Coach of the year helps disabled kids become athletes

Photo by Michael Woodward, Reporter

WINNER SHARES TALENT -- Luke Ford displays his trophy for Division IV Coach of the Year of the Anderson Youth Soccer League. Ford also coaches disabled children in the Topps Soccer Program.

With the trophy for Division IV Coach of the Year from Anderson Youth Soccer League posted on his wall and the cold rain of winter making outside sport next to impossible, Luke Ford could rest on his laurels and wait for next season.

But he’s got work to do.

Luke Ford is raising funds for his other job. He’s the district coordinator for Topps Soccer League, a subsidiary of the California Youth Soccer Association. He coaches soccer to kids with physical and mental disabilities.

“It’s all for fun,” Ford said. “Kids get to interact. It’s an athletic event, so they’re getting exercise, and the parents get to see their kids do what ‘normal’ kids do. If they can just kick the ball, that can be a big accomplishment for them.”

Ford and volunteers show the kids how to dribble, kick and shoot on a goal. Which, he said, is their biggest thrill of all.

Topps is open to all kids with any disability.

“Some parents don’t think their kid can play because he’s in a wheelchair,” Ford said. “Hey, five kids in a wheelchair make a team. We use a ball the size of a beach ball that’s real soft, and they can hit it with their hands.”

The Topps Soccer Program gets some players from Far Northern Regional Center and three kids play from Challenger Base ball, a baseball program for mentally and physically disabled kids in Shasta Lake City.

“I’m in awe of the parents of these kids. Some have kids with severe autism or mental retardation,” Ford said. “My hat is off to them for the patience they have. They must have something I don’t.”

Ford enjoys coaching both soccer teams, and his passion for sports goes back well into his youth.

Born in 1948, Ford grew up in Anaheim by Knott’s Berry Farm. His father, a rodeo bull rider from Texas, operated a dairy there during WWII.

One of seven siblings, Luke Ford had an early interest in sports.

His brother Dean, who was eight years older and an athlete himself, took Luke under his wing and cultivated those interests when their father was busy at work or dealing with alcoholism.

Dean bought Luke a baseball glove and a bat and practiced with him regularly. When it came time for baseball tryouts, Luke Ford went alone, as his older brother had to work.

“I can see it like it was yesterday,” Ford said, “I was the only kid without his father at tryouts.”

During tryouts, Ford remembers playing well at every position, never making an error, and owes the fact that he didn’t make the team to what he calls “politics.”

When people would ask him why he wasn’t out there playing with the other kids, he made a promise to himself.

“I made a vow that my kids wouldn’t go through that, so I’d always be there for my kids,” Ford said.

Ford has certainly kept his promise. He has coached his sons through soccer and has continued to keep his promise for other children as well.

He’s made sure that even disabled kids don’t miss out on sports as well.

I owe everything to Dean,” Ford said. “The way he got me into sports — he was more like a father than a brother.”

After high school, Ford joined the Navy and was stationed in the Caribbean.

He never got into coaching until his older son, Brian, got into Little League and then soccer in 1991.

His wife, Valerie, coached their younger son Kevin. Without her, Ford said that he never would have tried coaching.

“Neither of us knew anything about soccer,” he said. “I owe my ability to coach to her.”

Although his Topps program only has nine players, he noted that the Orange County branch started with only eight players, and now has forty.

Ford wants as many players to join Topps as possible, but he’s reaching for 20 this year.

“When you get a hug after a practice,” Ford said, “that’s very special.”

Ford also wants to raise $2,000 so the players have uniforms and don’t have to pay to play.

He also hopes to gather more “soccer buddy” volunteers. The buddies follow a Topps player on the field, coach them and protect their face so the ball doesn’t hurt them.

To join the Topps program, be a soccer buddy or help sponsor the program, call Topps Soccer at 347-5792.