Huddle Coaches of the Month
Brett Richards & Jonathan Jeff
Liberty Park Middle School

Brett Richards and Jonathan Jeff are excited about the influence of FCA on the students of Liberty Park Middle School. In their second and fourth years, respectively, as FCA huddle leaders, these coaches are seeing members of their huddle living their faith in the halls of the school.

“These kids are unique in their ability to provide encouragement to their fellow students,” Jeff says. “Whether it’s walking down the hallways at school or participating in an athletic team or just hanging out at lunch, our leaders seem to know the right words to say at the right time. You can tell their lives reflect Christ in the way their lights shine brightly on campus.”

Richards says that they always focus on scripture and prayer at every huddle meeting. “We also focus on the four key values – integrity, serving, teamwork, and excellence,” he adds. Faith building is also stressed at FCA meetings, and Jeff says they focus on Colossians 2:6-7: “So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.”

The Liberty Park Middle School huddle participated in Fields of Faith last year and hosted its own middle school leadership camp this summer for the first time. There was a good turn-out, and Richards and Jeff did an outstanding job leading the camp. Richards is the head coach of the 7^th grade football team and the 8^th grade girls’ basketball team, and Jeff coaches cross-country and track and field at Liberty Park Middle School. Both coaches were members of FCA as students.

While their guidance of these middle school students is an important role, they both have realized that their positions as coach and huddle leader are helping them grow as well. “FCA has helped me as a coach to become more devoted to athletes off the field and to realize that winning and losing is not always the most important thing,” Richards  says. “As a person it has made my spiritual life stronger.”

Jeff says, “As a coach, FCA has helped me as a person to grow in loving our youth as Christ loved his disciples. Here at Liberty Park Middle School, we look at FCA as a discipleship group from us as staff to our leaders and then to our classmates. We grow everyday in our accountability and strive to be effective witnesses for the gospel.”

In the Cards
By Jill Ewert

MLB All-Star Matt Holliday talks faith, family and Facebook by answering questions from you, the FCA athletes and coaches.   more

FCA
North Central Alabama