Where We Stand
by
Kelly L. Martinez
Writing a weekly article is not an easy task.
In a culture where sports is ubiquitous, it seems that sports has been written
about, analyzed, talked about, dissected, and digested to death.
What can I possibly write that would interest the Meridian audience? If I knew the answer, I’d churn
out an article a week. I do what I can, when I can.
Truth be known, I rarely watch sports. I used to get paid to attend sporting
events. I used to work in the sports information offices of two
junior colleges and part-time for the Los Angeles Clippers from
1995-99. It was a unique experience, working for a professional
sports team, but one I am not too anxious to repeat. The perks,
as one might imagine, of sitting courtside at an NBA game are
many.
Pre-game meals with the likes of Bill Walton, Elgin Baylor, and various members
of the L.A. sports media are memories that I look upon fondly.
However, it has been my association with Meridian Magazine that
has brought the most meaning and substance to my sports-related
career. Never have I been able to write of my two great loves,
the Gospel and sports, in the same article. It is a privilege
I cherish.
A Dream Realized
When I was a youngster, I would dream of writing for the Los Angeles Times.
That dream became reality in 1997 when the Times picked up an
article I had written on a high school football game and ran it
in the main section of the sports page. I was thrilled.
My association with the Times continued through 2000 as I provided freelance
coverage of high school and junior college sports. My articles
appeared in smaller publications in southern California as well, but my rendezvous with Meridian
beckoned … and I didn’t even know it.
While surfing the Net one day in early 2001, I discovered Meridian Magazine.
I read over a few of the articles and found them to be quite interesting.
I especially enjoyed Kieth Merrill’s articles and was pleasantly
surprised to learn that Anne Perry is LDS. I especially enjoyed
her insightful articles. I found the content of Meridian to be of the utmost quality. However, I
noticed there were no sports articles.
After contacting the editors about the possibility of my contributing to Meridian, their reply came quickly informing me that
the decision had just been made to launch a sports arm of the
magazine. Writing samples were sent, thoughts regarding content
were exchanged and, on a risk by the magazine, I was brought on
board as the sole sports writer for the magazine.
Two drafts and several weeks later, Meridian Sports was born on May
31, 2001. The initial articles were awkward and weren’t read
by many, but a project had been undertaken and I was intent on
seeing it through. It’s been a hard road since, but it seems
we’ve found our niche. As I’ve stated several times in the past
24 months, our efforts are aimed at the good, the uplifting, the
edifying, and the interesting in the sporting world. I hope that
goal is being reached.
The Current Project
On Feb. 21, we called for help in compiling a list of LDS athletes, coaches
and sports broadcasters. The response has been overwhelming.
Our list is now nearing the 400 mark and is receiving additions
nearly every day. Apparently, people are reading and want to
see the list.
There are articles in the planning stages that I hope will keep our audience
tuned in. It is difficult finding the time I would like to put
into Meridian Sports, but I hope you enjoy what we are providing.
So, if you keep reading, I’ll keep writing. Check out our updated list:
click
here to see the updated list.
