(light upbeat music) - I went to the Second Ward gym and walked through there.

It really brought me to tears where I used to play ball at.

- And they tried to instill in you, to not just be players or athletes, but be productive men and women as you getting ready to face life.

- I even get teary-eyed talking about it.

The school had so much love and it was unreal.

(people speaking indistinctly) - [Bea] Almost 60 years later, these former athletes, reminisce fondly about a school, that was more than bricks and mortar, more than an arena, to showcase their athletic ability in their youth.

- And this school saved a lot of lives.

- [Bea] Before you see what you are hearing is the story of how young boys became men, with the help of a community and a school.

- They took a real serious interest in you and they were concerned about your wellbeing and that gave you the feeling to respect them as well.

- When you went to Second Ward, it seemed like it was a really privileged opportunity to go there.

(light upbeat music) - [Bea] Oh, they have war stories of who had game.

- You played baseball against us down here.

You might as well put a L on these card.

(chuckles) - This guy right here?

Yeah, he was a pitcher.

- You pitched too, man.

- Yeah, I pitched a little teeny bit.

You pitched a lot and played first base a lot.

But he was a heck of an athlete and a great guy all around.

- [Bea] And each has his own story of growth.

Not just in athletic stats, but in human development.

- They put in us, how to respect others, how to be courteous to other people, how to respect your teachers, your elders.

A lot of them were more like parents, rather than just coaches.

- Like the time Coach Moton went a step further, representing a leap of faith for a young man.

- That's me right there.

Even though I played football, I didn't have the clothes to wear to banquets and stuff.

I had a coach would take me home to his house and dress me in his clothes, so I could be a part of it too.

(fast upbeat music) - [Bea] Being a Second Ward tiger athlete was an honor, even though they had no fields to play on, or good equipment to play with.

And then there was the racism.

- This is a whole different experience.

Had big, nice pretty ground where they practice at, field, in other words, where we had to walk from Second Ward down to Pearl Street to practice, and all this is right there behind their school.

- That's when I really found out about prejudice and walking down independent.

We used to be harassed so much every time we'd go down there.

Called names but we had to take it and walk along.

(light upbeat music) - [Bea] And yet they still have their glory days.

- So they brought that trophy into that day along with the jackets.

Oh, we thought we were superstars.

- [Bea] And they have the trophies and the championship jackets to prove it.

- My sophomore year,, we won it all.

Ain't nobody beat us because we had one of the best backs in the country.

But back then the budget in North Carolina for black schools was a little different.

So they gave us state championship jackets and a little small football like that with the (indistinct) on there and all that stuff on there.

- And he could throw it for (cross talk).

- [Bea] The trophy cases filled with mementos from their athletic years while their school and childhood community of Brooklyn are both gone.

- [Alumnus] This is Coach Robert, big Al Montgomery.

- [Bea] One thing about their journey to manhood is unwavering.

- Urban renewal came through in this tore down.

They tore down structures and buildings, but they couldn't tear down the heart, that what was in your heart about that community?

- It was a privilege and it was also an experience that I will never forget.

- [Bea] And just how many of us can say that about our high school days.

For the alumni of Second Ward, more than a half century later, the love is still alive.