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Coaches corner Bill Barkowska
Sponsored by Charmont in Cass City.
Tom will be receiving a $25.00 Gift Cer-
tificate for dinner at Charmont.
Name: Bill Barkowska
Sport/Activity: Travel Baseball Coach
(Asst) Michigan Young Guns 12u
School / Community: North Branch
Family: Wife Karen and 2 sons Bren-
dan 12 and Bryce 11
How long have you participated in
this sport/activity? Four years with
the Michigan Young Guns but have
coached anything from t-ball to var-
sity assistant for over 20 years.
What do you love best about it? Be-
ing around the kids. They don’t play
for anything other than the love of
the game. It’s great to win but to see
them building lifelong friendships and
passion for the game is better than
anything else.
Thinking back over the years, who is
a mentor or coach that helped you
grow as a coach or athlete? What
made them special? My dad worked
with me most of my life to help me
be the man I am. He taught me the
value of hard work and the impor-
tance of being reliable and a man of
my word. These attributes helped me
to excel at sports in my youth. But
my high school baseball coach Curt
Henderson is who I try to emulate as
a coach. He has been a mentor to
hundred of young men throughout his
career. He is a member of the Michi-
gan High School Baseball Coaching
Hall of Fame and knows more about
baseball than anyone I’ve ever met. I
will never be the coach he was but if
I can teach the boys anywhere near
what he taught me, it will be a re-
warding career.
Who do you idolize in this sport/activ-
ity? Coach Henderson has integrity.
It didn’t matter if you were the best or play the game and I love to be a part
worst player on the team, the rules
applied to everyone. Not only did he
teach us about baseball but he taught
us about life.
Have you met anyone famous in
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this sport/activity? I’ve met multiple
athletes over the years at camps
and clinics including Jack Morris,
Dan Petry, Milt Wilcox and a number
of other retired Tigers. I also got to
hang for an evening with Brandon
Beachy who was a starting pitcher
for the Atlanta Braves.
Where does your team normally
practice? We practice in Lum, just
south of North Branch.
Have you traveled anywhere special
related to this sport/activity? We
have traveled to tournaments all
over the state but our biggest jour-
ney is yet to come as we travel to
Cooperstown, New York this July to
play at Cooperstown Dreams Park
where we will compete with 104
teams from around the country.
What awards or honors have you
won? Our team has won numerous
tournaments over the years includ-
ing 4 of 5 tourney championships
this year with our only loss being a
4-3 extra inning loss in the champi-
onship game. We have also been
league champs 2 of the last 3 years
in the Greater Flint Baseball League.
What have you learned from par-
ticipating in this sport/activity? The
importance of hard work, dedication,
having fun and being a part of some-
thing that is bigger than myself. My
family and my baseball family have
become one over the last 4 years.
What do you like the most about
the sport/activity? I really enjoy the
camaraderie amongst the boys.
They are excited, energetic, and a
lot of fun to be around. They love to
of it. I also enjoy getting to coach my
own son. I coached other people’s
kids for almost 20 years and enjoyed
every second of that but it doesn’t
compare to being a part of your own
child’s development as a ball player.
What is your favorite moment? We
have been very fortunate to win a
lot of games over the last 4 years.
I think the number is over 120 wins
so far. But the one that stands out
the most was the first tournament
win our team ever had by winning
the tournament in what could be
described as a monsoon. Our boys
were literally playing in standing
water over their ankles and pouring
rain and loving every second of it.
The picture of them holding that first
trophy with smiles from ear to ear is
something I’ll never forget.
One tip for someone looking to get
into this sport/activity: Work hard
and play hard but remember that
they are kids. Don’t get so caught
up in the winning and losing that you
forget to just enjoy the ride.
Are there any other activities you
love? I enjoy hunting, fishing, golf-
ing, bowling, attending U of M
football and basketball games. Of
course, this is all being done with my
family in tow.
Where can we find you in the off
season? At U of M stadium on Satur-
days in the fall or at the Yens’ indoor
hitting facility down the road from my
house beginning in January each
year. Other than that, I’m spending
time with my family or working as an
Assistant Principal at the Ruth Fox
Middle School in North Branch.