Dear Coach, Parents, Players
Welcome to the 4th addition of our JAM Fall League newsletter. Be sure to view our website for tournament / league information, scheduling, directions, and all future events. Teams are registering for our 2nd annual Halloween Monster Bash tournament. Make sure you register your team for this can’t miss event! Congratulations are in order for the world’s greatest shooting instructor Dave Hopla: Dave is now player development coach for the New York Knicks. In place of Coach Hopla’s annual fall clinic, JAM is hosting an All Star Clinic November 3rd and 4th. See website for registration details. Our #1 priority for JAM continues helping coaches and parents build confidence in today’s youth. Continue setting goals to make sure plans are in line to improve your game.
- Mark Sharpley
What's your favorite memory of a coach that impacted your life?
I recently asked a group of individuals which adults they remembered most from their childhood. Unanimously, youth coaches were among the most prominent names they listed. The most remembered were those who had either left a very positive or negative impact on their youth sporting experiences.
The conversation again reinforces the vital role our youth sports coaches play in the personal development of today’s young athletes. To some degree, we are all molded by our past. For many kids, sports are a highly productive tool in helping build self-esteem, character and habits that carry them into adulthood. On the other hand, sports can also place a child’s future at risk through the destruction of self-esteem, character and bad habits.
In many cases, it is the adults – parents and coaches – who can make the difference in a child’s sporting experience. Remember great coaches see something special in all their players. Critical things others may not see. They motivate, teach the game, assist players in gaining important confidence, and help make the game fun. Some of these coaches were knowledgeable about the sport yet some probably weren’t always the best tacticians or the most experienced, but they connected with players and managed the team effectively and efficiently.
We also remember the bad coaches. And while some of them were very educated about the sports they coached, they were more concerned about how players could help them, not the other way around.
If you have the honor of being a youth sports coach today, you have an amazing opportunity in front of you. Over the years, you may forget most of the names and faces of the kids you coach, but many of them won’t forget you.
The question is: How will they remember you?
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