Sports Chaplain Conference Calls

Over the years of my service with people of sport there have been a number of changes in technology, many of them to great benefit. One such is the ease of conference calls to gather people from remote distances to share information and to learn from each other. Twenty years ago this was rather cumbersome and costly. Now with services like Freeconferencecall.com and Internet services like Skype, such calls are virtually free of charge, but of tremendous value.

Just two days ago I was on a Skype call with people from five continents at once. It was in the evening for my friends in Australia, but 5:00 am at my home. We were all served well.

One of the initiatives I will soon begin in leading sports chaplains and character coaches in my region of the USA (Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, and Missouri) is a series of monthly conference calls to train, to network, and to mentor. Below is an email I sent to many of my colleagues around the USA in preparation for these calls. You would be welcome to join us on the calls if you like. Thanks.

I sent an email to many of you yesterday about the possibility of doing a series of monthly conference calls for Sports Chaplains and Character Coaches. I have heard from a number of you indicating your interest in participating. As this is a part of my role in serving the FCA Midwest Region, I will prioritize my teammates from the region. I will also strategically invite in others from around the USA to contribute their expertise.

The information below contains the format for the proposed calls and a schedule of dates and proposed guests for each particular call. I would be pleased to facilitate the calls via email and social media promotion as well as interviewing the guests during the calls.

Please let me know if the timing for the date assigned to you works, if not I’ll try to reschedule you on another date. Once our schedule is set and the details are in order, I’ll send out a broader email and invite everyone in. Thanks.

Midwest Region FCA Sport Chaplain / Character Coach Monthly Conference Calls

Day – First Sunday of each month

Time – 8:00 pm Central

Duration – 1 hour

Call in phone number and code – Please call 712.432.1500 and after prompted, enter code 991788* and then when prompted enter 1.

Email your questions ahead of or during the call to RLipe@fca.org.

Proposed schedule of guests:

Nov. 1 – Troy Collier – University of Illinois

Dec. 6 – Scott Tickner – Mt. Vernon High School (Illinois)

Jan. 3 – Russ Talley – Northern Illinois University Football

Feb. 7 – Doug Pollock – Bradley University

March 6 – Sara Hurst – University of Illinois

April 3 – Bob Pankey – Benton High School (Illinois)

May 1 – Justin Neally – University of Illinois

June 5 – Eric Drake – Sesser-Valier High School

July 3 – Jason Lipe – Southeast Missouri State University Football

Proposed interview questions for each session:

1.   Tell us about yourself, your family, and your background.

2.   Tell us about the place where you serve as a sports chaplain or character coach.

3.   In what sports do you serve?

4.   When did you first begin to serve as a sports chaplain or character coach and how did that happen?

5.   What are some of your most effective strategies?

6.   One thing a sports chaplain or character coach should ALWAYS do is…

7.   One thing a sports chaplain or character coach should NEVER do is….

8.   Questions we received via email ahead or during the call.

Template for each call: (60 minutes in duration)

·        I will start the call with a welcome.

·        I’ll have someone ready to pray to begin.

·        I’ll promote any upcoming events related to training, networking, or mentoring for sports chaplains and character coaches.

·        I’ll introduce and interview the guest.

·        I’ll wrap things up and will have someone close in prayer.