Summer is here and on Guam that means BBQs, basketball, and reconnecting with old friends. Over the last few weeks, alumni from the island’s only private boys’ school made their way back home to play in Guam’s biggest and most-loved basketball events.
This week, the 2025 Father Duenas Memorial High School alumni basketball tournament is entering into the championship rounds on the school campus in Tai, Mangilao.
Almost 30 teams have entered this three-week basketball extravaganza, which is just as much about reconnecting and storytelling as it is about competition. The event brings together players from every decade, including alumni from as far back as the 1960s who still suit up to play. A special division was created just for the “wiser” classes with special rules to ensure that the younger alumni continue to show proper respect to their upperclassmen. All in the name of good fun and great exercise, some families even have two or three generations competing.
This year, the Father Duenas Alumni Class of 2015 is hosting the tournament as part of their 10-year reunion. They’ve teamed up with the recent Class of 2025 grads to help run one of the island’s biggest and most-loved basketball events.
The goal? To raise as much money as possible through donations and tournament fees to give back to the school.
The tournament is also famous for how well it treats its guests. Every night, spectators are welcomed with full tables of food, much of it coming straight from the alumni-run kitchen just outside the gym. It’s more than just basketball—it’s a celebration of brotherhood, memories, and community.
And it’s not just about fun—it’s about impact. This year’s sponsoring alumni class has already left a meaningful legacy for incoming students at FDMS. The Class of 2015 has put in serious effort and financial resources to upgrade the school’s gym, affectionately called The Jungle because of its historically worn-down court and wild surroundings. The gym still sits deep in the heat and greenery of central Guam, surrounded by tangantangan trees and lush foilage, but now boasts a refreshed court, enhanced electrical wiring, working stadium lights, and impressively updated outdoor kitchen amenities and accoutrements.
The Jungle is used by FD high school students for physical education classes and interscholastic sports training. Over the past decade, the Jungle has also been shared with other island public and private schools that were in need of athletic practice facilities.
The FD alumni basketball tournament culminates this weekend, Friday July 18 with a highly competitive and entertaining Championship game at the Jungle. Tickets are still available to the general public. FDMS alumni may enter for free on a first come, first serve basis.
All purchases must be made online at guamtime.net.
