Parents, Make a Pledge
October 24, 2012
By Scott Westfall
MSU Institute for the Study of Youth Sports
NOTE: This is the second of a two-part viewpoint explaining the importance of coaches and parents setting proper examples for young athletes in their treatment of game officials. Click to read Part 1.
From time to time, even the most well-intentioned parents yell at officials things they are not proud of later.
As the head coach, it is essential to communicate expectations at the annual preseason parent meeting. Let parents know you want this to be classy program, and you need their help. Inform them that you, your assistant coaches, and the players (their children) will not be yelling at officials, and that you would be grateful if they would do the same.
Let them know that although other teams and their fans might holler at the officials, this team will be above the fray.
Encourage parents to applaud players from both sides. While they undoubtedly want your team to win, it is a sign of class to applaud the opposition for a good effort and/or performance at the end of the contest. In addition, ask your parents to sign a Parent Pledge Form stating that they will hold themselves to a higher standard. See an example below:
I. I pledge to respect the sport. I understand the importance of setting a good example for my child. No matter what others may do, I will show respect for all involved including coaches, players, opposing coaches, opposing players, opposing fans and officials. I understand that officials make mistakes. If the official makes a bad call against our team, I will respect the sport and remain silent.
Initials: ________ Initials: ________
II. I pledge to contribute to a positive team culture. I will not be the parent in the stands or behind the scenes who puts down the kids or the team. I understand this creates a negative atmosphere and can damage a team’s culture. If I have any problem, I pledge to either bring it to the coach with a solution-oriented mindset, or choose to remain silent. In either case, I will contribute only in a positive way to my child’s team culture.
Initials: ________ Initials: ________
After instituting this practice, the first season might seem like more of an experiment. The second season may become a work in progress. But by the time the kids and parents have been in the program for three and four years, it will have become the norm and soon a tradition that is gladly passed down to the new families in the program.
The mantra of your parents will change, and they will take pride in acting differently than what they see at other schools. Other teams will see your parents stand up and applaud participants from both sides during wins and losses, and this act of class will become your team’s identity.
Respecting authority is essential in any society. This respect must be given to judges, policemen and school principals, to teachers, coaches and even referees.
Reinstituting this respect for officials is going to be a challenge, but a challenge that is worthwhile. A coach has the power to transform a program, which will in turn affect the way assistant coaches, parents, and fans conduct themselves.
In the end, the individuals who will receive the greatest benefit are the ones you are doing your job for in the first place – the kids.
Scott Westfall has spent the last 10 years as a teacher, coach, and athletic director in Fort Collins, Colo. He currently is working on his Doctorate at Michigan State University, with an emphasis in Sport Psychology and Athletic Administration, and assisting the MHSAA with its student leadership programs. Westfall is a former athlete who participated in football, wrestling, tennis and cross country at the high school level, and rugby at the collegiate level. He can be reached at [email protected].
Lifelong Hawkeye: Joostberns Continues Legacy of Service in Hamilton
By
Zach Harig
Hamilton Community Schools
September 19, 2025
For nearly half a century, the voice behind Friday night football games in Hamilton has belonged to one man: Loren Joostberns.
A 1970 graduate of Hamilton High School, Joostberns has worn many hats in his hometown – teacher, coach, announcer, scorekeeper, school board member – but all of them share a common thread: a deep commitment to giving back to the community that raised him.
“This is my 45th year of announcing football games for Hamilton,” Joostberns said proudly, his voice carrying the same warmth that has welcomed fans to Hawkeye Stadium for decades. “I’ve done some volleyball, a lot of wrestling, occasionally some basketball, but mostly the scorebook in basketball for 44 years, and I do announce baseball in the spring now, which has been fun.”
With so much experience and history from the community, Joostberns is regularly asked to serve as the voice of many school district and community videos. His voice is arguably the most recognizable in town. From morning coffee at the round table at the local restaurant in town, to school board meetings, to microphones all around the district, Joostberns is seen and heard no matter where he goes around Hamilton.
Building a life in Hamilton
Not many can claim that they have been involved in a school district before it was even a school district.
However, Joostberns can make that claim as he was in kindergarten in 1957-58, with Hamilton becoming its own school district on June 23, 1958. He then continued in the school district as a student through graduation.
After graduating from Hamilton and then Hope College, Joostberns returned to the district as a teacher. He taught for 30 years, then continued his connection to the classroom as a substitute teacher for another nine. Today, he remains an active part of Hamilton Community Schools as Board of Education secretary, now in his 13th year of service.
Through it all, he has found joy in staying close to athletics. Since announcing his first football game in 1981, he’s become a fixture at sporting events year-round. His passion is not about statistics or wins and losses – it’s about making sure young athletes have the best possible experiences.
“I think one thing is, what can you do to contribute to kids having good experiences?” he said. “That’s one thing I always keep in the back of my mind. You want to do what you can to help kids have positive experiences, and if that contributes in a small way, then it’s worth it.”
Of course, Joostberns admits there’s a little fun in the job, too. “You’re in the center of the action. I’ve got the best seat in the house for football, and for basketball you’re at center court. You get to know the officials, get to know people from other schools, and it’s a good way to be involved.”
Memories from the press box
The Hamilton facilities Joostberns works in today look nothing like what he started with in the early 1980s. He chuckled as he recalled the first press box from which he worked.
“In football, if you would have seen what we had in Hamilton back in 1981 and 1982 compared to what we have now in terms of facilities, it’s incredible,” he said. “The press box was a little green building basically on stilts that swayed with heavy winds, and it held six people – two coaches from each team on either side and an announcer and timer in the middle. You were elbow to elbow and you felt in a precarious position because you didn’t know if the press box was going to stand up or not.”
That humble start makes him especially proud to see how the district has grown its athletic facilities and opportunities for students.
While Joostberns has devoted his life to Hamilton, he also holds a special passion for the University of Michigan. He has been a season ticket holder for 51 years, attending countless games at “The Big House” in Ann Arbor. The dual loyalties complement one another: Hamilton football on Fridays and Michigan football on Saturdays.
But no matter how big the stage gets, his heart always comes back to Hamilton. “At Hamilton, we have always prided ourselves in trying our best to do the best we can for kids, to do things the right way,” Joostberns said. “That’s why I’ve stayed involved for so long.”
Lasting Legacy
Few communities can point to someone who has continuously served across so many different roles for more than four decades.
Joostberns’ contributions can’t be measured in titles or statistics, but rather in the memories he has helped shape – whether it’s an athlete hearing his name announced before a big play, a student remembering him as a teacher, or a fellow community member working alongside him on the school board. Numerous times a year, veteran opposing coaches greet Joostberns before the game to say hi because he is such a staple of the community and school district. His warm and friendly demeanor is appreciated by all, both on the home and opposing sidelines.
Hamilton’s athletic director and coaches often describe him as the kind of person every school hopes to have: reliable, passionate, and selfless. He doesn’t do it for recognition, but for the chance to leave things a little better than he found them.
For Joostberns, the motivation is simple: “It’s about helping kids, and being part of something bigger than yourself.”
And for Hamilton, the community is grateful that one of its own has been willing to give back for so many years. As recognition for his countless years of service in and out of the classroom, “Mr. Hamilton” was honored with the high school basketball court being renamed the Loren Joostberns Court in 2021.
From the rickety old press box of 1981 to the modern facilities of today, from chalkboards in the classroom to discussions in the boardroom, Joostberns has remained a steady, positive presence. His story is a reminder of how one person’s steady commitment over a lifetime can shape a school and community for generations.
Not all lessons or legacies are cemented in the classrooms or fields, but some are passed on from behind the mic and echoed over the airwaves for all to hear and cherish.
PHOTOS (Top) Hamilton’s Loren Joostberns poses for a photo in front of the high school stadium this fall. (Middle) Joostberns has served the district in several roles over the years, including as a member of the school board. (Below) Joostberns takes a moment for a photo while behind the microphone. (Photos courtesy of Hamilton Community Schools.)