It's in the genes

Sports have been a part of my family since the beginning.


My grandfather was a die-hard Biola basketball fan (even though he went to Westmont...yeah, I don't get it either). My father held records in high school for his amazingly consistent shot and cracked ribs during football practice. My mother played softball while pregnant, wearing a sweatshirt, until the umpire finally noticed and kicked her out. My sister, basketball stud, continues to play even though she has thoracic outlet syndrome. 


Needless to say, our family likes sports. This image is in homage to them:

father and mother, brilliant scorekeepers/I-run-the-gym-and-do-whatever-I-want; baller sister; stud Uncle Sonny; carrying on the athletic tradition with their own family (someday, maybe) cousins; and me.

 Now, some of you may be wondering where I fit in all of this ahtleticism and sweatiness. I'm not really large or aggressive enough for most contact sports, not tall enough for ballet, not muscular enough for gymnastics - I don't usually strike most as the "athletic type." However, this is where these people would be incorrect for much of my life. Let's see...

Baseball

Soccer

Ballet

Cheerleading

Volleyball

Basketball

So, apparently I was a little athletic at some point.


Then, of course, there are the sports camps. For the past 13 years, Shoreline Sports Camps have been a large part of my life - and by large part, I mean, all-consuming, work-12-hours-at-least-5-days-a-week part of my summer.

We have all the sports you can (maybe) see in the picture above and then some. We train and have fun with kids of all ages, from 2 to barely making it down the court. And it has become something of an empire, with thousands of individuals coming through each year. Some kids return year after year, eventually becoming old enough to be helpers and then coaches. 

I moved up through the ranks in a fairly normal order, starting as a participant that very first year and then moving up to one of the first experimental "counselor" roles. I was a coach for quite some time, which I would intersperse with my own varsity high school practices. Then I just kept coming back and after graduation, became a director. For the past four years, as a director, I worked much more closely with the other workers and the parents than the kids themselves. I have learned so much about parenting (and what not to do), teaching, leading, and mentoring. Speaking in public rarely scares me, and I am fully prepared to discipline anyone entrusted in my care (enter the enforcer - with love and compassion, of course). One of my greatest joys has been seeing some of these squirrely jr. highers grow and mature into confident and competent coaches.

And yet, we are at the end of an era.

Ok, I'm not really that big of a deal, but that just sounds so epic.


Something really is ending though: my journey as a Shoreline Sports Camp worker (as much as this is possible when your father is in charge). This upcoming summer, I will not be in Huntington, but rather, will (Lord willing) be doing research and attempting to start a life post-college in Santa Barbara.


So, thanks for the memories. It's been a good run.