Articles
Take The Helm
I had been at my previous parks and rec position for more than a decade when I landed a great job in central Ohio for a Gold Medal-winning agency, with more responsibility and many more employees to lead. It was tough saying goodbye.
Mastering Motivation
When I run into people from my youth-sports days, they tell me what a great coach my dad was and how they still remember some of the ways he motivated them to work harder and be better.
Combat Loneliness With Love
Dale rolled over in bed and glanced at the clock. It read 6:02 a.m. It would be another hour before sunrise.
Safety Coach
My memories of being a volunteer coach of my kids’ teams rarely involve anything to do with the sport I was coaching. Sure, I remember some of the conversations with players after a particularly fun game, certain kids making great plays, and those times when one of my lesser-skilled players rose to the occasion and did something in a game that he had struggled with throughout the season.
The Benefits Of Consulting Colleagues
Long before business meetings included projections and metrics, the people sitting around a table talked about how things were going. They asked about the families and inquired about the “work family”—the gang that worked together all day.
Cultivating Passionate Participants
When I was younger, I couldn’t wait for the next season to start, and it didn’t matter for what sport. Baseball was my first choice, but basketball, football, soccer, and wrestling were all big in my house.
Cutting To The Core Of Your Character
I do some consulting work regarding the completion and structure of bid documents and contracts. Unlike my previous career in government work, these private-sector clients can make decisions based on emotion and preference.
A Winning Sense-ation
On an overcast, late April day, a young boy runs along Georgia Avenue—a busy thoroughfare in Montgomery County, Md.,—barely avoiding being hit by passing vehicles. The child is spotted by Sgt. Trevin Sherard, a Montgomery Parks Police officer, who happens to be driving past the scene.
Sidelining Spectators
On a recent drive to work, I decided to write a column about the importance of coaches and administrators knowing about heat illness and how to help prevent it in youth sports. Living in South Florida, I always found the subject intriguing.
Eyes On The Road
I recently saw a truck commercial where the driver took his hands off the wheel and began to play patty-cake by himself. As the music swelled with the beat, he sat back comfortably, presumably to await the oncoming 18-wheeler being driven by a guy who was probably busy trying to reset his cell phone clock.
Twists And Turns For Wild Rivers
Spanning 20 acres, featuring 20 thrilling attractions, and serving as the largest waterpark project in the western U.S. in the past decade, Wild Rivers in Irvine, Calif., is a years-in-the-making community destination. The previous Wild Rivers location closed in 2011, and the new facility has been reimagined with state-of-the-art features, including a water coaster with virtual-reality capabilities.
A Baffling Bill
This headline recently appeared in North Carolina: “NC senators propose eliminating participation trophies for youth sports.”
Hold coaches to the same standards for safety and uniformity
There is a feature on the National Alliance for Youth Sports website (www.nays.org) available for parents to report a coach who is behaving badly. The feature is called, you guessed it, “Report a Coach.”
Spend time getting tangled up in each other’s business
I don’t know many families that still collectively sit down to dinner anymore. In fact, I’ve seen a lot of modern homes with a “breakfast bar” but not many with actual kitchen tables.
Dynamic Storytelling
At a parks and recreation conference, I watched a speaker begin his presentation by saying, “Soooooo, I want to tell you a story.” He then went on to relate how his daughter had all the latest toys, games, and age-appropriate video games.
Attacking Adversity
One of the great exercises that the National Alliance for Youth Sports offers in its Academy for Youth Sports Administrators is to make a list of all the reasons that sports are great for kids. We’ve done this with groups hundreds of times through the years, and the lists are nearly identical.
Yes, You Do
Now in its eleventh season, The NFL Today television show precedes the weekly Sunday 1 p.m. football game with five men who exchange predictions, status reports, and game scores. Most of the hosts are former football players and coaches, and their knowledge gives viewers an inside track on issues that matter to the game.
Reflections Of A Not-So-Young Professional
By most accounts and standards, a young professional is someone who is deemed “35 and younger.” While I will take that assessment for my own benefit (who wants to admit they’re getting older?) I will also honor what I see as a time-honored tradition among my colleagues and use my recent 35th birthday as a moment to “bow out” from this designation while remaining present in its purpose.
Sudden Cardiac Arrest
Fewer than 48 hours into the New Year, fans watching the final Monday Night Football game of the season between Cincinnati and Buffalo saw a chilling scene when the Bills’ Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field and medical personnel rushed to tend to him.