As famous freestyle wrestler Dan Gable once said, “Once you’ve wrestled, everything else in life is easy.”

If you spoke with – or simply watched – Joe Berryman in action, whether academically or in athletics, you can see how the “everything else” comes easy for him. In this month’s Colonial, we spotlight senior, Joseph Berryman.

Joe was born and raised in Freehold Boro. In fact, Joe lives right down the street from the school. Joe is
an only child and loves every part of it. Joe, a stand-out wrestler on the Boro wrestling team, developed a passion for the sport at an early age. His father, once a college wrestler, was an early influence. That has not wavered throughout Joe’s life. When asked whether he’d ever play any other sport besides wrestling, Joe said that he did play baseball as well so that would be his choice. You can tell, though, that wrestling is his pride and his love – so much so that Joe has been on the varsity team since freshman year and is now a captain of the team.

The wrestling following Joe’s lead has won Freehold Boro’s first division title ever last year. Also, they had 3 state qualifiers – the last time that happened was in the 1960s! Joe’s accomplishments don’t stop there in wrestling, because he was 1 of those 3 state qualifiers and he had 26 wins last year. Not bad!

Besides wrestling, Joe is involved in the school community as he has participated in STUCO, DECA, MUN, NHS, YAG, Boro Fights Cancer, and the Principal’s Executive Cabinet just to name a few. Being a senior in high school and a less than a year away from graduating, if you don’t stop to smell the roses, you might not realize the year is done before it’s too late. Joe says he always felt older than his real age – so his mindset was always that of a cool customer looking forward to college. He even has a long list of colleges he is applying to. Like many of his peers at Boro, Joe wants to go far away to college.

Behind the wrestling, behind the academics, there is the personable side of Joe Berryman. He is
approachable and complex. When it comes to underclassmen his main piece of advice is simple:
Joe says that regardless of your grade you should get involved because there are so many clubs,
organizations, and sports in our amazing school – but know your limits, and don’t overwork yourself.

When asked about his idols other than his dad, Joe mentioned Elon Musk. He said that he is a big believer in Musk’s cause and his mission to develop and popularize space travel. Joe said, “It also doesn’t hurt that Elon Musk grew up from being a kid in South Africa to being the richest person in the world.” For now, Joe will have to settle for dreaming of a vacation in New Zealand or Australia.

Rulon Gardner once said, “Everyday I turned a ‘you can’t’ into a ‘you can.’” Joe Berryman has taken that
from an early age all the way to states. When he graduates Freehold Boro towards his future, the sky’s
the limit for this athletic scholar.