I had a bit of a rough week last week but I’ve since recovered and learned that there is always someone looking out for me. I forgot to mention that last Saturday as my team the NUI Mystics secured our first victory of the 2013 season, I suffered a hard hit to the head during the third quarter which temporarily stopped the game, but I was fine to reenter the game later. As I progressed through the week each day I became sicker and the pressure in my head continued to increase. I eventually realized I can’t fight this myself and went to the doctor whose diagnosis was a severe sinus infection, and to my avail not a severe concussion. I’ve been on medication and feel I have just about fully recovered, which is great considering my first home game is this Saturday! 

 

During my times of sickness this week I discovered as scary as it is to be ill in another country and to not even know what the typical headache medication to purchase is, that the outreach and support I received from everyone was so comforting.   My classmates were concerned and were the ones to direct me to the university doctor and noticed that I didn’t look well either.  My one classmate who’s such a character yelled, “Shelly Shell I heard you’re not well!!” when he first saw me.   Even my professor expressed concerned as we were walking out of the building together he asked how I was doing and I said I had a bit of a headache and explained the situation. He was surprisingly very sympathetic and apologized saying that his two hour lecture on Irish Economic Policy probably didn’t help my head.  My Titan’s basketball club family was very concerned and supportive during this time offering me rides to the doctors and asking if I needed anything. My NUIG Mystics teammates and players have been checking up on me as well so it is such a comfort to have everyone helping.  And even my roommate and fellow Victory Scholar Chris Coyne, showed his domestic side as he prepared a delicious salmon dinner for me on Friday night.

 

Word travelled fast about my illness and the amount of people that helped me and were looking out for me was truly great.  I didn’t realize how many people are always watching whether you are sick or not.  There was a great news article written about my team’s first win with a large picture in the paper, and it surprised me how much people take notice to these things here in Galway.  As I entered the gym on Monday night, the father of one of my players was outside and said, “Good win in Tralee, I heard someone had 19 points.”  Even last night hanging out with my guy friends that belong to the same gym as I do, mentioned “Some of the guys saw you benching 22kg dumbbells, is that true?” I was really thrown off because lifting in the scholarship athlete weight room there are rarely that many people in there at one time and I didn’t recognize any familiar faces. These are just examples of little comments that took me so off guard because I didn’t expect people to take notice to these things.  (And to be honest I don’t even know what 22kg converted into pounds is I just gave it a shot 😉 ) After having time to reflect as I was on bed rest I realized that whether you know it or not there will always be people watching out for you, I have always thought about being on my own here but there is something about here that really makes you feel your at home away from home if that makes since. I just hope that I can return the favour to everyone that has helped me so much and looked out for me along the way <3 

 

Thanks guys #FEELING #BETTER #VICTORY

We are into our fifth week of classes here at the University of Ulster Jordanstown and everything is going great. For our first assignment in our Creative Venture & Enterprise class we have to create a product and develop our own business venture. The aim is for us to create a successful product and make a profit. I personally thought this was a great idea because it allowed us to work as a team and go through the steps of creating a business plan. There is a real team effort behind what we are trying to do that translates well in the real world of business. Our team needs to work well and efficiently to reach a common goal. This is an important skill in anything you do in life and is one of the tasks we try teach in our young people at the sport Changes Life #EHOOPS program. We try to encourage the young people to work together as a team instead of attempting things on their own. Using sport is a great way to do this.

Our business team is made up of myself, three of my fellow #VICTORY scholars Bryan, Brittney, Jared and a classmate Dave. We decided that it would be a good idea to sell ‘tie-dyed socks’ for our small-scale business venture. Through our research we found that socks are a product that has become very popular with young people and because we are working so closely with young people we felt we would be able to use this target audience for market research.

While working at St. James Primary School, a school were Brittney and I coach basketball to young children, we thought it would be a good idea to test our market and try to sell socks to them. The other scholars on our business team would also try and do the same as they coach in their prospective schools. As we have a potential established market we hope it will be a successful venture.

It has been very exciting to date as we have been able to set up our own meetings with possible business partners along the way, such as local athletics sports manufacture called Wingfoot who create a lot of the Victory Scholar and EHOOPS clothing for Sport Changes Life. This was a great experience for all of us to sit down with an established company and develop a product. We still have a lot of work to do for our business plan and product but we are learning a lot and progressing at this stage. Our plan to date has elements that involve risk however with the right preparation and hard work we hope to pass this module with flying ‘tie-dyed’ colours. Pardon the pun.

 

#INSPIRE #VICTORY

As we head into week 5 of our masters program, things are heating up in the classroom. This semesters classes include marketing, finance, and entrepreneurship. It’s been incredibly interesting for me because of the academic background I come from. My undergraduate degree was in biology and I spent the majority of college in scientific lectures and labs. This semester marks the first time I’ve taken a business class at any level, and it has been a learning experience from the jump.

 

Each class offers different perspectives on the various aspects of the business world. Though it’s all still pretty foreign to me, I think I could really come to enjoy the subject matter. It has been very applicable and relevant to real life; something I think all students can appreciate.

The most extreme example of this is our business venture project where we are required to create a viable business and sell a product. The project extends through the length of the module and has been both enjoyable and infuriating so far. In either case, the real life experience we’re getting out of it is priceless. Incredible that a third of the semester is already over. Time is flying.

 

Going to be a big day of readings and work tomorrow. Got to stay on top of things!

Today I got an unusual response when I told someone I was doing my MSc in Marketing: “I could never do that course, way too much reading.” I laughed, agreeing that we do have a bit of reading to do each week (about 200 pages)… but after the initial shock of the workload during the first two weeks passed, I have come to really enjoy the challenging course and the people that I am going through it with.

 

There are a grand total of 15 of us in the program. We are all in the same four classes, which are all in the same room, where we sit in the same seats. On top of the readings, we have a number of group projects in each class, consisting of developing campaigns, debates, class discussions, and presentations. As heavy as the load seems at times, we all will have our Masters in just one year, definitely making it all worth it.

 

Fortunately, I’m stuck with a great group of people for this Masters. Now I’m not saying this to be nice (since I know most of them read my blog)… I sincerely mean it! Between working on group projects at each other’s houses, splitting up the readings during daylong library sessions, and going for pints after a long day of classes, we have all become a pretty tight-knit group, which has helped make the course a bit easier to work through.

 

Time to get back to working on this upcoming class debate. We watched The Great Debaters last week as a little motivation for the debate (by the way, great movie), and although I will never in this lifetime be as good at debating as Denzel Washington was, I’ll try my best to be a close second. Until next time, readers!

 

P.S. Like my campaign group’s Facebook page called “What’s your excuse, UL?” on smoking addiction awareness, please and thank you!!

“Sauce” is the name of the play I put in for the 12U and UL Fresher’s (18U) team. I named it after my sister, Olivia. My dad calls her Sauce, because she dips her food in any type of sauce available before eating. He calls me Magic, because he claims I make food disappear right before his eyes. 

 

Anyways, I told the girls I named the play Sauce because they can mix it up however they want and never get it wrong. Essentially, it’s a basic motion offensive set, but motion is such a boring name. I also named it the same for both teams so I don’t forget the plays myself. Olivia is my inspiration for a lot of things though, so naming the play after her is just another way to keep me connected.

 

Running practice with the U12 team has been going smoothly. I just think of things off the top of my head and go with different drills. The Fresher’s team is a different story because they are quicker and always ready for the next drill. I will have to start writing out my practice plan so we can transition quickly to the next drills. All the girls are great and Courtney invited me to a hip-hop dance class on Monday. I hope she isn’t expecting anything spectacular from me, but I love how all the girls are involved in differecnt extracurricular activities. 

 

The Fresher’s team only has one tournament and it’s in a few weeks so I’ll have to challenge them more. One of the girls suggested a game of knockout and I told them they had to run for the remainder of the game once they were knocked out. Although they enjoyed it, I don’t think they will be making any more suggestions.

 

The U12 team only lost their game by 3 points on Sunday and it was so close! I’m glad to see that the games are getting closer and closer. The bench was more involved chanting “defense,” and “let’s go UL, let’s go!” We have to keep up that team spirit and continue to head in the right direction, go UL!

The first four weeks of grad school has flown by. I’m already a third of the way through my first semester. The biggest difference from undergrad and grad is that grad school is alot more hands on. We apply what we learn to various projects rather then getting tested on the material every week.

 

In my “Enterprise and New Venture Creation” class we have massive group project in which we created a start up business of tie dye socks. My fellow #Victory scholars Brian, Brittney, and Jared are joined by our  collegue David. The five of us are the founders of JUST-DYE-IT!

 

Finance is the most challengeing module so far. However it will be interesting to take a look at the companies Tesco and Sainsbury’s finanical statements to figure out which company would be the better choice to invest in.

 

My favorite class Sport Policy, Planning & Implementation has been most interesting. We had the general manager from the Belfast Giants, a professional hockey team here in Belfast, come in as a guest speaker. He gave alot of insight to the day to day tasks he goes through.

 

I’ve learned alot through the first four weeks. Looking forward to classes this week as we break down more concepts and apply it to my projects.

“This is your moment and every single minute you spend trying to hold onto it ’cause you may never get it again,” Eminem advises on repeat. Since the song was released in 2002 (holy cow, over 11 years ago), I would sing along, interpreting the lyrics on a day-to-day basis. Before every game we played together in high school,my sister Chris and I would listen to his words, inspiring us to give our all to the game. And as our years of playing together evaporated, the meaning intensified. Then as my college years flew before my eyes, these words even more so. And now, even my year in Ireland is flying. But I find that regardless of how often we are reminded to live life to the fullest, it is easy to forget just how lucky we are in our daily lives.

 

And it isn’t until something drastic occurs that you stop and appreciate your blessings. Given the unpredictable and inexplicable events that have occurred in the past 3 weeks, I am searching for a way to reinterpret Eminem’s lyrics. He implores us to persevere, give it our all, rebound from defeat and appreciate every minute of it.

 

Sports have an interesting effect on a person. They can be consuming, and we often lose sight of the point. I have spent the better part of this year stressing that having fun is more important than winning, but now I think that it really isn’t about either. Ya, they foster a competitive edge that will give you a leg up in the real world. Ya, they are a great way to have fun. But more than anything, it is the things we learn from sports, win or lose, that are the most important. In the end, we will all stop playing sports. Maybe they are taken from you, maybe you burn out, phase into coaching, etc. but your experiences with sports change your life. Appreciate every second of it. “I will not fall, I will stand tall,” and with the strength that sports have given you, have confidence knowing you will not collapse. 

First of all, I must say that I can cook a little but this has nothing to do about me going near a recipe and pots. Outside of experiencing Irish dishes and typical food, I have had the privilege of enjoying Diana’s good ole cooking. Boy oh boy, it’s amazing! She takes her time and hand preps every dish, chopping up peppers and adding her little spices.

 

Ever heard of the expression, “She put her foot in that one?” Or, “She used a lot of elbow grease?” Well Diana puts her feet, elbows, and everything else into those meals. The best part is that when I get home late from practicing or coaching, she has dinner ready and waiting for me on the microwave. I’m talking chicken curry, beef stir-fry, salmon, spaghetti with fresh green bell peppers, and anything else she can whip up in that kitchen. She even does the dishes, and I know I’m supposed to do them but some nights I get in really late and Diana just gets it done!

 

She asks me what I want and I say “Anything you are cooking,” because its so good. Diana never fails and my taste buds always go bonanzas with her dishes. There is always a party in my tummy and I feel at home with her meals. Let me know how much you need for the next grocery trip girl! (Shhh don’t tell my mom, but I think Diana can cook just a wee bit better)

Want to puchase something different for the holidays? If your answer is yes then, JUST DYE IT SOCKS is the answer and will be selling soon at a pod near you. The count down is on until December 5, 2013 when the product will be available at Forestside Mall. ‘Just Dye It’ socks is part of our course project at the University of Ulster, Jordanstown. We had to come up with a product that we can begin to sell right before the Holidays. Our socks will make the perfect “stocking stuffer” & they are not just ordinary socks, but socks that have been tie dyed in a variety of colors. In order to help promote our product, we have a few things in mind. First, we will have order forms to pass out at the primary schools we coach at every Wednesday and at the JR Elks practices that take place on Fridays. This will help us to get an idea of how many socks we need to prepare ahead of time. Second, my group will be wearing shirts, thanks to Wingfoot (the clothing sponsor of Sport Changes Life), that say, “Ask Me About My Socks”. If you see this please ask the question and then we will tell you all about Just Dye It Socks. JUST DYE IT SOCKS, at a pod near you soon. Mark your calendar for December 5th!! 

One of my goals while in Ireland is to never get homesick. I came sooo close this past weekend, but my lovely friend CC came to visit me! CC works for Delta Airlines so she flies for free all over the world whenever she wants. It’s ok if you’re a little jealous because I am too. She only stayed Saturday-Monday, but so much fun was packed in those few days.

 

The fun started as soon as she got off the plane and walked through Terminal 2. I yelled her name and jumped up and down. I ran to hug her and I’m pretty sure we caused a scene. I also told her we would have good craic and her facial expression was absolutely priceless!

 

She met Diana, who she has nicknamed Debbie for some awkward reason, but that’s CC..a load of weird, crazy fun. She saw me play for the first time since I tore my knee up last December. She was the only one cheering super loud in the stands and after the game she said “I have to show Ireland how HBCU’s do it,” and I could only laugh.

           

My team welcomed her to our first night out together in Limerick City and she got a chance to witness the nightlife. We had a blast and CC saw how Irish people like to party and she is already planning a trip back next year. We spent all of Sunday in Dublin. I walked her all around the city and then we joined Shelby and Katie for Shepard’s pie and crepes. 

 

Me and CC played together, lived together, and we will travel together as friends forever. I was a little sad saying goodbye at the airport, but when you have friends like CC there is never a dull moment.

 

*A special thanks to my classmates who are always asking when my next home game is and giving me support throughout this season 🙂

Following a careers seminar provided to my entire MSc of Finance class here at Trinity College, I decided it was maybe time to start putting together my resume (C.V.) and start job hunting. Katie and I have already been in Dublin for over two months, and at this rate, May will be here before we know it, meaning real world, real job and all that comes with it {GASP}.

But where to start? That has always been my dilemma. What do I want to do with my life? Can I see myself doing some of these jobs 5, 10, 30 years down the road? As a nearly-23-year-old these are some daunting questions. Ones that I am pretty sure I don’t have the answers to, but as I continue through the process, I am realizing more and more that not knowing is okay.

The job hunting process and all that goes with it has been more reflective and self-revealing than I could have imagined. It has forced me to face tough questions like what is important to me, what motivates me, what am I willing to sacrifice for the job, etc. I have had to honestly assess my strengths and weaknesses, my wants and needs, and my goals and dreams. By no means can I confidently or decisively answer all of those questions, but it has forced me to at least take steps in that direction.

It has been a great reminder for me that Rome wasn’t built in a day, which is a wonderful reminder when working with young people as well. Those times when Katie or I are frustrated with our girls because they won’t do what we view to be a simple thing, we need to remember that sometimes, like job-hunting, the first step is the hardest. But if we (me included) can just take that first, scary step, a world of opportunity may open up before our eyes. 

After my first game this weekend I learned that I am now part of another family, this family is my team.  As I had my first game of the season on Saturday I can’t describe the amount of support I received from everyone in Galway. My family back home obviously sent their good luck wishes over different Apps on their iPhones and or emails prior to my game, but it’s when you’re in a car for over 3 hours traveling without wifi that you truly appreciate the good luck texts and congratulations that I received from my friends in Galway. In addition to the good luck texts prior to the game, I was also warned that the team we were about to play in County Kerry are notorious for being physical and for also being in good shape because it is a very big gaelic football county and they play basketball in the off season to “keep in shape.”  Well it did in fact turn out to be a physical game but my team fought back with just as much intensity especially in our defense to secure our first win of the season.  I am so proud of how my team played as whole. Every single person contributed in some way to help our team beat the defending league champions the Imperials. 

 

Being on the court again with my teammates brought back a feeling I had in college, it’s a feeling of trust and also of pride to know that you would go to battle with any of these girls wearing the same jersey as you.  My teammates have made me feel comfortable from the day I started training with them and have accepted me into their Mystic’s family with ease. Of course my teammates will still make fun of me for the way I say things with my accent from time to time, but I guess that comes with the territory for being the team’s only “Yank.” The little things that brought back so many memories of college ball were the pre-game speech, adrenaline pumping from the tip off, the team bonding at the meal after the game, and the soreness of your body after playing. These are all things that I cherished at La Salle and I am forever grateful to have the opportunity to live these experiences again with my new family.

I can still recount dozens of women’s basketball players who I looked up to in my youth. I think obsession might be a better word. One example that burns in my memory was during a basketball camp when my sisters and I were in elementary school. Our coaches were Aja Parham and Brianne Stepherson, two BC standouts. All I can do is laugh when reminiscing about these years. One day they at camp they both wore white ribbed tank tops. For the next two days, we had our mother running around every store in the greater Boston area in search of these tanks in our sizes, and for the rest of the summer we wore them faithfully. Needless to say, this was an awkward time in my life and donning a form fitting tank top on my gawky adolescent body with a tapered hair cut was by no means flattering. But it just speaks to the impact that role models have on our life. If this blog somehow gets to them, I apologize for the fascination my sisters and I had with you, but am so grateful that we had such role models growing up. I tell this story because as we grow up, we often forget the individual impact that we can have.

 

I am working with one of my favorite U17 girls, Ailbhe, to coach the U13 Kubs team. While I have gotten to know them on the court, I find that off the court interactions are the most important. The education system in Ireland is much different to ours at home, and we love talking about our different experiences in school. Abigail is one of our best post players and loves the game of basketball. At a water break, she was telling me about all the classes she is taking this semester, one of which was essentially home ec. In my high school, there was no such class so I was intrigued! The next week at practice with the conversation covered in my mind by hours of research and papers, she ran up to me and handed me a little tin foil package—it was a nutella bun she had made in class that day, just for me! Taken aback by the great timing as my tummy was rumbling on anticipation of dinner 3 hours later, I devoured the bun. And it was GREAT! This just reminded me of the impact that relationships, even those you are not fully aware exist, can have on a person. As usual, sports are continuing to change my life, this time through the actions of my players! 

 

#SPORT can #CHANGE #LIVES

Coaching at the local schools over the last couple of weeks has showed me how much of an impact we are making on the kids and the relationships we develop with them and the rest of the faculty. Brittney and I have been working with the youth at a local school called St. James over the last couple weeks and it has been a great experience! The first day was tough for us because we had to improvise with the amount of kids and space that was available to us but it was a good opportunity for Brittney and I to develop games that were not only fun for the kids, but could be played in the gymnasium that we were in. We ended up coming up with different relay race games with the kids and different dribbling races for them to do. Each class that we taught we had a blast, it was good to see the kids smiling the whole time and running around having fun.

The thing that I didn’t realize though, was HOW MUCH fun they were having, and how much they looked forward to us coming every week. After the first week at the school, we would show up and we would have twenty or more kids waving to us and yelling our names with teachers telling them to settle down! It was like we were celebrities or something. I was even walking around Jordanstown campus and a little kid passed me and tapped me on my backpack, he waved and said “Hey Brian, I’ll see you tomorrow for basketball right?!” This just made me think to myself how important these days were to them and how it can serve as an outlet for the kids to get away from any sort of stress they could be dealing with or a time to get out of the classroom and run around. I remember when I was that age I always needed Physical Education class to let loose, have fun with friends, and release any sort of stress. 

Not only have we developed great relationships with the kids over the weeks, but the faculty of St. James have been more than good to us. Every week we are there and they sit down and talk to us about basketball, the Sport Changes Life program, offer us tea or coffee (of course), and give us lunch after our sessions are over. They are a great bunch of people and I couldn’t have asked to work at a better school with a great bunch of kids and I look forward to the rest of my weeks there!

 

 

#VICTORY #INSPIRE

Everywhere I turn, someone is talking about a gap. At home I am aware of two gaps. One is Gap, the retail store my dearest roommate used to work at. The second is the gap between the dumpster and the platform at the dump, which I was always terrified I would fall into as a child. This gap thing began the first time Shelby and I went on the Dart. Before stopping at any station, the recording says in a robotic Irish brogue, “Mind the gap.” They are referring to the gap between the platform and the train car, and it sends us into a fit of giggles every time. I wonder if they are just trying to prevent an accident or if something tragic happened to provoke so much insistence on minding that 3” gap! After doing some intense research, Urban Dictionary tells me it originated in London and for some reason tourists from the US become preoccupied with the saying and in our terrible imitation of the accent will repeatedly blabber it over and over. Whoops, looks like we fell into that tourist trap Shelby! And to be fair, I have yet to trip because I am so hyper aware of the “gap.”

 

So why the heck is this worthy of a blog? I don’t rightly know, but it seems like I have heard the “g” word way too many times in the past week. In practice, we are always emphasizing cutting to the gaps of the zone. In class today, we talked about one of the benefits to doing a literature review is to identify the GAP in the current research. Or positioning our business in the GAP of the market. So many gaps, you would think someone would start filling them!

 

Working in the community in Dublin, Shelby and I are trying to fill many of these “gaps.” Although basketball is our main tool, we do so by listening, boosting their confidence, screaming on the bench in excitement, or offering a piggyback. With the exception of the Dart, it seems like the resounding theme is the importance of finding these gaps and filling them.

 

Dare to be different, and quit minding the gap (unless there is a train coming)! 

For those of you who don’t know, I am in the Business Development and Innovation Masters Program at my university. My class timetable is quite different to what I am used to. After being in class Wednesday-Friday from 9-5, I have finished my first module, International Marketing and Competitiveness. Even though it was a little overwhelming learning a semesters worth of class in three days, I really enjoyed it. I am the youngest in a program of students that range from the ages of 23-60, most of which are studying for professional development out of the work place. Most of the students have worked in the business world for years, so it’s really interesting for me to learn from their experiences and hear their thoughts on different matters. I’m also the only American in the program, which has really opened my eyes to the differences in cultures. It has really made me think in such a broader sense outside of just how things work in America. I am now in the process of working on our first group project which I’m pretty excited about, since we are analyzing Boojum’s (which we consider the Chipotle of Ireland!) Fun fact: the man who founded Boojum’s is from Philadelphia! He is obviously the man.

 

Working with the EHOOPS and SHEHOOPS groups has been great. Although we have only been working with since we arrived we were honored with the chance to celebrate their own personal #VICTORY as they all graduated from the University of Ulsters Community Celebration event based at Jordanstown. My fellow scholars and I were their special guests which was really cool. Getting to see these young people who have worked so hard with their own personal struggle was really inspirational.

 

Over the weekend, the team traveled to Cork to play Brunell. We lost a tough game to a solid team.  I think it was definitely a good learning experience for our team, especially because many of our weaknesses were exposed.  We really came together in the end, and I think we are only going to grow from this loss.  I’m excited to get back to work on the court this week, and to keep improving as a team!

 

Cork is about four hours away from Belfast, so this made for eight hours of driving through the country on Sunday!  I thought the ride would be dreadful, but it was my favorite part of the weekend.  Carla, our assistant coach, and four of my teammates and I indulged in conversations ranging from the amazing shopping in America, to the troubles of Northern Ireland.  I am so intrigued by the past of Northern Ireland, and I’m always wanting to learn more about the background of the work I’m doing here in Belfast.  Thanks to the girls who answered a million of my questions, and shared so many stories with me! I loved every second of it!  Have a great week everyone!

 

#INSPIRE #VICTORY

 

 

The City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program is the largest public art program in the United States. The mission statement says, “Our process empowers artists to be change agents, stimulates dialogue about critical issues, and builds bridges of connection and understanding. Our work is created in service of a larger movement that values equity, fairness and progress across all of society.” My exposure to murals in Philadelphia did not prepare me for the murals in and around Belfast.

Initially, I viewed the murals as a symbol of the terrible violence between the Protestants and Catholics in Northern Ireland’s past. I could not imagine that these images had relevance in the communities to this day. My exposure to murals as positive and inspiring images for communities to rally behind made it difficult to fathom that these pieces of artwork represented hatred and violence.

We delivered equipment to community centers in Carrick Fergus, a neighborhood where police will rarely enter, and Woodburn. One of our mentors brought us to a mural (the bottom image on this collage) that was painted only two weeks ago. It symbolized the paramilitary that existed in the community. I was in denial of this truth, even though the images regularly showed masked men with guns, it was when Mark told us that these were not only a thing from the past that I fully comprehended the meaning and significance of these public displays.

From delayed flights, changed flights, and a crazy layover in London wheels are finally down in Ireland. I have arrived to meet and work with some incredible people here in Belfast. Don’t get me wrong my family and friends are great, and I miss them all. I wouldn’t be here without all their love and support.

All of the scholars are fun and different in there own way. I was a “wee bit” (Irish for a little bit) surprised how nice and friendly my new Sport Changes Life family are. After our initial greetings the first thing Marc, our creative content producer, noticed was my shoes or ‘boots’ as they would say here. As you will continue to find out throughout my blogs I LOVE my shoes, as does Marc, so we will have plenty to chat about.

We have started our training and had our first eHoops session will the young people already! I’m not sure who was more excited to meet each other us (the scholars) or the eHoops kids. Needless to say our first eHoops session was a success. 

 

Looking forward to the weekend we are headed to Dublin for some events and we get to see a football game. Until next time!

 

 

Over three weeks now in Ireland! Classes are set to start towards the end of the month… Since we’ve been on campus, it’s pretty much been a ghost town, but students are starting to accumulate little by little. I’m looking forward to making new friends but at the same time I can’t imagine coming closer to anyone that I already have to some of my roommates! Last weekend, fellow Victory Scholars Caroline and Ryan joined me to make some of our own fun in Ghost Town… we played cards, made food, and talked in our kitchen for hours. When the sun went down and everyone else was sleeping, we ran around campus, all the way out to the soccer pitch, and laid down in the center of it to stare up at the stars. The sky seems so much clearer here at night than back home. I can’t remember the last time I just laid down for a long time and stared up at the stars, but it was probably the most fun I had all week!

 

Though we’ve had a great deal of freedom this week compared to the first couple weeks here in Northern Ireland, there was still plenty to do with the organization. SCL mentor Ally took us around to some of the neighboring estates to bring them gear and equipment for future camps.  E-hoops is almost always based on campus here at UUJ, so it’s an entirely different experience to walk the streets of some of these neighborhoods and truly experience it, rather than just hear people’s descriptions.  We got to see a lot of beautifully painted murals on the sides of several buildings within these estates, professing their pride, beliefs, and unity of its inhabitants. They reminded me of some of the murals in Philadelphia… many of them haven’t once been vandalized, which is a small but worthy testament to the unity of the people in the city, despite all of the crime. The murals in these estates, too, are pristine and untouched… Though there’s graffiti everywhere else, the murals are respected.

 

I’m still getting used to being the “foreign” person when I’m out and about… We’ve been able to hit some bars and clubs with our free time to test the social waters in NI. Some people love our accents, some people make fun of them. There are plenty of taxis, but you can’t hail them, you have to call ahead of time. (It took Caroline and I 45 minutes to find a ride home last Saturday!) Nobody seems to tip, and clubs close very early compared to the states. I’m learning to pick up on all these little things as the days go by. Whether I’m laying on a soccer pitch in the middle of the night, staring at a hand painted mural, or stranded in Belfast with a good friend, I know there are always little details to be noticed, and understanding them can change the whole experience.

 

My rekindled relationship with my first love. Basketball and I have had a rocky relationship in the past. There was even a day when I questioned whether or not to walk away from that orange ball that has been such a huge part of my life. It’s days like today that I am beyond thankful that I never gave up when things got rough.

To begin the day, I coached my KUBS U-17 girls team to their first win of the season, which also happened to be my first win of my (unofficial) coaching career. I was extremely proud of our girls and can honestly say it was a team effort.

I would have been happy if the day just stopped there, but it didn’t. In addition to coaching the U-17 team, Katie and I help a few of our girls from that team coach the U-12s and U-13s. The U-12s didn’t have a game today, but I was fortunate enough to sit on the bench for the U-13s. The girls fought hard and ended up losing a tough one. They are coached by one of our U-17s, Ailbhe. I haven’t been as proud of someone as I was of her today. She did such a great job directing her team and I watched her confidence grow as the match progressed. From my perspective, it was an amazing thing to watch. She was like a completely different person after the match. Watching her grow right before my eyes and helping her build that confidence is one of the most rewarding experiences I have had lately. Without basketball, this may not have happened.

To cap off the day, my Women’s Premier League team, the Liffey Celtics, squared off with Glanmire, who is perennially at the top of the league. We lost in a heartbreaker in overtime, but again, I haven’t been so proud of a group of girls in a while. We fought so hard to the final buzzer, and have nothing to hang our heads about.

After the game, I was asked by a fan why I am so smiley and happy on the court all the time? This got me thinking about how long it has been since I was this smiley on the court. Although basketball and I have had a rocky past, I can honestly say that between the amazing people I have met in the little time I have been here and my wonderful teammates (truly, they are the best), that I have regained my passionate love affair with basketball. It has afforded me so many opportunities to date and I am terribly thankful that it is still in my life and enabling me to positively affect the lives of others. As long as the ball keeps bouncing, you are sure to find me with a smile on my face. Basketball and I are officially back together. #SPORT #CHANGES #LIFE

Hi everyone! Welcome to my first ever Blog post! After only one missed flight in London, a whole night spent eliminating clothing items from my overpacked bags(thanks sisters!) and 48 hours with almost no sleep, I am finally here in Belfast! I’ve only been here a few short days and I am already starting to feel at home.  

This past week, my fellow scholars and I have been in training for our program.  It’s been great going through this process with them and learning more in depth what we will be doing this year.  I am fortunate enough to be surrounded by people who want to make a difference in people’s lives.  My fellow scholars and our staff have already inspired me to be better, and this adds to my excitement for the rest of the year.  There are many things that will take time for me to get used to.  Luckily, I found out that basketball shoes are referred to as “boots” before my first practice!  I’ve been told with my Philly accent, I sound too stupid saying slogans like “wee bit” and “what’s crackin?” so right now I’ll be sticking with my philly accent!  Good news is that people seem to like Taylor Swift and Starbucks just as much as I do!

Last night, we were able to go to our first Ehoops event.  I was enamored listening to some of the boys talk about the troubles and culture here in Belfast with such knowledge and passion.  It truly opened my eyes, and made me realize how fortunate I have been to grow up in a place where we were accepted no matter what religion we were, or where we were from.  It was a humbling experience to say the least.  I’m extremely excited to not only have a positive impact on these kids, but also to learn from them and their experiences.

I have to say, I knew it would take something special to take me this far away from those closest to me.  I love and already miss my family and friends, and the lack of wifi has made it difficult to talk to everyone from home, but know you are all close to my heart during this experience.  You have all inspired me to take this opportunity to make a difference.  I appreciate all of the calls and texts that have helped calm my nerves and give me strength to be here today.  With saying this, after these few days, I am even more passionate and excited about the work I will be doing with Sport Changes Life.  

 

 

 

 

Challenge – I challenge myself routinely to be the change I want to see in the world. From when my mom grounded me from play Playstation2 to losing my last collegiate basketball game, I challenged myself to smile. I know that everything could be a lot worst and I truly believe the gift of life is the ultimate gift.

This past weekend I was able to use this amazing gift that SCL has giving me to visit Dublin for the weekend. I was able to catch up with Victory Scholars Jen Morabito and Christine Ganser as well as last year’s scholar Katie Ganser. It was an amazing time as we went cliff diving (don’t ask me why we would jump in water that had to be the same temperature as when the Titanic sank), took in some of the downtown Dublin artists, and had downtime to just relax and chat about our experiences so far. As we explored it was hard for me to ignore the high percentage of homeless people in the city of Dublin.

I constantly fretted over the fact on what to do and I got stuck in my head on how it could be unfair to give one something and not the other. I wrestled in my mind about what could be done with this and then it finally hit me. By being the change you want to see maybe the next person will take the lead and help out in a manner you did. There will never be a cure for every problem in the world, but they can be minimized to a certain extent. I know why I reside in Ireland for the next 10 months. I want to inspire youth through basketball as well as build relationships and be a positive role model for teens. That when somebody tells you no and that you are not good enough. All you have to do to prove them wrong is to show them your true quality.

I truly believe life is an amazing gift and that the world is a better place when we take the time to help others in any way we can, small or big.

After a tiring 12 hours of plane delays I finally arrived in Ireland on Monday to meet the other Victory Scholars and the rest of the Sport Changes Life family. My family and friends did an absolute awesome job of hosting various parties before I left for Ireland.  Although some have stated, “this was the longest goodbye in history,” I really did appreciate all of the love and support I received in my final weeks left in the states.

I first landed in Dublin and then traveled up to Northern Ireland to Belfast where I was able to witness how beautiful this country truly is.  Aside from initially trying to enter the car on the driver’s side and being freaked out because we were driving on the opposite side of the highway, the trip up North was great. I noticed everything here is so clean and the people really couldn’t be friendlier. 

All of the scholars are staying at the University of Ulster this week in Jordanstown and then eventually I will get situated in Galway when school begins in September.

The scholars and I had our first day of training yesterday where we learned how to effectively teach children different skills as well as learning how to teach in any given environment.  Later that day we had our first experience with the eHoops program.  This program was so much fun and extremely eye opening. We played football (soccer) and basketball with the local boys and I had a blast.  I was so amazed by how awesome the boy’s footwork was while playing football and I was obviously showed up big time.  After my first two football games I was then told that all of the boys I was playing with were boys that had been from troubled backgrounds.  I would have never guessed by the way they welcomed me.  After our football games we then played basketball where the children’s hand eye coordination was a different story.  Basketball seemed so foreign to them especially considering how smooth they were with the soccer ball.  The boys I met last night had such a passion for their religion which was so odd to me because most 16 year old boys do not even speak of religion where I’m from. Such an interesting experience but so cool to see how different cultures and lifestyles really are. I’m excited to learn more and impact these children anyway I can.

 

As for food…yesterday I experienced my first official Guinness, which was absolutely delicious. I also tried their pepperoni pizza which had barbeque sauce instead of pizza sauce, which in my opinion tasted like hotdogs, but surprisingly wasn’t terrible!

 

We have an action packed weekend ahead, which I’ll share in my next blog! 

Much love to my family and friends back in Philly<3

 

 A couple of Friday’s ago, a few of the scholars and I taught a boys groups at a school in Clonmel. We were on lunch break around 11am when my sister, Natalie, sent me a picture. It was 6am her time when our Sergeant First Class crazy Uncle Gary had come home and woken her up in bed that morning…all the way from Afghanistan where he had been serving since late January of last year. The chills were immediate as I saw their smiles in the picture, I felt and imagined the words that were said, and the hugs shared. This surprise visit was surely a treat for my family, and even though I couldn’t be there I was thankful he was home and for a little while and safe.

 

I was coaching the groups of boys on my own that day in Clonmel and found myself being challenged in the morning as we moved onto more advanced drills and teaching points. After my uplifting lunch break, we had one final group. I brought out an extra boost of energy and made sure the kids felt my enthusiasm while switching around a few of my teaching methods. After the sessions were completed, I began teaching a boy (a determined point guard) a few dribbling drills. Soon another, then another boy came over to see what we were doing and began dribbling along with us. I started smiling and laughing to myself at how many more joined our group because I was not expecting it! They were showing me how good they were at the “spider drill” and asking me all sorts of questions. The satisfaction I received after pushing myself and learning how to coach them during the stations prior was rewarding and unexpected as they followed me across the court doing single and double dribbling moves.

 

I finally got to Face Time with my uncle last night, which reminded me of this experience with the kids in Clonmel. Unfortunately, it was dinnertime at home and I have learned that I will NEVER again Face Time during a home cooked meal made by my mom when my uncle is manning the camera. He teased me waving and spinning every bite of the juicy steak (cooked just how I like it of course) on the fork right in front right of the screen! Anyone reading this who knows him is surely getting a laugh right now.

We all wish you safe travels back on Friday, and will all be thinking about you every day!

After a long journey across the Atlantic, I have finally arrived in Ireland! With only a minor delay before leaving Des Moines, the trip was a relatively smooth one. Words cannot describe how excited I am to finally be here and officially meet these amazing people. I am the lone Midwest representation, and thus, have been dubbed “Princess Iowa.” I suppose there are worse things to be called.

Once everyone had arrived and we all settled in, we hit the ground running and haven’t stopped yet. After a full day of training, we had our first eHoops experience. We had been briefed on what to expect and what we would be doing, but there is no way I could have been prepared for what I was about to experience. The young people I was able to interact with opened my eyes to the situations and issues going on around me like only a local could. I was amazed and appreciative of the amount of passion and knowledge those kids had for their beliefs and how readily they shared them with us. While I realize I have a very top-level understanding of the issues, their perspective fascinated me. I have always enjoyed learning about different American political issues (though not as much as my mother), but this touch of global perspective has certainly piqued my interest. I look forward continuing to expand my knowledge and understanding of the issues as the program progresses.

 

I have already attempted to expand my language and integrate Belfast-isms including: “what’s the crack” and “wee this or wee that”. Thus far, it’s been mostly failed attempts and lots of laughs, but eventually I think I will blend right in.

At first I was a little bit apprehensive. I’ll be honest, I was hesitant. I have experienced the good-natured warmth of the Irish in my first weeks on the island. Still, there was that little bit of nervousness stepping into a brand new environment at the University of Limerick. I had become accustomed to my friends and my setup both in Dayton and in Atlanta, so leaving all of that and basically restarting with school, soccer, and an entire year of my life had left a lot of unknowns. A lot of these unknowns were cleared up this week. I met tons of other international students from all over the world during orientation. Limerick has over 1,500 international students from every continent! I played soccer with a group of internationals who were super friendly, I met nearly all of the people in my apartment village, and I was introduced to a new team in my first match with Cloughjordan Football Club.

 

I came to a realization towards the end of this week. One common factor among all of these encounters was the friendliness and genuine good vibes that everyone displayed. I realized that at the end of the day, everyone is in the same boat that I am in, one way or another. Everyone has that little bit of apprehension when faced with something or someone new, as it is human nature to be wary of what is unknown. Knowing that this bit of apprehension is inside all of us, this week has shown me that when you let your guard down just that little bit and let the positive energy flow, your day to day experience can be transformed in an instant. I’ve now met people who I can call friends for at least the next year to come, and I look forward to meeting more remarkable people, learning more about their stories, and sharing my story with new people all the time. Through meeting new people and learning from them, I feel a sense of growth that I hope to continue and expand upon as this year gets under way.

As soon as I walked into practice on Wednesday, two girls ran up to me. Ironically, it was the only set of twins we have on the team, Roisin and Dearbhla. I still get them confused, but one had a black and blue hand from accidentally hurting herself while practicing drills with a basketball. The other accidentally stabbed her thumb with a nail. I thought to myself the next thing they are going to ask is, “Can we sit out of practice?” To my surprise, I underestimated them because not only did they lace up, but also when they couldn’t participate in a drill, they asked for drills to do on the sideline.

           

When I was 12, I wasn’t asking for drills on the sideline, I was being told what to do. In all honesty, when I was 12 I was cutting corners and hoping I could sit out sometimes. They are already learning that little things like that will help them improve their game, both mentally and physically in the long run. After every practice I tell all of the girls to practice improving their game whenever they can. I reminded them that they don’t always need a basketball or a court either. Defense, dribbling with a tennis ball, or form shooting with a soccer ball can work as well.

 

After all, we only practice twice a week so every extra workout counts. I like the fact that the only time anyone complains on the team is when I forget to give them a water break. I always have to apologize and remember they are 12, not 21. Although we lost our first game, I’m confident that there are more wins than losses to come down the road. Stay tuned for a recap of this weekend’s game! #Inspire #Victory

What about ye everyone? I have arrived and I could not be any more excited to get this journey started. I was told I would experience all four seasons in one day, however, I never expected to experience all four in an hour on my first day here! I looked at it as being symbolic of my first few days here, getting a little bit of everything Sport Changes Life and Northern Ireland have to offer. I am so thankful for this opportunity and it certainly would not have been possible without everyone in my life back home in the US. 

The Sport Changes Life family and the other Scholars are some really awesome people, we are having such good craic (no mom not that type, it means fun!) However, the most amazing people I met were the EHoops boys. I was totally reliving my glory days during the soccer part and probably ending up sweating more than the boys and there was no way I was getting subbed out! Marc, the man responsible for this awesome website, told me how much it means and how great it was to see these kids smile and having such a great time. That is when I realized why I am here, I don’t look at it as giving my time but rather spending time with these youth and genuinely enjoying their presence. 

Quick little backwards American story, my first time going to workout I should have noted the conversion of kilograms to pounds because I thought I could bench 44Kg dumbells only to be caught in such an immasculating position hollering for help when I soon realized I had nearly 100 pounds in each hand! Anyway, we are off to Dublin this weekend to see the All-Ireland Hurling Semi-Final, meet the U.S. ambassador, and work a 3 day basketball camp. Not a bad first week. As I mentioned before its just like the weather, getting a little bit of everything. Catch up with you soon. 

When it comes to heights, I think of myself as impartial. I don’t shake in my boots, yet I wouldn’t choose to go for a picnic on top of the Eiffel Tower. That said, I have never been cliff diving before and have never really been inclined to go. This was the case until Wednesday when Katie (who has been cliff diving before) scheduled us to go diving with Dave McKay, an expert in diving off of the cliffs.

 

I had seen the cliff before this past summer but had not jumped off of it. Now when I say cliff, I mean giant rock that is about 30 feet high, nonetheless, freefalling from 30 feet is scary. My fellow scholars Jen and Ronnie, as well as Katie and her roommate Mai-Thy all went out to Howth, a suburb of Dublin right on the east coast. As we got close, we realized we all had different fears. Ronnie was afraid of the freezing water (makes sense cause the water was like ice), Jen was afraid of the jump (also makes sense, who wasn’t?), and I was afraid I would either hit a rock on the way down and spiral to my death, or that I would sink to the bottom because of the density of my body (I’ll leave it to you to decide if this one makes sense). 

 

We started the hike to get to the cliff and saw that we had to jump into the ocean from the first rock to then climb the next rock that we would jump from. We all got into the water with no problems, minus the temperature taking our breath away.  Our first challenge was to get onto the next rock. It looked pretty easy, however these rocks were covered in barnacles. With the adrenaline pumping we got to the top. I looked down at my legs and was gushing blood, pretty typical for those who know me. Now apparently salt water draws the blood out of you so the cuts were not actually that bad, and I was told there are no sharks in the Irish waters. But who doesn’t watch Shark Week and know sharks can smell blood from like a million miles away!!

 

Anyway, it was my turn to jump and it took me a little bit but I took a leap of faith. Turns out I wasn’t too dense, and didn’t spiral down the rocks; I popped right out of the water. The waves and current were really strong so for a moment I imagined myself stranded at sea with only a volleyball named Wilson, but I got back to the rock with only a few more barnacle “bites.”

 

So what did I take away from this whole experience? The ocean is freezing (ice bath status), barnacles are extremely sharp, I need to purchase water shoes and before you do something don’t think about it too much! I want this year to be an adventure filled with excitement and learning and so far it has been just that!