1. sports

GOES
LIVE!
SportingKid magazine is now live
and updated daily – check it out at
nays.org/sklive. And enjoy your new publication,
the Youth Sports Advocate. You’ll receive it six
times a year, highlighting some of the outstanding
work being done in communities and on U.S.
military bases worldwide to make sports safe
and positive for children.
T H E O F F I C I A L V O I C E O F T H E N AT I O N A L A L L I A N C E F O R Y O U T H S P O R T S • W W W. N AY S . O R G • M A R C H / A P R I L 2 0 1 5
EXCLUSIVE:
St. Louis manager
Mike Matheny talks youth sports with NAYS
In 2008 some parents approached
Mike Matheny about coaching their local
youth baseball team.
Matheny, who had recently retired after
13 seasons as a Major League catcher, gave
it some serious thought.
But if he was going to do it, he knew he had to
do it the right way for not just the sake of his own
10-year-old son on the team, but for all the other
children as well. The season wasn’t going to be
all about winning; and parents weren’t going to
dictate batting orders and who played where.
So, on a flight home from a guest appearance on the MLB Network he took out his laptop
and wrote a five-page, single-spaced letter to
the parents on how he would coach the team.
It talked about respect, discipline and humility;
it stressed playing with class; and it clearly defined
for parents that there would be no coaching,
criticizing or interfering from the sidelines.
It was powerful.
The letter found its way onto the Internet, went
viral and was the springboard for The Matheny
Manifesto, a book that builds on that original letter and dissects the problems of out-of-control
parents and win-at-any-cost coaches and serves
up some old-school advice on how to be a difference maker in a child’s life through sports.
“Do you want to be remembered for being
12-0 in your 8-and-under youth league?” asks
Matheny of today’s volunteer coaches. “Or do you
want to be remembered by those kids who you
had an opportunity to impact that you made a difference – you taught them something they’re go-
»» INSIDE:
ing to carry with them for the rest of their life and
pass on to many others? To me that’s exciting
to use a game that I love to impact people.”
Matheny, a four-time Gold Glove winner
now in his fourth season as the manager of
the St. Louis Cardinals, gave an exclusive
Cardinals’ manager Mike Matheny, author
of The Matheny Manifesto, sat down with
NAYS for an exclusive interview during
spring training in Jupiter, Fla.
interview to the National Alliance for Youth
Sports at the team’s spring training facility in
Jupiter, Fla. Here are some highlights:
NAYS: What do you want people to gain
from reading your book?
MATHENY: I guess if there was one quick
takeaway, let’s let youth sports be about the kids
and let’s not lose sight of the fact that it’s our
responsibility to pass on a passion and enjoyment of the game. There’s so much we can do
to help them enjoy it, but not to have an agenda
– whether that of a coach or parent – get in the
way of truly making sports special for them.
Continued on Page 3
Out of
Bounds
FORMER YOUTH COACH PLEADS
GUILTY TO CREATING CHILD
PORNOGRAPHY
A former youth baseball and softball coach
in Ohio pled guilty to creating child pornography. The 50-year-old man coached during
the spring last year.
After executing a search warrant,
investigators found an external hard drive
with multiple images of child pornography and child erotica. Another search of
the man's home revealed 25 homemade
videos and 35 images of a minor female in
various stages of undress.
Court documents showed that a full
forensic examination of his hard drive
showed approximately 300 files of child
pornography and about 600 files of
child erotica.
YOUTH SOCCER COACH ARRESTED
A volunteer soccer coach for an Under
16 team in Vancouver was arrested in
Washington where he was expecting to
meet a 12-year-old girl whom he had
tried to entice into having sexual contact
with him, announced Acting U.S. Attorney
Annette Hayes.
Continued on Page 2
S pecial Army-only training for CYSAs, Fairfield County (Ohio) Youth Football
League meeting kids’ needs, and more…
MARCH/APRIL 2015 • WWW.NAYS.ORG
Special Army-only training held for CYSAs in Orlando
Sixty-two Certified Youth Sports Administrators representing U.S. Army bases worldwide participated in a special training in
Orlando, Fla., in January to renew their CYSA credentials.
The training covered key topics related to administering youth
sports programs and enabled participants to earn necessary
professional development CEUs to extend their CYSA credential for
another two-year cycle.
The training featured the following sessions:
• Leaders Eat Last – You are the Leader, You are a CYSA
• A Practical Approach to Nutrition and Healthy Eating
for Youth Athletes
• Be Prepared: Injury/Concussion Prevention, Emergency Action Plans & RTP Guidelines
• From Good to Better to Best: Helping Coaches Take
Themselves – and Their Athletes' Experiences – to
the Next Level
• Understanding Your Role in Promoting Positive Youth
Sports Experiences
• Hazing and Bullying: Protecting Our Athletes From
Themselves and Others
• Marketing Your Youth Sports Programs
Every Army installation worldwide that offers youth sports
programming mandates that there is a CYSA on base to help
ensure that all their youth sports participants have safe and
rewarding experiences.
“Conducting youth sports programs on military installations
pose unique challenges,” said Lisa Licata, director of NAYS’
Professional Administrator Programs. “So continuing professional
development is essential for serving military families.”
Sixty-two CYSAs from U.S. Army bases worldwide took part in a special training
in Orlando, Fla., in January.
Continued from Page 1
The 47-year-old man began communicating with what he
believed to be a 12-year-old girl and began sending multiple
sexually explicit messages and photos that were actually going
to an undercover agent with U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
“In three weeks’ time, the defendant went from
responding to an online posting to traveling from Canada
to Washington State to meet a minor for illicit sex,” said
Brad Bench, special agent in charge of Homeland Security
Investigations in Seattle. “Fortunately, he was actually
communicating with an undercover HSI special agent.”
Enticement of a minor is punishable by a mandatory
minimum term of imprisonment of 10 years, and up to life.
YOUTH LEAGUE SECRETARY GOES ON SPENDING
SPREE WITH LEAGUE’S CREDIT CARD
A youth league secretary in Florida was charged with grand
theft in connection with the unauthorized use of the league’s
credit card for personal expenses.
2
YOUTH SPORTS ADVOCATE
The 35-year-old woman was issued the debit card to buy
food items for the concession stands and other items related to
youth league business.
Instead, she allegedly spent more than $3,000 to pay
her water and electricity bills as well as make purchases at
several stores, including Ross, Dillard’s and Office Max.
She turned herself in to the county jail.
YOUTH FOOTBALL COACH ARRESTED AFTER
MOM SEES MESSAGES SENT TO HER TEEN
A volunteer youth football coach in South Carolina was charged
with soliciting a minor and exhibiting harmful performance
toward a minor.
The 39-year-old allegedly sent lewd messages and nude
photos to a 15-year-old girl.
The mother of the girl had her daughter’s phone while
they were shopping. As the daughter was trying on clothes a
message popped up on the phone with a nude photo.
Continued on Page 3
CHAPTER HIGHLIGHT: Fairfield County (Ohio) Youth Football
League serious about meeting all kids’ needs
The Fairfield County (Ohio) Youth Football League’s board
noticed some unsavory trends occurring in its program recently.
From win-at-all-cost coaching behavior to out-of-control parents, it was evident that adults involved in the league forgot what
youth sports is really about – the kids.
“We decided that
Years in existence: More than 30 years
we needed to make
Youth participants: 180-240
changes,” said Bob BurParticipant age range: 7-13 years old
khart, a Fairfield board
member. “We needed to
make sure that we were
doing everything we
could to make this the
best league it could be.”
After researching
their options and talking
with other organizations, the league found
the National Alliance for
Youth Sports (NAYS).
Continued from Page 2
She contacted deputies, who arrested the
man at his home, where they also found a
16-year-old girl from North Carolina.
SEVEN-YEAR-OLD KILLED WHEN
BENCH FALLS ON HIM AT AN INDOOR
SOCCER PRACTICE
A 7-year-old boy in New Jersey was tragically killed
when a bench weighing more than 100 pounds
fell from the wall and hit him prior to beginning an
indoor soccer practice at an elementary school.
The fold-down lunch table and benches are
stored in the wall when not being used.
The practice was about to begin when the boy
chased a ball that had rolled near the wall. One of
the benches fell out of the wall and struck the boy
in the head.
The coach performed CPR on the youngster
and emergency personnel also assisted.
“NAYS provides us with the tools to make our league better,”
Burkhart said.
Changes the league will implement for the 2015 season by
using NAYS programs and resources include requiring all volunteer
coaches to complete training through the National Youth Sports
Coaches Association (NYSCA), as well as the NAYS bullying and
concussion prevention trainings.
Board members will also be required to complete these
trainings, plus the training provided by the National Youth Sports
Administrators Association (NYSAA), a program
that addresses the unique
needs of volunteer youth
sports administrators.
“We want the community to know we are doing
everything we can to provide the best experience
for the youth and their
parents,” Burkhart said.
Continued from Page 1
NAYS: You talk a lot about the negative behavior of parents and how it
affects kids.
MATHENY: I think one of the big things that people need to understand is these
aren’t just my opinions. I went through and talked to coaches, I went through
and talked to current players and said, “Tell me what your parents did at the
games.” And it was amazing to me that their experiences were very similar to
what mine were and that was a silent source of support.
NAYS: What’s the secret for making it work when a volunteer coach has
their own child on the team?
MATHENY: I think they just need to be real honest with themselves right from
the top. First of all, can I keep my eyes off my own kid and can I treat the rest
of the kids with the kind of care that I want to treat my own? I think a lot of
parents have trouble with that.
»» MORE MATHENY:
Visit nays.org/sklive for
the extended conversation with Mike Matheny, the fourth-year
manager of the Cardinals. Plus, find out how you can enter to win
an autographed copy of The Matheny Manifesto as NAYS will be
giving away signed copies of his book throughout the spring.
2015 : MARCH/APRIL : YOUTH SPORTS ADVOCATE
3
MARCH/APRIL 2015 • WWW.NAYS.ORG
Hook A Kid On Golf changing
lives in Fon du Lac (Ill.)
Since winning the New Site of the
Year award for their first season of
running Hook A Kid On Golf Tee Level
clinics last year, Fon du Lac (Ill.) Park
District has been hard at work continuing to develop their junior golf program
and getting more children involved in
the game of golf. And that is why they
are the recipients of the 2014 Site of the
Year award.
Fon du Lac held four
Hook A Kid On Golf
clinics this past
year with a total
of 80 participants – double
the number of
children that attended their clinics
the previous year.
“It’s been great to
see Fon du Lac Park
District’s Hook A Kid
On Golf site grow over
the year – not only in
numbers, but in their
efforts to promote
junior golf and the
impact they have had
in the community
as well,” said Andy
Parker, director of
Youth Development at
the National Alliance
for Youth Sports.
Along with the Hook A Kid On Golf
clinics, Fon du Lac provides several
other opportunities for children to
continue their golf experience,
such as junior group lessons, leagues
and tournaments.
“Fon du Lac Park District has given
me great freedom and resources to
build a successful junior program,”
said Nate Deakin, golf teaching professional at Fon du Lac Park District’s
Quail Meadow golf course. “My community involvement revolves around
impacting kids through the
great game of golf.”
Deakin provides
introductory
golf lessons to
children of the
after-school
programs for
Fon du Lac Park
District and the
Washington Park
District. Through these
programs he can offer
children early exposure
to the game of golf,
and they also serve
as a way for Deakin to
promote Hook A Kid On
Golf clinics.
“Being recognized
as the Hook A Kid On
Golf Site of the Year
is a true honor and
motivator,” Deakin said.
“Our goal is to continue
working with Hook A
Kid On Golf and grow the Fon du Lac
Park District’s junior golf program not
only in its numbers, but in its positive
impact on juniors.”
For more on Hook A Kid On Golf, or any NAYS Youth
Development program, visit www.nays.org/programs
4
YOUTH SPORTS ADVOCATE
Referral Rewards:
Refer organizations to
NAYS and earn money
or program credit
One of the most common ways that
new organizations find out about the National Alliance for Youth Sports is YOU!
We know many of you talk to neighboring communities, league coordinators,
coaches and parents about working with
NAYS and we greatly appreciate it. So we
wanted to find a way to say thank you.
This year we began the Referral
Rewards program. It allows you to refer
youth sports organizations to the National
Alliance for Youth Sports (NAYS) and earn
money or program credit!
Both organizations and individuals
may sign up for the Referral Rewards
program. However, we strongly encourage those affiliated with youth sports
organizations to sign up as an organization so your programs can benefit from
Referral Rewards. It could be a great
fundraising opportunity!
If an organization you refer starts a
Chapter, you will earn 10 percent of the
fees generated by the new Chapter for an
entire year. (That’d be $2 per coach, for
example.) Membership fees can be from
any and all NAYS training and membership
programs – CYSA, NYSCA, NYSAA, PAYS,
and/or NYSOA. The year begins on the date
the new Chapter has its first member join
a NAYS program.
We already have a handful of organizations registered for the Referral Rewards and
are excited to get more on board. Because of
you we are reaching more and more youth
sports organizations and in turn are helping
to improve youth sports for more children! To
us that is what it’s all about.
See www.nays.org/referral-rewards for full
details and to register for Referral Rewards.
New CYSAs
Congratulations to the following individuals that recently earned their Certified Youth Sports Administrator (CYSA) credential – joining more
than 3,000 others – by completing the Academy for Youth Sports Administrators training program. These individuals are taking valuable steps
to help make youth sports better in their community.
Shannon Williams – Statesboro, Ga.
Ryan Lewis – Fort Knox, Ky.
Cody Law – Smithfield, Utah
James Flint – Centennial, Colo.
Raina Goodlow – Camp Humphrey
Yarissa Marn – Travis Air Force Base, Calif.
Justin Freeman – Fort Bragg, N.C.
Ricardo Rose – Suitland, Md.
Sean Clarke – Upper Marlboro, Md.
Ken Tustin – Salisbury, Md.
Alonzo Hall – Columbia, Md.
Oneisha Staples – New Rochelle, N.Y.
Jeffrey Hairr – Fuquay-Varina, N.C.
Darrell Holmes – Conyers, Ga.
Romilda Smith – Summerville, S.C.
Patricia Sebring – Watkinsville, Ga.
Apostolis Bacalis – Brooklyn, N.Y.
Rickey Gilliard – Miday, Ga.
Cyndee Bonacci – Lawrenceville, Ga.
Acie Farrey – Morrow, Ga.
Randy Spencer – Fort Riley, Kan.
Chara Morris – Knoxville, Tenn.
Tim Hernandez – Rock Island, Ill.
Dorene Bruce – Orchard Park, N.Y.
Jan Pielechowski – Holland, N.Y.
James Jetton – Niceville, Fla.
Welcome...
NYSCA
Several new communities recently established chapters to train
and educate their volunteer coaches:
Woodland Wildcats Athletic Association – Va.
East of the River Coaches Association – Washington, D.C.
Bayshore Youth Sports Association – Texas
Boys & Girls Club of Albany – Ga.
Berewick Recreation Center/Winget Recreation Center – N.C.
Summerfield Basketball Inc. – Fla.
Oglethorpe County Recreation Department – Ga.
Boiling Springs Youth Athletic Association – S.C.
New Castle Baseball & Softball Association – N.Y.
Granby Youth Football & Cheerleading – Conn.
Millville Basketball Association – N.J.
Vernon Payne – Manassas, Va.
Wayne Ard – North Port, Fla.
Melissa Morarity – Jefferson City, Mo.
Jason Mackenzie –Tampa, Fla.
Taylor Fechner – Tea, S.D.
Sharmane Buford – St. Louis, Mo.
Brian Mills – Albany, Ore.
Russell Baker – Surprise, Ariz.
Roderick Mitchell – Olive Branch, Miss.
Amy Van Huffel – Springfield, Ohio
Penni Bengtson – Boulder Creek, Calif.
Robert Michael – Jacksonville, N.C.
Upcoming Onsite Academies:
• FRPA in Orlando, Fla. on Aug. 31
• APRA in Phoenix, Ariz. on Oct. 9
• SCRPA/NCRPA Joint Carolinas
Conference in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
on Oct. 20
• New Orleans, La. on Nov. 18-21
Hall of
Famer
Marshall
Faulk
Start Smart
USAG Rheinland Pfalz, Germany
Lake Travis Youth Association, Lakeway, Texas
Bonner Springs Parks and Recreation, Kan.
Waynesville Parks and Recreation, N.C.
Ready, Set, Run!
York County Day School, Red Lion, Pa.
U.S. Peace Corps, Alajuela, Costa Rica
“I played baseball, basketball, football and I ran track and I enjoyed it.
I enjoyed the camaraderie of pretty much all team sports. And I always
wanted to win but I always wanted my opponent to understand that I was
a good winner. I didn’t want to be one of those guys that won and rubbed
it in their face and then I made sure that I was an even better loser. I took
it in stride and understood that every time I went out you couldn’t win.”
Visit nays.org/sklive to view past episodes of Game Changers
featuring: Orel Hershiser • Stephen Strasburg • Danny Manning
• Kirk Gibson • Mike Conley, Jr. • Adam LaRoche
2015 : MARCH/APRIL : YOUTH SPORTS ADVOCATE
5
2050 Vista Parkway • West Palm Beach, FL 33411
561.684.1141 • 800.729.2057
[email protected] • www.nays.org
What’s new on NAYS.ORG
We’ve remodeled!
NAYS STAFF
SPOTLIGHT:
On the NAYS.ORG Blog
Denise Langella,
Member Services
Check out the entirely NEW nays.org and its completely new look. There’s more real-time
content and easier logins for chapters and members.
Problems happen as the stakes rise in youth sports
The latest story about the Jackie Robinson West Little League All-Star team from Chicago being
stripped of its U.S. title is a reminder of the problems that happen as the stakes rise in youth sports.
How powerful is a singular sports moment?
Mistakes and mishaps are more the norm than the exception when a child is learning sports.
Meet these moments with understanding as no one athlete should be held responsible for a team’s loss.
Check out a new NYSCA video
Share this video with your community and get them excited about the program. Take a look – you
may even learn something new about NYSCA yourself!
»» WANTED: Your story ideas!
We want to know about the outstanding work your organization is doing!
Send your story ideas to Greg Bach at [email protected] today!
6
Non-Profit Organization
U.S. Postage
PAID
West Palm Beach, FL
Permit No. 726
YOUTH SPORTS ADVOCATE : MARCH/APRIL : 2015
When NYSCA members need to check
on the status of their
membership card,
renew their membership over the
phone or have other
questions related to
their membership,
chances are they
will speak with Denise Langella, who has
been with NAYS for six years. Denise enjoys
helping members and when she’s not at
work she loves spending time at the beach.