Coach Alan Green, who plans to be a
rabbi, heads up the Sharks at
Pembroke Field in Troy.
to a small school on the East Coast. And I really love it out
there," he says of the part of the country from which his par-
ents and grandparents hail.
Green, who attends Shir Tikvah synagogue in Troy with his
parents, admits that he never really was much into religion
until his first trip to Israel as a young teen.
Reverend Randy Engle, pastor of North Hills Church in
Troy, can't think of a better fit for "Coach Alan." While watch-
ing his 7-year-old-son, Jonathan, run the bases, Engle observes
the coach. "His leadership characteristics will serve him well in
his vocation," notes Engle. "He helps the players be successful
and do their best. That's the sign of a great leader," he adds,
seconds before Green gives little Henry Woloszyn, who did his
best to get to first base, a high-five. Even when kids don't
make it to first base, Green doles out plenty of encourage-
ment.
love Coach Alan," says Henry's morn, Amy Woloszvn of
Troy. - He's a good example for the kids ... he's tough when he
needs to be, and nice, too."
But it's not just the children who are doing the learning.
Green, too, gets a lesson from them daily. "I help them with
teamwork and social skills," says Green, "but I also learn from
them how to be patient. It does take a lot of patience to be a
kids' coach. -
BY MEGAN SWTOYER
PHOTOGRAPHY BY KRISTA HUSA
H
e doesn't like getting lost in the shuffle, whether it be at work
or school. That's why Alan Green of Bloomfield Hills finds
working with children so appealing. A T-ball coach for Troy
Parks and Recreation, Green, 19, towers over his 4-foot-high
team members, a beacon for the chatty, eager-to-learn boys and girls.
"There are a lot of rewards when you're around children," says Green,
who hopes to avoid corporate America following his college graduation in
three years. He tasted a bit of the business arena last summer when he
worked with his father at a residential development company. "All I did
was shuffle paper, it seemed." That was following four summers as a kids'
coach.
This year, he traded his white-collar
attire for the Troy Parks and Recreation
maroon staff T-shirts. Green plans to take
his passion for teaching youths a few steps
farther than T-ball coach upon graduation
from Maine's Bowdoin College.
"I am interested in working with kids
and, academically, I really enjoy compara-
tive religious studies, so together that has
pointed me in the direction of wanting to
be a rabbi," says the enthusiastic Green.
Why Maine? Again, he avoids the big
pond, little fish syndrome. "I wanted to go
At the sidelines, his group of sweaty, blue T-shirt-clad boys
gathers in a tight circle for their post-game cheer. Green rewards
5-year-old Will Garbinski, who enjoyed an outstanding inning as
pitcher, by giving him the go-ahead to place his hands on top of
everyone else's. "Go Blue Sharks!" they all scream. Then Green
grabs his clipboard and studies the line-up for the next game,
this time with kids who are even younger.
His patience is sure to take him a long way as he gets closer
to his calling. One thing's for sure -- Green won't get lost in
the rabbi shuffle. "I want to practice where there's only one
rabbi, not where there are, say, five," he smiles.
Above: The notion of teamwork is essential, says Coach Alan.
Left: Will Garbinski takes his turn at bat.
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SEPTEMBER 2002 • STYLE AT TnE JN