A Net for Change
By Alicia Santiago
Courts built for excitement and competition lie dispirited and broken with underserviced nets. With the heart of the community on the court, Simon West and Sam Berry found themselves in search of a change. Adding new basketball nets to soulless courts: a small change makes big renovations.
NetThat, a non-profit, is a group of young adults who enhance the heart of local communities.
As a junior at Texas A&M University, Simon West noticed that technology was impacting communities.
During the pandemic, West wanted to balance the outdoors and technology for the youth. After a few basketball net changes and team building, NetThat formed. Detaching kids from the internet dependent world starts with creating an outdoor space to thrive in. This meant fixing the courts where kids travel to as an escape.
West said the pandemic affected technology dependence in a negative way. No one left their rooms and gyms closed; people weren’t being social or active. West feared this stagnancy, “College Station is a pretty small college town. We would go to these courts, especially in communities with higher minority demographics, and they were not serviceable. Kids didn’t want to play there,” he said. With a team across the country, NetThat turned into an organization seeking an equal outdoors for all youth. Talking about credibility, “What makes it unique is that it’s student run. “It’s a modest and honest approach,” Sam Berry, co-founder of NetThat and junior at the University of Oregon, said. He talked about conflicts West and him faced with finances and running a team. “Making people care is always the hardest part,” Berry on how hard it was convincing people to believe in them. But they did.
NetThat partnered with community representatives who act as youth role models. Cason Wallace and Rylan Griffin, D1 basketball players, set examples of how those who play the game give back to it as well.
Replacing nets was only the first part. Giving back is the mission. Exploring the future,“We want to join or merge with an afterschool program to get them outside and give back.” West said. West dreams of creating communities with hope for a better future.
NetThat spread to six college campuses around the country with a mission to foster community recreation spaces for all youth. With a young team with big ambitions, they are developing a footprint sustainable enough to last through the generations.
