Meet Chris—Athletic Director & Head Coach (Story 16/40)

Happy weekend, everyone! We’re sharing 40 stories of community in honor of our 40th anniversary, and story 16 highlights a City Heights resident named Chris. See the previous posts in the series here, and special thanks to intern extraordinaire, Des Reyes, for this quick chat with Chris.

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Why do you continue coaching high school runners in City heights? What keeps you going?

"Distance running in a team sport context is a powerful human development tool. I have the privilege of accompanying students in a high challenge, yet high support context, and to watch them become more resilient, self-confident, empathetic, and gain greater social and emotional capacity."

What aspect of City Heights have you fallen in love with most over the years?

"Spending 15+ hours a week over 46 weeks a year with a core group of students over 3-4 year cycles has allowed me to develop lifelong friendships over the past 16 years of coaching. Simply offering a faithful, loving presence in our neighborhood granted me access to the lives of many young adults who are positive change-agents in their family systems, their workplace, and our neighborhood."