As you look at the phrase displayed on everything connected to Girls Varsity Basketball, from their Instagram page to the back of their practice uniforms, you may notice a misspelling in a simple phrase, “We Wil keep working”. It seems to be missing an “L”. The simple “misspelled” phrase on the back of the teams’ practice uniforms and all over their social media platforms isn’t just a sloppy grammatical error. This February marks the tenth anniversary of the passing of former Girls Basketball Coach Wilbur “Wil” Smith. Wil Smith was Berkshire School’s first Dean of Diversity and Inclusion and coached Girls Varsity Basketball and football. On February 22, 2015, Wil Smith sadly passed from colon cancer. As Girls’ Varsity Basketball entered this season, they had many goals, like making playoffs and having a winning season, but they also had the ultimate goal of honoring Wil Smith’s legacy and dedicating their season to him.
Wil was dedicated to service, extremely selfless, passionate, and competitive. When Wil was diagnosed with colon cancer on June 15, 2012, he kept working and coached until his death while leading his team to the Class B playoffs. Wil’s mantra was “Keep Working”. He reminded his players to be grateful for the opportunity to play basketball, to treat it as a privilege, and to play “for all of the girls around the world who don’t get to play this great game of basketball”. Wil dedicated his summers to helping run Seeds of Peace, a leadership development camp to help encourage and initiate change. Wil’s selflessness, commitment, and compassion for others inspired many.
As the Girls’ Varsity Basketball team decided to honor the season to him and play for something bigger than themselves, they started with the simple phrase “We Wil Keep Working”. Before every game, the team reads a passage in dedication to Wil Smith, “At Berkshire we play with passion, commitment and gratitude. We play for Coach Smith, and for all of the girls around the world who don’t get to play this great game of basketball. On their shoulders we stand–we wil keep working.” The passage reminds the team that it is a privilege to be able to play this wonderful sport everyday, and how they play for something so much bigger than just themselves. When asking players how dedicating their season to Wil Smith has affected them, senior captain Mia Zayas Echevarria ’25 described how “this season is more than just playing for each other, it’s playing for him and finishing something he wasn’t able to finish due to his illness.” Marcela Sans Alvarez ’27 said, “It gives me something to play for bigger than just basketball.” As the Girls’ Varsity Basketball team has hopes to make a run in the Class B playoffs they hope to win it for Wil.
On February 22nd at 4:00pm, the Girls Varsity Basketball team will face off against Ethel Walker where they will hold a Wil Smith Remembrance game on the tenth anniversary of his passing.
