MENTORING 101


One of the greatest things about Olympia Sports Camp is the opportunity to impact others. Here is a story that depicts that the impact we have on others can lead to an impact for generations to come. There is much more of this story in the book A Hero's Journey: From Little Norway to Olympia Sports Camp but suffice to say that the hundreds of players that Paul Melnik has coached owe a debt of gratitude to John Petrushchak. Thanks for sharing this Paul!



Anyone who attended Runnymede Collegiate Institute between 1972 and 1999, quickly learned who John Petrushchak was, even if you couldn’t spell his name.  Coach P, as he was affectionately known, was like a father to many of us.  If you were in his class, if you played any sports, or if he had any opportunity to interact with you, he became a caring adult; a mentor; a father figure.



 

I lost my father when I was 15 years old, and I needed support & guidance.  Coach P warmly assumed that role.  Although I played basketball in grade nine, that was the end of my playing career.  Coach P accepted me into the BAA (boy’s athletic association) and I became Manager of the Runnymede Senior Boys’ Basketball team; two roles I took VERY seriously.  It was a tremendous learning experience. I watched every practice with a keen eye and tried to remember EVERYTHING that he said.  I recorded individual and team statistics and I prepared reports for him. In grade 12 and 13, I was President of the BAA, so we worked very closely together.

 

When I graduated, I became a Graduate Assistant and continued this while I studied Physical & Health Education at York University, and Teacher's College at the University of Toronto.  With Coach P’s recommendation I was fortunate to work at Olympia Sports Camp in Week 9.  First, with the younger players, then in the NBA Division with him. I got to watch my mentor mentor others. In watching him at Olympia, I knew how truly lucky I was.

 

In those years I was lucky enough to learn a philosophy of how to play the game of basketball from my mentor.  For Coach P, teamwork was the foundation of everything.  Getting the players to play as a team led to much more success. Defence was more important to teach than offence.  Without conditioning, any team would struggle late in the game, so fitness was also crucial.  Offensively, although his systems or patterns weren’t complicated, we stressed the individual fundamentals and the fundamentals of basic team play. Coach P always demanded that we play hard but with class.  His teams didn’t showboat; they didn’t trash talk; they didn’t retaliate.  He always reminded us “if we beat them on the scoreboard, there is no need to talk about it!”

  

Today I am proud to say that Coach P’s style of play is on display in the Fr. Henry Carr Crusaders basketball program.  FHC Prep is also known for pressure defense, transition offense and has a reputation for being one of the hardest working teams in Canada.

 

Coach P and his teams inspired me to become a teacher and a high school basketball coach.  They gave me a reason to go to school every day and to work hard at my craft.  Any success or accolades our basketball program has garnered are firmly rooted with John Petrushchak.  We have competed in tournaments all over Canada and the United States and helped develop players that graduated to every level of post-secondary basketball.  Three players, Tyler Ennis, Sim Bhullar and Dillon Brooks have played in the NBA.  I have been very fortunate to have attended the Final Four and the NBA Draft and to have coached in All Star Games, All Canadian Games and even an All American Game!  Without Coach P’s mentorship, none of this would be possible.  He gave me an opportunity and helped me become my own coach with my own program.

 

I will conclude with a quote that appears on a special gift that was given to Coach P from his players when he left George Harvey Secondary School to join the Runnymede Collegiate Institute staff:

 

“If ever there was a man who was everything to us, he was that man.”

Paul Melnik




The link to the blog is TuesdayswithDave.blogspot.com


This blog is about the journey of the writing of the book A Hero's Journey: From Little Norway to Olympia Sports Camp. The blog will contain excerpts from the book and my personal thoughts on what the place and the people that make up Olympia's journey is all about. The title comes from the great book Tuesdays With Morrie, by Mitch Albom. The blog's title is recognizing Dave Grace as Camp Director, but all content is my own.

Comments

  1. UnknownMay 25, 2021 at 12:17 AM

    Loving your stories Chris and I love the quote about coach P. We all need great mentors in our lives.

    ReplyDelete

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