Jamaican-born US Staff Sergeant Earl Mowatt credits basketball for his success

“I learned independence from a very young age. For the most part my mom, she was always working. I had to make my own breakfast, take myself to school, ensured that my homework was done, ensured that I got home, ensured that my uniform was always clean,” recounted Mowatt in an interview with Old Harbour News.

Mowatt, born in Dela Vega City, Spanish Town, finally got some respite from the sound of gunshots between gangs and the security forces when his mother relocated to Longville Park, Clarendon. At that point he had just matriculated from Spanish Town Primary to Old Harbour High where an outlet to discover his true purpose were afforded to him and many other boys through the sport of basketball.

Through basketball Mowatt, now a Staff Sergeant in the US military channeled his youthful energy into the game which he played as a small forward or guard. He recalled spending numerous hours on the school’s court, which landed him in hot water with his mother who would scold him for being out for far too late sometimes.

Though he was being scolded for coming home late from practice the reward on the court was being justified. Just before his 14 birthday Mowatt was named most valuable player (MVP) during the 2006 National Basketball Under-14 Championship and by age 15 was good enough to make the National Under-21 team.

“Initially my mom didn’t want me to play but after a few beatings she decided to let me go to basketball practice,” he recalled vividly. “The discipline and certain life lessons that basketball taught me came from actually trying to develop myself more within the game.”

The sport, he said, opened his eyes to the various dimensions through which life must be assessed in order to survive and thrive in an environment in which personal and collective ambitions are inextricably connected.

“I had to ensure that my grades were at certain level in order to play,” he said from his home in Brooklyn, New York.

Whilst his stocks were rising on the courts, he had another challenge: that of maintaining his grades. He was far from the gifted student athlete but his determination to succeed at anything ultimately propelled him into Sixth Form.

“It was the competitiveness,” he said of the main driving force behind his success. “I was a very competitive person at a young age.”

“I don’t want to lose a game,” he added. “And for this not to happen I had to put in that extra work and spend time developing your game. I never got that competitive spirit until I started playing basketball and learning the sport.”

His basketball coach Ricardo Edwards, who is a pastor, played an integral role during his formative years in high schools, he told me, as it filled that void due to the absence of his dad. “He was to some extent that father figure as well. He shared a lot of his experiences, and he tried to ensure that we don’t experience a lot of his (bad) experience,” said Mowatt.

Those life lessons instilled by Pastor Edwards as well as honed on the courts were the foundation of the man called ‘Earl the Pearl’.

In the US, Mowatt pursued further studies in criminal justice at the Borough of Manhattan Community College before his enlisting in the military. Surprisingly though the dream of playing in the NBA wasn’t his main focus.

“My focus was to be the best in school league and then transcend to the NBL (National Basketball League in Jamaica) and try to be the best in the NBL. And while trying to be the best that would take to probably getting a scholarship,” said the former Spanish Town Spartans and Team AAH player.

A few overseas missions including time spent in war-torn Iraq didn’t break his resolve but rather solidify the tenacity inculcated on the courts and as far back when he was child.

It has been a remarkable journey for the six-foot two-inch 30-year-old army man. Ten years ago he had just landed in the land of the free and home of the brave, a melting pot of diverse cultures, a place where success and failure are seemingly good bedfellows.

“After basketball I was searching for something else that could replace that competiveness and I think that’s where the army filled that gap,” he said.

Personal growth and development and becoming a better leader were traits further enhanced by the military, he emphasized.

“Playing basketball requires a level of intellect to make certain decisions, because basketball is played not on a physical perspective but more on a mental perspective. It is the same thing with the military within the ranks where it starts to become more of a mental game. You have to learn how to deal with those personalities, you have to learn to deal with the different cultures… and I try to use all that information to make the best decision,” he reasoned.

Perhaps shaped by his own personal struggles growing up, Mowatt is keen on laying a solid foundation for himself and family, whenever fatherhood comes around.

The budding relationship with his biological father, who operates a business, has seen Mowatt delved into entrepreneurism. He is the owner of Quick N Easy Laundry Services and ICAN Real Estate Development in Brooklyn, two companies he formed while spending time helping his father run the Jahmek Beauty Systems, manufacturers of the Wow and Superb brands of Jamaican-made cosmetic products.

Unlike some children who would be mad at their father for not being fully involved during their upbringing, Earl didn’t chide his dad, choosing instead to forge an unbreakable bond into the future.

“We are still developing that relationship, but at a younger age we weren’t communicating as much. During my teenage years we started communicating a lot more, we would visit him in the summer times but we never had that close relationship until recently, I would say over the past two years,” he said.

Serving in the US army has also fueled a deep desire within Mowatt to serve his native homeland. Already through his non-profit 1Lyfe Basketball Youth Development initiative, he has been contributing to the positive influence of youth in Old Harbour in collaboration with his former high school coach.

Through this programme, is able to impart some of the lessons learnt that has made him the man and leader he is now. Mentorship is crucial.

“There is no clear cut way of trying to get where you want to,” he reiterated of his usual advice to the next generation. “But it is more about learning about yourself. Try to learn as much as you can about yourself. What you strong at, what you weak at and just try to develop certain areas of yourself. It’s all about self-development.

It is not always about your present or your past but it’s where you’re trying to go,” he said. That’s where your personal development comes in order to get to that point.”