Madera Unified Student Athletes and Coaches Make Madera a Better Place
By Marty Bitter, MUSD Athletic Director
We have all heard the phrase “Playing Sports Builds Character.” The question is what type of CHARACTER are our coaches building? Positive or Negative? In the world of “Win at All Cost” and “Play to get the College Scholarship” coaches are under a lot of pressure! Are my decisions truly building character or are they building characters?
In Madera Unified we have shifted our athletic focus from hiring Transactional Coaches (those that utilize student athletes for their own personal gain or win at all cost) to Transformation Coaches (those that transform our students lives through sport). As we set our plan in motion our head coaches bought in 100% and to their credit, most of them were already practicing this philosophy. Now don’t get me wrong, our coaches have a fierce desire to win! Winning is every program’s goal, but it isn’t our Purpose.
Our high schools programs, under the guidance of John Fernandez (Madera High) and Andrea Devine (Madera South), emphasize to their coaches and student athletes that playing on a sports team is a privilege. If playing is a privilege, and so many people from our family and community support our student athletes, we want to teach them to SERVE and give back to their community and those who love them. Over the last year, the number of times our student athletes have volunteered to help out different organizations is truly amazing!!
Madera High School
- Aquatics Splash Ball Camp for Madera Youth & Special Needs Turkey Run
- Dive Relay for Life
- Cheer Ronald McDonald House, Youth Cheer Clinic with Madera Police, Youth Cheer for Football
- Soccer 3-day youth Summer Camp, Madera County Food Bank Christmas Food Bank Give Away, Coyote Passback Soccer Cleat Drive, Big Brothers/Big Sisters youth soccer camp, MULES Officiating
- Basketball Madera Rec Youth Summer Camp, MULES Officiating, MAD Police Basketball Camp
- Baseball Madera T-Ball Clinic, Coyote Youth Baseball Camp
- Softball Little League Softball Clinic, Coyote Softball Youth Clinic, VFW Veterans Day Set Up/Clean Up
- Wrestling Vernon McCullough Fresno River Trail Clean up
- Football VFW Veteran’s Day Set Up/Clean Up, VFW Breakfast servers, Transporting residents from Madera Rehab and Nursing Center to Old Timers Parade, Meals for the Homeless
- Volleyball Veteran’s Day Set Up/Clean Up, Coyote Youth Volleyball Camp, Relay for Life
Madera South High School
- Cheer 7th annual Madera County Food Bank Dinner, Valley Children’s Hospital
- Football Veterans’ Day Set Up / Clean Up, Veteran’s Breakfast Serving, MULES Officials
- Boys Soccer Veterans’ Memorial Day Flag Set Up, Patient & Pals at Valley Children’s Hospital, Canned Food Drive, Sunday Morning Veterans’ Breakfast Servers, MULES Officials
- Girls Soccer Big Brothers Big Sisters Soccer Clinic (Madera & Oakhurst), Passing out fliers for Madera PD for the John Wells Center youth activities, Veterans’ Courthouse Park Flag Set Up, Sunday Veterans’ Breakfast Server, Walk to School Day @ Chavez Elementary, Life Games Madera FairGrounds, Pershing Carnival, MULES Officials, Rotary Relay parking, Athletic Dinner/Dance Clean up, Madera PD Fun Day
- Wrestling Veteran’s Day Flag Set Up/Clean Up
- Baseball Serving & Clean Up at Eddie Chapa Funeral, Stallion Youth Baseball Camp
- Softball Raising money for Madera County Food Bank
Madera Unified Athletic Department would like to commend our student athletes and coaches who represent our community so well! I personally couldn’t be prouder of our student athletes so willing to give back to make their community a better place. As a parent, I know our coaches are the type of leaders who will help transform your sons and daughters into the quality young men and women we all aspire them to be. Keep in mind we want them to be the best student athletes they can be and our coaches will work diligently to accomplish that, but more importantly, they will help transform them into even better people!
