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Aside from his stature and talent on the basketball court, sophomore forward Nick Winbush is actually quite similar to most Miami University students.
An Ohio native from a suburb in Cleveland, his parents raised him with strong morals while always emphasizing academics. During the school year he goes to class, does his homework and takes exams-just like everybody else.
However, Nick did not spend his summer like most college students. After his father's death in the spring, he traveled more than 4,000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean to Ghana.
He visited the country once before with his mother and although he was excited to go for a second time, he admitted that his father's death made this trip much different.
"All Nick ever talks about are his mom and dad," Miami associate head coach Jermaine Henderson said. "His dad was his heart, his guy, his best friend."
According to Nick, the trip was a journey of self-discovery; one where he could visit his roots and get a deeper understanding of his origins. He decided to record his observations in a blog, documenting his journey in the hopes that it might help him better process through all of his experiences.
Nick traveled with his uncle, Ray Winbush, who visits the country once a year. Both were hoping that this experience would provide not only provide a time of personal reflection over the family's tragedy, but an educational and relaxing experience.
Upon Nick's arrival in the country, he realized it evolved significantly since his 2001 visit. The country's economy is bursting with activity, and Nick immediately recognized the large amount of construction as well as a stronger currency.
"When I first went to Ghana, the U.S. dollar was about five to six times the cedi (Ghana's currency)," Nick said. "This was a real problem for Ghana because to carry around anything real substantial you would need to have an envelope full of money. Since then, they have made considerable changes to reduce the inflation, to the point where it is practically equivalent to ours (in the U.S.)."
Nick noticed the Westernization of the country.
"My first meal was at a mall that could have very well been in any town in the U.S.," he said. "They had very similar restaurants such as McDonald's fast food, as well as other materialistic stores like RadioShack."
He was impressed by how much the Ghanaians embrace a consumer economy and emphasize education.
"Education is really big in Ghana, possibly more valued in Ghana than America," Winbush said. "People will do anything to get to go to college; I met a person in the Air Force who worked there for many years so he could save up enough money to go to college."
Nick said he had a spiritual and emotional experience when he visited the dungeons off the Cape Coast, where many African slaves were kept.
"You learn about in school how bad it is," he said. "But then to see it is different. It gives you an image of the inhumanity. It really amazed me how they kept 200 people in there because of the startling humidity and poor sanitation."
Nick's journey ended with a visit to Kumasi to see Okomfo Anoyke's calling of the Golden Stool, a relic from the early Asante Kingdom which was brought down from the heavens by Okomfo Anoyke to Osei Tutu, the first Asante king. Legend has it that this symbol united the kingdom of Asante for many years.
Ultimately, Nick said the encouragement of his family and emotional connection he shared with his uncle was palpable.
At Miami, coach Henderson is excited to see how the effects of the trip will play out on the court. Henderson described him as a "prize recruit" coming into last year, and is confident that he will develop into a great player.
"Nick is one of our hardest workers," Henderson said. "He is an eager learner and has an unwavering commitment to the game. It's going to carry him."
