The principal of Grove Park Elementary School (Atlanta Public School) called me three a few weeks ago needing the services of my L.E.A.D. Ambassadors. It felt so good to get that call knowing that she knew when she needed help, my young men and I would be there.

Today we prepared the school for the return of young students. Several desk were moved from one room to another along with books. Whatever needed to be done, we made it happen.

The evening news showcased young men between the ages of 12-18 being involved in violent crimes; but for over 5 hours, the L.E.A.D. Ambassadors were serving. Trying to improve the city. Preparing an A.P.S. School for another promising school year.

I love having people depend on me. The opportunity to serve others is as important to me as living.

L.E.A.D. couldn’t stop all crime throughout Atlanta today but we did do our part to serve Atlanta.our city.

It took a lot of coaching to create the person that I am today. My playing days are over but I am prepared to coach and develop other young men the way that I was developed. I know the methodology and I know it works.

I started playing baseball at the Cascade Youth Organization and Coach Gus Burns was my first coach. He was an older gentleman whose gray hair was a sign of wisdom. He taught me patience. It took a lot to teach me how to finally make contact with the ball. Coach Emmett Johnson was Coach Burns’ assistant. He had a beautiful family and was an educator. He always stressed academic excellence. No grades, no baseball. I kept the same coaches and played on the same youth Braves team with the same players until I was 11 years old. We became a family.

My family saved lots of money and off to Fairburn, GA we went. Then I had to find the baseball fields. Coach Zack Davis was my coach from age 11 to 13. He taught me how to compete. We worked harder than everyone at the Old National Athletic Association. We were expected to win.

At age 14, I was still at ONAA but now playing for the elite Pirates. We had so much talent but unfortunately a lot of egos and bad attitudes. Coach James Holiday was very strict and introduced me to tough love. He wanted nothing but the best from us. Lack of effort and disrespect didn’t go unnoticed at all!

I finally got to high school. Westlake baby! We couldn’t seem to buy a win until Coach Dave Whitfield taught us how to love and respect the game. Our love was shown every game as we never stepped on the field with dirty cleats. That was a curse and we always came to school on game days with our uniform on a hanger. Pride baby!

When I was GA State Baseball bound, I was literally thinking, “I’m on top of the world.” I was drafted by the Cubs and was playing at a Division 1 school, thinking the world owed me. Above all, I finally had freedom. Coach Mike Hurst taught me that freedom has consequences. I made some bad choices but I learned. Although the hard way, I’m better now for it.

After GSU, I transferred to Dekalb Junior College. “Courteney, you are going to have to play hard here at Dekalb. No excuses!” Those were Coach Tom Cantrell’s the first words to me. He taught me how to play with passion. “If you are going to play the game, play it right and play it hard!”

Next stop was Chicago Cubs, baby! The dream became reality. I played for and was coached by so many legends. The coach that stood out the most to me was Tom Gamboa. He really believed in me and taught me how to believe in others. I always felt like an all-star around him.

L.E.A.D. will continue to develop young men on and off the baseball field under my leadership. That leadership didn’t come from a classroom or a coaching clinic. Life has put me with some great men. I say thank you by paying it forward!

When writing love letters, X’s and O’s represents hugs and kisses. They are symbols of love. To be an effective coach, you must love your players. You must love them with action and positive words. You must love them with patience and understanding. Those same X’s and O’s represents strategy in baseball and as we all know, teaching baseball isn’t easy. If we coach our players with love, they will always win.

Coaching youth sports has become loosely defined over the years to mean an adult taking charge of a team. The good coaches win all the games and the bad coaches can’t seem to get a break.

With L.E.A.D., coaching occurs on and off the field. It is year-round commitment for our year-round program.

Young men will be young men. Before they can become men, they have to learn the importance of being punctual. They have to really understand what it means to respect others. They have to learn how to dress for success and understand etiquettes. Most of these lessons will be learned through mistakes made. As a child, I was taught right from wrong and learned from my own mistakes but it wasn’t until I was older that I was coached on how to be a responsible man. I still need constant coaching.

Coaching requires patience, passion, and an understanding of people and their daily struggles. For me to make an impact on a young man, I just need him to be willing to learn from his mistakes. Like life, baseball is full of ups and downs and requires usable skills to compete. As the founder of L.E.A.D. and as a coach, I must also realize that a lot of mistakes that my Ambassadors make are due to mistakes that I’m making in turns of not holding them accountable.

Coaching is about meeting young men where they are and using a holistic approach to improving him as a superior citizen and superior athlete. This is what the L.E.A.D. coaches do to best help the young men that we serve.

It’s time to take L.E.A.D. to another level. Tuesday night, I walked L.E.A.D. into a packed room of Atlanta’s distinguished. I, along with 19 other colleagues, were introduced as the 2010 Atlanta Business League Men of Influence.

The ABL was established in 1933 as an affiliate of the National Business League which was founded by Dr. Booker T. Washington.

Past Honorees include Hank Aaron, Ambassador Andrew Young, Maynard Jackson, Benjamin Elihah Mays and Nathaniel Bronner Sr. just to name a few. My 2010 class honored Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, President of Atlanta City Council Caesar Mitchell, Dennis Boyden of AT&T and my cousin Leon Goodrum who is the 1st black owner of a McDonald’s in Atlanta.

L.E.A.D. has mattered in the eyes of many for 3 years but we have now moved to another level. A new level of respect. Respect that was earned by the sacrifice of many who came before me and for those that fight with us to save the lives Atlanta’s precious assets, our youth.

As I stood at the podium last night and gave my name and said that “I am the proud founder and CEO of L.E.A.D., Inc. (Launch, Expose, Advise and Direct),” I officially put the city on notice that we are here and I need the support from my new colleagues who also represent the best of Atlanta.

With this newly earned respect comes many more responsibilities. Let’s go even higher.

On Saturday, July 31st, L.E.A.D. will be hosting its 1st Annual Community Day in East Point. Through the support of South Fulton Medical Center and Hope-Beckham PR, L.E.A.D. will bring the community together for some fun activities, medical health screenings and BASEBALL!

I remember, competing as a youth in football, basketball and baseball in East Point. I even pitched a no hitter against the Tri-Cities Bulldogs. Those were the days. I was young and prayed to God that I could fulfill all of my hopes and dreams of being a successful citizen when I became an adult.

Over a decade later, I’m back in East Point as the CEO and founder of L.E.A.D. The name of the city is the same but the community sure isn’t.

Back in my day, community leaders were everywhere helping young men like me stay on track. It seemed like there was at least one mentor in the community for every young man that wanted one. Those elders aren’t around anymore, God bless them. Businesses were successful in the community because the community supported them. Now, some of those businesses of old are boarded up or being robbed by preteen boys. Back then, all the girls were trying to graduate from high school with the highest GPA and then excel at UGA. Now I see a community of teenage pregnancy. I remember East Point like yesterday when Outkast came out with its first hit that encouraged my high school graduating class to reach for the stars. Now, teenagers don’t want to listen to their lyrics because they don’t curse enough.

With L.E.A.D. now in the community, there is a sharing of information that promotes college attendance. There is development of skills on and off the baseball field for young men that provides access to college scholarship opportunities. There is a helping hand to the hard working parents that want to see their son achieve his dreams and return to lead his community. There is an additional presence of positive men in the community to show young women how they should be treated with respect. The teachers that are striving everyday to reach their students now have additional support to expose them to new opportunities beyond the Eastside. There will be an increase of noise in the streets but not coming from cars blasting music. We are cracking a lot of bats and cheering loud and proud for a new generation of Leaders led by a spirit of past legends.

A community is as strong as its leaders. Who is leading the East Point community now? Where does the East Point community want to be a decade from now?

L.E.A.D. may not be able to solve the problems that exist in East Point but we sure can be a part of the solution.