The 2016 Spring sports season is springing to life! Although other area teams are practicing outdoors while Liberty Bell’s fields and courts are still covered in snow, our teams and community are masters of coping with adversity.
Spring teams have long been some of Liberty Bell’s most successful, and this season looks to be no different. Leading our student athletes are a very talented group of coaches, and has been the trend this school year, spectators are likely to notice some new faces driving our teams from the sidelines.
In Mountain Lion Baseball, Michael Wilbur will take over head coaching duties after the retirement of long-time coach Don Calvert. Michael previously served as the assistant baseball coach for LB, a vacancy that has now been filled by long-time youth baseball coach, Orson Gurney. Softball has added an experienced assistant coach, David Dinsmore, to aid head coach Lee Pilkington. Lastly, back by popular demand, Soccer has added Adam Kaufman as the assistant coach. Adam has coaches soccer for LB in the past, and will be entering his fourth season as a soccer assistant.
Michael Wilbur – Michael was a three year varsity letter winner at Ferndale High School and played in a recreational league in Bellingham before moving to the Methow Valley in 2007. He has worked with the baseball team for six of the last seven years and served last year as the assistant coach. Michael works at Glover Street Market and is enrolled in a Masters in Teaching program. His daughter, Maggie, is in the 7th grade at Liberty Bell Junior High.
Orson Gurney – I began coaching as many fathers do: a child very interested in playing baseball. When my son was 8 years old I volunteered to assist with coaching his youth team. The next year I became the manager of his team and did so until he played Amercian Legion ball. At that time I began managing my youngest son’s team. In both cases I was fortunate to have talented players which made the task simple and pleasurable. Today I look back on those times with great fondness, memories that bring a smile, and warm my heart. After retiring from the fire service and moving to Winthrop the urge to be involved in youth sports caused me to volunteer once again. The opportunity came in the form of coaching a tee ball team and later coaching older boys. I’ve enjoyed coaching with truly talented men on numerous teams here in the valley and feel that these youngsters are indeed blessed to have men with the knowledge and experience to guide them along the path to success in a sport that can be so difficult to master.
David Dinsmore – David brings a lot of experience and passion to his new position as assistant softball coach for Liberty Bell. Having coached youth sports consistently since 2002, we are excited about David’s familiarity with the students, and his ability to teach basic softball skills. David is a coach focused on cultivating hardworking and focused on athletes and team with an emphasis on teamwork and perseverance. Dave graduated from Burlington-Edison HS in 1989, and from Bellingham Vocational Technical Institute in 1990. He moved to the Methow Valley in 1992 and is a 27 year veteran with WDFW as a Fish Hatchery Specialist.
Adam Kaufman – Adam brings a lifelong love of sports to the Assistant Boys’ soccer coaching position. He grew up playing soccer, hockey and lacrosse and added crew, ultimate frisbee, skiing, mountaineering and cycling to his outdoor pursuits. Over the years he has coached high school soccer and lacrosse as well as youth soccer, hockey and nordic skiing. He looks forward to working with Lincoln Post to help Liberty Bell soccer players improve their individual skills, overall fitness and team play. This summer he took his son Ben and daughter Payten on a camping tour of northern Spain. One of their highlights was seeing a professional soccer game between Sporting Gijon and Palermo at El Molinón stadium in the city of Gijon.