Pat Carpenter, named Volunteer Coach of the Year for South Carolina

Dec. 8—Almost everyone in North Augusta has a story about Pat Carpenter.

She can be found all over the city: from her involvement with city council, to her commitment to First Baptist Church, volunteering with the city's parks and recreation department and coaching special needs children.

Carpenter is South Carolina's Volunteer Coach of the Year, an honor she will receive in Greenville on Dec. 9 at the South Carolina Recreation and Park Association banquet.

"She deserves to be recognized, not only in North Augusta but statewide because she is one of those special people to come along in a community that makes things happen," North Augusta Parks, Recreation and Tourism director Rick Meyer said.

Growing up in North Augusta, Carpenter clung to sports with her siblings. Shortly after graduating high school, coaching fell into her lap after her cousin gave her a team to coach through a season in 1968.

"I thought it was a one time thing," she said. "... I did and I just thought well I will do this to get these girls through the season and that's it, not knowing that would be almost a lifetime with me."

Carpenter, who grew up wanting to be a teacher, uses coaching as a way to influence lives.

"I still feel like that is part of my teaching because I am a fundamentalist coach. I believe that kids need to learn the fundamentals, then you can play the sport and do any other skill that you want to do. But I just love that and I think that's God's way of me teaching," Carpenter said.

She often coaches multiple recreational teams at once in a variety of sports and age groups. In addition, Carpenter spends her time coaching with the RECing Crew for special needs children in the CSRA.

"Her belief in young people, she sees the good in every young person and there's something there, there is a talent there that you have to use and she will bring out the best in people, and that is what makes her so neat and valued to this community," Meyer said. "I can't even imagine this place without Pat Carpenter. She is that special."

According to Meyer, Carpenter goes out of her way to make the sports experience fun for everyone and gives everyone an opportunity to compete.

"Everybody wants to play for Pat and unfortunately not all of them can play for Pat," Meyer said. "I like to use the phrase, anybody, just about anybody can coach the talented and gifted athlete. It takes someone special to coach kids that have never played or don't really know how to play and she can coach them all."

"I always tell my teams, every team I coach there's always one child that needs a little bit more attention than everybody and I always tell that child, you are the one God put here on this team for a reason," Carpenter said. "It might be that they are struggling at home, they are struggling in school and just struggling in life, but like I said I think the one thing God gave me was patience with the children."

One of many athletes influenced by Carpenter is North Augusta native Antonio Grant. Grant, who went on to play collegiate basketball at the University of South Carolina and professional basketball abroad, gives credit to Carpenter in his career and how she influenced his faith.

"Ms. Pat was basically someone that we all respected and I was pretty much like a street kid and I didn't know if she would let me play for her because I was a kid who got into a lot of trouble," Grant said. "...She just loved on me and from that day on, I was more concerned about how Ms. Pat felt."

"She gave me my first personalized Bible and she put this scripture in there if I'm not mistaken it's Jeremiah 29:11," Grant said. "...I always remember and as I went through my career and my life, it just kind of takes me back to that scripture and man this is like my life. It's really surreal even when I am talking to you about it now, I just feel a certain way about it because I pretty much like I walked in that scripture."

"...This is a touch Ms. Pat had on me also," he continued. "She's just someone with a beautiful heart."

For Carpenter, she finds joy in every aspect of her job, pride in her hometown and love from her family and friends.

"Well it is an honor to me that I am at the state, but at the other hand, it's just something I do and something I love," she said. "...I can't stress that enough how much I enjoy everything I do. It's a pleasure and an honor that the people let me be a part of their lives."

"I'm glad God put me in North Augusta," she said. "When I think about Augusta and the word North, what a difference. This little city just has blooming and blossoming out and I think like I said it is just a wonderful city to live in."

Samantha Winn covers the city of North Augusta, with a focus on government and community oriented business. Follow her on Twitter: @samanthamwinn and on Facebook and Instagram: @swinnnews.