Bonanza head coach, staff mourn the passing of Cole Joseph Stafford
(Feb 19, 2008)
– Tragedy struck the Bonanza Baseball program last week when head coach Derek Stafford's little brother, Cole Stafford passed away suddenly at the age of 22.
A youth pastor at Cornerstone Fellowship, Stafford was the second youngest of five brothers and was well-liked around the community.
"We're all in a bit of shock still," said assistant coach Kevin Fiddler, who – along with pitching coach Mike O'Rourke and junior varsity coach Joe Nichols – ran practices during head coach Stafford's time away with his family. "We preach family in this program so when one of our own goes through something like this, we are sure to be right there to hold them up in support. For me, Derek is my best friend first, and the coaches knew he needed to be with his family. We decided to continue practice to honor Cole.
"This whole ordeal shows that EVERYONE in this program is important and not immune to adversity, from the smallest guy on the totem pole all the way to the top, as head coach. It's how we react to adversity that makes us men. You're either running away from the fire or towards it. We'd like to think our guys would run towards it and look at adversity as another one of life's tests."
To honor his brother's passing, the Bengals will wear Cole's initials on one style of the Bonanza hat as well as on their as-of-yet unveiled jerseys.
"We will be honoring my brother this season by embroidering his initials 'CS' on our brown hats," said Stafford, who returned this week to practice after the hiatus. "We will also be introducing a new varsity jersey this year and on the left sleeve will be my brother initials as well. It's a way to honor a good kid, who did well in school, and led a life that mattered. That is what we want for all of our players and this will be a reminder to them."
Stafford was very grateful for the outpouring of support from his family, friends and players during the darkest days these past few weeks.
"There were about 700 people at my 22-year-old brother's funeral," the fourth-year head coach said. "It was incredible and I think it was a true reflection of the type of person he was and the life he led. He made a huge impact on everyone, especially the youth group he led at Cornerstone. The support my family has received from family and friends has been incredible and made things a lot easier.
"The support I received from my Bonanza Baseball family was inspiring and really hit home with me that I am truly blessed to be able to coach such an amazing group of young men."
Bonanza officially opens the season March 6 at Basic.
