September 2018 Recipient

 

Matt Marble, defensive backs coach for the Blue Springs High School football team, has been selected as the August Blue KC Coaches with Character honoree.

“This is such a humbling honor,” said Marble, who has been coaching at Blue Springs for 13 years. “You never feel you deserve something like this. I was at first shocked, and then it made me reflect on my career. I immediately thought about the great young players we’ve had the privilege to walk with in their journey to become men. I think about the amazing coaches I’ve been blessed to work with, head coach Kelly Donohoe being at the top of the list. I think about coach Tim Dade who poured into me as a young coach. I work with a staff full of coaches—Wilson, Paulsen, Luethje, Watkins, Moss, Hochgrebe, Page, Alsup—who have outstanding character, so this award also reflects them and their impact on my life. I’m very thankful to Blue KC and the “C” You in the Major Leagues Foundation for this award.”

A joint venture for “C” You In The Major Leagues and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas City, “Coaches with Character” spotlights amateur coaches who, through their leadership on and off the field, are helping to grow youth sports in the Kansas City area, and making the community a better place to live, work and play.

“The successful, game-changing coaches at any level are the ones who are able to help guide their athletes off the field or court. Coach Marble is investing in these students’ lives in a way that they’ll never forget, and he’s doing so in a way that’s making an incredible impact on people in dire need around the world,” CYITML Founder/Executive Director Dayton Moore said. “It is such an honor to be able to select coach Marble as our final Coaches with Character honoree of 2018.”

Playing high school football himself at Blue Springs and then at Truman State University, Marble developed a passion for the sport and, after a brief period in the business world, decided to pursue a career in teaching and coaching. Confident that he made the right decision, Marble now enjoys developing relationships with the young men on his team and watching them grow into young men.

“Seeing them achieve something and have success is the best part about coaching,” said Marble, who has helped coach two Blue Springs state championship teams (2012 and 2013). “I’m also at the point in my life where I can see former players I’ve coached who are now awesome husbands and fathers, and that’s the most rewarding thing—having been a small part of their journey.”

The personal growth of his players is something Marble takes seriously as part of his job and actively helps to facilitate—specifically in the area of serving others.

Every summer, Marble organizes a service trip for interested seniors-to-be and takes them to international locations to participate in projects that benefit the local communities. So far, Marble has taken his players to locations in Peru and Jamaica to build houses, visit the elderly and help with other local events. Since 2010, Marble has taken more than 300 student-athletes on the trips, which now also include players from rival Blue Springs South High School.

“So far we’ve helped build 16 homes in Jamaica, laid the foundation for 23 future homes, helped lay the foundation for an education center in Harmons, and received many more blessings than we’ve given in the form of growth from our young men,” said Marble, who teaches TV and radio at Blue Springs HS. “Life isn’t about me; it’s about serving others. I hope the players I have will see that relationships and serving others are really what makes this life great.”

As part of the Blue Springs coaching staff, Marble has experience his share of on-field success. He’s been to five state championship games, winning two (2012, 2013), and now enjoys watching former players Deiondre’ Hall and Elijah Lee compete in the NFL. But according to Marble, he wants his athletes to know that there are greater rewards in life than wins and trophies.

“Worldly success like wins, championships, good jobs and promotions isn’t the only type of success we’re chasing,” said Marble. “Being a good husband, father, friend and person is success we should be chasing too. I hope they also see that I care about them more than I care about winning, and I love winning.”

Throughout the Major League Baseball season, Blue KC and CYITML recognizes six area coaches as Blue KC Coaches with Character. All honorees are chosen based on nominations from the public, which were accepted until early September. Blue KC makes a $2,000 donation to CYITML on behalf of each coach.

“Coach Marble is investing in his athletes in a unique way, including giving up part of his summer to help them develop personal character,” said Christina Lively, Department Vice President, Marketing and Communications, Blue KC. “His commitment to helping them learn how to serve others will benefit not only the student-athletes, but also their communities. We are thrilled to honor Coach Marble as a Blue KC Coach with Character.”

Those who would like to get a jump on 2019 nominees are encouraged to visit CYouInTheMajorLeagues.org/bluekc.