After being halted in the beginning of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, youth sports are returning at Yuma Proving Ground (YPG) and the need for coaches to teach the future generation couldn’t be greater.
“We are hoping to have our first season since COVID stopped it,” said Melissa Anderson, the Youth Service Director at YPG.
The season that starts in January, kicks off with soccer. Before the pandemic hit about 100 kids from YPG took part in soccer, baseball, basketball, and cheer.
In order to make those sports run efficiently, volunteer coaches are critical, Anderson shared.
Registration is on-going for interested coaches. Those signed up would be good to go for the January – March soccer season.
However, Anderson urges it ‘sooner rather than later’ because of the paperwork and background check required.
“Once they are onboard and trained they can stay on as long as they keep up with their trainings,” Anderson said. “Our hope is they jump from one sport to the next if their schedule allows.”
Practices for youth sports take place on-post two days a week. The games, which are usually Saturday mornings, happen at Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Yuma thanks to a joint effort to make sports available for children on both installations.
“The benefits are empowering the youth, mentoring youth, assisting them with fundamentals and life skills,” said Anderson. “For the coaches themselves, it benefits them as well, by being role models, and benefiting their own self-development.”
On-top of that, a child’s registration is free as long as the parent is a coach. However, being a coach doesn’t guarantee you will coach your son’s or daughter’s team, Anderson explained.
“It might work out that their child is on a team that we need a coach and they are the coach, but it isn’t guaranteed,” she said.
If you are interested in coaching a team you can contact Melissa Anderson at Melissa.g.anderson9.naf@mail.mil, or Melissa.g.anderson9.naf@army.mil, or through the YPG Cyss (Youth Service) Facebook page.
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