.S.
“I had 17 hours on the plane, just overthinking. How am I going to talk to them? What’s my first question? Do you watch NBA? It took a lot of thought,” Gael admitted.
Gael, a first-generation Mexican American from Los Angeles, had been part of PeacePlayers since middle school. He still remembers his first day. “I walked into the gym and started bawling my eyes out. My mom left me there in an unknown place. But there was this coach who comforted me. She made me feel at home, made me feel safe. We started playing basketball, and I’ve been a PeacePlayer ever since.”
Now, years later at the Global Exchange, Gael got the opportunity to step into a leadership role, helping coach children in South Africa. “The best part [of the Exchange] was being a coach—teaching kids basketball, helping them communicate through the game. It was amazing.”
“These kids looked up to me. They came to me for advice. It really touched me.”
Beyond coaching, the trip opened his eyes in ways he hadn’t expected. He had known about South Africa’s past, but learning about apartheid firsthand at the Nelson Mandela Museum and Capture Site was something else entirely. “Apartheid ended just 30 years ago. It was shocking to process how recent it was.”
At the museum, some of his coaches got emotional. Seeing their reactions, Gael realized just how deeply the past still impacted people today. “One of my coaches cried, and I thought, ‘They’ve come so far in such little time.’ It was really eye-opening.”
But it wasn’t just the history that changed him—it was the people. At first, he stuck close to Divine, his only teammate from LA. But soon, he pushed himself out of his comfort zone. “I just went up to people, started talking about basketball, and made friends like that.”
Gael’s world expanded with every conversation. He met young leaders from Northern Ireland, South Africa, and across the U.S. He spoke with coaches from different countries, absorbing their wisdom. “The experience made me more mature, more social. It opened doors. I talked to many coaches – from Northern Ireland, South Africa, Detroit – and I would just learn so much from them.”
One night, during a night at El Olam wilderness camp, he and his new friends stayed up talking till late. “A bunch of us were in one cabin, just talking till three in the morning. And then if we would have to use the restroom, like at 1 or 2 in the morning, we would go in a little group because we were scared.”
As the Exchange came to an end, Gael reflected on how much he had grown. “It made me more aware—more considerate of what other people go through. Apartheid still sticks with me. It was barely 30 years ago. I know people still face challenges because of it. That definitely made me grow.”
Back home, he shared his experiences with friends. He told them about the breathtaking landscapes, the kindness of the people, and how different South Africa was from the stereotypes they had heard. “The plains were beautiful. And everybody was nice.”
But most of all, he told them about basketball—how it connected him to people even when they didn’t speak the same language. “Some kids didn’t speak English, but basketball made it so easy, because we can use hand gestures like bounce the ball—it was a common ground. You don’t really need to speak the same language or be from the same place to interact with one another through basketball.”
Looking back, Gael saw the Global Exchange for what it truly was: a life-changing experience. “I grew up with PeacePlayers. And I always looked up to my coach. I wanted to be like them one day. And then getting the opportunity to be like them on a whole different continent. It’s crazy. I never thought that would happen.”
