Growing up I played youth sports basketball through the parks district up to the age of 12.
No one ever accused me of being a “gifted athlete,” but I definitely did my best. If you know the game, I was the kid who would loudly slap my hands on the court when you bulled over me to make sure the refs saw AND heard what you did (and I got the charge call).
It would be fair to say that I was more in the “defensive menace” camp than someone who could be known as a team’s prolific scorer.
For proof, I offer my career high points in a game: 8. I was 10 years old at the time, and I had peaked!
I would have had a higher points total, too. I was so “on fire” in that game that I jumped a passing lane at the top of the key, poked the ball away, and had a breakaway layup in my sights.
With my eyes as big as saucers, I raced down the court and heaved up a layup, aiming for the square right above the hoop.
DOINK!
I heaved it so hard; it jumped off the backboard and flew back over my head to a waiting defender.
And the crowd (a gym packed with dozens of people) gave a hearty “aww” … a sound that was part surprise at the enthusiasm with which the ball leapt off the backboard and a high concentration of pity directed at me for blowing such an easy shot!
I credit that moment in my life, now, as being a core memory I’m thankful for. I’m not thankful for the embarrassment – I’m thankful for what it taught me.
If you played basketball, you probably remember those layup drills before the game. Layups… they are SO EASY! As a result, I never took them too seriously.
Until the “doink” (which I can still hear in my head when I tell this story!).
The doink taught me a lot.
I learned I needed to regulate my emotions better so that I was under control in critical situations.
I learned that I needed to take practice and preparation more seriously and not goof around so much!
I learned that my coach and teammates cared about me enough to tease me (stopping short of being mean and undermining my confidence).
One doink.
Three lessons.
Fast forward to a few years ago when I ran a business (before arriving at the Foundation), I would hear fellow business leaders complain all the time about having a hard time hiring newly graduated students for jobs. They would tell me that these “kids” failed to show up on time, couldn’t take criticism, and would avoid difficult but necessary situations.
It reminded me of where I learned how to show up, how to take feedback, and how to work to be at my best in hard situations.
It wasn’t in math class, even though math class was important, too.
It was basketball!
Basketball happened after school, what education folks call “OST” or “out of school time.”
OST programs are supervised, structured activities that students attend outside of school hours, and they engage youth at a pivotal time when they are developing identity and autonomy in regard to college and career (even when they are just 10 years old!).
When I’m reflecting on our work at the Foundation in the career pathway and workforce development strategic focus areas I shared with you earlier this year, we have learned how important creating opportunities for kids and families in OST is for developing a young person’s future.
This realization has led to some exciting developments with our work, too.
With the realization of how important youth sports are within the OST ecosystem of activities, we’re excited that Barberton Sokol Club has started a Youth Sports Fund that will become an endowment next year (they are fundraising now)! This fund will be able to provide grants to our network of youth sports teams, encouraging more participation and easing participation for kids and families.
We have also recently funded a small grant – matched by the Tuscora Park Health and Wellness Foundation – to Youth Success Summit (YSS), a non-profit network based in Summit County, Ohio, dedicated to providing high-quality, equitable after-school and summer programs for children and teenagers.
YSS is conducting a landscape study of Barberton’s various OST organizations and opportunities. They are working with Barberton City Schools to understand our sports and clubs, Lake Anna YMCA to understand their programming, Barberton Parks and Recreation Department to understand what they have to offer, Boys and Girls Club of Northeast Ohio, and so much more!
The idea is to understand all of the opportunities for OST available to kids and families and then help them access these opportunities with an organized database designed to match the interest of a student with a great OST opportunity.
The reason?
OST is the environment for our kids to build durable skills like persistence, teamwork, communication, self-regulation, timeliness, dependability, etc.
Let’s work together as a community and give more kids the opportunity to have their doink moment!
In Community,
Josh Gordon
Executive Director
Barberton Community Foundation