26 August 15 • 2019
jn

A

nthony Ianni doesn’
t get lost in 
a crowd. Not at 6-foot-9.
But there was another 
reason why all eyes were focused on 
him Aug. 6 when he spoke to about 
500 teens at Temple Israel in West 
Bloomfield Township during the JCC 
Maccabi Games & ArtsFest.
The 30-year-old former Michigan 
State University basketball player was a 
keynote speaker for JCC Cares, a pro-
gram that gets Maccabi participants 
involved in community projects in the 
host city and teaches them life lessons 
to take home.
Ianni brought his “Relentless Tour” 
speaking series to JCC Cares, which 
had a theme of “One Community.” The 
“Relentless Tour” is an initiative of the 
Michigan Department of Civil Rights.

He talked for 45 minutes about 
autism and bullying, how he defied 
the experts who said his autism would 
derail his dreams, and how he rose 
above those who bullied him in ele-
mentary school and particularly in 
middle school growing up in Okemos.
It’
s estimated that between 65 and 
90 percent of children with autism are 
bullied, so Ianni’
s impassioned speech-
es resonate with many listeners. That 
certainly happened at Temple Israel.
“Several Maccabi coaches and ath-
letes came up to me after my speech 
and said they could relate to what I 
had to say,” Ianni said. “One of the first 
athletes I spoke with was a kid from 
Vancouver who said he was inspired 
by my presentation.
“Every time I speak, my goal is to 

make a difference in at least one per-
son’
s life. If that happens, I consider it 
a successful speech.”
Samantha Cohen, vice president 
of the JCC Association of North 
America, said Ianni “hit it out of the 
park.” 
“I’
m always concerned when you 
get a room full of teenagers that they 
won’
t listen to a speech, especially 
one given by an adult,” Cohen said. 
“But you could hear a pin drop when 
Anthony spoke.
“I was so happy to see that. The 
Maccabi Games & ArtsFest is more 
than about sports and the arts. We 
want participants to practice the 
Jewish value of tikkun olam, to go 
back to their communities as better 
citizens, and do good work that helps 

not just Jewish people.”
Looking back, Ianni said, it doesn’
t 
surprise him that middle school was 
the worst time in his life for bullying.
“Middle school is a time when you 
don’
t know where you fit in 
,” he said. 
“And you certainly don’
t understand 
what someone like me on the autism 
spectrum is going through.”
What made matters worse for Ianni 
at that time of his life was his height, 
which was both a blessing and a curse.
“I was 6-feet-tall and wore a size-13 
shoe when I was in sixth grade,” he 
said. “In middle school, I was a freak-
ishly tall kid who was bullied by kids 
who came up to my hip. At the same 
time, I dreamed about being a profes-
sional basketball player.”
Ianni graduated from MSU in 2012 

STEVE STEIN CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Tall Tales

Ex-MSU basketball player 
brings his personal story of 
autism and bullying to the JCC 
Maccabi Games & ArtsFest.

sports

quick hits
Defenseman Eric Israel has signed with the Fort Wayne Comets of 
the ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League).
 The 5-foot-9, 180-pound Huntington Woods native just finished a 
four-year hockey career at Robert Morris University, where he scored 
21 goals and had 85 points in 146 games.
Israel, 24, led Robert Morris defensemen in goals, assists and 
points each of the last three seasons. Last season, he tied for fifth in 
Division I with 85 blocked shots.

BY STEVE STEIN 

David Vinsky con-
tinues to make news 
with the State College 
(Pa.) Spikes, the 
St. Louis Cardinals’
 
short-season Class 
A team in the New 
York-Penn League.
The 21-year-
old outfielder from 
Farmington Hills Harrison High 
School hit a walk-off single 
with one out in the 10th inning 
July 14 as the Spikes beat the 
Staten Island Yankees 3-2.
Vinsky scored the winning 
run July 26 in a 2-1 walk-off 
victory over the West Virginia 
Black Bears in front of a 
season-high 5,266 fans at 

Lubrano Field.
Vinsky led off the 
bottom of the ninth 
inning with a double, 
moved to third on a 
bunt and scored on a 
single.
Through 32 games, 
Vinsky was batting 
.269 for the Spikes 
with one home run and 10 RBI. 
He had scored 20 runs.
This is Vinsky’
s first season 
as a professional baseball 
player after a great career 
at Northwood University. In 
June, he was selected by the 
Cardinals in the 15th round 
of the Major League Baseball 
draft.

Rock climbing phenom Nate 
Emery of Farmington Hills 
finished in 10th place in 
his age group in the USA 
Climbing sport climbing 
national competition July 
11-14 in Bridgeport, Pa.
There were more than 
50 competitors in the age 
group.
Nate placed 27th in his 
age group earlier this year in 
the USA Climbing boulder-
ing national competition in 
Redmond, Ore.
A fifth-grader at Hillside Elementary School in 
Farmington Hills, Nate competes with the Madison 
Heights-based Planet Rock climbing team.

Gary Klinger led the individual standings through 
Aug. 7 in the weekly B’
nai B’
rith golf league at 
the Links of Novi. He had accumulated 58 points. 
Adam Vieder and Ryan Vieder were tied for second 
place with 57.5 points.
Mitch Cohen and Jeff Vieder were on top in the 
team standings with 118 points. Adam Vieder and 
Ryan Vieder were in second place with 116 points 
and Dale Taub and Klinger were in third place with 
115 points.

MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY

Anthony Ianni speaks at Temple Israel during the JCC Maccabi Games & ArtsFest.

ELLEN CROMIE/JCC ASSOCIATION OF NORTH AMERICA

