There are some moments in life that you can’t recognize as extraordinary until you gain enough perspective with age. I wish there were a way to know you were experiencing something transformative while you were in it, but for some reason, nostalgia is the key that opens our eyes to the magic of it all.
For me those moments have often shown up where I least expected them, in the ordinary days of my life. Ironically for a person who is not an athlete, some of those magical memories took place at a baseball field.
Twenty-eight years ago as a Freshmen in High School, I became a quiet observer of a team of boys who would become my High School buddies (and one of them my husband). Over the course of those three years, I had a front row seat to watch a game turn them from immature guys to influential men.
Click to make it full screen.
After the State Championship trophy had been brought home, Jimmy Naifeh, our then Tennessee Speaker of the House said in a proclamation that Coach Alan Pavette “molded the Charger team of great individual talent into a diamond quality team who stuck together through thick and thin. He described them as great athletes, true champions, peerless sportsmen, and gentlemen.”
He was right.
One of the great joys of my life was that I was “in the room [or stands] where it happened” and that I’ve had the opportunity to watch these gentlemen mine their own “diamonds in the rough” into adulthood, one of them being investing their time, money, and energy into a new school in our community that has now flourished to the point where it needs it’s own baseball field.
Former Charger Baseball State Champions Zach Cook, Gene Coltrane, Drew Glass, and William Allen Wooten are all invested in Eagle Athletics at TCA as coaches, mentors, and disciple makers.
Our Field of Dreams
Years ago, the Rose family had a vision for a field of dirt that they dreamed of becoming a church campus and a Christian School. I have seen God answer prayer after prayer to make the vision they cast a reality through financial gifts being given as well as hands and feet showing up to serve the students who would fill the desks of our young school.
As a photographer I documented the ground breaking of our Upper School Building in 2018 and witnessed a second groundbreaking just last year to expand our building that is bursting at the seams. It opens this August.
I have the privilege of serving at our school as the Art Teacher for Pre-K through High School students so I get to see first hand the evidence of the dividends that are being gained from the investments people have made throughout the years. God is at work changing lives and growing disciples for His Kingdom!
Thursday night we had our groundbreaking for our new athletic fields. Dirt work is being completed with the hopes of practice fields being ready by next season. We have raised $500,000 towards the cause, but have big needs to make this “Field of Dreams” a reality. That’s where you come in.
As a community, we have always invested in our future through our teams because we believe in the power of sports. Not only is community built and bonds formed by rallying behind a team, but youth sports also produce leaders who will one day remember their roots and the cycle of giving back continues.
There is a Dick’s Sporting Goods ad that I stop to take in every time it airs. Its so relevant to the spirit behind what we are trying to accomplish at Tipton Christian Academy with academics and with athletics. Inspired by their words, I applied it to our teams.
Teams Change People
A team is a people you can’t live without. Teams strengthen each other teaching that no one person can do everything on their own. It takes us all to achieve success. Teams teach humility as you have to do your best while trusting that your teammate is doing the same, not for their own glory, but for the good of the team.
When one player is in a slump, athletically or in life, teammates lift each other up. Coaches speak life lessons over players as game time scenarios relate to real life. Coaches build character into young men and women modeling what it’s like to be a leader.
Starting a school, athletic program, and individual teams from scratch has taken a sense of entitlement away from all of us and put the emphasis on the power of teamwork and serving. Our students are building character by learning what it takes to create something from the ground up even if they don’t get to fully enjoy it while they are in school. It is teaching them and all of us how to give forward.
Fields Change Towns
When a field is built, people gather as a community offering a sense of hometown pride. Having active athletic fields retains our current athletic students and attracts new athletes advancing the mission and the vision of our founders to create open doors to point the next generation to Jesus.
Having opportunities for discipleship thorough athletics will reverberate for many years to come just as we have done with academics at TCA. We are doing eternal work on our campus planting seeds of faith which will hopefully outlive us all.
Seasons Change Futures
When a student finds their place on a team they often have the bonus of built in friendships they’ll have their whole life. They discover gifts they didn’t know they had and opportunities will open up for students to receive scholarships for their abilities, progressing them to who God wants them to be. Sports fields allow us the blessing of advancing a student towards a brighter future.
Sports Change Lives
As evidenced my my earlier story about the 1999 State Championship team, I’m not sure where they would each be without their parents who invested time and money into their athletics, Baltzer Field where they were able to develop as players as well as a team, and Coach Allen Pavette who grew them from mischievous boys to State Champions.
I have seen the arc of the life of these former baseball players and I know that all of it mattered.
How Can You Make a Difference Today in the Life of an Eagle Athlete?
Pray and believe that God will provide what we need to complete the fields so that we can further the mission of Tipton Christian Academy.
Give. This is a list of items that we need for our Baseball and Softball complex. If you would like to donate any amount, contact me at ecook@tiptonchristianacademy.com and I will point you in the right direction.
Encourage. If you know of anyone who is passionate about Middle School and High School sports or interested in supporting small town communities (such as corporate sponsors), please share this post with them or share on social media.
A Vision
Field of Dreams Takes Flight
Imagine the sun reflecting off of the outfield. You can smell the freshly cut grass and hamburgers on the grill. Kids are lined up for popcorn and cokes at the concessions stand. You hear two old friends chattering behind you. The crack of the bat echoes through clean, cool, Spring air. Cheers from the student section call out to players as you listen from your lawn chair sitting behind home plate.
A TCA Eagle steps up to bat, his eyes set with determination. He takes a swing, sending the ball soaring over the fence. You rise to your feet as you hear a roar from the stands. In that moment, he’s not just playing a game, he’s chasing a dream – the dream of victory, of teamwork, of pushing his personal limits moving towards the future.
This is the promise of our new fields. It’s not just about a place to play a game. It’s about creating a space where dreams take flight, where potential is nurtured, and where the echoes of cheers from past generations inspire the next wave of competetors. It’s where disciples for Christ will be made and the game will be played to glorify Him.
With your help, we can make this vision a reality. Every contribution, big or small, brings us closer to building a field that reflects the spirit of our community – a place where hard work, dedication, and a love for the game can flourish. Together, let’s create a legacy that inspires future generations to chase their dreams, on and off the field.
Creatively,
Emily Cook
The views expressed in the content of this blog is solely that of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of the author’s employer, company, institution or other associated parties.
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