A refreshing Change

Note: this was the cover story in this week's Cobb Prep Section of Score Atlanta. It was edited, and this is the director's Cut, I guess. I did like though how they switched around part of my story in the final edition, but here is my version. If you'd like to read the final product, visit the www.scoreatl.com link at the bottom of the page.

These days it seems high school students are doing everything possible to act older. Students are even following some famous or infamous celebrities and sports stars by running afoul of the law. Others seem to want to mimic the prima donnas and steal the spotlight by making it all about them. Therefore it is refreshing knowing that for one school, kids are bucking that “me-first” attitude and giving back to the community that gives them the spotlight.
At McEachern High School, the athletic teams are helping lead the school’s charge in charitable works. Multiple teams over the past school year have reached out and given back to the community. Athletic Director and former Football head coach Jimmy Dorsey realizes that his school is special. “We’ve been pretty fortunate to have some great kids come through here over the years.” Before retiring he had coached many of those kids on the gridiron, and those he didn’t coach he still influenced as athletic director. The school has fantastic facilities on its sprawling campus, and instead of selfishly keeping it only for Indian athletic programs, Dorsey and school officials allow the county to hold exciting events there. Just in the last few months the school has held the Cobb Senior Bowl, a junior wrestling tournament and the Cobb County Track and Field Championship.
But what makes McEachern truly special is not its facilities, but its students and coaches. The girls volleyball team and coach Patty Craven are big examples of this. Coach Craven and her girls joined up with Lassiter and Harrison High School for “Dig for the Cure.” This tournament benefited the Breast Cancer Foundation and the team raised over $1000 according to Coach Craven, with the event in full giving $8000 to the Susan G. Koman Breast Cancer Foundation. When asked about this generosity though, the humble Craven was quick to share credit, saying that McEachern’s effort was “just a fraction of the work done by [Harrison’s] Clay Taylor.” The schools wore pink shirts during the tournament and the girls involved said they had a great time for a good cause. Coach Craven summed up the event saying “we feel very fortunate to be involved and have plans to be more supportive next year. Now that we know some different ways to get our school involved, we will be more successful in the future.”
The basketball teams got into the spirit of helping at Christmas time as the boys team, led by assistant coaches Michael Taylor and Mike Thompson helped Varner Elementary with the annual Reindeer Run. The team joined the Indian Track and Field program, which had done the event the previous three years. Some of the work included helping the kids stretch, warm-up, and some players even ran with the kids, giving them support and high-fives. Coach Taylor went as far as to say that he thinks his athletes enjoy the experience more than the kids do. “We have some great kids who know what it means to be a role model for the younger ones,” said Taylor. The girls basketball program, spearheaded by head coach Phyllis Arthur came up with a new way to celebrate Christmas. The team decided to adopt a family and each player and coach donated $10. With the money, the team went on a shopping spree for the family. Said Coach Arthur, “The young ladies learned how hard it is to shop for young people as well as the value of giving.” In total, the four coaches plus the middle school teams along with the JV and Varsity helped provide the families with a memorable Christmas. The haul included bikes, cell phones, shoes, coats, toys and a PS3. “These young ladies are extraordinary and McEachern is proud to call them their own, and I am extremely proud to say that I know them,” said Arthur of her team’s efforts.
Some of the students even go out on their own to reach out to the community. Track star William Wynne may one day be racing in the Olympics and basketball standout Darrius Garrett will soon be playing at the next level, but both took time last summer to spend an afternoon speaking to nearly 250 kids about the importance of staying in school and staying out of trouble. The focus of their message was grades, not gangs and it was part of an outreach mission trip. These two along with many other students at McEachern are showing that giving is just as good as getting. In an age where many adults are acting like immature kids and many kids are following their lead, there are some students acting like responsible adults. I hope more students choose their path.