The JJ Project

“Do you know J____  (JJ)  S ______?” coach asked.

“No, should I?” I replied.

“Probably. He’s on his way to being booted from the team* permanently.”

“So, what’s the issue?”

“Major attitude problem.”

“Does he have (college-level) potential?”

“Has been a walk-on since his freshman year.”

Yikes.

“Send him to my classroom Wednesday.”

And so it began:  The JJ Project, a process to help a young man find his way back to a place he belongs and to a future he desperately needs.

He had no idea what he was in for, who this teacher-lady was, or why he was even there, but words of encouragement from teammates helped him understand:

“Trust her, dude. She’s good people. You can trust her. She won’t lie to you. She won’t sugar-coat things either.” (Awesome young men! Offered to help me stage an Intervention Meeting.)

Thank you, JJ, for trusting me to be a part of your journey…..

*Footnote: ‘The team’ is a state-championship-winning high school football team whose coach instills and demands humility, unwavering commitment, and dedication to God and team, in that order as best as I can tell.  Many of the team’s players are students in my class. JJ is not. We were a collision of fate and good fortune on a recent February day.