“It’s easy for him to annoy me. I don’t know how he does it,” said Samory Gueye. “He will call me and ask me things when he knows I’m busy, but I am glad I can help him since I have been through this before.” His younger brother, Ousmane Gueye, giggled as Samory grinned.
The two brothers sat across from each other in McAfee Commons. A checkerboard was between them, and they fiddled with the pieces. Samory and Ousmane were decked out in Union colors and athletic wear. As someone who is 5 feet 2 inches tall, I was glad they were sitting down, since both of them towered a foot and a half over me.
The Gueye brothers were raised in Senegal and then moved to France. They are lucky if they can see their family once a year, but they cope with it by knowing they are at Union for a reason: to provide a better future for their family. Samory is a senior art major, while Ousmane is a freshman art major. Both men have demanding schedules full of school, basketball, mobilization squad and friends. Between school and basketball, both of them said school was harder.
“On the court, you can forget about classes or if you get a bad grade,” said Samory. “Even if you didn’t do well in the classroom that day, you can do better on the court.”
He and his brother have been playing basketball since they could hold something. Some may expect them to be competitive with one another; however, this is not this case. Samory expressed his wish for his brother to be the best he could be, on and off the court. Both brothers are artistically gifted and work hard to cultivate their talents and gifts. Samory plans on pursuing more education in the area of graphic design after college. He also hopes to play professional basketball.
“Basketball is great, but that is limited,” said Samory. “I do more than run, dribble and shoot. First, I serve God. I want to be someone who supports and pushes other people, even if I am busy.”
Even though he has the same major as his brother, Ousmane draws and writes. In the future, he hopes to write books and draw on the side.
The Gueye brothers are preparing for their first game of the season and hope to see Union students in the stands.