Coaches are strategic. They are the gatekeepers to the players, and they are around longer than the students. A golf coach who is open about her faith in Christ can have a huge and ongoing impact.
Breanna Jenco was at the championship in her capacity as a member of the NCAA committee. She is also the Xavier Women’s Golf Coach. I have known Breanna ever since she was a freshman golfer at Xavier University. Back then she was Bre Patz and a star on the golf team. She is now married, with two young children, and has coached the team to be Big East Champions for several years. I have invited her to attend our AIA Golf at Bandon Dunes. She participated in AIA as a student, and she would bring so much to our group. She is an exceptional person and I am so thankful that her influence is now spreading throughout the college golfing world.
Kortnie Barrett is the Assistant Coach for the San Jose State Womens Golf team. Kortnie is a strong Christian and is very open about her faith. She is impacting so many student athletes and coaches for Jesus Christ. She is also a young mom, paying the cost for her own mom to travel to tournaments to take care of her adorable (currently 7 month old) daughter. Kortnie’s daughter doesn’t take a bottle, and so one of Breanna’s assignments was to pick up Kortnie on the golf course and bring her to the club house whenever her baby was hungry. I am also hoping that Kortnie will be a part of my AIA Golf at Bandon Dunes.
I did not expect to be having a ministry with young coaches in the way that I have had this spring. Through my 40 years of ministry I have not been in a position to relate to so many young moms about things like: how to fit into coaching uniforms when they just found out they’re pregnant, about breastfeeding, and traveling with little ones. One coach suddenly had a stillbirth, and other coaches were coming to me and asking me to talk to her leading me to pray with some of them. I shared my own loss of twins at 5 months gestation and was able to help several of them, including her, in their grief in dealing with this tragedy.
Mark was able to meet with another coach, Greg Allen, who is the Head Women’s Golf Coach at Vanderbilt. Greg was a part of a church in Tucson that we were a part of when he was the head coach at Arizona. Mark was able to bring love and encouragement, as a brother in Christ, to Greg at the tournament. God has prepared the way before us to connect us to coaches and athletes with whom we can share the love and hope of Christ.
