November/December 2010: Volume 18, Number 6 - USA Shooting

From the Youth Programs CoordinatorYour Country Needs You!As a new hire with USA Shooting, many questionscome to mind. What is the scope of this job? How doI get my arms around it? And how do I accomplisheverything required to make Youth Programs successful?I’ve learned that I could not walk on water, nomater how hard I tried. I’ve been handed a huge responsibility withlimited resources. I am attempting to absorb inputs from the sourceshere at USAS, the Certified Training Center directors, NRA, 4-H andCMP youth program leaders, leaders from successful shooting clubsand other related youth programs. As I progress and learn more,I’m excited about the good ideas, many challenges and the numerous“dots to connect” in order to move toward success. The story ofmy Olympic journey is not unlike many others. My dad gave me aBB gun at 8 years old, my first pellet gun at age 10 and my first .22rifle at age 12. I was lucky to have a Junior ROTC rifle team at myhigh school, and I gained valuable match experience traveling withmy college ROTC rifle team. It was there I learned about the UnitedStates Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU). Upon graduation I waslucky enough to be assigned to the USAMU, and the rest is history.Not every Olympic hopeful wants to go into the military, but forme it was the best opportunity at that time. USA Shooting and itsresources did not exist back then.I have been involved in junior shooting sports as an instructorand coach for several years. Over the years I have learned that oneperson can make a difference, but it’s through the building of manyrelationships that makes things happen in a way that is much biggerthan what one person is capable of accomplishing. Before I can communicateand engage the American youth who are involved in awide variety of shooting sports about Olympic shooting sports, Ineed hundreds or thousands of trained coaches located in every areaof the country that can work with these junior shooters to help themachieve their Olympic dreams.If you want to help educate our youth in Olympic shooting sports,“your country needs you.” We need your help to reach out to parentsand club leaders everywhere who are working with dozens or moreyouth each year to communicate the opportunity to represent theircountry at the Olympic Games. We need your help to identify,encourage and help aspiring new Olympians elevate their skills andcompete in USAS sanctioned matches. Together we can make it happen.You can contact me at michael.theimer@usashooting.org andyou can get valuable information from our website www.usashooting.org.Other valuable information that can assist you with youth shootingsports programs can be found at:• Find a USAS Affiliate Club: http://www.usashooting.org/club-Map.php• Civilian Marksmanship Program’s (CMP) website: http://www.odcmp.com/• Certified Coach program information can be found at this website:http://www.nrahq.org/education/training/coach_schools.asp■ Michael Theimer, Youth Programs and Athlete DevelopmentCoordinatorNov-Dec Issue 2010.indd 2611/8/10 9:22 PM