Remembering Joy Meyer - Update - 5K Race in Newport News (Mariners Museum on Sat. Aug. 17)

In Joy Meyer's memory, the Menchville cross-country team will be participating in the Smart Smiles 5K race next Saturday. It's at Mariners Museum park across from Warwick H.S. on August 17th. Check in is at 7, race starts at 8. High school students get in for $10, and for everyone else it's $20.

From teammate Sarah Scott - "After Joy passed away, our team decided we wanted to have a race to honor her. Because it's quite difficult to book a race this late in the season, we contacted the Smart Smiles Race directors to see if we could sort of use their race to gather together a bunch of teams and run for Joy. They said of course so now we are trying to spread the word. The Smart Smiles Race seems appropriate because everyone remembers Joy by her fantastic smile So if you can, please come out to run next Saturday, August 17th at 8 am, in honor of a remarkable girl. Teams are most welcome! We want as many people there to run with Joy as possible! Thank you!"

I have been fighting myself for the past few days. After the saddest event in my 16-plus year coaching career, I have wanted to write something about the passing of Joy Meyer, a 14-year old incoming freshman who briefly ran for our Menchville H.S. cross-country team before collapsing at practice and passing away last Thursday. When  I accepted this new position teaching for the Department of Corrections three weeks ago, I had to give up coaching the team, which was a tough decision, and one which has been noted here recently. 

In a million years, I never would have expected such a tragic event to occur. In the end it was nobody's fault, but rather one of those unfortunate and unavoidable events, the kind that we hear about happening (to somebody else) every few years -- the kind that makes you go -- wow, there was a person who was so full of life. In the short time I knew her, let there be no mistake. That person was Joy.

Being out of town, I missed Menchville's first day of practice after Joy's passing, which was yesterday. I'll also be hard pressed to be able to attend the service on Wednesday evening and funeral on Thursday. Thankfully, I was promised that if I wrote a statement recalling my time with Joy, it would be read at the team gathering. I did and it was. 

I probably have to apologize to a few people. Posting this does stand the risk of stepping on the privacy of the family and the sanctity of the team bond. Which is why I have been fighting myself. But there are still many positives which can occur because of Joy's life. One of them is the Memorial Fund, noted here from the Facebook page created in her memory. Please read and contribute if you are able. Below the Facebook section is what I had to write about my remembrance of Joy Meyer. Of course she left us too soon. Teammate Christian Gray, who at 17 is far beyond his years as a leader, role model and team co-captain had some wonderful things to say about Joy. But the best quote I have read so far came from her Gildersleeve Middle School classmate, Danielle Richard, who said.. "Imagine if you were looking at a pile of diamonds. Wouldn't you take the biggest and brightest one first?"

Makes sense when you think about it. And the Menchville team will continue to run with Joy.

R.I.P Joy Meyer We Love You

7 hours ago near Newport News

There is a Joy Meyer Memorial Fund that donations can be made to at the Riverside Health System Employees Credit Union. I believe all donations go there directly. I will not be handling donations of any kind. I'm sorry for the confusion. ~Danielle Richard

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  Glenn Woodell Donations can be made at the Riverside Health System Employees Credit Union or at the Hampton Roads Neurology office: 12200 Warwick Boulevard, Suite 110, Newport News, VA 23601. (757) 534-5100. The POC is Julie Rejzer (pronounced like 'razor').

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***

It’s amazing when someone is only a part of your life for a short time, yet leaves such a large impact. Like many of us, I only knew Joy for a couple of months, but her memory will stay with me for a very long time.

I remember our first meeting well, just because it was so memorable.

Back in June, a few of us visited Gildersleeve to promote our team. It was a great day as David, Sarah and Stephanie spoke to the 8^th graders about how great it was to be on the cross-country team. Following one of the presentations, we went to our table and were followed by quite a few students. In fact, about 42 people signed up that day, but the only name I remembered was that of the young lady who marched right up to me and announced – “Hi Coach, I’m Joy and I want to run.”

For about 10 minutes we had a nice talk. No, she had never run and wanted to know if it was hard. I told her, honestly, yes, but if you join, I promised her it would be fun. She enthusiastically signed up.

On the first day of conditioning, once again, she made a beeline right up to me. “Do you remember me?” Now, I am terrible with recalling names, but I wasn’t going to get cornered. “Yes I do. You’re Joy!” She was so happy to see that I did indeed know who she was and I was quite relieved to not get stumped.

I was only able to see practice for three weeks, but do recall the enthusiasm that Joy had for running. As the coaches have mentioned, she really lived up to her name. Her smile could light up a room and it looks like she was a great friend and enlightening presence to many. Although her time with us was short, I truly believe that her memory will last in our minds and hearts. My prayers are with Joy’s family, and I would like to make one request – that our team and Menchville cross-country family will dedicate this season to Joy’s memory. I’ll miss her greatly, but know that she has become a brighter light in a fantastic place.

Yorktown American Little Leaguers Win Virginia District 7 Title

I like these kind of stories. Perhaps covering little league baseball teams reminds me of my younger days in Alexandria, scouring the outfield, while sporting my Hank Aaron mitt and a maroon #4 Eugene Simpson and Sons uniform. Our Simpson teams only enjoyed limited success -- 7-17 during the two years I played, but these nine and ten year old youngsters from Yorktown, VA enjoyed more success. Here's the story of York American.   (From a recent article published in the York County/Poquoson Town Square section of the Daily Press)

The York County American (9-10) little league team capped a successful season by winning the District 7 championship in late June and earning a berth to the state championship tournament which started on July 17 at the Tuckahoe Sports Complex in Richmond.

For manager Nick LaBella and his team, the road to the state round was relatively smooth. The Americans won their opening contest, knocking off Northampton 14-6, and followed with a 13-9 win over their county mates from York National. In that game, Austin Reese, Dylan Kizer and Xavier Martin each drove in two runs.

This led to a semifinal showdown against Hampton Wythe, a game which brought out the big bats for the Americans, who blasted their way to a 25-5 win.

For the championship, the Americans drew a rematch with Northampton, who followed their initial loss to win the next two games and capture the losers bracket. Hungry for revenge, the challengers battled tough for four innings and were trailing 1-0 when the skies opened up, causing a rain delay.

Returning to the field at the Phoebus complex the next day, the Americans rediscovered their offensive firepower and pulled away with a 9-2 victory, and the district championship.

David Winer pitched 5 1/3 innings and struck out six to earn the win. Julian La Bella struck out the final two batters and added a two run triple. Connor Castle (RBI single). Seth Porter (RBI single). Xavier Martin (sacrifice fly). Christian Norris (two-run single) each provided clutch hits.

Heading to Richmond, Coach LaBella showed confidence in his squad.

“We have a real solid team. We’re deep in pitching – seven quality pitchers. That is the key for us getting to where we want to be. We field well and are just solid all around.”

The objective of the state tournament was to play well in the first round of pool play and earn a bid to the single elimination draw. Unfortunately, the Americans went 1-2 in the pool and did not make the next round.

In the first matchup, the Americans fell to Broadway 14-4. Although, they were bloodied, the team remained determined and followed with a 28-3 rout over Coeburn. In the Coeburn game,  LaBella (6-6, five runs) and Ryan Scheiderer (5 for 5, four runs, 4 RBI) stood out as the offensive heroes. Martin and Porter also added three hits and a pair of runs batted in.

But the victory celebration was short as the Americans were eliminated in the next game, a tough 8-5 loss to Cave Spring.

Coach LaBella was realistic about what went wrong. “We committed a lot of errors during the tournament that directly affected the outcome of each game. But, at 10 years old it happens,” He also noted the contributions on offense and defense from Blake Boudreaux and Austin Reese, who went 2-3 in the Coeburn game, while also striking out four in two innings as a pitcher.

But Coach LaBella retains hope for next season, if only based on this year’s competition..

“The two teams we lost to (Broadway and Cave Spring) advanced to the elimination bracket.”

"Pop" Pitts Track Classic Makes Debut

The inaugural Richard “Pop” Pitts Track Classic was held on Saturday at Todd Stadium in Newport News, VA. Named for the legendary Norfolk State basketball player, and later Menchville H.S. athletic director, the meet featured over 340 athletes between the ages of five and 18 competing in a full slate of events.

Pitts was on hand to fire the starting pistol for the first race. “Steve Lewis (former Menchville track coach) hired me in 1976 as an assistant and told me that I’d be his starter. I’ve started a lot of races since then.” 

Speaking of the origin of the meet, Pitts added that it is designed with a singular purpose.

“It gives kids who aren’t going to nationals (Junior Olympic national championships will be held next weekend in Greensboro, NC) a chance to have a culminating event for the summer.”

There were several outstanding performances in the younger age groups. DeJah Nunn (East End Flyers) won the Sub-Bantam (9 years old) 800-meter run with a time of 3:17.51. Michaela Rose of the F.I.A Ambassadors captured the Bantam (10 years old) 3000 meters with a time of 11:23.29.

Adriana Shockley (14.41) and Edward Richardson (13.31), also from the East End Flyers, won the 80-meter hurdles in the Midget (12) age group. Jasmine Tilmon, from the Virginia Elite DP squad, took the Midget girls 100-meter title in 13.32.

Clint Gault of Virginia Elite won the Youth (14) 3000 meters in 9:56.06.

Among local high school athletes, Carolyn Brown (Phoebus) won the girls 100 meters in the Young (17-18) category with a clocking of 12.29.

Gildersleeve Middle Archers Go To Nationals

One aspect of my work with the Town Square sections of the Daily Press that has made things interesting is the variety of topics to cover. I have covered youth wrestling and football, a karate school, golf museum, and fishing tournament, among other things. Here's a recent article about a local middle school group of archers who earned a trip to their national tournament.

The Gildersleeve Middle school archery team concluded a successful season by participating in the NASP Nationals, held last month in Louisville, KY.

The National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP) is a joint venture between the state departments of education and Game and Island Fisheries. The program promotes student education, physical education and participation in the lifelong sport of archery.

In all, 23 archers represented Gildersleeve at Nationals. Twelve seventh and eighth graders combined to form the Middle Division (grades 7-8) team, while 11 sixth graders made up the Seahawk Elementary (sixth grade and younger) team. Since 12 results are required to tally a team score, only the Middle Division team earned a place at Nationals, scoring 83^rd of 158 teams.

Three archers, Josh Cerny (59^th), Andres Amundson (87^th) and Anthony Hall (87^th) placed in the top 100 for their grade.

To earn a spot at nationals, the team, coached by Steve Cretacci, placed third in the middle school division at the Virginia state championship, which was held in Doswell on March 16. On that day, two Seahawk archers, Hall and Cerny both qualified for the shoot off event to determine the best shooter in the state. Hall earned a third place finish in the sixth grade category while Cerny posted the highest score among middle school competitors and third overall (high school archers were also represented).

Earlier in the season, at the NNPS tournament, the archers easily defended their city title, sweeping the middle school category for boys and girls. Cerny won the boys division, followed by teammates Amundson and Justin Kellerup. Heather Dye captured the girls top spot, with Brittany Robinson and Ashley Weiss earning second and third places.

Archery, in the form of NASP, was introduced to Newport News schools in 2006. The sport is a part of physical education instruction at all of the city’s middle and high schools, and was recently expanded as a club activity for fourth and fifth graders.

Gildersleeve participants in the NASP competition:

Elementary Division (grade 6)

Eric Young

Moe Taha

Jimmy Reinshagen

Ben Long

Evan Isham

Anthony Hall

Kendall Downing

Destiny Dixon

Jacob Cinn

Juliana Cerny

Ashley Armstead

Middle Division (grades 7-8)

Josh Williams

Ashley Weis

Andrew Warren

Matt Scarberry

Brittany Robinson

Justin Kellerup

Asya Harris

Heather Dye

Chloe Childress

Josh Cerny

Crystal Bennett

Andres Amundson

Making A Life Changing Choice

So here I sit, at the McDonalds in South Boston, Virginia, eating a sausage burrito and contemplating the immediate future. As of July 15^th, the day before my 48^th birthday, I will begin working here, as an Adult Education teacher with the Virginia Department of Correctional Education.

A couple of points might jump to your mind if you know me and are reading this. First, yes, I’ll be teaching in a jail. But it’s probably a mild assignment for this business. The facility I will be working at is a Level 1, which means that most of the residents are really on their way out of the system. In fact, everyone here works outside of the facility. If you’re living in Newport News, let’s just say it’s like City Farm.

Secondly, South Boston is not close to home; in fact, it’s 182 miles away. Part of my challenge right now is finding an affordable place to live during the workweek. Just looked at a studio apartment, which is at the back of a private home. In terms of simplicity, this could work. It’s all inclusive, furnished and comes with cable and Wi-Fi, which is probably hard to find in a country town of 9,000 residents. But, I’m keeping options open since it’s the first place I’ve looked at. The cost of living is dirt cheap down here in NASCAR country (Martinsville is nearby). I’ve seen three bedroom houses for rent for about $500 a month.

But this is a huge change, and I have been more than a little wistful for the past two weeks. My comfort zone is about to explode, being away from home 4-5 days a week. Never mind the part about mostly giving up my “mistress,” which is what my wife calls track and field. I’m hoping to stay involved with the cross-country and track teams at Menchville HS, but am not sure how useful a coach can be with only one day a week (Sat.) to be available. Thankfully, I am still writing with TrackSide magazine and have two American record holders lined up for interviews. Of course, I can keep covering Saturday games for the Daily Press, which automatically conflicts with what I just said about being available for track on that day. (laugh).

Regardless, this has been a tough decision. But the reality is that my attempts at landing a job with a local school system in Hampton Roads have not succeeded. That’s the irony to me. After eight years of attending graduate school, I have finished a master’s degree in education, all of the coursework for a doctorate, earned an endorsement in school administration, served on a statewide  SOL  committee, and am getting ready to take comps and begin my dissertation. But I can’t nail down a job. The irony is that when I go to admin interviews, it is implied that I have no school admin experience, and when I go for teaching interviews, it is implied that I'm really looking to get into administration. Amazing.

My hope is that none of this will matter and teaching with Corrections will be a better opportunity. I already know it pays a bit more than the school systems here, so it’s a start. There is the challenge of working with people who genuinely need help getting their lives back on track. I figure that most of this job will be preparing students for the GED and helping them transition to life on the other side of jail bars. Being that I have considered covering creativity and at-risk teenagers for a dissertation topic, I’m probably working in the right place – with an agency that is now linked with Juvenile Justice.

Even though I’m sad about leaving my jobs and friends, at least during the week, I have always been one to believe that things happen for a reason. My coaching colleague, Chris Chappell, told me to pray on this decision when I first told him. Last Saturday, I was in Norfolk for a wedding of my longtime friend Alicia Holloway (now Waldon). Turned out that one of the bridesmaids lived here in South Boston, and she has offered to help me. Thanks Tanya!! And thanks to Coach Chapp! I took his advice and resulting meeting with Tanya as my message from above that I wouldn’t be in this (meaning South Boston) alone, and to go ahead and accept the offer.

What is the role of the instructional leader? -- Thoughts from McEwan and Sergiovanni

      While leadership is a broad, all-encompassing topic, the definitions presented fall into a slightly different paradigm. In her book, 7 Steps to Effective Instructional Leadership, Elaine McEwan tackles this definition well, looking at the works of others while viewing its meaning from different lenses.

      To her credit, McEwan notes how the role of the instructional leader has evolved over the past 30 years. While earlier definitions may have focused on administrative tasks (i.e. staffing, budgeting) the more current definitions have much more depth.

Thomas Sergiovanni presented some of the earlier models and has made several revisions. His first models looked at instructional leadership as a meshing of five forces – technical, human, educational, symbolic and cultural. Of these, the first two are related more toward human skills while the last three are aligned more toward leadership within the building.

One element of the leader role that has evolved over the past few years is the role of instructional leader as creator of a learning community. While the leader may not be knowledgeable of all disciplines being taught, the leader should be able to work well with teachers and staff to assure that learning is occurring within the building. Human relations are a key piece toward achieving success.

McEwan introduces her book by introducing the findings of more than a dozen educational researchers and uses this meta-analysis to introduce the reader to her seven steps of effective instructional leadership. According to McEwan, the instructional leader needs to:

1.     )       Establish and implement academic standards – the effective leader sets the bar for standards. Goal setting is an important leadership tool.
2. 2)      Act as an instructional resource – even though the leader is not an expert on all subjects, a strong principal knows what elements are necessary for good teaching and can see when learning is occurring. This leader gives teachers and staff what they need to be effective.
3. 3)      Set the culture and climate – the leader needs to set the tone within the building and create an atmosphere that is conducive to learning. This can be as simple as keeping fresh paint on the walls, but it deals with facets of the human element. One example of this is the visibility of the leader within the building.
4. 4)      State and promote the mission and vision – while expecting the teacher to set goals, the leader also has a vision of what the school will become. This is the vision. Through daily management of the building, the mission will be accomplished.
5. 5)      Set high expectations – if the leader aims low, the result will be minimal. Low expectations lead to little progress. As a visionary, the successful leader sets the bar high and encourages others to aim for it. As noted in step four, expectations are high for the leader, just as it is for teachers and staff. Two-way communication is effective here as the leader seeks critiques from teachers in an effort to improve his or her abilities.
6. 6)      Develop teacher leaders – the quality leader inspires others to do the same. More importantly, the leader is not threatened by the idea of putting teachers in leadership positions. The manager who micromanages every detail within a school building will run the risk of burning out. Good leaders build self-efficacy among their teachers and staff and then validate their decision making capabilities by asking them to hold decision making roles (i.e. department chair, program catalyst).
7. 7)      Build positive relationships – just like a successful coach knows, the team works best when all of the parts are in working order. Relationships are the backbone of leadership success, whether the relationships are with staff or superiors. Part of the leader’s role is to serve as the “voice” of the building, so it’s imperative to keep a positive attitude and a cool demeanor in all dealings.

All of these components work together and serve as only part of the role of the

instructional leader. In a recent class, our group came up with over 20 different roles and divided them into five categories. The instructional leader’s role is diverse and can change from minute to minute. The most important quality of an effective instructional leader may be the ability to multi-task.

The "Next Chapter" of Justin Gatlin - as seen in TrackSide magazine

And finally, the cover story. The highlighted piece in our second issue of TrackSide was the interview with world class sprinter Justin Gatlin (conducted twice..LOL).

The timing was certainly right on this one. In spite of being 31, (considered a wee bit old for a sprinter), Gatlin won his first five races this year, beat Usain Bolt, and then placed runner-up in the 100 meters at last weekend's US Track and Field Championships, thus earning a spot on the American team heading to the World Championships in Moscow in early July.

But, as you can read in the article, Gatlin's rebirth as a runner shadows the gains he has made as an overall athlete, father, and to a degree, ambassador of his sport. And away we go.....

For Justin Gatlin, the 2013 outdoor season is not the next step of a “comeback.”

Questioned about a working title for his professional career since 2010, the 2004 Olympic gold medalist in the 100-meter dash was quick to reply, “I like to think of it more as my next chapter.”

Gatlin’s recent upward spiral has been astonishing, and some aspects are unknown to many track fans. Three years ago, he was competing at meets in smaller countries, but harbors positive feelings about the beginning of his current journey.  “I like that I started in places like Estonia and Morocco. It was a way of giving back. We, as track athletes, have diehard fans everywhere, but there are a lot of people who don’t get to see us run during a season.” Fast forwarding to the present, he added, “even now, I like to start the season by running in some smaller meets.”

The new chapter reached a lofty plateau in early 2012 when he stunned the track world by winning the 60-meter dash at the World Championships in Istanbul, Turkey. Commenting on his feeling that day, Gatlin said,

“Up to that point, it seemed like people had written me off. When I crossed the line, it was the first time (since returning) that I felt like I had arrived.”

Gatlin’s reintroduction to track has been fast and furious. He won the 100 meters at the 2012 Olympic trials, with a time of 9.80, a then-personal best. It was also the fastest time ever run by someone 30 years or older.

Following the race, Gatlin’s three year son Jace joined his father for a victory lap around the Hayward Field track. The picture of young Jace holding the American flag while cradled in his dad’s right arm was worthy of coverage in the New York Times and other news outlets.

Becoming a father has Gatlin viewing his career from a new perspective.

To read the rest of this article, please click here:

Northwood University (FL) to Begin Track Program

With colleges dropping track programs across the country due to budget cuts or Title IX realignment, it is memorable for the track community when a new program emerges as the result of school and community interest.

In the first TrackSide issue (www.trackside1.tracknation.com), Greg Foster spoke of his newly formed team at Lindenwood (MO) University, and their expectations of beginning their first season of NAIA competition with 75 athletes.

On the east coast, another program is in the formative stages, this one at Northwood University in West Palm Beach, FL. The Seahawks will compete in the Sun Conference of the NAIA.

Ironically, their new head coach, Kent Baker, found his way to Florida only after 14 years as the head coach of the University of Toledo, a Division I program which fell due to budget cuts.

Having to leave his old position, one which he was successful at, was tough.

“After 14 years, a program becomes a part of you, from working with the alumni and administration. When it’s lost, it’s like someone cuts out part of your heart…that’s what is devastating.”

Baker coached five Division I All-Americans and four Olympic trial qualifiers while at Toledo. Most recently, he was Director of Track and Cross Country at American Heritage School in Florida from 2008-2011, where he won two Florida 2A High School State Championships in Women's Track and Field. He was named 2011 Girls Track "Coach of the Year" by Florida High School Class 2A, 2010 and 2011 Miami Herald Girls Track "Coach of the Year", and the 2010 and 2011 Sun-Sentinel News Girls Track "Coach of the Year."

He looks forward to continuing his run of success at Northwood.

“Florida is rich with talent, but sometimes these men and women get overlooked. The best ones always find somewhere to go. We are interested in providing an opportunity for the others who have interest and talent.”

Northwood is best known as a business school, but Baker quickly points out, “we offer many specialized programs.” He aims to work with high school coaches to draw the kids “who are not highly recruited.” His method appears to be working so far as Baker anticipates fielding a roster of 40-50 athletes for the first year.

Baker will draw strength from two quality assistant coaches. Thomas Johnson, who was recently elected into the Florida Athletic Hall of Fame for his accomplishments has an All-American 400-600 meter sprinter at Florida State, will coach the sprinters, while Maryellen Powers, best known for her work with triathletes and System 3 coaching, was also recently added to the staff.

Olympian Dee Dee Trotter Says, "Test Me I'm Clean!" : Foundation Educates Young Athletes

Interviewing Dee Dee Trotter was fun. She is incredibly passionate about her sport and her foundation and it shows. I actually had to cut off our first conversation because the power in my cell phone ran out. For the record, I had started with three of five bars. Never mind that I had already broken a pen from writing so fast!

The graphics department of TrackSide magazine did a fantastic job with this article, putting the opening line in place as if it were on "Batman." Dee Dee was quite happy with the superhero theme, but you know, some people can get away with being compared to a superhero. She is certainly one of them. Oh yeah, AND I was happy to hear that she was tweeting the article link :)

POW!! BAM!! KABOOM!!

Dee Dee Trotter is a high energy woman, and when she speaks of her charity, “Test Me I’m Clean,” the narrative is fast and furious, like something out of the final fight sequence from the old Batman TV show.

Everything about Trotter is done in double time. Her personality belies her surname; in fact, there is nothing about the 2004 and 2012 Olympic relay gold medalist and 400-meter bronze medalist that resembles a slow gallop. So when she speaks about her involvement with TMIC, it is an advisement to listen, and if one is reporting, to bring extra pens and a cell phone charger.

It was the underlying perception of track and field athletes as cheaters that got Trotter interested in the movement. But it took an airplane ride to put her at the front and center of the movement.

Prefacing the story, she goes back to 2006.

“There was a lot of negativity going on. You had BALCO and the Barry Bonds situation. It put a bad taste in everybody’s mouth and created a stigma that in athletics, everyone was cheating in general, and that was not the case.”

“So I’m on an airplane, and the guy behind me was reading the sports section, and clearly seeing something about BALCO.”

It was his next line that sent Trotter into action.

To read the rest of this article, click here and turn to page 50.