Sacramento — Leaders of the grassroots movement to urge an immediate return to youth and high school sports today praised California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s decision to restart youth sports and expressed their thanks and appreciation on behalf of California’s millions of student athletes.
The leaders of Golden State High School Football Coaches and “Let Them Play CA” which represent more than 700 California coaches and 60,000 student athletes and their parents also thanked the nearly half of the California State Assembly and California State Senate who joined their ranks to advocate that youth sports can be played safely.
Most importantly, they wrote in a statement of thanks, “To our athletes: there is a beautiful lesson in this effort for all of you. When something matters to you and it is important, no matter the odds, no matter if you win or lose, you try. The simple act of trying can set events in motion that motivate, guide, and teach you how to struggle for something that matters. We tried for you in this case for a very simple reason: we love you, and we believe in you.”
The joint statement of the group is below:
“On behalf of Patrick Walsh, Bradley Hensley, Justin Alumbaugh, and Ron Gladnick, we would like to take a moment to express our gratitude to Governor Gavin Newsom and his staff- led by Jim DeBoo. From the moment the Governor called us to say he would work with us to help get sports back for kids, it has been a methodical march to get to this wonderful place. It has not been easy; there were many bumps along the way, but good people kept working together to create a positive outcome for our most “Essential Business”- our kids.
“To the Let Them Play CA family- thank you for your passion, your volunteerism, and the tremendous love you have for your children. Bradley- your steady hand that was always focused on the prize was awesome to watch. We as coaches have developed a level of respect for you that we normally reserve for our coaching peers, and we are proud to call you our friend.
“To our beloved volunteer Seal Teams 1-6 made up of parents and coaches: we are simply in awe of your hard work, dedication, and perseverance. No matter what we asked of you, it was delivered. The Zoom meetings, the data generation, the emotional lows, the long nights, the constant texts along the way; you all kept giving of yourselves and that is truly noble. The love you all displayed for your children is inspirational.
“To Sam Singer of Singer Associates Public Relations San Francisco: your wisdom, guidance, and friendship throughout this process made all the difference in getting our message out to the media. Your steady hand and guidance were essential to our most essential group–our kids.
“Patrick said early on that this was a movement born out of love, and it is true. We love kids and we are honored to coach and develop our student-athletes and contribute to them becoming quality, full-functioning people in life; our parents love their kids with all of their heart and proved it with hard work and dedication. To our loved ones thank you for your incredible support and understanding as we focused on finding a solution to this situation. We are nothing without your love and support.
“To The Golden State High School Football Coaches Community: we were a part of doing something noble and special. But from Patrick, Justin, and myself, our work has just begun and we will be putting forth a full agenda of things we want to accomplish as a coaching community. This is the beginning of what needs to happen for ALL of our kids to fully realize the benefits of youth sports.
“To our athletes: there is a beautiful lesson in this effort for all of you. When something matters to you and it is important, no matter the odds, no matter if you win or lose, you try. The simple act of trying can set events in motion that motivate, guide, and teach you how to struggle for something that matters. We tried for you in this case for a very simple reason: we love you, and we believe in you.”
The statement was signed by Brad Hensley and Kristin Repinski Hensley, co-founders of Let Them Play California; Patrick Walsh, Head Football Coach, Junipero Serra High School;
Ron Gladnick, Head Football Coach, Torrey Pines High School; and Justin Alumbaugh, Head Varsity Football Coach, De La Salle High School