BGCNL celebrates coaches at Second Annual Youth Sports Banquet
After a two-year COVID hiatus, the Boys & Girls Clubs of North Louisiana hosted the second annual Youth Sports Banquet in front of a packed banquet room at the West Monroe Convention Center Tuesday night.
This event, sponsored by Bruscato Law Firm, is centered on honoring unpaid, volunteer coaches, who sacrifice and go the extra mile to impact the next generation. The Boys & Girls Club believes this goes hand-in-hand with its mission – helping guide today’s youth in the right direction by teaching them valuable lessons while also having fun.
The nomination process was open after the end of each youth sports season (12-and-under) for the past year. The categories include football, spirit groups, baseball, softball, basketball and soccer. Nearly 200 nominations were received, and a committee narrowed down the list to three finalists in each category. These finalists, along with their guests, were in attendance and a winner was announced.
The finalists in each category are as follows (winners in bold): FOOTBALL – David Cole (BGC Football), Heath Mills (East Ouachita Recreation District) and Grant Taylor (BGC Football), SPIRIT GROUPS – Brandy Choate (WOYSA), Betsy Greener (BGC Football), Leisa Hill (BGC Football), BASEBALL – Larry Burrell (West Monroe Dixie Youth), Jay Culver (Monroe Buffs), Jonathan Johnson (Sterlington), SOFTBALL – Ledarrius Madison (EORD), Kent Thurston (WM Dixie Youth), Rachel Wood (WM Dixie Youth), BASKETBALL Mike Abrams (WM Rec), Jessica Blackwell (EORD), Mickey and Sunni Chevallier (WM Rec), SOCCER – Clint Pepper (WOYSA), Tuan Vu (NELSA).
West Monroe and ULM championship baseball coach Jeff Schexnaider served as guest speaker and congratulated each finalists for the work they do in our community as volunteer coaches. His message often drew laughs with the countless stories he can recount over his 30-plus years of coaching. Schexnaider reminded the finalists, as well as parents in the room, to make playing sports fun. Coach Shake won the state championship at West Monroe High School in 1999, and later two Sun Belt Conference championships as the head coach at ULM.
However, he said his success is measured not on just those three years and those championships. It’s the numerous players he has impacted, who come back to him today as husbands and fathers and share how he used the game to make a difference and made it fun.
His speech was topped off by the Boys & Girls Clubs of North Louisiana introducing an Impact Award that will be given at next year’s sports banquet after nominations are submitted throughout the year. The Impact Award is named after Schexnaider’s good friend and former assistant coach, the late Phil Keifenheim. Coach K as everyone affectionally called him inspired multiple generations as he coached several sports throughout his career, and on many different levels from little league to high school to college. Schexnaidfer presented the first award went to Coach K’s “girls” – wife, Jane, and daughters, Amy and Jill Keifenheim.
The banquet serves as a fundraiser for the Boys & Girls Clubs of North Louisiana’s Northeast region.