Welcome back to the Community Room! Today, we chat with two high school basketball coaches - Aaron Mitchell and Jeff Gourley - about how they use their role as a coaches and educators to instill values and the impact of sports on kids today. Listen as both Aaron and Jeff talk about the role coaches have played in their own lives, how they use sport as a vehicle to build and foster community within their teams, within their schools and out in to the broader community. What role does sport play in fostering a sense of community? Aaron and Jeff guide us along this journey from their specific perspectives. In addition, this is a special little "crossover" episode - producer Corbin and Aaron together host "A Hoops Journey" podcast - that has featured our very own Bal Dhillon on their second episode, and our other guest Jeff Gourley for Episode 18.

QUOTES (POST EPISODE):
- “The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is the team.”
- Aaron's response: This quote covers a lot in a few words. Within teams and schools, it becomes a collective effort to strive for excellence on all levels. As a team, you must make an effort to have your "last" player as fully invested as your first, maybe not skill wise, but mentally and emotionally. When teams are invested in each other and not themselves powerful things happen. I firmly believe the same for schools; if we flip our leadership model upside down, with families and students being the top of the pyramid and teachers / admin at the bottom, empowerment happens, accountability happens, open feedback happens............and well, a whole bunch of really good stuff happens."

RESOURCES:

- SAFETEEN: www.safeteen.ca - "Safeteen is an internationally recognized violence prevention strategy that cultivates a radical transformation from a youth culture of fear and survival to one of empathy, safety and empowerment."

- "A Hoops Journey": Hosted by Aaron Mitchell and Corbin Castres https://linktr.ee/ahoopsjourney

- "A Hoops Journey": Episode 2 featuring Bal Dhillon = https://open.spotify.com/episode/5LwLzZPzs2AgiK4bZGkg1g?si=KeF-k8pkQTifgWoZkc5k4Q

- "A Hoops Journey": Episode 18 featuring Jeff Gourley = https://open.spotify.com/episode/5qOQvPgrcpSrBurwdRFBAT?si=y7onKNrdSaSS8OQDn3NFRg