Role Models

I laid in bed last night just thinking about all the positive role models I have had in my life. It started with thinking about how fortunate I was to have 3 amazing Varsity coaches in High School and from there my mind just kept going.

I am going to pause for a second and just really begin to think about what is a role model? This is something that I ask my students every year and maybe I don't ask it enough. The typical response is a parent or grandparent and not to say that they are not role models but what defines everyone who we view as a role model? For me every time I hear a student explain a role model or someone they look up to, it is someone who cares about them! Whether it be at home, at school, at church, in sports, in extra-curricular's or just a friendly face, a role model can almost always be defined as someone who cares about you and will push you to be the best that you can be.

Back to my mind racing. It all started with me thinking about how awesome it was to see a co-worker and the local Varsity Girls soccer coach at a youth girls soccer game that night. Not only was he supporting his students but also his future players, that is a role model! That got me thinking about my 3 varsity coaches I had in High School. Each of them brought something different to the table but were 3 of the most influential people in my life.

• Soccer Coach, Don Arnold: One of the most demanding but fair coaches I had, he always expected us to do things the right way and we knew not to step outside of the right way to play the game. #HeartPassionDesire
• Basketball Coach, Kevin McKenna: One of the most intense coaches I had, but he showed me so much trust and willingness to listen to any thoughts or ideas I had. He always respected me as a point guard and trusted what I saw on the court. 
• Baseball Coach, Brian Durst: "Respect the Game". When I think of Coach Durst, that is what comes to mind every time. He has helped me so much as a player, coach and person that I can just summarize it as Respect Life. 

While these 3 coaches were phenomenal and huge role models in my life I would be mistaken if I didn't  mention some of their assistant coaches because they had just as big of an impact on me! Some other coaches who stick out are James Johnson (Soccer- "I got jokes"), Wycklendt, Finn, Myles for baseball and I cannot forget my father. While all my coaches demanded and expected a lot from me, I am not sure anyone taught me more about every sport (other than soccer) and how to play the game than my father and for that I am truly thankful!

While these are coaches who I immediately thought of as role models, the role models in my life go far beyond athletics. While in bed I thought of so many others who have positively impacted my life but one story stood out. I thought of the lady who bought me M&M's at every softball game at Kennedy as a little kid and then one final "Big Bag" of M&M's when I graduated high school. How cool is that, just the act of buying a 5 and 6 year old kid M&M's was something that stuck with me to this day. This story along with so many others have provided me with hundreds of role models in my life, so Thank you to all the role models that I have had in my life!

So who is your role model? What defines your role model? And lastly are you a role model for someone? What can you do to help someone close to you?

The video I will leave you with today was shown to me in my class today as the students suggested this song for Tuesday Tunes. I had never heard of it before but it was so cool to see the WHOLE class singing and enjoying this song, it didn't matter if it was an athlete, a smart kid, a kid with challenges, or just an average student, everyone in my room was enjoying this song, so why not share!