Coach Kevin Harrington was hit with some hard-hitting news this past March: an advanced melanoma diagnosis.

Coach Kevin, as his players call him, has been coaching volleyball for 22 years, starting right out of high school.   “Playing in high school, I would come to the girls’ practice and help out. Through that, I was able to learn about it and start to volunteer,” says Coach Kevin. “About a year later when a position for a girls’ JV coach opened up, it was easy to make the transition.” 

The diagnosis was pretty unexpected after a mole from his calf tested cancerous. Since receiving the diagnosis, Coach Kevin has undergone two significant surgeries and has received treatments every Thursday for the past year. he said.  Recently he’s marked the halfway point in said treatments and is looking forward to the second half going by quickly. 

Team Captain and senior Cassidy Cole says, “He’s made me so much more confident on the court and makes it a better environment. He’s made volleyball so much better, it’s a place I want to go.”

It was also quite hard news for his team to hear.“I remember the day we found out he had cancer, we were all just bawling our eyes out,” said Cassidy Cole. Wanting to do something to help, the senior project rose the perfect opportunity for her to help. 

Even players who haven’t known him for as long also think highly of him as a coach. Freshman Sydney Henson says, “Coach Kevin coaches  in a very positive way, he’ll never say what a player is doing wrong but how they can improve.” He is a great coach who has helped me a lot and in the short amount of time that we were able to be coached by him this season I’ve already learned more than I had in my first year playing volleyball in the club season.

The teams, their families, and friends are all hoping for the recovery to continue to go smoothly and quickly for this coach.