The man above all else, because of his influence on my life, is my father. He is so special to me that it is difficult to express in words. My dad was the one who let me know in my heart as early as 7th grade, maybe even earlier, that I wanted to teach one day and I wanted to coach. My father was a 5th and 6th grade teacher for 23 years. During those years he coached track and field, softball, volleyball, and my favorite sport, basketball. I think I probably had a basketball in my hands when I was born! My sisters and I used to ride with him on the bus to the games with their crazy bus driver, Mr. Krueger. The team members always made us feel welcome and we had a great time. My father used to say, as Mr. Krueger stormed wildly into another corner, "Don't tell your mother about her behavior!" Growing up, my sister Erin, who is a year younger than me, and I went to practice with my dad's team, whether it was the girls team or the boys team if they needed help. additional players. I met a lot of people that way and sometimes when I went to school with my dad for the day I would attend classes with some of my new friends. A...... middle of paper ...... grew up in California and moved to Milwaukee after, at the age of eleven, his parents and two of his sisters died in a road accident. car. I admire him for the person he became during his life and the difficulties he overcame. I can talk to my father almost better than anyone. We started cycling about 5 years ago, just the two of us, and I think this time has helped me see the man that so many people respect and admire, the man that my father is. I admire him so much and will always look to him for guidance throughout my teaching and coaching career..