SARAH Silvernail spoke on behalf of the members of the All-America team at Friday's AVCA women's volleyball brunch. But she also spoke to all parents of young athletes in every sport. Parents made sacrifices
for their daughters"We wouldn't be here without you, our parents," the Washington State hitter told the audience. "This is an award for being on the right path in life."
There is a lot of love that goes into nurturing an athlete's career. There are also a lot of dollar signs in that support: money for shoes, club fees, travel.
The success started with sacrifice. Launching their daughters' careers for the University of Hawaii volleyball players meant personal involvement for the parents.
"For us, the sacrifice was the money," said Lovina Ah Mow, mother of senior setter Robyn. "She played club ball from the fifth grade. Every year, she took a trip to the mainland. We had to help the club with fund-raising. We committed a lot of time but we didn't mind it because we were volleyball players."
Lovina Ah Mow said she and husband Talmadge coaxed, rather than pushed, their daughter to keep her grades up in high school.
"It wasn't until she was a junior in high school that I think Robyn realized she didn't want high school to be the end of her playing career," Lovina Ah Mow said. "But she knew that meant she would have to buckle down in the classroom. It was more of mental thing and we tried to support her in that aspect as much as we could because we knew how important getting that (college) education that came with volleyball would be."
Ann-Britt and Leif Ljungquist weren't around often to support their daughter, Angelica, at Wahine matches. The 30-hour flight from Sweden to Honolulu was a once-a-year treat.
Imagine how difficult it was to allow their oldest daughter to fly halfway around the world on the promise of a scholarship and the word of former Wahine player Malin Fransson, Angelica's club coach.
"We are happy she came to Hawaii," said Ann-Britt after watching her daughter receive the national Player of the Year award Friday. "It was not easy to let go but she was very happy."
Norinne Quinsaat let go of her older daughter, Nalani Yamashita, even earlier. Yamashita commuted from Maui to Honolulu in order to compete for Kamalii Volleyball Club, and also lived with her high school coach, Poni Daines, so as to attend Mid-Pacific Institute as a freshman and continue to play club ball.
"When Joselyn got involved in sports, we used that as another avenue to attain that goal of going to college," Roy Robins said of his eldest daughter. "I wanted her to experience what sports brings to your life, the challenges, the competition, the hard work, the camaraderie among players.
"When Aiea lost to Waianae for a chance at the playoffs, she took it so hard. I was happy because it showed me she had the desire to excel. My wife (Laverne) spent a lot time driving her to and from practice, the fund-raisers. There is a lot of money involved but we felt it was a good investment. Before the match (Saturday's loss to Stanford), I told her she had exceeded all of our expectations, that it was awesome where she was at."
Roy Robins said his daughter was especially proud of being able to play for the state of Hawaii and be able to share her dream that the possibilities are there to play at home through hard work. "We're all proud of the job she's done in giving back to the community."
Anyone who experienced last week's final four couldn't help feeling touched by the sense of pride and accomplishment the parents had in watching their children achieve the best. Only one team could walk away with the trophy, but every athlete walked away a winner.
As Lovina Ah Mow said after the All-American banquet, "You couldn't buy a day like today."
Cindy Luis is a Star-Bulletin sportswriter.
Her column appears weekly.