I have always wanted to be a coach. My passion is coaching and teaching. I have been coaching since I was a pre-teen; I love it. As I grow up, I have come to realize that coaching is more than making substitutions, or drawing up plays. I have had some outstanding coaches in my life. These coaches have inspired me to not only be a coach, but a mentoring figure as well.
I am fortunate enough to have the opportunity to experience more coaching…. IN A DIFFERENT COUNTRY. As a Maynooth scholar, I am a coach for the North Kildare Basketball Club, Maynooth Post-Primary School basketball program, Maynooth Basketball Academy, and local schools in Maynooth. Each specific program requires me to get out of my comfort zone and work with girls and boys with all different experiences and backgrounds of playing basketball.
I plan to improve their basketball skills and teach them the rules of the game. But that is not my main focus. Basketball involves more than just skills, practices, and games. This sport can bring positive energy to a child’s life, and it can also bring people together. My main goal from this experience is I want these young kids to see me as an inspiration, as I did in my coaches. I want to teach them about respect, working with others, and the many things that sport can offer. I have been working with these programs for about a month now and I can already see the impact I am able to make each week with the kids.
