(Editor’s note: The following information was presented by Stephen Tillman at the Baxley Appling County Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting held on Jan. 31.)
We are honored to nominate Coach Kathy Warren as a 2012 inductee into the Appling County Athletic Hall of Fame.
JAMEY BAXLEY COLLINS IS SHOWN WITH KATHY WARREN AT THE CHAMBER’S ANNUAL MEETING.
Warren inducted into Athletic Hall of Fame
In high school sports you cannot choose your hand – you have to play the hand you’re dealt. Coach Kathy Warren did a brilliant job with the hand she was dealt year after year. From the time she began her career in Appling County in 1978, she consistently put her Lady Pirate teams “on top” and “in the spotlight.” Through her coaching leadership, she built a program that became a dynasty and created a legacy for hundreds of young female athletes that is still cherished in many hearts and memories. During her twenty-five years as head coach, she had the pleasure of seeing thirty-six young ladies improve their educational careers through offers of college basketball and/or softball scholarships. Sixteen of her players were selected to represent the Georgia Athletic Coaches Association in the North-South All-Star Games. She had numerous opportunities through the years to “move on” to college or to follow programs “where the talent was more promising,” but she chose to remain an anchor in the program in her hometown – an anchor that proved to be the most winning coach in the history of Appling County. Very few coaches in Georgia share her 405 career win milestone in slow pitch softball.
Coach Warren’s Georgia High School Association Softball Accomplishments included leading twelve region championship teams, eleven final four appearances, six consecutive championship finals, five state runner-up teams, and two state championship teams. The Georgia Athletic Coaches Association for Softball presented her with four Milestone Awards, recognizing her 100th, 200th, 300th, and 400th career wins. From 1981 until 2002, she was selected the Region Coach of the Year twelve times. Kathy Warren was named the AAA Coach of the Year in 1992, the AA Coach of the Year in 1999, and the AAA/AA/A Coach of the Year in 2001. In 2000 she was named The South Coach of the Year and was also selected as the South All-Star Head Coach.
In addition to tremendous accomplishments in the game of softball, Coach Kathy Warren also led Lady Pirate basketball teams from 1979-1989. During those years, she won the 1986 Region championship and the East-Region championship three times. Additionally, five years her teams participated in the State Play-off games. The Georgia Athletic Coaches Association for Basketball presented her with Coaching Milestone Awards for her 100th and 200th wins. She was also named Region Coach of the Year and was selected as The South All-Star Assistant Coach.
Coach Warren coached girls’ track and field during the 1979 and 1980 seasons, leading her team to state participation. She agreed to coach the Appling County High School boys and girls tennis teams for two seasons, 2000 and 2001. In that short time, she accumulated two East-Region championships. Her boys’ team participated in the State AAA playoffs, and the girls’ team made it to the AAA State Final Four.
Despite the years of success, Coach Warren still remains very humble and modest when the accolades begin. She always avoided the limelight and public speeches when possible, but when she was on the practice field, in a huddle with her players, and provided the challenge of a new game, she quickly became the leader that she truly is. She demonstrated the ability to empower players to repeatedly push themselves to unexpected limits. She used her natural gift for motivating players to run harder, to jump higher, to stretch themselves further, to try again, and to always believe in themselves and the team – to turn ordinary players into great competitors and outstanding individuals.
Coach Warren believed that a coach must have a good knowledge of the game, must be able to teach fundamental skills and continually increase players’ game knowledge, must be able to get the maximum potential out of her players, and must be willing to work harder than others. She lives by this philosophy and instilled hard work ethics, perfection of skills, and mental toughness into her players over the years. She never allowed them to forget that these basics were the reasons for their success.
She conveyed to her players and others, both verbally and by example, that character and class must come first, win or lose. She taught them that excellence of character was the first and last impression made. Her teams were always good ambassadors not only for the school system but also for Baxley and Appling County. Her strong convictions of quality were also reflected in her teams’ consistently high academic honors and achievements.
In 2000, The Georgia Women’s Intersport Network named Kathy Warren the High School Coach of the Year at The National Girls and Women in Sports Day. Through all of her accomplishments as a coach, her legacy of hard work, determination, and high standards continues in our community. Young women who played for her are now parents and successful business women. They are doctors, lawyers, teachers, and coaches. They understand the principles of success at the fundamental level. They have made those principles parts of their lives. Since 2008, the Kathy Warren Athletic Scholarship continues to be given to senior girls who exemplify the traits that Coach Warren spent her career developing.
My name is Rebecca Johnson Gibbs and I played softball for Coach Warren with the Lady Pirates softball team during the 1995-1998 seasons. During those years, we won some exciting ballgames, captured Coach Warren’s 300th career win, and even took home the state runner-up trophy. One could definitely call us a winning team, and we were successful because of the leadership of Coach Warren.
Coach Warren’s beliefs in hard work and preparation were evident by the way she conducted our softball practices. We honed our skills and repeated drills until we felt confident that we could execute a given technique properly when faced with any situation. Coach Warren always emphasized the importance of doing things the right way. She impressed on her teams the idea that if something needed to be done, do it right the first time. She insisted on “perfect practice!” She believed that practicing was not enough if you were not practicing the skills properly. She would say “Practice doesn’t make perfect; perfect practice makes perfect.”
Each season, our team had a specific motto that we repeated before and after each game and practice; a motto that embodied our team’s goals and ideals. While in our huddle, we would shout in unison three simple phrases: “Play hard; have fun; make it happen.” At the time, we believed we were simply motivating ourselves to add another win to our scorecard. In reality, we were learning valuable lessons on the softball field about how to live our lives off the field. Each day, Coach Warren taught us that hard work and dedication, along with goal-setting and a little fun would bring the best of what life could offer.
Years after high school and softball, Coach Warren continues to be an important person in my life. She is encouraging, supportive and always available if I need her. She was there to give me a warm hug as I walked down the aisle and was even there to cry with me as I buried my infant son. In both good times and bad, I know I can always count on Coach Warren to be there for me. She is that kind of a person; someone I am very blessed to know and have in my life.
I am Lindsey Baxley Klement, and I played softball for Coach Warren from 1995 to 1999. I remember being terrified going to tryouts in July before my freshman year. I had practiced my “mile” over the summer (to no avail) and had played ball almost every weekend getting ready to become a Lady Pirate. We had heard the stories like, “she puts trash cans behind home plate for you to throw up in because you will not stop running, she doesn’t allow water skiing or four-wheeler riding, you can never ride in the back of a pick-up truck again, and she doesn’t even let the freshmen drink water!” Though we discovered that some of these statements were false, we did know she meant business on the softball field. Season after season of successes and championships proved this. We were proud to be Lady Pirates both on and off the field.
Coach Kathy Warren believed that dedication equaled success, and she was truly dedicated to her Lady Pirates. Every year, she gave her players a little picture of a determined frog, refusing to be swallowed by a bird. The picture said, “Never, never give up!” She wanted us to recognize what we were capable of, as members of a team, and as individuals. Coach Warren led by example. She never gave up, pushing, pressing, and expecting the best from each of us. We were not only expected to make the grades, but she also insisted that we make the right choices. If we needed to talk, Coach Warren’s office was a safe haven. Her words of wisdom were tried and true; we knew them to be words of integrity based in a genuine interest in our welfare. She only wanted the best for us, and she only accepted the best from each of us. Remarkably, she was able to get that out of all of us.
Though I have always been thankful for the athletic skills that Coach Warren taught me, what I am most thankful for are the values that she instilled in me over the course of my high school years. I knew that she was watching out for me, expecting great things, pushing me toward excellence. She was there for me long after the last out in October. Actually, I remember thinking that when softball season ended my senior year, with a state championship under our belts, that I might actually get to slack off in the spring. But, guess who showed up to coach our tennis team that spring. Coach Warren even coached me in the North/South All-Star game during the summer before I headed off to Mercer University. Looking back, I recognize how fortunate I was to have her as such a central part of my life during those important days and years. Because of her, my life was forever changed. To this day, I carry the work ethic and character that she instilled in me, and for that I will always be thankful.
I am Jamey Baxley Collins, and I am proud to nominate Coach Kathy Warren for this prestigious honor. Coach spent many hours preparing us for any situation that could occur in the game of softball. She anticipated the best and worst scenarios and trained us for both. We won because we were ready, and we were ready because Coach Warren made sure of it. She was completely dedicated to her team and her players, which in turn made it easy for us to trust her. The trust we had in her allowed us to believe in something bigger than ourselves. Under her leadership, and with hard work, we believed that we could be champions. And we were.
However, Coach Warren cared about more than just our athletic abilities. She had high standards for our academic, social, and emotional development. She built players with character, and I am proud to be one of them. Personally, she equipped me to overcome obstacles, set goals for improvement, and truly believe in myself. On a lighter note, it must be said that there were times when I did not fully understand her methods...like the time she made us take sliding practice in the middle of the game in front of bleachers filled with people. Needless to say, we took sliding more seriously after that experience. Actually, I have never totally recovered from this incident, which is why I chose a career in counseling. All jokes aside, I am a better person because I had the great privilege to play for Coach Warren. Outside of my family, I consider Coach Kathy Warren the person who most shaped the way I approach life. She guided me to realize my potential, and she helped give me the courage to take the steps to achieve worthy goals. These are lessons that stretch well beyond a softball season. They are life lessons, and for them, I am forever grateful.
For these and other reasons too numerous to name, it is our great pleasure to nominate Coach Kathy Warren for induction into the Appling County Athletic Hall of Fame.
Sincerely,
Rebecca Johnson Gibbs
Lindsey Baxley Klement
Jamey Baxley Collins
Coach Warren’s Georgia High School Association Softball Accomplishments included leading twelve region championship teams, eleven final four appearances, six consecutive championship finals, five state runner-up teams, and two state championship teams. The Georgia Athletic Coaches Association for Softball presented her with four Milestone Awards, recognizing her 100th, 200th, 300th, and 400th career wins. From 1981 until 2002, she was selected the Region Coach of the Year twelve times. Kathy Warren was named the AAA Coach of the Year in 1992, the AA Coach of the Year in 1999, and the AAA/AA/A Coach of the Year in 2001. In 2000 she was named The South Coach of the Year and was also selected as the South All-Star Head Coach.
In addition to tremendous accomplishments in the game of softball, Coach Kathy Warren also led Lady Pirate basketball teams from 1979-1989. During those years, she won the 1986 Region championship and the East-Region championship three times. Additionally, five years her teams participated in the State Play-off games. The Georgia Athletic Coaches Association for Basketball presented her with Coaching Milestone Awards for her 100th and 200th wins. She was also named Region Coach of the Year and was selected as The South All-Star Assistant Coach.
Coach Warren coached girls’ track and field during the 1979 and 1980 seasons, leading her team to state participation. She agreed to coach the Appling County High School boys and girls tennis teams for two seasons, 2000 and 2001. In that short time, she accumulated two East-Region championships. Her boys’ team participated in the State AAA playoffs, and the girls’ team made it to the AAA State Final Four.
Despite the years of success, Coach Warren still remains very humble and modest when the accolades begin. She always avoided the limelight and public speeches when possible, but when she was on the practice field, in a huddle with her players, and provided the challenge of a new game, she quickly became the leader that she truly is. She demonstrated the ability to empower players to repeatedly push themselves to unexpected limits. She used her natural gift for motivating players to run harder, to jump higher, to stretch themselves further, to try again, and to always believe in themselves and the team – to turn ordinary players into great competitors and outstanding individuals.
Coach Warren believed that a coach must have a good knowledge of the game, must be able to teach fundamental skills and continually increase players’ game knowledge, must be able to get the maximum potential out of her players, and must be willing to work harder than others. She lives by this philosophy and instilled hard work ethics, perfection of skills, and mental toughness into her players over the years. She never allowed them to forget that these basics were the reasons for their success.
She conveyed to her players and others, both verbally and by example, that character and class must come first, win or lose. She taught them that excellence of character was the first and last impression made. Her teams were always good ambassadors not only for the school system but also for Baxley and Appling County. Her strong convictions of quality were also reflected in her teams’ consistently high academic honors and achievements.
In 2000, The Georgia Women’s Intersport Network named Kathy Warren the High School Coach of the Year at The National Girls and Women in Sports Day. Through all of her accomplishments as a coach, her legacy of hard work, determination, and high standards continues in our community. Young women who played for her are now parents and successful business women. They are doctors, lawyers, teachers, and coaches. They understand the principles of success at the fundamental level. They have made those principles parts of their lives. Since 2008, the Kathy Warren Athletic Scholarship continues to be given to senior girls who exemplify the traits that Coach Warren spent her career developing.
My name is Rebecca Johnson Gibbs and I played softball for Coach Warren with the Lady Pirates softball team during the 1995-1998 seasons. During those years, we won some exciting ballgames, captured Coach Warren’s 300th career win, and even took home the state runner-up trophy. One could definitely call us a winning team, and we were successful because of the leadership of Coach Warren.
Coach Warren’s beliefs in hard work and preparation were evident by the way she conducted our softball practices. We honed our skills and repeated drills until we felt confident that we could execute a given technique properly when faced with any situation. Coach Warren always emphasized the importance of doing things the right way. She impressed on her teams the idea that if something needed to be done, do it right the first time. She insisted on “perfect practice!” She believed that practicing was not enough if you were not practicing the skills properly. She would say “Practice doesn’t make perfect; perfect practice makes perfect.”
Each season, our team had a specific motto that we repeated before and after each game and practice; a motto that embodied our team’s goals and ideals. While in our huddle, we would shout in unison three simple phrases: “Play hard; have fun; make it happen.” At the time, we believed we were simply motivating ourselves to add another win to our scorecard. In reality, we were learning valuable lessons on the softball field about how to live our lives off the field. Each day, Coach Warren taught us that hard work and dedication, along with goal-setting and a little fun would bring the best of what life could offer.
Years after high school and softball, Coach Warren continues to be an important person in my life. She is encouraging, supportive and always available if I need her. She was there to give me a warm hug as I walked down the aisle and was even there to cry with me as I buried my infant son. In both good times and bad, I know I can always count on Coach Warren to be there for me. She is that kind of a person; someone I am very blessed to know and have in my life.
I am Lindsey Baxley Klement, and I played softball for Coach Warren from 1995 to 1999. I remember being terrified going to tryouts in July before my freshman year. I had practiced my “mile” over the summer (to no avail) and had played ball almost every weekend getting ready to become a Lady Pirate. We had heard the stories like, “she puts trash cans behind home plate for you to throw up in because you will not stop running, she doesn’t allow water skiing or four-wheeler riding, you can never ride in the back of a pick-up truck again, and she doesn’t even let the freshmen drink water!” Though we discovered that some of these statements were false, we did know she meant business on the softball field. Season after season of successes and championships proved this. We were proud to be Lady Pirates both on and off the field.
Coach Kathy Warren believed that dedication equaled success, and she was truly dedicated to her Lady Pirates. Every year, she gave her players a little picture of a determined frog, refusing to be swallowed by a bird. The picture said, “Never, never give up!” She wanted us to recognize what we were capable of, as members of a team, and as individuals. Coach Warren led by example. She never gave up, pushing, pressing, and expecting the best from each of us. We were not only expected to make the grades, but she also insisted that we make the right choices. If we needed to talk, Coach Warren’s office was a safe haven. Her words of wisdom were tried and true; we knew them to be words of integrity based in a genuine interest in our welfare. She only wanted the best for us, and she only accepted the best from each of us. Remarkably, she was able to get that out of all of us.
Though I have always been thankful for the athletic skills that Coach Warren taught me, what I am most thankful for are the values that she instilled in me over the course of my high school years. I knew that she was watching out for me, expecting great things, pushing me toward excellence. She was there for me long after the last out in October. Actually, I remember thinking that when softball season ended my senior year, with a state championship under our belts, that I might actually get to slack off in the spring. But, guess who showed up to coach our tennis team that spring. Coach Warren even coached me in the North/South All-Star game during the summer before I headed off to Mercer University. Looking back, I recognize how fortunate I was to have her as such a central part of my life during those important days and years. Because of her, my life was forever changed. To this day, I carry the work ethic and character that she instilled in me, and for that I will always be thankful.
I am Jamey Baxley Collins, and I am proud to nominate Coach Kathy Warren for this prestigious honor. Coach spent many hours preparing us for any situation that could occur in the game of softball. She anticipated the best and worst scenarios and trained us for both. We won because we were ready, and we were ready because Coach Warren made sure of it. She was completely dedicated to her team and her players, which in turn made it easy for us to trust her. The trust we had in her allowed us to believe in something bigger than ourselves. Under her leadership, and with hard work, we believed that we could be champions. And we were.
However, Coach Warren cared about more than just our athletic abilities. She had high standards for our academic, social, and emotional development. She built players with character, and I am proud to be one of them. Personally, she equipped me to overcome obstacles, set goals for improvement, and truly believe in myself. On a lighter note, it must be said that there were times when I did not fully understand her methods...like the time she made us take sliding practice in the middle of the game in front of bleachers filled with people. Needless to say, we took sliding more seriously after that experience. Actually, I have never totally recovered from this incident, which is why I chose a career in counseling. All jokes aside, I am a better person because I had the great privilege to play for Coach Warren. Outside of my family, I consider Coach Kathy Warren the person who most shaped the way I approach life. She guided me to realize my potential, and she helped give me the courage to take the steps to achieve worthy goals. These are lessons that stretch well beyond a softball season. They are life lessons, and for them, I am forever grateful.
For these and other reasons too numerous to name, it is our great pleasure to nominate Coach Kathy Warren for induction into the Appling County Athletic Hall of Fame.
Sincerely,
Rebecca Johnson Gibbs
Lindsey Baxley Klement
Jamey Baxley Collins
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