Cadet training
Students prepare to become officers and leaders
A local shop offers a tactile experience in a digital age Making a business of love
Wendy Strgar works to change society's view of intimacy Slow and steady wins this race
Developmental delays are no match for Tegan Wright Celebrating Spielberg
The English Department showcases the director's work A celebration of culture
The Elmira Pow-Wow honors veterans, elders and diversity A fresh approach to cocktails
It's the ingredients at Bel Ami Lounge From Quito to Eugene
A student's journey from the Universidad to the University Death Saddle
Three students try a new sound in a new band Behind the scenes
What goes on to make the show go on at the EMU Baseball is back
The sport returns to the university after 28 years Thompson's Mills
The oldest water-powered grain mill in the state A chance to shine
Intramural basketball provides an equal opportunity Lessons in teamwork
YMCA youth basketball molds future athletes Making the right call
Students find that officiating isn't as easy as it looks A soccer tradition
Local players get together to keep the game alive
Six Boys, Two Coaches, and a World of Patience
A Look at Eugene's YMCA Youth Basketball Program
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A Glimpse of the Team  |
"But I stepped in dog doo on the way in!," sobbed the boy with his arms up straight in the air,
"Well, do you want me to help you retie your shoes?" The poor child's new shoes hurt his ankles, and because I was his coach, his problem became my problem. But his other shoes, he claimed, were not wearable.
I soon found that he was telling the truth. As I bent down to untie his shoe, a horrendous smell from his replacement shoe filled my nostrils. Jesus. What had I gotten myself into?
When I was 8 years old, I experienced my first taste of what would become the lifeblood of my existence. Playing on a YMCA team with eight other local boys my age sparked a passion for basketball that has remained ever since.
So when my roommate, Sam, asked me if I wanted to volunteer to coach a youth team of third grade boys, I figured it would be a great opportunity. Six weeks later, I plunged head first into an experience that would open my eyes to more than just the coaching side of basketball.
The Eugene YMCA was established in 1887 as a center for children and adults to enhance community balance through sports, children's care and mentoring programs in the greater Eugene and Springfield area. The YMCA emphasizes values of respect, responsibility, honesty and kindness by providing positive role models, creative activities and a safe, caring environment.
But when my first opportunity to become a role model arrived, my nerves overcame me.
As Sam and I walked in to our first practice, I heard a child's voice emerge from the distance and inquire timidly, "Coach?"
His query caught me off guard, as I prepared myself mentally to be a coach for kids, trying to forget every curse word I had ever learned, I responded, 'If you're with the YMCA, then yes, we are.' The boy stood about five feet tall with a face that looked as nervous as he was with his initial question, paused and said, "My coach is Coach Tristan."
'Well, you've come to the right place,' I answered heartily, trying to soothe his apprehension. Little did he know that I suffered far more anxiety than he did about the upcoming practice.
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The youth basketball program, established in 1994, helps anywhere from 1,500 to 2,500 children every year experience their first taste of recreational activities to bond with youth from all over the area. With 35 teams in the third grade boy's league, groups of five to ten boys from different elementary schools learn to play together as a team and build the foundation for athletic achievements later in life.
Meetings to schedule gym time demonstrate just how many people are involved that make this program function. A public high school cafeteria fills with coaches and program directors, making it hard to hear one's voice. Coaches yell at top volume as they coordinate gym times in schools throughout the city, interrupted by the occasional bump from a passerby in this gym packed to the brim. To think that for every two people in attendance at this meeting, there is a team of five to 10 boys makes the process mind-boggling.
The six boys that make up my team, the Outlaws, come from four schools. Five are 3rd graders, yet our lone 2nd grader often acts the most mature and applies our teachings best. Off the court, they act like a group of 8-year olds, fearlessly bonding over bathroom humor and cartoons, while on the court, they play as if they have known each other for their entire lives. But while practices can push the threshold of my patience to the point where I denounce having children ever, it all becomes worth it when game day comes and they play as a team.
As the first game approached, Sam and I pessimistically predicted that roughly 30 seconds into the game, everything would be forgotten and the kids would revert to their playground basketball antics as if the previous week's practice had never happened. Much to our surprise, the boys had not only listened to us in practice, but also had successfully learned what we had taught them. After the initial footwear malfunction, the boys played as a team, passing to the open man, making cuts toward the basket for lay-ups and using quick hands to make steals. Although no score is kept in the third grade YMCA leagues, it was fairly obvious that our team annihilated the other team. One boy said he thought the score was 44-12, but this was possibly a slight exaggeration.
But although our practices may not run smoothly, their playfulness sometimes results in teammate-on-teammate injuries, and they may forget almost everything that I teach them when it comes time to play, I have no regrets about signing up to coach. What matters to them is that they have a sanctioned play time with other children their age and they may learn a thing or two from it, even if it takes a few pairs of shoes to figure it out.
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