PCA National Youth Sports Awards show offers hope, earns ovations

PALO ALTO, Calif. — Joe Ehrmann received not just one, but two standing ovations from the more than 500 in attendance at the 13th Annual National Youth Sports Awards Program Saturday presented by the Positive Coaching Alliance at the Crowne Plaza.

The first was for being the fourth recipient of the PCA's Ronald L. Jensen Award for lifetime achievement, joining 17-time NCAA tennis coaching champion Dick Gould, San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy and 11-time NBA championship coach Phil Jackson.

That's pretty fair company.

See preview of the PCA event here

Ehrmann, the 65-year-old former NFL Pro Bowl defensive lineman and later so much more — minister, motivational speaker and "The Most Important Coach in America," according to Parade Magazine — earned his second standing ovation for a six-minute dissertation that covered more ground than Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start the Fire."

He noted that the importance of sports in our society — for better or worse — is at an all-time high, calling it "the second religion of America."

He spoke about the role of sport in dealing with social injustices over the years — Jackie Robinson breaking the race barrier in baseball, the 1968 Olympics victory stand and the black power salute by John Carlos and Tommie Smith, Title IX and female equity, and Nelson Mandela, anti-apartheid and rugby.

Ehrmann also quoted Socrates, defined team as nothing more than "relationships and a commitment to a cause, " and called PCA staff members true heroes and ministers of sport.

He noted that the "PCA is trying to redeem sports," and that it "provides us with a function of hope."

Finally, he brought up the 100 greatest speeches listed on-line, noting those delivered by Churchill, JFK and Marin Luther King Jr., before mentioning a somewhat lesser-known speaker Elie Wiesel, a Nobel Peace Prize winner and prisoner and survivor of Auschwitz.

Wiesel's messages always resonated peace, atonement and human dignity to humanity, but his most famous speech dealt with the "perils of indifference."

And that is how Ehrmann neatly tied up his 10 minutes — and largely the rich four-hour program — in a big, memorial bow.

He simply challenged the already impassioned doers in the crowd — and abroad — to stay engaged and to continue the good fight. This to an organization that has partnered with more than 2,000 schools and youth sports organizations nationwide while conducting more than 13,000 workshops that have impacted more than an estimated 6 million youth.

The speech not only got everyone on their feet immediately, but some also suggested it might go onto the online "greatest" list at No. 101.

Though moving, Ehrmann simply spilled petrol on to an evening filled with fiery messages and poignant moments.

Among them:

* PCA Founder and CEO Jim Thompson gave a stirring speech to begin the festivities, noting his vision in the 1990s while coaching special education kids and hearing so much negativity from outside sources.

"Change youth sports and you can change the world," was his thinking. That and "Better athletes, better people."

* Longtime sports broadcaster Ted Robinson was superb as emcee, moving the program along nicely, while adding insights as a father and coach. He noted one year that the star of his daughter's basketball team had forgotten her sneakers to a game. The coach made a reserve on the team give up hers.

"I can't count all the ways that is wrong at every level," he said. "Shortly after that I got involved with PCA."

* Two-time World Cup champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist Julie Foudy led a spirited and interesting panel discussion with four of the 25 youth coaches who received the PCA's highest double-goal award, presented by MaxPreps.

Foudy, who runs her own leadership academy, serves as an ESPN analyst and is one of the dozens of PCA National Advisory board members, said she was moved by all the coaches and their stories.

"I'm in the wrong profession," she said. "I want to coach again."

* All four coaches — Drake (San Anselmo, Calif.) girls soccer coach Rene Ayala, Grace Academy (Georgetown, Texas) volleyball coach Venessa Barnard, Menlo-Atherton Little League coach Bob Baxter and Shepherd Hill Regional (Dudley, Mass.) football coach Chris Lindstrom — gave heartfelt responses.

All four were honored with terrific video features that offered comments about their coaching expertise from players, parents and administrators.

"I try to get down to their level and really talk," Barnard said. "They know I have their back. … I'm somewhere between their mom and favorite aunt."

Said Ayala: "Everything that happens off the pitch relates to what's going on on the pitch."

Said Lindstrom: "I'm not coaching football as much as trying to develop young men."

Baxter was asked what he tells a 10-year-old pitcher who can't throw strikes: "I simply remind him about the previous week at practice when he threw seven straight strikes. It's simply about positive reinforcement and tuning out the negative thoughts," he said.

Later, when asked about her selection, Barnard said: "I am incredibly honored and touched to have won this award. I've been working very hard to utilize a certain philosophy to love all of my players and build a program built through relationships and the trust of my players.

"I thought I was alone until I came here. When I came to this banquet I realized that there's an army growing behind me with the same sort of mentality that I have, and it's electrified and excited me to continue what I am doing."

* MaxPreps Founder and President Andy Beal received big applause for his monumental commitment to high school sports and coaching, and helping the PCA jump from 400 double-goal nominees annually to more than 1,700 within a three-month window. MaxPreps and the PCA partnered in November.

"That makes this group of winners even more impressive," Beal said. "You've been picked amongst a much larger pool of coaches who are already highly respected by their schools and communities. Congratulations to this year's honorees, and thank you for representing the great work of coaches throughout the country."

Beal noted that next year's nominee list will be considerably larger. "We're just getting started," he said.

* A terrific and snappy live auction from donated prizes helped raise thousands of dollars. Among the donations came from former Reds' manager Dusty Baker, Cleveland Indians owner Mark Shapiro, NBA teams Lakers, Warriors and Clippers, along with the A's, Sharks and Giants. Auctioneer Kevin O'Callahan was terrific.

* More than $450,000 was raised around the event, including $75,000 during a Fund-a-Cause portion of the auction. Those funds were matched by US Trust, Franklin and Catherine Johnson Foundation, and Ted Dintersmith.

* Besides Ehrmann, the loudest ovation was given to St. John's (Houston) lacrosse, field hockey and basketball player Eden Epner, a PCA national student-athlete advisory board member from Houston.

The senior gave a superlative, composed and even humorous five-minute speech, starting by pretending to have a deep southern accent (she has none). She then gained everyone's attention to show that she was indeed serious about the PCA cause by revealing this: "I missed my senior ball to be here tonight." That drew a room full of gasps.

Epner, who has headed a project to help students manage social media, talked about her many coaching mentors, starting with her dad.

"He never met a sport he didn't like," she said. "The same goes for me."

She finished off her smart speech with a smart analogy.

"PCA is like an old pair of Chuck Taylors (canvas converse shoes)," she said. "They're timeless, balanced and sensible, and very supportive. Everyone should own a pair."

Coach Bob Baxter



Coach Chris Lindstrom



Coach Venessa Barnard



Coach Rene Ayala