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Beloved 'Coach Bear' continues service after 35 years
AUSTINTOWN
David Patrick, informally known to players as “Coach Bear,” celebrated his 35th year of volunteer service with Austintown Fitch’s boys basketball team.
Patrick, 50, said he enjoys volunteering with the students more than anything.
“It’s fun, and I like working with the teams,” Patrick said. “The kids are nice to me, and they are fun.”
Patrick first got the equipment-manager position under coach Rich Denamen in 1982, the same year he inherited his nickname for a bear-themed Halloween costume.
“He [Denamen] asked about me, then asked if I wanted it,” Patrick said. “I said, ‘Sure.’”
His mother, Dolores Patrick, said her son has gained so much from being able to volunteer – even a job.
Austintown schools pay Patrick $15 per game to run the clock during middle-school and freshman basketball and volleyball games.
“It’s something he likes to do, and since he doesn’t drive and we don’t live too far, he’s right there,” Dolores Patrick said.
Many coaches and team managers have accommodated Patrick’s needs by picking him up and dropping him off so he can perform his team duties. He has delayed coordination, making it unsafe for him to drive, and a speech impediment that makes it difficult to communicate.
Since the beginning of his 35 years of volunteer service, Patrick has seen the eras of six basketball coaches: Denamen, Tom Fender, Gary Conroy, Roger Day, Jason Baker and now Brian Beany.
Beany said because Patrick has performed managing duties so long, he doesn’t even have to communicate what needs to be done – Patrick never skips a beat.
Patrick routinely collects players’ jerseys at the end of each game, washes them and hangs them up, ready for the next matchup.
“He helps take some of the workload off coaches and kids and always gets them out to the kids on game day,” Beany said.
Other players agreed. Not only do they appreciate clean uniforms, but the friendly atmosphere “Coach Bear” creates.
“He’s a great guy and does a lot for us,” said Blake Jeffries, freshman basketball player. “He always makes sure we are doing the right stuff and keeping us in check.”
Dolores Patrick said that during a sports banquet, her son was honored for his service as the person who “runs the show behind the scenes.”
“Dave really likes to be involved,” Dolores Patrick said. “He knows he has a speech problem, but it doesn’t hold him back.”
Patrick went to speech lessons when he was 2, not only helping him communicate to the best of his abilities, but getting rid of the shyness he had over the years.
Outside of his sports-related volunteer work, Patrick said his
hobbies are following other sports and preparing for a big game – he never leaves his job as a sports fanatic.
In addition to his basketball duties, Patrick helps out with baseball and football, as well.
Because of his heavy involvement, it is evident Patrick’s father, the late Bill Patrick, a baseball coach and die-hard fan, passed on the sports genes to his son. Patrick is an avid follower of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Ohio State University Buckeyes and the Pittsburgh Steelers, Pirates and Penguins.
Before he retires from his position, Patrick said he really would like to see the basketball team make it to Ohio High School Athletic Association basketball championships at Ohio State University in Columbus