A light-hearted story of a player and a coach speaks volumes about growth

By John Shaughnessy

The stories we choose to share often reveal something about ourselves.

So when Kevin Sowinski is asked to share a moment that stands out to him from his 20 years of coaching football in the Catholic Youth Organization, he chooses what he describes as a “light-hearted” one.

“The light-hearted story was fairly recently,” says Sowinski, who coaches the fifth- and sixth-grade team at Christ the King Parish in Indianapolis. “One of the kids came up to me in practice, and this is a kid who’s a lot of fun. He was making fun of me one day. He said, ‘Coach, man you’re really old! I can tell that because of the gray hair that you have around your ears!’ ”

Sowinski laughs again at that moment and talks about how much he appreciates the boy and loved having him on the team.

It’s a small story, yet it says a great deal about Sowinski’s evolution as a coach during the two decades he has strived to make an impact on the lives of his young players.

When he and his wife Elizabeth moved from the Buffalo, N.Y., area to Indianapolis in 1995 and he began coaching several years later, Sowinski’s approach was much more serious, focused on teaching the sport and winning rather than making it fun for the boys. Now, it’s a blend.

“I love the kids and the coaches we have are many long-timers. We have a lot of fun. Maybe when I first started, I took it too seriously. Now, I think I better understand the perspective of what this is all about. Maybe just a better appreciation of what we’re trying to use the game of football to do—to build great men.

“Something we say on a yearly basis and something we really try to communicate with the parents is that we really want the kids to keep playing football. It’s a great way to prepare kids. There are a lot of life lessons for sure. I think the most important thing is to be a good teammate. Being a good teammate, looking out for each other, working hard. Things that will serve you well as a member of society.”

That approach, his longtime commitment as a coach, his three years as athletic director and his continuing dedication as a volunteer at Christ the King recently led to Sowinski receiving the St. John Bosco Award, the highest honor given by the archdiocese’s CYO.

He’s kept coaching even as his five children have moved on from the parish school. He’s served on the parish council, been a member of the school commission, flipped burgers at the parish’s festival and shares the Eucharist at Masses as an extraordinary minister of holy Communion.

“My faith is very important,” Sowinski says. “We pray before and after each practice. If there’s a particularly interesting saint of the day, one of the coaches tends to bring it up.”

As he talks, Sowinski also brings up the influence of one of the first people he coached with at Christ the King, Joe Bill. He credits Bill for teaching him that coaching can combine striving to win with making it fun—and that the most important goals are giving the players a great experience and getting them to return for the next season.

That approach has led to his own return season after season with the fifth- and sixth-grade team.

“It’s really the kids and the guys I coach with that keep me coming back. The kids at that age are really fun. They still kind of like you. They still think you know something. There’s a lot of innocence. They like to laugh a lot.”

Just as telling, their coach laughs with them. †

 

See more Catholic Youth Organization award winners