CYC FALL SPORTS 2021
We are eagerly anticipating the beginning of our CYC fall sports season this weekend. We would like to give our CYC parents, coaches and volunteers some updates before the season begins.
CONGRATULATIONS LAURA
On Tuesday August 17th, CYC Associate Director Laura Bailey gave birth to a baby boy. Everyone is healthy and doing well. Another future CYC athlete in the Bailey house. We are happy for Laura and wish her well as she spends some time at home with her new son.
CYC CARDS
The last several weeks we have experienced a significant increase in requests for CYC cards. Over 7000 in the last three weeks. We are receiving many calls and e-mails with questions about the process. Many of the answers to those questions are found in the “Important Notes” page found when you apply for your card. Please take the time to read this information. A few highlights:
- We no longer send you a physical ID card. All cards are digital.
- The old physical cards are good until they expire.
- Coaches cards never expire.
- Many parents, when requesting their password information, are not receiving the response email. This is a big issue with those who have yahoo accounts. The return email goes to spam or takes several days to return. Please be patient. You can also re-apply using a different e-mail address. We are working with our IT department to address this issue. It likely has to do with the high volume of requests.
PLAY LIKE A CHAMPION
In the last nine months, we have trained over 1000 CYC coaches with the Play Like A Champion program. We hope it has been beneficial to our coaches. In February, we announced our 5th grade coaches would need to complete the training before coaching this fall. Between Feb-July, we trained 400 coaches. In the month of August we have trained over 400 coaches.
All 5th grade basketball coaches will need to be trained with Play Like A Champion before the season starts. Please sign up now for a class. Please do not wait until December. In August, we added five extra classes. With the Holidays in December, we will not be adding classes.
For more information on Play Like A Champion: https://www.playlikeachampion.org/. Be sure to sign up for their weekly newsletter.
SAFETY GUIDELINES
Unfortunately, our world has not been able to shake the Covid virus. We are happy we have the opportunity to play CYC sports this fall. Our main focus is always the safety of our CYC athletes. Once again, we have set up safety guidelines for playing CYC sports. These have been developed in cooperation with the Archdiocese and our local health departments. Keep in mind, CYC serves parishes in St Louis City and six counties.
Please go to our website and read the Covid safety guidelines before you attend a CYC game this season: https://playcyc.org/covid-19/. Check back during the season for updates.
When attending games, parish volunteers will ask you to adhere to the safety guidelines. If you are approached by a volunteer, please be respectful. They are trying to keep the playing area safe. If you disagree with the rules, please do not voice your opinion to the volunteer. We are the CYC, and as a Catholic organization we should treat others with respect.
ONE TEAM
Last year, the CYC formed a committee to discuss the issue of racism in our organization. The hope of this committee is to find ways to strengthen the relationships between our CYC programs. Even though we live in different parts of the St Louis area, when it comes to CYC sports, we are all ONE TEAM.
This season, if you have the opportunity to play against a team from a different neighborhood, do what you can to make those parents and athletes feel welcome. Treat everyone with respect and dignity. Offer support; not criticism. Make them feel like they would be happy to return to your field/gym.
Last year, I sat in the bleachers at a CYC basketball game and heard parents speaking three different languages. How cool is that? Our program has always included everyone, no matter their background, religion or ethnicity.
Sports has the ability to unify kids around a common cause. Playing the game and having fun. If you are playing a team from a different neighborhood, take the time to speak with your athletes about the importance of respecting others no matter their differences. We all have the ability to make our CYC program better. We are all ONE TEAM.
Dan Fitzgerald, CYC Director
