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Issue Date: October 1, 2006
Our 2006 Most Caring Athlete
After 13 years as an NFL running back, with a Super Bowl ring to show for his efforts, Jerome Bettis moves on to become an analyst for NBC's new football lineup. But it's the good work he has done through his youth-at-risk foundation, The Bus Stops Here, that's the real measure of this man.
By Dennis McCafferty
Jerome Bettis came to South Bend, Ind., in 1990, ready to play football and get a good education. Almost immediately, Bettis remembers, he was transformed by Notre Dame in ways that went far beyond the Fighting Irish's storied sporting traditions of "Touchdown Jesus," Knute Rockne and 11 national titles.
Bettis' Career Stats
Years Pro: 13
L.A./St. Louis Rams (3)
Pittsburgh Steelers (10)
Position: Running back
College: Notre Dame
Career Highlights: Rushed for 1,000 yards or more eight seasons
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In fact, it was the Catholic university's culture of community service that sparked the young man's passion for helping others. "Notre Dame is about a lot more than football and tradition," says Bettis, taking a break during a photo shoot for this weekend's magazine cover. "You're in the national spotlight all the time, and they stress community and character there. Man, I was never exposed to anything like that. Shortly after I got there, I understood that Notre Dame could be used as a platform to try to influence other young people's lives and hopefully do some good."
So the freshman Bettis returned to his Detroit home on breaks, determined to reach out to other inner-city young people at churches and rec centers about making the right choices in life. Since then, Bettis has continued to take advantage of his place on the public stage when it comes to making a difference. His Detroit- and Pittsburgh-based Jerome Bettis The Bus Stops Here Foundation, among other efforts, has sent more than 5,000 inner-city kids from ages 8 to 18 to the JB Football Camp in Detroit, has awarded no fewer than 30 college scholarships, has built or renovated playgrounds in struggling areas and has attempted to bridge the digital divide by teaching computer literacy to more than 200 children. The latter effort is called the Cyber Bus program, and Bettis is especially gratified when he gets a sense of the impact it makes.
"We not only teach kids how to use a computer," he says, "but we teach them how to tear one down and build it back up. I had one little girl who amazed me, building a computer from its parts and adding stuff like extra memory. I used to get my haircut in Pittsburgh where her mom went, and one day she told me, 'Cyber Bus helped my daughter get to college.' That's something you always remember."
The running back has just finished a future Hall of Fame career as a Pittsburgh Steeler. His punishing profile earned him the nickname "the Bus," thus the name of his charitable foundation. And Bettis' profile has grown in other ways this year, as he joined NBC as a studio analyst for "Football Night in America," part of the network's much-anticipated prime-time Sunday package. Anyone who knows football realizes that Bettis capped off his playing career in storybook fashion, winning the Super Bowl in his last game, in his hometown of Detroit. When it comes to raising foundation support, a good story like that never hurts.
"People always want to come up to you and shake your hand and talk to you and get their picture taken with you," he says. "But even more so after the Super Bowl. They come up to me saying they're so happy I finally got my championship ring. And, sure, that builds up the kind of energy and interest that helps me bring more attention to my foundation."
And these days, there's another change that's increasing his zeal for The Bus Stops Here: his 20-month-old daughter, Jada Bettis, with wife Trameka. Having Jada in his life has added to his perspective when he works on a new foundation project.
"Anytime I see a place that needs a playground now, I think about her," Bettis says. "As a parent, I know how important playgrounds are for children when it comes to developing physically and having a safe outlet for activities. And it helps them work on their social skills, too. So when I see a place without one, it makes me all the more determined to do something about it."
Cover story photographs by Brad Trent for USA WEEKEND
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Bettis Makes A Difference
The Bus Stops Here is a wide-ranging foundation that was established in 1996 with the goal of supporting programs that enhance inner-city kids' self-sufficiency and development. Programs include mentorships, college scholarships, cybertraining and recreation (through football camps and playground-building efforts). For more information about the foundation or to make a donation, go online to www.thebus36.com.
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Our 2006 Most Caring Coaches
USA WEEKEND honors outstanding youth coaches nominated by our readers. These men and women lead their players both on and off the field. Each receives $1,000 awards for their teams.
This spring, USA WEEKEND and Fox Sports Network's "Best Damn Sports Show Period" invited readers to nominate outstanding youth coaches. After reading more than 700 letters, we asked our distinguished panel of pro and college coaches to make the final selection. The judges included WNBA coach Anne Donovan of the Seattle Storm; U.S. Women's Fed Cup tennis coach Zina Garrison; Auburn University's women's swim coach Dorsey Tierney-Walker; the Minnesota Wild's Jacques Lemaire; Chicago Bears coach Lovie Smith; and Rob Dibble of "Best Damn Sports Show Period." From a field of 10, they picked these three.
Mandy and Paul Rogers, Ridgeland, Miss.
Creating opportunities on the field and off for kids with special needs
Sixteen years ago, the Rogerses -- parents of two disabled boys, Nate, now 22, and Ben, now 18 -- saw few recreational outlets for kids with special needs in their town. So Mandy, 48, and Paul, 49, started the Ridgeland Challenger Softball League. That first season, they had two teams of nine kids each. Now there are almost 100 players, among kids and adult leagues. "These are children who would be looking from the sidelines at their peers. But for two hours every week, they get to shine and be a star," says Laura Sue McClure, who nominated the couple. Two years ago, the Rogerses opened the Main Street Cafe to provide jobs for young adults with disabilities, including three current players. The cafe joined forces with the school district for its community-work program, allowing students to get work experience and improve social skills. Between the league and the cafe, the couple have created a hub for kids with disabilities and their families.
Jay Lightner, Pittsburg, Calif.
Touching lives on and off the court
Cameron Colvin was 11 when he first met Jay Lightner at a peewee football game. Later, Lightner coached his junior high basketball team. And he ponied up nearly $10,000 a year to send Colvin to De La Salle, a private high school with a formidable football program. When Colvin's mother died during his sophomore year after an illness, Lightner stepped in and adopted Colvin. Eventually, the young man's talent and determination earned him a full football scholarship to the University of Oregon, where he is a receiver. "Jay gave me fatherly advice, kept me focused, made sure my grades were in check," says Colvin, now 20, who nominated Lightner, who is married and raising four kids. "He never misses a game, and he mentored me all the way through."
Colvin is just one example of the lives Lightner has touched. As the coach of the Central Junior High School boys basketball team, Lightner, 40, has led the Eagles to seven league championships. In 2001, he restarted the school's girls basketball team, and it's thriving, too. Lightner does all this, plus he volunteers as the school's athletic director.
Since 1995, he has contributed thousands of dollars (his family has a successful horse-racing business) to help several other former players get out of the town, which lacks opportunities, and into colleges. He has been a foster parent for more than a decade, and in 2000 co-founded the Lighthouse Mentoring Center, a non-profit organization of three group homes in Contra Costa County.
Marcus and Steve Onsum, Minneapolis
Showing there are no barriers in sports
In seventh grade, Ashley Bailey, who has cerebral palsy, joined an adapted sports program. By 11th grade, she was the co-MVP of the softball team. This fall, she started college, and she credits her coaches, Marcus and Steve Onsum, with making her feel like she can accomplish anything.
Medals are great, but the Onsums are more focused on being friends and mentors to their players. And the brothers are true standouts, says nominator Craig Fobes, whose daughter Kati and stepson, Chris, both played for the Robins. "They coach with such grace and make Robins a place where every kid is simply accepted for who he or she is. They are the most important teachers my kids, or I, have ever had."
Reporting by Kathy Rowings, Stephanie Yu and Maureen Backman
 Caring Athletes 2005: Warrick Dunn and Shaquille O'Neal both give back to community and share common ground.
Online Bonus: More on the three coaching winners and seven finalists.
It was a difficult task winnowing down the more than 700 nominations USA WEEKEND received this year for Most Caring Coach. The stories were inspiring, and we met, through your letters and e-mails, many men and women who are outstanding leaders in their communities. The following seven were among the 10 finalists presented to this year's panel of judges.
A cross-cultural success story
Abraham Bitok, 31, Shiprock, N.M.
Running long distances is an important part of coming of age in both Navajo and Kenyan cultures, and at Dine College -- the country's oldest Navajo college -- the two worlds combine, thanks to Abraham Bitok, a native of Eldoret, Kenya. Bitok was recruited to Dine as a student and returned five years ago as its cross-country coach, where he has led both native and Kenyan runners to four national championships. But more important, Bitok has taken great care to incorporate the Navajo values into his athletes' training and lives. One important value is balance, which he emphasizes with his motto -- recruit students first, make them athletes second -- as well as by establishing the college's first women's cross-country team. He helps his runners with their personal struggles ("In student emergencies, he reaches into his own pocket to make sure that his runners and their families have groceries and basic needs just as he provides from his own time and caring," says nominator Amanda McNeill, the college's director of grants development and special projects), and he helps to make sure that every interested athlete gets a scholarship to a four-year college when his or her time at Dine is up.
Rebuilding a team after disaster struck
Troy Holley, 38, New Orleans
When Troy Holley walked into the ruined gymnasium at De La Salle High School in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, what he saw was total destruction. But he wasn't about to let buckled floors and damaged walls be the end of his team's basketball season. Holley knew his players would want to come back, so he set to work locating the far-flung athletes, helping their families get resettled in the area and finding a gym where the team could practice every day. "We had kids scattered all over, but he got on the phone and found them," says Joe Hines, the school's athletic director. "Basketball was something for them to look forward to. It was something familiar to them, and he knew they needed that." Holley focused on making sure his players were emotionally sound off the court. Many were displaced and were living in FEMA trailers or gutted-out houses or staying with friends or family, and the coach did everything he could to make their lives easier. The effort and commitment paid off: The Cavaliers won the 2006 district championship for the second year in a row.
Giving kids strength, as parents go off to war
Mitch Johnson, 50, Fountain, Colo.
In a community buffeted by parents' frequent deployments to Iraq, the students of Fountain-Fort Carson High School and the football players in particular know they have a coach they can rely on for leadership and emotional support. Says parent Cathy Pigott, whose husband was in Iraq and whose son Brodie played for Mitch Johnson: "He is a soldier. He just doesn't wear the camouflage uniform. He is a large oak tree -- the kids get roots from him." In his 27 years at the school, Johnson -- who is also the dean of students -- has become more than a coach to his players. From filling the role of father figure to ensuring athletes live up to their academic potential to making sure a student with a learning disability got playing time every game, Johnson has become a bulwark here. Buzz Bissinger, author of "Friday Night Lights," profiled this Army town and Johnson's role in it for "Vanity Fair." Observing Johnson's effects on the Fort Carson community, Bissinger felt the coach had achieved the best balance between caring and a drive for success. "As Mitch said, these kids grow up pretty quickly here because of the presence of the war. It's a gut check for us all," the writer says.
Teaching a community the joys of swimming -- and giving
Pat Knisely, 55, New Bern, N.C.
More than 20 years ago, Pat Knisely brought her passion for swimming to this coastal North Carolina town. Since then, she has taught hundreds of kids and adults the joys of this lifelong sport. Along the way, "Ms. Pat" was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, but that hasn't slowed her down, even though now she must use a wheelchair. Every morning and night during the summer and most evenings during the off-season, Knisely is in the water teaching lessons. And she's orchestrated service projects that reach far beyond the swim lanes: gathering care packages for soldiers in Iraq, collecting school supplies for less-fortunate students and organizing a fan drive for senior citizens, to name a few. "It's not just about making good swimmers," nominator Sarah King says. "It's about making good people."
Helping blind athletes achieve their "goals"
Mike McAbee, 60, Kalamazoo, Mich.
How many coaches have designed a system to make their sport better? That's exactly what Mike McAbee did for goalball, a Paralympic sport in which players attempt to roll a basketball-sized ball, with bells inside to help players track its location, across their opponent's goal line. The twist: All the players are blind or visually impaired, so the court is tactile, with "feel lines" of heavy string to help with orientation. McAbee, coach of the Western Michigan University Wrecking Crew, devised a system that allows the elaborate court to be set up and transported easily. Set-up time may have been reduced, but McAbee still takes hours every week to drive players back and forth to practices -- sometimes from across the state -- and transports them to tournaments as far as 12 hours away. He also has offered financial support to ensure every athlete who wants to compete can. Tyler Merren, a member of the U.S. goalball team that took third in this year's world goalball championships, salutes his coach's dedication. "Selfless is really the word for him. There's absolutely no reward for him in what he does for us. He picks us up. He sets up our equipment while we are warming up. He refs and coaches our games. He tears down the court after practice and then drives us all home."
Growing basketball talent and college-bound players
Kimberly Davis-Powell, 32, Tallahassee, Fla.
For girls hoping to excel both on and off the basketball court, Kimberly Davis-Powell's Essence Girls Basketball Program is the place to turn. Davis-Powell started the program when she was just 21, and in the early years funded the program out of her own pocket, one season spending $6,000 because not all the girls could afford to participate. The program has grown over time, attracting the attention of Division 1 recruiters, and now three or four players each year land scholarships to top basketball colleges, including the University of Mississippi, Mississippi State, Virginia Tech, University of Florida and Georgia State. But Davis-Powell, who in addition to coaching is a fulltime physical therapist, is more concerned with her players' success off the court, even becoming legal guardian to a player who had nowhere else to go and planned to drop out of school. "Kim asked, "Do you want to stay with me? I'll help you,' " says nominator Sonia Hall, whose daughter Jessica played for Davis-Powell. The coach became the player's legal guardian, got her in school, tracked down her transcripts and records, and ensured she graduated from high school. Today that player, Brittany Hudson, is at Georgia State on a full basketball scholarship. "I just admire her so much, I told her I want to be just like her when I grow up," Hall jokes.
Reaching deep into the running community
Kelly Michelle Williams, age 38, Douglasville, Ga.
High school sports aren't always the most inclusive of activities, but that's not case with Kelly Michelle Williams' Chapel Hill High School cross country and track teams. Her track team, for example, often has more than 100 athletes, and recently she had a manager with muscular dystrophy and held a fundraiser to purchase a racing chair for a wheelchair athlete, who went on to win six state titles. Off the track, Williams's caring is evident: She started Roadrunners, which started as a track program for children with academic or behavioral problems and now has spread to nine local schools. "She loves these kids," says Kevynne LaPierre, who assists with the team. "She gives 200%, and she gives all her free time." As part of the program, Williams takes her team to the beach each year and is committed to finding scholarships for her high school students, no matter their ability level.
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