Ryan Cammaert celebrates how the game of soccer enriches the lives of children through being active, understanding teamwork, and defining their character.
As a former soccer player, Ryan, Manager of Customer Intelligence & Analytics at MBLL, rediscovered his passion for the sport and channeled his skills into coaching over 12 years ago.
What started off as ensuring kids didn’t eat the grass or fall asleep on the field in the Tim Hortons Timbits Sports Program transitioned over the years into teaching strategy, tactics and teamwork. Regardless of the level that Ryan was coaching, he wanted kids to have fun and find a passion for the game.
As a coach, Ryan quickly saw differences as boys seemed more focused on individual accomplishment whereas the girls were more about team achievement.
“The girls understand at an early age that if they want to be successful, their team needs to be successful,” said Ryan. “There are valuable parallels from team sports which translate into the rest of your life and thriving within society.”
Coaching from the development level through to the competitive club level, Ryan enjoys watching players grow in skill level and develop into successful young people.
“You see tremendous growth over an entire season as someone might start off shy and over time become much more involved and active in the play,” said Ryan. “It’s so rewarding to encourage these players to dig deep, find out how to challenge themselves, and learn what to work on individually and as a team.”
Coaching is a commitment that plays out not only on the field but also through training and seminars as there is a required certification and evaluation process to ensure a qualification standard.
In a seminar last year, Ryan had an eye-opening experience when learned females between the ages of 10 and 14 drop out of sports at the rate of 80% due to many factors including safety, social stigma, costs, and changing priorities. He is motivated to help set the foundations and provide the kind of leadership to keep female players engaged.
“Igniting that passion and confidence in them and seeing how they grow as people not just as players is inspiring and incredible to witness,” said Ryan.
Ryan feels encouraged by the recognition from Liquor & Lotteries’ Volunteer & Employee Giving Program. He is inspired to have an employer who cares about the community and how valuable coaching and volunteering are to him.
Ryan dreams of one day seeing a player he coached play on television and hopes to coach alongside his daughters after they finish playing competitively. He encourages anyone to get involved with coaching because it’s a great way to give back while allowing kids to have fun and build confidence.
Besides coaching, Ryan ensures that supporting the community is also a family affair. Each year, his family selects a charity to support such as the Heart & Stroke Foundation, Kids Cancer Care, and Movember. After experiencing health issues as a teen, Ryan learned the importance of donating blood and the value of his rare blood type. He has been a consistent blood donor ever since with over 32 donations to date.
#MBLLGoodTogether demonstrates Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries’ (MBLL) commitment to partnering with Manitoba communities, non-profits, and charitable organizations that help make our province an even better place to live. Our Community Champion series highlights MBLL employees that are making a difference in the lives of Manitobans through their work or volunteer efforts in the spirit of being “good together”.