UB League Fundraiser

The UB League is a program under IFERS. The money donated will be used for UB League operating expenses. Our focus is community development our mission statement "We build men who build communities!" UB League is a program formerly founded in 2019 after watching decades of societal indifference to the needs of low income young and adult males. In our community we need good role models and a positive, safe place to establish camaraderie and fellowship, decrease stress and anxiety, and help with family responsibilities.

The demographic we serve struggles with conflict resolution. We strive to create an environment of peaceful functional energy which transfers to the community. As a young man in Indiana without a father, I, Laurence Okereke, was mentored by some of the older basketball players in the park close to where I lived. Those guys never let me off the hook when it came to competing in basketball. The lessons I learned were sportsmanship, perseverance, mental toughness, focus, strategy and the benefits of good physical and emotional health. My experience motivated me to establish a program dedicated to individual responsibility and bridging the social and economic gap through basketball.

Young men without fathers do not have mentors available in their community. The lack of structure for these young men leads to cyclical dysfunction. Social agencies rightfully focus their efforts on children, but young men and men in general, many of whom have dysfunctional social energy, are forgotten. For this forgotten demographic UB League is creating a community with mentors.

The league also provides rapid feedback and sophisticated basketball analytics as a means to teach participants how to self-regulate, process and analyze constructive criticism. The stats and the video analysis allow them to hold one another accountable. This transfers to real life and is what separates UB League from other similar programs. A UB League game is a metaphor for life. In our games the players are expected to make good decisions, to use their energy wisely, to think about every possession, to give teammates room to play, and hold themselves accountable. They are expected to manage their time, be in the moment, never give up! Their efforts are quantified, and feedback is provided.

As players’ stats (points, rebounds, and assists) improve on the court, they are expected to improve their stats (accountability, inclusivity and mentorship) in the community. To be more specific, we expect our participants to be good fathers, good sons, good husbands and good men. UB league is held on Sundays from 12:30pm to 7:30pm at Martin Luther King Recreation Center, 1522 Linden Ave, South Bend, IN 46628. UB League was formed to create better physical and mental health in our communities, develop trust in the legal, and economic systems and enable these men to better handle their legal and economic problems without resorting to crime. There is no accessible organized recreation for men in South Bend. A functional basketball league is an organic way to reach this high-risk demographic. Adult males from distressed communities in South Bend need a place to decompress, mentor, play basketball, socialize, and (in time) handle their legal and economic issues.