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For more information, contact: BUCK O'NEIL, ST. LOUIS SPORTS PERSONALITIES TO APPEAR AT FIFTH ANNUAL YOUTH COACHES SPORTSMANSHIP AWARDS DINNER DEC. 4 ST. LOUIS -- Dec. 1, 2003 -- Baseball legend Buck O'Neil will be the featured speaker at the fifth annual Youth Coaches Sportsmanship Awards Dinner - Celebrating Coaches Who Care. The event, which will be emceed by St. Louis Cardinals broadcaster Wayne Hagin, is hosted by the St. Louis Sports Commission's Sports for Kids program. As part of its Coach it Right! initiative, Sports for Kids will honor more than 30 local youth coaches who serve as role models in teaching and demonstrating good sportsmanship. The dinner takes place at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 4 at the Adam's Mark Hotel in downtown St. Louis. O'Neil's illustrious career began with the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Leagues in 1938. He played on nine championship teams, won a Negro National League batting title, and served as a player-manager for the Monarchs from 1948-1955. O'Neil moved on to Major League Baseball, working as a scout with the Chicago Cubs and was named MLB's first black coach by the Cubs in 1962. Since 1988, he has scouted for the Kansas City Royals. O'Neil, 92, is currently the board chairman of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City and a member of the 18-person Baseball Hall of Fame Veterans Committee. In addition to O'Neil and Hagin, several other sports personalities will be in attendance at the awards dinner, including: St. Louis Football Cardinals great Roger Wehrli; Ivory Crockett, former 100-yard dash world record holder; Dan Donigan, head men's soccer coach at Saint Louis University; and Paula Wagener, Olympic figure skating choreographer. Each year, Sports for Kids asks local community centers, organizations, and youth sports programs to nominate volunteer coaches who are deserving of recognition at the awards dinner. Honorees are selected for the way they exemplify good sportsmanship and teach respect on and off the playing field. The awards dinner is one of several programs coordinated by Sports for Kids, which helps young people from St. Louis live healthier, happier and more productive lives through sports. Under the banner of Coach it Right!, Sports for Kids also organizes free coaching clinics throughout the year focused on sportsmanship and aimed at developing and augmenting the skills of youth sports instructors to make them better coaches. In the past year, Sports for Kids conducted coaching clinics for soccer, football, and wrestling, as well as coach and parent sportsmanship seminars at Matthews-Dickey Boys & Girls Club, the Greyhound Basketball Club, and Clayton Parks and Recreation. "Ensuring that children enjoy positive experiences through their participation in sports is at the core of the Sports for Kids mission," said Troye Frank, the Sports Commission's director of youth programs. "Youth coaches play a major role in shaping the experiences of young athletes. The Sports Commission hopes that by emphasizing the importance of good sportsmanship and recognizing the coaches that practice it, we can provide positive environments for young athletes to excel on the playing field and in life." The Youth Coaches Sportsmanship Awards Dinner is open to the public. Tickets are $40 ($30 for children 12 and under) and may be purchased by calling 314-992-0689. |
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