COACH-In sports, a coach is a person involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople. A coach may also be a teacher. So as of last night I experienced my first junior high track meet. I was not the running type in school. I was more of the swimming type, but my middle daughter who attends Judson Middle School has decided to run instead for swim like her father did. What a great environment for children to show their talents. You might be asking why the definition of the word coach is needed at the beginning of this post. Well unfortunately I saw some issues last night where coaching was needed, but was not there. As I watched many track and field events I noticed coaches running alongside the athletes shouting words of encouragement and telling the children what a great job they had done after each event, all except one school. Can we guess what school that was? I do have to say that the boys track coaches at Judson were very involved in their athletes’ races, but not the girls. I sat at LOBO stadium looking across the field trying to find the girls track coaches giving words of encouragement, and advice to the young ladies participating in all the events, but to my surprise I did not see them on the field. I finally found them though, sitting in the stands across from me under a blanket, and not coaching our girls track team, only giving congratulations and advice from their warm seats. Now maybe I do not know the full story of why this was happening, but being a former high school athlete and having been coached by some great coaches in my junior high and high school career I know what a coach does. I cannot remember a time when I did not have a coach by my side when competing yelling at me to run faster, push my limits, or swim harder. Even when it came to my grades they were on my butt. This is the job of a coach to teach children not only a sport, but to help along life’s bumpy journey. I believe you earn the title coach, and as for what I saw last night we do not have girls track coaches. I finally had seen enough, so what did I do? I jumped the railing and started encouraging our girls. I am not a track coach by any means, I am an old, fat former swimmer who gets winded just tying his shoes, but I could give them encouragement during their events. Our children need to be encouraged, and told what they need to work on and what a great job they are doing. This is what a coach does. I am hoping that this does not continue through this year’s track season, and that maybe the girls track coach will see this. I look forward to many more meets and look forward in seeing our girls coaches run alongside them yelling words of encouragement, and helping them to be better athletes, students, and young ladies. I know this has nothing to do with getting rid of Dr. Wilcox, and has nothing to do with teachers not being treated fairly, but I hope that this is read by the coaching staff at Judson Middle School, and that it helps to hear from a parent’s perspective what is being seen at these meets. Please show a passion for the sports you coach. Thank You, Jason Bates