Ron Schmittling is the Softball Director of the Extreme Baseball & Softball Club based in Collinsville, Illinois about 15 minutes from downtown St. Louis.
He explains the mission of the fastpitch program as being “for those highly committed to competing on a national softball level while also growing as a person.”
Schmittling, who also serves as the head coach for the Extreme Elite 16U team, got together with Paul Tremlin of 117 Pro to produce the following video called “The Coffee Bean Project.”
Watch the five-minute video and then go below to read about the purpose and successful results behind it as well as more background on the program…
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The “Coffee Bean Project” Genesis
By Ron Schmittling
It’s common now to read articles or social media posts with something akin to “…we are in unprecedented times…” And that it a very true and real statement during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Our way of life has changed, it’s real and so is our ‘new normal’. In the Extreme Elite, we have banded together to keep our mindset in a positive space. We are choosing to believe the changes are for the better and for growth.
The theme for our Extreme Elite program this year was “Be a Coffee Bean.” This is in reference to the book The Coffee Bean written by Jon Gordon and Damon West. We were looking for athlete motivation and commitment to TRANSFORM their own environments.
Who would have known when we started this theme early in the year that it would hold so true? This situation/pandemic has handed us all a huge pot of boiling water…will it change us or will we use this time to change our environments?
Our heart goes out to those who have experienced loss and sacrifice during these challenging times. For those who have experienced loss, we are deeply sorry and hope you find strength and beauty in the storm.
I think God is giving us a huge reset on our way of life. I think he is asking us to live our lives the way he had envisioned for us and get back to some basics. Family, love, positivity, less is more, quality time together, etc.
My belief is that this reset is something we should be grateful for and use this time for those things we always say we don’t have time for. We should all strive to be a guiding light and a positive influence.
Since the pandemic began, many have been asking questions that involve anxiety, fear, worry, and outright frustration. Things like, my daughter is being cheated, recruiting won’t happen for my athlete now, etc.
We have been handed a huge uncontrollable (or pot of boiling water), the only thing we can control is our response to it. We teach and coach this within our athletes, but now we were challenged to address this deeper with our athletes and to make sure our coaches and families were on board as well.
Up until this point, we had never done a mental training session that included families, only athletes. It was time to engage our entire circle of influence and welcome our families in to the discussion and training around the importance of having a positive mindset in these trying times and coming out of this better than they were before.
My request was for our athletes and families to transform their environments with positivity and share what they’ve learned through this unprecedented time and how we have changed for the better.
We challenged them to create a family video by Easter Sunday and answer five questions:
- START: What is one thing that you have STARTED which has brought you together as a family
- STOP: What is one thing that you have STOPPED which moves you closer as a family
- CONTINUE: What is one thing that you CONTINUED which has kept you together as a family
- WHAT IS ONE WORD to describe what your family will aspire to be /do the remainder of 2020?
- COFFEE BEAN MOMENT: How have you transformed your environment (family, work, school, teams, new friendships, culturing old friendships, etc.)?
The response was overwhelmingly positive and incredible!
Our families created wonderful works to cherish forever. Athletes and families contributed in ways that I didn’t think were possible. They truly exceeded expectations.
Proud would be an understatement of their final products (the culminated video above is a snapshot of their work).
For the full family videos (to be released soon), check out our Facebook page (@ExtremeEliteSB).
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More on the Extreme Elite program…
When did the team/program start and how/why did it come to be?
In 1999, the Collinsville Extreme was created out of a need for local athletes to play more than high school softball. The Extreme burst onto the local scene that year, the ‘Extreme Pride’ rallying cry was created and the organization began traveling to ‘out of town’ tournaments.
In 2009, the Extreme Elite program was established as an option for elite high-school athletes to begin playing softball against national competition. This also served as a chance for local players to be recruited by college programs outside of our local market. The legacy built up since the 2009 team has been impressive, including 18U national USSSA champions (2012), Atlanta Legacy 16U Champions (2017), competing internationally in the Canada Cup, receiving invites to the inaugural ASA/USA 16u Gold nationals, Colorado Fireworks Power/Supplement/Elite Pools, and playing against the best competition in numerous national invites and showcases.
For 2019-2020, Extreme Elite 16U Gold (Team #12) looks to continue and further that legacy. The Extreme Elite program currently has six teams broken down into our Gold/National teams (14U, 16U, 18U) and our Prospect/Development teams (14U, 16U, 18U). Each team has a specific purpose in our program to allow athletes to grow and develop in healthy manner to meet each athlete’s goals.
Where are you based? Where do your athletes come from (all locally, some out of state?)
We are based out of Collinsville, Illinois (about 15 minutes from downtown St. Louis). Our athletes are typically from a two-hour radius around our home base. However, over the past several years, we have broadened our reach and have players from Kentucky, Indiana, Tennessee, Virginia and Canada. I do receive inquiries from across the country about our program, spanning from Virginia to California. Many are looking for the model, culture, and growth mindset that the Extreme Elite has been able to create and employ.
What is the mission of creating the team (showcase players, win titles, develop skills, etc.)?
Our Extreme Elite program is built to provide a foundation for ‘like minded’ athletes and families to learn and grow in a culture-based program, similar to that of a national collegiate program. The program is for those highly committed to competing on a national softball level while also growing as a person.
Our mission is “To be the chosen and valued premier, national softball program for athletes and families in the Midwest known for holistic athlete development, playing the game the ‘right way’, pushing training creativity limits, education our region, and transforming athletes into better people while moving them toward their preferred collegiate goals.”
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For more information, check out Extreme Elite online and on social media:
- Website: www.extremepride.org
- Facebook: @ExtremeEliteSB or @ExtremeEliteGold16u
- Twitter: @ExtremeEliteSB or @ExtremeElite16G
- Instagram: extremeelitesb or extremeelite16ugold
