VAALLTHEWAY.com

Thanks to all of the VAHS Coaches and Staff that continue to set the standard of care, involvement and engagement. I agree VAHS sets the bar in these events and it doesn't happen by accident.

PLAYOFF GAME TONIGHT!!!!!
Van Alstyne vs Dallas Lincoln at Allen High School at 7:30pm.
Come out and support your Lady Panthers.

I want to brag on these two coaches who have led the Panthers back to the playoffs, but also for much more than that. I was waiting in the tunnel before the girls' senior night when a teenage girl not in a basketball uniform approached. You could tell she was looking for someone, and she was in tears. Coach Lana Hanes came into the tunnel and went to the struggling girl. I stepped away from the private conversation, but she spoke words of grace, kindness, and encouragement, and embraced the girl. I watched a child walk away differently than when she arrived. Coach Hanes is a great classroom teacher and a leader on the court, but most importantly, she cares about her students, and in return they trust her.

At the boys' basketball Senior Night, I caught a subtle change to the usual basketball order of things, a small change, but I did not see it as a small act of caring. A good coach will start seniors on this special occasion, allowing them to have their name called in the pregame to run out in the starting five. But what do you do when you have six seniors? Instead of announcing "starting five", you announce "Our Seniors," allowing each one to have the moment of honor. Thank you, Coach Vansell, for thinking outside the box and showing love to all your players. Small things done in love are never small.

Congrats to both Lana Hanes and Seth Vansell on your seasons. Thank you, coaches, for what is seen, but more importantly, for what is so easily missed: what you do for our kids each and every day. Van Alstyne is lucky and blessed to have each of you!

VAALLTHEWAY!