Longtime coach strives to let players ‘see God in my heart’

By John Shaughnessy

For Ty Hays, one of the things he appreciates most about the archdiocese’s Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) is that it gives children at any level of athletic ability the opportunity to play a sport, not just the best players.

“Some of them may never play a sport otherwise,” he says. “And I think kids learn so much from sports—how to work with other people, how to get along with them, how to strive for a goal together, how to be a good sport.”

Hays believes so much in the positive influence of sports that whenever there’s a team at his parish—St. Michael in Greenfield—that doesn’t have a coach, he steps up to lead it. And he’s been making that gift possible for more than 25 years in a variety of sports—kickball, volleyball, track, and girls’ and boys’ basketball.

It’s part of the reason he was selected for a 2022 St. John Bosco Award, the highest honor given by the archdiocese’s CYO. The award also reflects the extensive commitment he has made in serving as the parish’s athletic director and gym manager for the past 17 years.

The father of three grown children views all his efforts as a reflection of the support of his wife Peggy and the way he strives to live his Catholic faith.

“I want the kids to know to put God first in their lives—that no matter what you do in life, we’re all striving to get to heaven. I want them to see how I act when I coach, to let them see God in my heart.”

It’s an approach that seems to connect with the young people he coaches as he often receives several invitations to high school graduation parties. Former players also come back to help him coach or demonstrate a drill.

“It makes me feel I’ve really touched a kid, that I’ve helped him in some way.”

There are also the surprises along the way. One involved a fifth-and sixth-grade boys’ basketball team that he stepped up to coach when no one else did—a team of supposedly less-talented players who went on to be runners-up in an end-of-the-year tournament.

Another surprise was receiving the St. John Bosco Award because Hays usually is the one who nominates people.

“I didn’t know who put my name in.”

His pastor, Father Aaron Jenkins, did, summing up Hays’ impact with this tribute, “Ty never hesitates to lend a hand wherever needed. He is truly worthy and deserving of this award.” †

 

Related story: Archbishop salutes CYO volunteers ‘for giving of themselves’