Began's Perseverance Helping In Life And Basketball

Jack Began handles the ball at the top of the key (SS Photo)

Perseverance. Survivor.

Those are two words to describe Jack Began, but he is so much more than that. He is hardworking, caring, honest and so much more. The junior on the Fairfield Ludlowe boy's basketball team has fought through a lot of adversity in his life.

Jack grew up in Appleton, Wisconsin (30 miles south of Green Bay) with his parents, Sandra and Patrick, and brother Charlie.

In September of 2012, Patrick died by suicide.  In July of 2014, Jack, his mother and brother moved from Wisconsin to Fairfield, Connecticut.

Jack and his mother have both written about their experiences and I will let them tell the story. This is a focus on Jack as a basketball player and a person.

Jack played freshman basketball during the 2014-2015 for Ludlowe. His sophomore year, he made a decision to not play that year and was a student manager. He put in the work as a manager, while continuing to keep his basketball skills strong. As a manager, Jack worked with the other managers and did what was asked of him. Anytime there were people needed for a drill, Jack would jump in and play hard. He watched intently as the team practiced so he could learn the plays and terminology used by coaches John Dailey and Lawrence Richardson.

Jack could have just sat there and said, I'm not playing so I won't help any more than I have to, but that's not him. He wanted to help, he wanted to get better, he wanted to learn.

This season, Jack is back on the court and has a positive impact on his team. He is starting on junior varsity and playing as a role player off the bench for the varsity team. Even as a junior, he is showing great leadership qualities. Jack pushes everyone to work hard and makes sure people know what they are supposed to do.

The sharp shooter, Began hit a big three-pointer late in the Falcons loss against Bassick on December 21.  He is a very smart player on the court, knowing what to do and where to be on the court in certain situations.

Jack is working hard every day in practice to not only be a sharp shooter, but the best all-around player he can be so he can help the Falcons as much as possible.

Jack is also a writer and a big time sports fan. Jack has written articles on many different topics, including his father. You can check out his writing here. He roots for the Green Bay Packers, Milwaukee Bucks, Milwaukee Brewers, and the University of Wisconsin.

Jack will look to be a key piece for the Falcons this season.