Eight years ago started a new culture of basketball in Davie County. Growing up in Davie County there was only one option to play, and it was  recreational basketball. Winning was the only thing that you strived for. Upward has a vision to play with a purpose, a way to encourage kids that winning can come from not only on the court, but off the court as well.

Weekly at the practices, the players are given scripture cards during their devotions by their coaches. Each card has a life lesson to go along with their scripture. Trust, honor, obey, respect, gratitude and love are some of the things that are taught, Gregg Marshall said. Upward also has cheerleading. Coaches are given books and online videos to help with cheers. The age range is kindergarten to 12th grade. This year we saw there was a need for high-school players that wanted to play with a purpose. We had some great games that were physical, intense and fun to watch. We took two all-star teams to play in Concord last weekend.This year we had over 210 kids in the program, over 1,500 people come through Saturdays, and each year continues to grow.

Upward is built upon the word of God. The last practice card is Love, and it has John 3:16 as the verse. Our coaches go over the plan of salvation with each child so they might know the good news of Jesus Christ. We want to thank our sponsors. The sponsors helped us in turning no child away because they couldn’t pay.