Catherine Peer

Community Service Essay

1/4/24

Over the summer I spent two hours every week coaching soccer at the fairgrounds for

about 4 weeks. While coaching I found a way to connect to younger kids in the community and I

had so much fun teaching them how to play soccer. I coached a group of 5-6 year olds so it was

mostly about focusing on not touching the ball with their hands and basic dribbling skills. I

coached with one of my friends and we had a team parent who kept in touch with all the other

parents on the team.

Although coaching such young kids did have some easy parts, there were also some

dilemmas I faced while coaching. The biggest challenge as a coach was trying to keep the kids

focused. It was a very hot, dry summer and trying to keep the kids engaged and having fun was

difficult at times. Before I had ever coached I had this idea that these kids would follow my plan

for each practice and then go play the game and do great. However I realized quickly that these

kids would not be doing that. They would run around in circles, or pick the ball up and chuck it

across the field, or do whatever else they pleased. At first I tried to get them back on track but I

found that I felt like a nag. I realized that the amount of fun they were having did not correlate

with their success. They were still young and genuinely enjoying the sport. They did not have the

stress of playoffs, or trying to juggle a crazy schedule. They were just there to have fun.

I really loved being able to connect to kids in our community and give back to a program

that had a widely positive effect on our community. It was great to be able to take something I

love, like sports and make a connection with all of the kids who really looked up to me. It is a

program I will definitely be doing again this summer because I enjoyed it so much. It is well
worth the time spent to be able to give back to my community and learn new leadership skills

along the way. I was teaching the kids about soccer, but they were teaching me valuable life

lessons that I’m very grateful for.