Congratulations, Ian McFatridge, our latest Elite Sportswear Coach of the Week. Below is the email we received from Erin, telling us why Ian was so deserving of this award.
Gregor,
My son, Mathieu, has been blessed with tremendous coaches in his four years of hockey. He’s now playing Tier 1 Novice in St. Albert and loves the game passionately. Much of that enjoyment is innate but at least part of it has to do with someone who’s been a constant presence. Ian McFatridge is an Edmonton Police Services member. He was Matty’s coach during two years of Initiation and has stayed involved through extra practices and ice times since then. Ian’s become a very good friend, in large measure because of his being a rock-solid human being. In terms of coaching, he’s remarkable. His two sons and daughter play Atom, Novice, and Initiation, respectively. His oldest, Dylan, is on one of our AA teams and is a terrific player. Ian coaches or actively helps with all three teams. He also organizes extra ice times every week during the summer, and is part of a group of coaching dads who run an August camp through an organisation called Saint Albert Youth Sports Academy. All of this in addition to shift work as a cop. What’s truly extraordinary is that he shows up to practice with a lesson plan—and I mean every single practice that he runs. Furthermore, it’s tailored to meet the needs of all the kids with no one’s being left out, no matter what the skill level. And, just to top it all off, he’s great with the players, mixing strictness with fun and kindness in equal measure. I’ll tell you flat out that my son loves him and actually wanted to play down in Tier 3 to have him as a coach but Ian said that was a bad idea.
Anyway, if you need more testimonials, I know a bunch of parents who would vouch for Ian’s excellence and commitment, in addition to all the sacrifices he makes. Can’t count the number of times he’s shown up on a Sunday morning after driving his patrol car all night and he’s always in a great mood.
Thanks for the opportunity to promote Ian.
Cheers,
Eric Morin
If you would like to recognize a deserving coach, email gregor@theteam1260.com
