SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – January 11, 2018 – Coaching Corps (@CoachingCorps) and NBC Sports Bay Area (@NBCSAuthentic), the home of “Authentic Bay Area Sports,” today announced the 4th Annual Coaching Corps Game Changer Awards, presented by Levi’s®, airing Tuesday, Jan. 30 at 9 p.m. This event supports Coaching Corps’ mission to provide youth from under-resourced communities access to trained coaches and the benefits of sports. The Coaching Corps Game Changer Awards will feature top Bay Area professional athletes celebrating the profound influence of coaches on their lives and in the community.
The presenters – prominent Bay Area athletes whose lives have been shaped by the mentorship and transformative influence of caring coaches and other important persons – are:
· San Francisco Giants pitcher Jeff Samardzija honoring his former Notre Dame football coach Tyrone Willingham;
· Oakland A’s third baseman Matt Chapman honoring his father Jim Chapman;
· San Francisco 49ers defensive tackle DeForest Buckner honoring his Punahou School (Honolulu, HI) football coach Kale Ane;
· Oakland Raiders linebacker Bruce Irvin honoring 49ers assistant head coach – defensive/inside linebackers Ken Norton, Jr.;
· San Jose Earthquakes forward Chris Wondolowski honoring his father John Wondolowski; and
· Golden State Warriors assistant coach Jarron Collins honoring his Harvard-Westlake High School (Los Angeles, CA) basketball coach Greg Hilliard.
For the pinnacle moment of the evening, the Coaching Corps Game Changer Awards will honor Serena Limas with the Coach of the Year Award. Volunteer Coaching Corps coach Limas coached for three years with the Ramona Gardens Boys and Girls Club in Los Angeles and continues to promote sports as a program leader at the center. Through her work with Coaching Corps, Limas has been directly responsible for providing nearly 300 youth with sports opportunities.
The 4th Annual Coaching Corps Game Changer Awards, a two-hour program, is hosted by NBC Sports Bay Area’s Dave Feldman(@FeldyNBCS) and Ahmed Fareed (@FareedNBCS). The awards ceremony will be taped on Friday, Jan. 26 at the Fairmont San Francisco. After the broadcast debut (Tuesday, Jan. 30 at 9 p.m. on NBC Sports Bay Area), the show will re-air on NBC Sports Bay Area on Wednesday, Jan. 31 at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. Visit NBCSportsBayArea.com for additional air dates and times.
“Every child deserves a caring role model in their life to help them thrive and realize their full potential,” says Coaching Corps executive director Janet Carter. “In youth sports, a well-trained coach can make all the difference, helping kids translate skills learned on the playing field into success in school and beyond. Unfortunately, this is not the reality for everyone. Children from low-income communities are only half as likely to participate in sports.”
“Kids in under-resourced communities want to play sports,” says Wally Haas, Coaching Corps founder and Chairperson of the Board. “But too often they lack the key ingredient – a qualified, trained coach to fill that vital mentor role. Having a strong role model can have an outsized impact on kids facing the daily stresses of poverty. The Coaching Corps Game Changer Awards is a wonderful evening that raises awareness and funds for this issue.”
“We are pleased to be a part of the Coaching Corps Game Changer Awards, an extraordinary event that celebrates the transformative power of coaching and sports by honoring coaches and mentors who serve as positive role models who teach skill building and teamwork within safe environments for play and learning,” said Tom Stathakes, Senior Vice President and General Manager of NBC Sports Bay Area and NBC Sports California. “The commitment of Coaching Corps coaches has changed kids’ lives. Not only do the kids have fun playing sports, they also learn the value of teamwork and a good education from dedicated adults. We’re especially thankful for Wally Haas, the Coaching Corps coaches and for the participation of Bay Area sports teams in the Game Changer Awards.”
About Coaching Corps:
Since 2012, Coaching Corps has been fueling a movement of skilled coaches to give kids in underserved communities the sports mentors they want and deserve. By partnering with more than 200 afterschool programs across the country, Coaching Corps has provided more than 130,000 underprivileged kids with the opportunity to play sports under the guidance of a caring, well-trained coach. Informed by the latest research on youth character development, Coaching Corps trains coaches to foster persistence, optimism, self-regulation and empathy in kids, providing coaches with the ongoing support they need to ensure girls and boys in under-resourced communities learn skills that last lifetimes. Based in Oakland, California, Coaching Corps is a 501(c)(3) organization. More information about Coaching Corps can be found at www.coachingcorps.org.
About NBC Sports Bay Area, NBC Sports California:
NBC Sports Bay Area and NBC Sports California, both part of NBC Sports Regional Networks, serve more than four million households in Northern California, Nevada, Southern Oregon and Hawaii. NBC Sports Bay Area, the television home of MLB’s San Francisco Giants, NBA’s Golden State Warriors, and the official regional sports network of the San Francisco 49ers, also features a robust lineup of Emmy Award-winning news, analysis and original programming. NBC Sports California offers live coverage of MLB’s Oakland Athletics, NBA’s Sacramento Kings, NHL’s San Jose Sharks, MLS’s San Jose Earthquakes and is the official regional sports network of the Oakland Raiders. Collectively, these networks deliver more than 600 live game broadcasts per year. NBCSportsBayArea.com and NBCSportsCalifornia.com provide fans with comprehensive digital coverage of the hometown teams with original stories and content from a team of “Insiders,” breaking news, up-to-the-minute game previews/recaps, highlights and multimedia video clips. Follow both networks on social media –Twitter: @NBCSAuthentic; Instagram: NBCSAuthentic; Snapchat: NBCSAuthentic; and Facebook: facebook.com/NBCSAuthentic.
