McGarity, Young, Rosa honored

Collier County High School coaches Mark McGarity, Nick Young and Jeff Rosa were honored with the 2006 State Farm Good Neighbor Coaches Sportsmanship Award and a $1,000 stipend at the fourth annual banquet held Tuesday at the Tiburón Golf Club.

McGarity, Young and Rosa were among 26 coaches, all of whom received certificates, to be recognized for the commitment shown to their respective student-athletes and sports teams, State Farm agent Brad Campbell said during his opening remarks.

McGarity has been coaching track and cross country at Lely High School for the last 13 years.

He said the award is special because it’s voted on by the athletic directors in Collier County.

“It’s a big honor to have all of them recognize you,” McGarity said. “Watching my kids succeed is the most important thing. It doesn’t matter if they’re the top runner or in the back of the pack, it’s all about helping them grow.”

Young, who has been coaching the Lely girls basketball team for 10 years, said it’s never been about the wins or losses.

“It’s about the young ladies that you meet every day that you work with,” he said. “It’s about getting people to get back up after they fall. It’s a real honor to be chosen as a coach of true sportsmanship.”

Rosa has been coaching volleyball at Gulf Coast for three years and just completed his first season as baseball coach. He said every coach deserved the award. The Sharks were unbeaten during the regular season before falling in the district semifinals.

“I can never sit here and pat myself on the back, because we all work hard,” Rosa said. “It’s good to be recognized and this award ... is just a representation of the amount of time coaches put in.”

Guest speaker Don Carman called all the coaches in attendance heroes who should be proud to wear their stripes.

“My hero in life is (my youth coach),” said Carman, a former major league pitcher and current sports psychologist. “He gave me the opportunity, he gave me the discipline, he gave me all of the above. There’s no guarantees that all the kids are going to turn out great, but at least you know can make a difference.

“You coaches have discovered the valuable lessons in life,” he continued. “The intrinsic value of coaching and sharing knowledge ... in all of the sports that are covered. Few people recognize, unless you’ve been doing it or your husband or wife has been doing it, what level of commitment that it takes and the reward is seeing those kids develop.”