The True Mentors

I know by now we are all sickened by what happened at Penn State with the Jerry Sandusky situation but my family has had nothing but great coaching mentors who have influenced our lives.
My wife, Mary Ann, played basketball in the Police Athletic Leagues (PAL) in Cleveland and played one year at Cleveland State. I played baseball for Coach Jim Brock at Arizona State, then transferred to Coastal Carolina in South Carolina and played in the NAIA World Series in 1978.
My daughter, Juliann, played for Coach Ami Beiringer at All Saints, who my daughter said nourished her strength and intelligence on and off the court. Moving into high school, Juliann played for Coach Amber LaTarte on club teams, who was all about the team concept that can win championships and life-long friendships. At Xavier, Coach Kelly Fitzgerald took a volleyball/softball/basketball player and molded her into the second-ranked discus thrower in the state and the current school record holder.
Both Juliann and my son, Sean, played RAMMS for many years where they got tired of their parents coaching them in everything. Coach Craig Maggi played a key role in Sean's baseball acumen and at All-Saints, Coach Mark Wagner was an amazing influence in coaching and teaching Sean about what to expect at Brophy and was all about discipline. At Brophy, Sean played baseball and basketball. Beginning in his sophomore year, he was fortunate to be mentored by Coach Scooter Mollander and was part of the 2008 State Championship team for which he had four touchdowns in the final game, which is still a school record.
In college, Sean played at Colorado and then transferred to Phoenix College, where he played for Land Jacobsen (Coach Jake), who then helped Sean get on the University of Arizona football team in 2011 that went to the Alamo Bowl. Coach Jake was like many coaches who coach for the love of the game and not the notoriety or money. Unfortunately, Coach Jake was murdered on July 19. Our family will forever be indebted for everything that he did to get Sean to the next level. We loved you, Coach!
All of these coaches have had an amazing influence on our family and I can guarantee their training will help our kids become leaders, learn to become part of a team, never be content with anything less than 100 percent, and really helped give our kids the confidence that they will use for the rest of their professional and personal lives. There certainly are bad people out there but there are far more great people who are willing to help our kids get to that next level. Thanks to all of you parents and coaches who take the time to teach and mold our kids.I have a new sponsor for this column–– Phil's Home Maintenance, owned by Brenda Barella, whose father was Phil. I have been working with Brenda for almost 20 years with my own house and also on homes that need work before and after the home inspection is done in order to close. They deal with roofs, AC, electrical, plumbing, painting, pools and even changing light bulbs for this writer, who is mechanically challenged. Phil’s prices are very competitive but the best part for myself and for my clients, is that they stand behind their work. There is a reason that I have used Phil’s Home Maintenance for more than 500 jobs the past 20 years. Brenda can be reached at 623-979-5995.
Once again, I want to thank all of my past and current clients for their confidence in allowing me to sell almost 90 homes this year and more than 1,000 homes in 18 years. This newspaper, the North Central News, is nothing short of amazing in helping me with my business. If you are a business owner in the North Central area, advertising in this paper is critical to your success.

The Lieb Group
Bobby Lieb
Associate Broker
HomeSmart Elite Group
602-761-4646 (office)
602-376-1341 (mobile)
boblieb@aol.com
centralpx.com
Bobby Lieb