A Passing of the Torch
OK, that may be a little dramatic, but I had a cool thing happen tonight at the city council meeting. Each year our league has to renew its land use agreement w/ the city. This is generally a non-event as there are no real changes, but we always prepare for questioning just in case a council member or the mayor has any questions. We also show up in full force as a board and try to show our support for the council.
As with all city councils, there was a few items before ours and we have to sit through the long debates. My friend and fellow board member sitting next to me bent over and said, “I can’t believe I am at a city council meeting”. She then told me she was just about to turn 30! OK, I feel old! It was cool though, I told her that was about the age I attended my first meeting so we had a bit of a passing of the torch.
I remember it clearly. It was in Loudoun County and there was a park being proposed that offered four direly needed baseball fields and soccer fields as well. We usually battled w/ soccer over green space, but on this we were united. The place was packed! The county council was shocked to see so many in the room and moved our item to number one on the agenda. I am pretty sure they came to shoot it down, but they approved the measure based on the attendance and the people’s voice.
That was a major moment in my life. I realized that people really can make a difference and that we do control our own destiny. And while it is often not an easy path, change can occur, right can overcome wrong, and the people’s will can be imposed.
I only hope that I can serve as a model to help those that follow and demonstrate to those we mentor and coach. We all think we are doing good and right, most of us have good intentions in whatever path we take and choose. Together we can make the world better.
We were short a few sponsors for teams this year and I sent out a blast email to everyone in the league. A parent sponsored a team because she thought it was the right thing to do. Not a business, nothing to advertise, simply a message. This is it:
“Life’s about choices,
Make good ones”
They wished only to convey a simple message to the young ones around them. They asked nothing in return, and in fact, they actually paid to sponsor a team for the privilege.
They have already impacted one life, mine. I hope this has the same effect on every coach and board member around the world reading this as it has had on mine. I choose to put the kids first, every decision I make involves that though process. Please do the same.
What choices have you made today that impacted someone elses life? Were they good choices? Please share them.
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Power in Numbers
Today I had the great pleasure of attending a city council meeting! Yippee!!! After no less than 3 hours of intense (yawn) discussion about drain pipes and shingles it was time to renew the horrid Little League land use agreement.
OK, that’s what we thought anyway. When we got there, the councilmen had to get there expressed "concerns" and "problems" in. But it was all lip service! The agreement passed 5-0 w/ no changes!
Why? I think the answer is obvious. 300 kids = 600 or so parents/grandparents etc. The votes in the city election were in the low thousands at best, maybe even hundreds. Can there be a bigger lobbying group than the local Little League?
I will never forget the time, when I still lived in VA, they were debating whether to build a huge sports complex or a pristine park. The park contingent showed up w/ about 10 or so honorable representatives. The local soccer and baseball league got together and showed up w/ about ohhhh 200????….lol
We were last on the agenda, immediately moved to 1st! Passed w/ almost NO debate . The power of the local sports leagues in incredible .
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