For my service project I served as a coach and mentor to the new club director for the Eastern Oregon Volleyball Club.  For the past three years I have volunteered to coach club for a group of middle school students around Union County. I do this for a variety of reasons.  The first reason is I love the sport of volleyball and want players to have the opportunity to compete at a level other than with their middle school teams.  I also use this tool to get to know the middle school students at La Grande, which is also were I teach.  It is also another tool to help to get to know my students and future LHS players. 

My responsibilities with this assignment are endless. I helped get us into tournaments, get our players and club registered with CEVA, register players and coaches into advanced events systems, completed referee training, scheduled trainings for players, field parent phone calls, organize practices, create practice plans, referee at tournaments, create line ups and try to make this experience a positive one for young players.  I am also assiting our new club director in a ways to formalize the registration process, parent communication and the try out process through a new website and working on new ways to run our club more efficiently. 

I love the experience of coaching volleyball at the middle school level.  It helps me be a better high school coach!  Well I must sign off!!! Duty calls, I am leaving at 4:30 am to coach for my club team in Grandview, Washington tomorrow!  It will be a fun day!