The Story behind Basketball Culture?
Who is Coach Berwa?
As a Physical Education teacher for 20 years and basketball coach for 10, Coach Berwa has always committed himself to the success of his students and players. Putting his students and players first has allowed him to thrive in different school settings and with different coaching opportunities. He has taught in MD, DC, and OH. His journey from the DMV to Ohio has been a long one. His main coaching experience has been in Ohio. So, when coming up with his logo design he wanted to make sure both the DMV and Ohio were represented. The stars on his logo represent the Ohio and DC flags. There are four elements to the logo: letter B, letter C, stars and basketball.
He teaches Physical Education in Copley Fairlawn City Schools and has had the opportunity to coach multiple sports during his tenure. Coaching and teaching remain his passion and he will continue to work with the kids of Copley and the surrounding areas.
He currently coaches and trains several players in the Akron area and decided to find more ways to use basketball to influence others. He has coached for Copley, Walsh Jesuit HS, SMAC Akron and Ohio Xtreme. He just felt it was time to do his own thing and GOD made it possible for him to do so.
The next step for him is to continue to train players but also recruit hard working players to play AAU. He plans to have boys and girls teams and is open to coaches wanting to start new teams at Basketball Culture. If you are interested in finding out more, please be sure to contact him or click on the "Contact" tab and fill out the form. He will get back to you at his earliest convenience.
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Thank you for visiting.
Why name it Basketball Culture?
To us, culture is a reflection of who we are and what brings us together.
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The owner, Andy Berwa, decided to create this company based on his own life experiences.
As a youngster in the DMV, basketball was a major influence in his life. Being a first generation American, he realized his roots were more grounded in the culture and environment where he grew up. Growing up Prince George's County, MD, basketball, music and his friends were the main influences in his life.
At that time, struggling to have a self identity, he gravitated towards basketball and played with his brothers and friends. He turned to basketball as a safe space for himself. It gave him an opportunity to express and be himself. He fell in love with basketball around 6th grade and can still recall his days at the Stephen Decatur Rec. Center playing basketball everyday with his friends after school.
He remembers playing basketball competitively and using it as a proving ground to earn his stripes as a young basketball player. Things came natural to him and he started to taste some success. He started to compete with the Clinton Boys and Girls Club and can still recall the competitive fire he had back then.
During a game, he would airball a free throw only to watch the entire gym heckle him in 7th grade. He would swish the second one and he backpedaled with his hands up while engaging the crowd as to let them know he wasn't intimidated or affected by their heckling. That is where his competitive spirit was born and now it translates over to coaching as he teaches young players to embrace those types of moments and learn from them. He coaches kids up as a means to help them gain self belief and self confidence in their own abilities.
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Though being talented throughout high school, he still was missing something. It was that one person who could provide some guidance and confidence to help him grow in the game. He would go on to continue playing but lacked the understanding of the game and how to truly play it because no one taught it to him.
It wasn't until he graduated from college where he matured as a "skilled" basketball player who started to conceptualize things. Having never played high school or college ball, he started to gain a better understanding of the game itself.
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At that time, the game was becoming more global and was becoming a bigger part of the american culture with the shoe game, clothing, tattoos, fashion, style of play, music, etc.
This evolution of basketball would be a major influence on Coach Berwa as he started to identify more and more with the basketball trends and culture. The shoe game was not as big but he always had exclusive sneakers, a crispy t-shirt to match and nice outfit. It was him embracing a culture which he identified with. At this point, he was growing in the game with his skills but also embracing his own sense of style "swag!"
Basketball gave him the freedom to express himself and gave him a sense of identity. His basketball experiences helped shape who he is today.
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He owes basketball a lot and he wants to use his basketball experiences to positively influence the lives of others.