What does being an involved parent mean? According to Deana Cox, it means doing all you can to help the entire program be better; not just for your child and the current team, but also for the future players as well. It means supporting your child in every way possible and giving them every opportunity possible. Deana is a member of the booster club for the Stillwater softball team, making sure to take her advice for being involved and applying it.
She explains that “when my daughter decided in the 3rd grade that she wanted to play softball, I had no idea where to start and what to do.” She soon realized that there is always something you can do to help. “So when you see a need, you just jump in and do it. As a mom, you want every player to be set up for success. Being involved, present, and willing to help do what others will not is part of setting them up for success,” Deana says.
According to Deana, windshield time is the time you get to spend with your child on the way to and from practice to talk. Now that her daughter is driving, Deana says that she really misses the time that she got to spend talking together about anything and everything for even just a little while. So making the most of the moments, even the small ones, can make a big impact.
When asked what her favorite memory was of being a sports mom, Deana says “I can’t say that there is any one special memory, but instead more of a mountain of memories that involve watching my own child grow and do what she loves as well as all of the friendships developed along the way that would have never happened without softball.”
What keeps her going when things get tough? Deana says that her daughters drive and determination to do her best is what makes her want to do the best she can as well, proof that we know exactly why Deana was selected for Stillwater Mom of the Month.
Deana says that she hasn’t accomplished all that she has alone. The booster club as a group, with a special mention of Kelsey Vaughn, has been able to provide experiences, equipment, and many other needed items to make sure that the program is better each year than the year before.
