Posted on: 2009-01-31
By DAVID YONKE
BLADE RELIGION EDITOR
Racing along a polished gym floor, 10 pint-sized Cobras weave their way in and out of a line marked by orange cones, testing their ability to dribble a basketball.
Some boys on the second-grade team breeze through the course as if the ball were tied to their hands like a yo-yo, while others struggle along with a basketball that behaves more like a pinball.
Good or bad, however, every player gets a positive comment from the Cobras' coach, Mark Juhasz.
The Monday night workout was in preparation for today's opening games in Upward Basketball, a Christian athletic league that was founded in 1986 in Spartanburg, S.C. Last year, nearly 300,000 children ages 6 to 11 took part in Upward Basketball leagues nationwide. The local team is based at Trinity Church of the Nazarene in Toledo.
The fast-growing sports organization seeks to build spirituality, character, and self-esteem as much as - or maybe even more than - physical competition and scoring points.
"I've coached a lot of different sports over the years but I like the Upward philosophy of combining sports with youth ministry and leading kids to Christ," Mr. Juhasz said in an interview this week. "They really do go hand in hand, teaching very valuable lessons that come together."
He said that while Bible lessons and spiritual growth are vital but the coaches do not neglect teaching of athletic skills to the children. They want the youngsters to be ready for mainstream sports competition once they graduate from Upward.
"Obviously youth ministry is very important, but the lessons you learn in sports are very important as well," Mr. Juhaz said. "We want to develop their skills but not be so competitive that they lose their [Bible] lesson."
"It's not all about winning," said Lynn Kujawski, who helped organize the local Upward league three years ago. "It's all about having fun and building self-esteem, and making every kid a winner."
For the younger players, such as the second-grade players on Mr. Juhasz's Cobras, there is no score-keeping during games and the league has no won-loss records or team standings.
Referees lead both teams in prayer at center court before every game, according to the national league rules.
"Other leagues are so competitive, the kids are losing it," Ms. Kujawski said. "We announce every kid before every game. We'll announce as he runs out on the floor that he's 5-foot-five and goes to Emmanuel Christian School and loves pizza and hotdogs."
There are three six-minute periods per half, and at the start of every period the coaches substitute a predetermined number of players. Every child plays at least half the game and no child can sit out more than six minutes at a time.
During halftime, Ms. Kujawski said, a parent or coach gives a testimony about what God means to them personally.
At the end of each practice and game, coaches award colored stars to players to recognize their efforts in different areas.
With 10 players on the Cobras, Mr. Juhaz awards two stars in each of five categories that have been established by the national headquarters. Every player receives one star per practice or game: white for "Christlikeness," blue for best effort, gold for sportsmanship, red for best defense, and gray for best offense.
The local Upward Basketball league had 338 players on 42 teams last year with 112 churches represented, Ms. Kujawski said.
Practices are one hour per week and all games are held on Saturday morning or early afternoon. "Having only one hour of practice a week is huge. A lot of families can't do four hours five days a week," she said.
And since the team's practices are short, many parents stick around and either watch or help the coaches, she said.
The season starts today and runs for 10 weeks.
Mr. Juhasz pointed out that although there is no score-keeping for his team, the players are still very competitive.
"I can tell you, the children are into the score," he said. "They know. They'll say things like, 'If we were keeping score, it would be 20 to 18.'"
More information on Upward Basketball is available online at www.upward.org or by calling Trinity Church of the Nazarene, 419-882-8734.
Contact David Yonke at:
dyonke@theblade.com
or 419-724-6154.
Permission of Use by: The Toledo Blade
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Upward Unlimited is a non-profit organization that partners with local evangelical churches to provide resources and training for conducting children’s sports ministry. Upward Basketball, Upward Cheerleading, Upward Soccer, and Upward Flag Football are all ministry programs of Upward Unlimited.