I was born in Niagara Falls, NY in the middle of the last century and grew up in a suburb directly to the north.  The depressed rust belt city of today used to be a vibrant city with twice the population of today.  The city boasted many international chemical companies along the upper Niagara River where they had access to plentiful hydroelectric power generated by the mighty Niagara Falls.  I remember driving in the car with my mom (seated in the front without a seatbelt, I might add) and complaining about the smell.  Mom would chide me and say that was the smell of progress.  When I asked her, of all of the places in the United States my grandparents could have emigrated from Italy to, why did they chose Niagara Falls rather than some warm climate, she simply said – land of opportunity. 

So I grew up smelling progress and shoveling opportunity.

Then, in 1978 the Love Canal landfill environmental disaster garnered international attention and brought the demise of the industry.  Decades of disposing toxic waste came to roost and death and illness filled the local headlines for years.  You still cannot convince me the land is safe but that is a discussion for others in a different place.  Not so gradually, factories boarded up leaving land so toxic that nothing will ever be built again.  The population fled like people jumping into lifeboats after a shipwreck!

What does this have to do with summer camp?

My office is directly next to the main gymnasium.  Boys Basketball Camp is in progress today along with Softball and Swimming.  There are kids everywhere.  And they are loud.  Basketballs are loud.  Sneakers on newly sealed floors are loud.  The door of the gym bangs against my glass wall sounding like a gunshot every time.  Coaches yelling with a microphone are loud.  Whistles are loud.  Screaming children are loud.  Hungry children are loud.  The rest rooms are cluttered.  Parents take all the good parking spaces during drop-off.  But, I know if I were driving in my mother’s car today (securely buckled in the front seat surrounded by state of the art air bags) she would say that is it the sound of progress.  She would remind me that it wasn’t just a great opportunity for the coaches but for the children and parents, as well.  She would say that the ability to provide a safe and secure learning environment for many children and the convenience of childcare for many working parents really makes us the land of opportunity.

So I will spend my summer listening to the sound of progress parking in the land of opportunity!

Until next time!

Jude Russo Caserta

AthleticBudgetCoach.com/blog

Twitter: JudeCaserta

Linkedin: Jude Russo Caserta

E-mail: judi_caserta@athleticbudgetcoach.com

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