Disappointing time helps a coach become a great blessing for his teams

By John Shaughnessy

Sometimes the tough moments in childhood lead a person to make a dramatic difference in the lives of others as an adult.

When now-65-year-old Jack Warner was in the seventh and eighth grades at St. Therese of the Infant Jesus (Little Flower) School in Indianapolis, he wasn’t viewed as good enough to play for the only basketball team that the school had back then in the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) league. Yet his being “cut” in tryouts has turned into a great blessing for all the teams he has coached for the past 47 years.

“I knew there were a lot of kids like me who wanted to play,” Warner says. “I was really glad when CYO expanded to ‘B’ and ‘C’ teams so everyone could get to play. I wanted to be on a team so badly when I was in grade school. Whenever there was a ‘B’ or ‘C’ team that needed a coach, I was there.”

That dedication has led to Warner being a 2021 recipient of the St. John Bosco Award, the highest honor the CYO gives a volunteer.

In his 47 years as a coach, mostly in basketball, he has led teams at St. Simon the Apostle Parish in Indianapolis, Holy Name of Jesus Parish in Beech Grove and his home parish of St. Barnabas in Indianapolis. Still, his most defining experience may have come in coaching a girls’ basketball team at St. Anthony Parish in Indianapolis.

“Most of the girls had never touched a basketball,” recalls Warner’s fellow coach, Theresa Wells-Ditton. “There was also a language barrier with some of the players and their parents. However, there was Jack with his patience and calming demeanor, teaching the girls the basics of basketball, helping to instill confidence in them and showing them how to become great teammates.”

That experience capsulizes his approach as a coach.

“Play hard, play the right way. Have good sportsmanship,” he says. “In all the years that I’ve coached, I’ve never had a technical foul. I’m really proud of that.”

He’s also proud of this reality: “I’ve never had a team that had an attitude that wasn’t a good reflection of our parish and our faith. Faith is important to me. We always say a prayer before the game. I want them to try to live out their faith through the game and be examples of our faith through good sportsmanship.

“Some of my favorite moments were the teams that weren’t very talented, but they worked hard to get better. Every player I’ve coached has been important to me, and I wanted them to know it.” †

Related: Archbishop praises CYO volunteers as being ‘enduring witnesses of Christ’