Coaches and teams with the Blue Valley Recreation youth basketball league showed up in force to support Coaches vs. Cancer over the weekend during the Suits and Sneakers week. Basketball coaches across the country unite for a common cause – saving lives from cancer! To raise awareness and bring attention to the cause during this week, we are asking coaches to return to suiting up during their games – and of course, wear their most eye-catching sneakers.
The program is a nationwide collaboration between the American Cancer Society and the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC). This initiative leverages the personal experiences, community leadership, and professional excellence of coaches nationwide to increase cancer awareness. It also has a local flare as Norm Stewart, former head coach of the University of Missouri’s men’s basketball program, cancer survivor, and member of the NABC, provided the vision and inspiration for the Coaches vs. Cancer concept.
The weekend was the work of Blue Valley Rec’s Kaite Wieberg, a recreation assistant with the sports department. Her husband, Eric, works for NABC and she hatched the idea for BVRC to be involved when a family friend wore a suit with sneakers to a rec league game last year. Although the program is designed for collegiate coaches, Wieberg saw the opportunity to spread the word through the youth community.
“Our coaches were very receptive of the idea,” said Wieberg. “Not only did they wear suits with sneakers, but teams used the NABC’s resources to bring awareness to a disease that touches so many of us.”
In addition to the new coaching style, teams displayed “I suit up for” and “Today I honor” signs before and after the games.
“More and more kids are affected by cancer, whether it be a parent, grandparent, family friend, or classmate,” reflected Wieberg. “This weekend gave them a voice and empowered them to make a difference.”
To learn more about NABC’s Coaches vs. Cancer, visit https://nabc.com/cvc/.