Dear Coach,

Thank you for always being there for me 100 percent of the time. You were the first person to believe in me and invest your time and energy into making me see the potential in myself. You were always understanding about everything I went through. You were always there to listen or to give me a hug when you could tell I needed it. But you were also never afraid to show some tough love when I needed it; you yelled at me when I deserved it, and you dished out the deserving consequences when it came down to it, all because you never wanted me to be anything less than you knew I could be, and you always held me to the standard you set for me.

You are one of the biggest and best influences I have had come into my life and there is no way I could ever express my thanks for all that you have done for me. The years that I got to have you as my coach are years that I grew so much as a person and I can’t thank you enough for how much you influenced me; and how every time someone tells me how wonderful of a young woman I am becoming I want to give part of the credit to you. You instilled so much confidence in me, and taught me to stand up for myself. It’s thanks to you that I grew a backbone and stopped letting people walk all over me. While I might take that a little too far and get in trouble from time to time, thanks to you I know my worth, and I will never forget that.

Anything I needed you were there, whether it be a shoulder to cry on, someone to give me encouragement to get through a tough practice, someone to vent to, or just someone to listen about my day, you always had my back. To our whole team you were not only a coach but a friend. You were never quick to judge us and you were always there to support us. No matter how bad a day at school or at home was; walking in the door and seeing your smiling face and knowing you were going to tell us a cheesy joke made it so much easier to leave all our problems at the door, and made every gym we walked into feel a little bit more like home.

You taught all of us so much not only about the sport we loved, but also about life. There are so many things that every person who had the opportunity to have you as a coach learned from you, and will carry with them throughout the rest of their lives. Because of you, when all of us are little stressed out on competition days we can always remember to tell each other a joke, and the nerves will fade. Because of you we continue to love each other no matter how frustrated we may get. Because of you we continue to push each other to our fullest potential. Because of you we believe in each other. For that we will all be forever thankful because no matter where any of our paths have lead us, none of us are afraid to go after what we want. You helped all of us become fearless young adults who, whether or not they know it, are ready to take on the world.

Sincerely,

The girl you believed in