Basketball—A Link To Japan

 

By Evan Kenney

    Thirty Niagara youth, coaches and chaperons are preparing to head to Japan thanks to Port Colborne's Paul Faris and the board members of The Niagara International Friendship Exchanges for Education (NIFEE).

    Because of high school and university experiences in Japan through Rotary exchanges and scholarships, a connection developed with this Southern Ontario region and the Far East through athletics.  "Basketball was my means of communication," says the developer of these exchanges.  "My connections with an international sports festival in Kanazawa, much like The Canada Games, led to a proposal to bring Canadian men's basketball players over.  In the summer of '91, the POITS team played in a round robin tournament.  This evolved into NIFEE by '98 and was incorporated in 2000."

    NIFEE's motto, "dedicated to the ongoing development of overseas educational exchange opportunities," provides lifelong learning experiences for youth selected more for leadership qualities than pure basketball ability.  The Niagara ambassadors are chosen by coaches from high schools in Niagara while their Japanese counterparts come from Nagaoka High School in Nagaoka, Japan. A sister school relationship is under development between this Japanese school and Westlane Secondary School in Niagara Falls, Ontario.  Both schools and administrations are supportive as partnerships encourage international learning options as well as the exchanges.  The relationship is based on day-to-day learning facilitated by technology and event-type exchanges where groups, teams and organizations physically visit and interchange for short periods. Expansion into one year student and staff exchanges are in the works.

    Josh Easton is a current selection for the program.  "I never thought about leaving the continent before.  I hope to change my view of the living conditions.  I thought everyone in Japan would have a computer but Kenji and Hiroaki {students who stayed with Josh in Niagara in summer of '01} do not.  It was hard to get a point across.  I used hand gestures.  All that disappeared when we were on the basketball court."

    Student, Brent Bogucki, and coach, Phil Mosley, echo one another when mentioning the honour felt in association with NIFEE.  Phil believes, "It has given me a great opportunity to meet some quality young men and to share in this unique experience.  Combining culture, education and basketball in one adventure is the ultimate for me.  It is nice to see students gaining valuable life experiences through exchanges like this.  I know that this will be a trip of a lifetime.  So much teaching happens outside the classroom and if I can impart support to players in this regard, I consider that extremely rewarding." Brent adds, "It means a great deal to me to be chosen from all the basketball players in the region to represent Canada.  Traveling to Japan is… important because most people won't have the chance to travel there for vacation, never mind play something they love such as basketball."

    Young women also play a key role in the exchange program as evident through youth such as Emilie Malkiewich.  Emilie completed two courses on the Japanese language and learned the customs and way of life.  Her role is not to play basketball but to expand her knowledge of different parts of the world and to meet new people.  "It means that no matter where I go or what I do, I will have this trip to look back upon and remember the friends I made and the knowledge that I gained.  It gives me the opportunity to see life in a new perspective.  So far, this experience has allowed me to meet two great Japanese people, Seiya and Shin-ichi.  It has allowed me to witness how students from Nagaoka work together and even though there was a language barrier, I could still learn and have fun with them."

    Experiencing cultural differences and developing lifelong friendships is an integral part of NIFEE.  Josh Easton's guests were surprised that Josh did laundry and that these duties were not reserved for his mother. The pair was respectful and giving during their Canadian stay even though the boys had previously followed very strict rules of social positioning just two months prior.

    Paul Faris notes that differences in friendship drive much of the interactions between the two cultures.  "North Americans tend to talk more about feelings while Japanese bond through shared experiences. Japanese youth have fun and understand the same fashion but they interact differently.  You become aware that people can be alternatively affected in different geographic locations around the world."

    Now, these Canadian ambassadors and board members are fundraising to achieve a goal of $60 000 to make the trip affordable.  A raffle and trivia night is underway and more activities before the July departure date.  Paul can be reached at nifee@becon.org or visit the website at www.nifee.org.