August 29th, 2015 | Uncategorized
Before coming to Ireland I had trouble describing to people what I would be doing and even more trouble describing why I was doing it. It wasn’t until after my first eHoops program that I was able to answer these questions.
eHoops is a program that takes disadvantaged youth in Northern Ireland and aligns them with basketball players from the United States in order to provide an avenue out of their current situations. The reason why victory scholars are here, in Northern Ireland and Ireland, is to provide mentorship and leadership to youth across these countries and to provide them with something outside their usual routine, which may include crime, drugs, poverty and sometimes just simply a break from their community.
The reason why I personally am here is because basketball has provided me with an avenue to accomplish things that wouldn’t have been possible without sport. Basketball allowed me to go on to get a college education at Bucknell University, which would not have happened without basketball. It has also given me the incredible opportunity to spend a year in Ireland playing basketball, while getting a master’s degree, and trying to teach youth in this country an important message. Sport has changed my life. Because of this I am here so that I can enable others’ lives to be changed by sport just like my life has been changed by sport. Basketball has provided me with an outreach, now it is my job to provide others with the same opportunities in sport that I have been given. In a meeting with children ages 15 and above, I was really able to understand how victory scholars can have an impact on these young people’s lives as I learned what challenges they face in their everyday life. Sports can give them something quality to do in their free time. This helps develop skills like discipline, work ethic, and team work which can be applied in all walks of life.
I have enjoyed my time working with the youth in Belfast, but am looking forward to the new challenges I will face in Galway over the next nine months.
Victory Scholar: Cory Starkey
Present University: NUI Galway
US League: Patriot League
Club/Community Partner: Galway Titans
Alma Mater: Bucknell University
Sponsored by: Teamwear Ireland
