My coach came to the gym in a SUIT! His name was Johnny Bald - a good looking man that I wanted to be like - even look like - and I will never forget him. I was 13 or 14 years old playing basketball for the Newburg Boys and Girls Club.

I remember laughing and saying to him, "Man, we're a little league team. Why are you coaching us in a suit?"

What he said to me next has stayed with me over 30 years: "This may be the only time you see somebody like you, dressed in a suit that's not selling drugs, stealing or doing something illegal, and if it's good enough for NBA coaches, why not me? You need to see this!"

Those were words I needed to hear. I was raised in a single parent home by my mother. We struggled financially and at one point lost our home. I never forgot the feeling of not owning our own house and moving from place to place staying with different family members. I would go to high school and act like everything was good but I really didn't want to go "home." Some of my friends, after reading this blog post, will just now learn of this.

Experiencing poverty like that made me focus on becoming a professional athlete and like Robin Hood, I wanted to rescue my family...or so I thought.

I excelled at football in high school and earned a scholarship to play for the University of Kentucky. The only vision I had was to succeed athletically. I did not want myself or my family to experience poverty ever again and I felt like football was my only ticket.

But the odds of making it in the NFL are 1 in 1,000,000. I really should have just bought a bunch of lottery tickets instead of depending on athletics over education. I also never thought of WHAT IF I DO MAKE IT and what would happen with such an influx of money?

This frame of thinking not only stifled me, it delayed my development as a person. I only identified myself by how many yards and how many touchdowns I would score - not what grades or diplomas I earned. I thought the only way to combat a situational problem (poverty) was with a temporary solution.

I did make it in the NFL but it was short lived. I was drafted in the sixth round in the 1994 NFL draft as the #172 overall pick. After a highlight here and there, I was released within a few seasons. With no real education, I thought my life was over. I didn't go to class in college and didn't think studying was necessary because playing football was my priority. I was full of regret and doubt and really trying to figure out who I was.

I was fortunate that another mentor came into my life. Aeneas Williams is a 2014 football Hall of Fame inductee who had an excellent spirit and asked me pointed questions that made me think about "what did God put me on this earth for?" He showed me that even a chair is not fulfilling its potential if nobody is sitting in it.

Here I was a former college standout and NFL player who couldn't get a good job to provide for his family because of a flawed value system. Aeneas challenged me as a person and taught me that football is what you do and education - albeit spiritual or natural - actually becomes you.

I listened to him and landed a job at Enterprise and worked my way through the management trainee program. This led to my becoming a General Manager and Chief Operating Officer with several auto dealerships for the next 15 years until I became an Allstate Agency Owner here in Louisville.

And throughout this journey I have never stopped giving back the way my mentors gave to me. I coach youth football with the Louisville Patriots; the number one thing I teach my kids is not to limit yourself and don't let your current condition affect your destined position. I want them to take advantage of an education - it can never be taken from you.

And most importantly, find a mentor and follow their example.

Research proves that caring volunteers working as mentors with students of all ages have the power to help kids boost academic achievement and put young people on track to enter kindergarten ready to learn and graduate high school on time so that they are prepared for college, work and life.

What can you do to help? It's National Volunteer Month! Show your support for kids in our community by volunteering to read, tutor or mentor a child today. It only takes a few seconds - promise!

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Terry Samuels grew up in Louisville, Kentucky and played football at the University of Kentucky and also the Arizona Cardinals in the NFL. After a few seasons with the Cardinals, he started the management trainee program at Enterprise Rent A Car and later became General Manager and Chief Operating Officer of several auto dealerships. Terry is currently an Agency Principle for Allstate Insurance and lives in Louisville with his wife Patrice, has 6 children and enjoys coaching little league football.

Terry can be reached at:
tsamuels@allstate.com
Cell: 502-794-5692
Office: 502-805-1525