I sit down with my friend and former kiddo coach, Stevie Johnson, an East Bay basketball skills trainer and founder of One Thru Five Academy.

We talk about why his work is “bigger than basketball” and how he coaches with a holistic lens - caring about what’s happening at home, in school, and with friends just as much as what happens on the court.

Stevie shares his nontraditional path in hoops, his adoption story, and what it was like navigating identity and belonging while being raised by multiple families in very different environments.

He opens up about faith, resilience, and his mantra of “stacking days” as a way to build skills, character, and confidence over time. We dig into the role of coaches and mentors, how he reads kids’ energy the moment they walk into the gym, and the intentional ways he uses routines, humor, and simple social habits to help them grow as people, not just as players.

Talking with Stevie, a truly awesome and resilient person and coach, taught me a lot about the importance of discipline and grit.

It's conversations like this that help all the parents, coaches, adoptees, adoptive and foster families, and anyone trying to turn adversity into purpose feel less alone in their lives as they pursue their goals...one stacked day at a time.

This episode of Adventures in Adversity is sponsored by Divini, a honey-based kombucha tea.

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