by Clyde Whitaker

Usually an object or picture will spark a story in me. Today it was a community education shirt I wore that said “Stockbridge” on the front and “Coach” on the back.

Coaching over the past 40 years has brought me much joy, working with the kids, seeing them improve with smiles on their faces, and watching them grow up to be good people—many with kids of their own. Watching my grandchildren play also always brings a smile to my face.

The years flew by and I loved coaching the kids in baseball, basketball and yes, two years of soccer! Meredith Hanna, community education director at that time, needed a soccer coach for Grant’s team. She approached me, asking if I would be interested in coaching. I told her I knew NOTHING about soccer, then in the next moment, she tossed me a book, “Teaching Soccer.” Guess who was the new coach!

I coached all of our four children: Aaron, Josh, Angie and Grant. They were good athletes and went on to become All-League players, Josh in baseball and Angie in soccer. Aaron was a good basketball player and a good golfer. Grant was good in baseball and basketball. He played football until injuring his knee in a practice.

I didn’t start feeling old until one year, coaching the seventh grade basketball team at tryouts, I had a player with a lot of talent. He was shooting the 3-pointers, and fast. I asked his name and he said “Mitch Fletcher.” Well, that caught my breath, because I had coached another seventh grader named Mitch Fletcher—turns out, it was HIS DAD!!

As a coach, I never told players they must win. I told them to work as hard as they could, play fair, and HAVE FUN! Over the years I have had many kids with lots of talent, like Thomas Lovachis. Thomas was such a good athlete and could have 40 points per game if he wanted to. But he understood the team concept, making others around him better. I told him he would be on varsity as a freshmen. He was!

I believe all coaches pretty much want the same thing from the kids we coach: play hard, no excuses, be a good teammate, be a good student, and be a good person.

Those coaching years will never be forgotten. Now it’s time to watch the grandkids play, support our community the best I can, and sit with Bob Myers in the corner of the gym watching our Panthers play.

Nice.

Clyde Whitaker is a 1973 Stockbridge graduate. He and his wife, Mary, raised four children in Stockbridge, and they still reside in the Stockbridge area.

All photos provided by Clyde Whitaker.