Most people are surprised when I tell them that I worked as a police officer for a couple of years in my younger days. It was something I had dreamed about my entire life, following in my fathers footsteps who was killed in the line of duty. My entire college education was based around law enforcement and how I could impact my community and leave it better than I had found it. Being a police officer you see some terrible things, and your heart breaks. You wish you could have done something to change the outcome, to fix the wrongs that someone else committed and most of the time you just can’t.
Fast forward some years later, as I was finishing my last year at Angelo State University. I began substitute teaching for some extra money to pay bills. Walking into a hostile environment with young teens, I was calm and composed. I felt at home and I loved interacting with the students. They were fun, smart, kind, and wanted to learn. I knew that teaching was something I could be passionate about. I combined my new found interest in teaching with my passion for sports and competition, deciding that coaching was a career that I wanted to pursue. Although it took several years to land my first coaching job, it was one of the best decisions I made.
My time as Peace Officer was spent praying that I could make a difference. Hoping that me arresting this person can somehow change his or her life and lead them down the right path. Hoping that removing kids from their abusive and drug filled home and releasing them to CPS was saving them, which I was for that moment. As an educator I don’t hope anymore, I see my students and they tell me how I’ve changed their lives. How they were able to survive their middle school years because of me. My “why” is simple, to change the course of their lives positively through sports, love, and respect, before they enter into a life full of regrets. And even when you have regrets and make mistakes, it’s never too late to pursue your dreams and chase success.