Since I was 7 years old I have known that I wanted to write
sports for a living. It was the only job I could ever imagine
myself doing as it combined my fanaticism for sports and love of
telling stories. For the past 20 years I have dedicated myself to
achieving that goal and feel fortunate to have been presented with
the opportunities to chase my dream.
By Leann Shea
Since I was 7 years old I have known that I wanted to write sports for a living. It was the only job I could ever imagine myself doing as it combined my fanaticism for sports and love of telling stories. For the past 20 years I have dedicated myself to achieving that goal and feel fortunate to have been presented with the opportunities to chase my dream.
When I graduated from San Francisco State University with a degree in journalism last year, I was lucky enough to have the legendary, late Merv Harris, agree to be my mentor as I entered the world of sports journalism. Harris wrote high school sports for the San Francisco Examiner and the San Mateo County Times for more than 30 years, before suddenly dying last April at the age of 67. Though our time together was short, he taught me many valuable lessons about covering sports.
It is his advice that I now apply in my job as the sports editor of the Morgan Hill Times.
A rotund, gruff man who always wore a hat and had a cigar dangling from his lip, Harris exuded passion and respect for the events and people he covered. He jumped at the chance to help a young reporter starting out in the field and fueled my enthusiasm for the career path I had chosen.
The first thing Harris ever told me was that sports are about people and covering sports is merely telling their story. A simple statement, often overlooked when covering sports on tight deadlines, but true nonetheless.
Covering sports offers something different every day, no win, loss or competition is ever the same. There is always someone who steps up and achieves the incredible, while others fight through adversity to learn important lessons about life.
It is those things that make sports universal. Sports are events that cross racial, class and religious lines that can unite people for one cause, even if it is just cheering for the home team to pull out a win.
I witnessed this first-hand when I covered the Live Oak football team’s playoff game against Independence several weeks ago. A throng of Acorn supporters made the trek to San Jose to support and cheer on their team, outnumbering the home team’s crowd at least three times over.
I am fortunate enough to have been an athlete, a coach, a supportive family member, spectator, rabid fan and reporter, which gives me the opportunity to view sports from many different perspectives.
I personally know what it’s like to be a student-athlete and have the responsibility of juggling school work and training. I played little league baseball in elementary school, soccer throughout high school and college, and trained in martial arts and kickboxing for several years.
I understand the organized chaos that comes with being a coach and having the responsibility of guiding and counseling athletes to execute game plans. Two years ago I was given the rare opportunity to volunteer as an assistant coach for a high school football team in the Bayview/Hunter’s Point area of San Francisco. It was one of the most rewarding experiences in my life and something I never imagined I’d have a chance to do.
These are the perspectives I bring to the sports page and hopefully with the community’s help I will be able to accurately and fairly represent the athletes, coaches and sports of the Morgan Hill and South Valley communities.
