A Look At E’Twaun’s Upbringing

The Boiling Point: Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette writer Stacy Clardie went in-depth into what it was like for E’Twaun Moore growing up around gangs, drugs and violence… and how he made it out.

You often hear about college basketball players coming from tough areas, how they “made it out” and all that. E’Twaun Moore is one of those guys. A Fort Wayne newspaper did a story today about how E’Twaun could’ve easily become another statistic, but instead piled up his statistics on the court.

The story details how E’Twaun went from a seventh grader who was rarely eligible to a four-year starter in high school and college. It also talks about how his childhood friend, Donte Brown, got caught up in the negatives around him and died of stab wounds.

"“In any instance, you can easily go from this nice guy to this terrible guy,” Moore said. “There’s a lot of people that definitely don’t make it out, that definitely get trapped into the drugs, if they’re selling drugs, doing drugs and all the negativity that surrounds you. If you make it out, it’s huge and it’s a positive.”"

Moore didn’t make it out on his own, according to the story. His mother and father are largely to blame. They’re the ones that held him accountable.

"The kids had chores. They were held accountable. They were only allowed to miss school if they were “couldn’t-get-out-of-bed sick,” Ezell Jr. said. They saw first-hand the benefit of a strong work ethic: Their parents didn’t work the system, relying on welfare like others in the neighborhood. Edna is a Head Start teacher, and Ezell delivers furniture.In the midst of an unstable culture, their parents cultivated an environment of security and responsibility."