Since he took over as head coach during the summer, Adrian Stein has tried to teach Monterey how to play better volleyball.

He’s also tried to teach the Lady Plainsmen how to be better people.
A disappointing season on the court will come to an end today, when Monterey (11-25, 3-14 in District 2-5A) hosts San Angelo Central (23-17, 6-11) for its last match of the year. What the team has done off the court, however, might be more important.

Last month, through donations and a raffle for door prizes at its match against rival Coronado, Monterey raised more than $1,300 and about 800 pounds of food for the South Plains Food Bank. The Lady Plainsmen held another raffle leading up to today’s match, with all proceeds benefitting Women’s Protective Services.

“These are important issues, and we’re trying to build good citizens,” Stein said. “This part is to show them they need to give more than the status quo — they need to help the less fortunate — and I’m hoping they got that out of this.”

Stein said the program’s younger players have been especially diligent about the charity work, so perhaps the Lady Plainsmen can develop a tradition of community service.

Stein also said it’s been a good vehicle for sparking interest in the volleyball program and boosting attendance at home matches.

Monterey gained at least one fan in Lyn Garcia, director of development for the South Plains Food Bank. Garcia, who accepted a check for $1,355 at the match against Coronado on Sept. 22, said it’s “so astounding” that the Lady Plainsmen came together to help those in need.

“Just to see these kids care so much about people in their community, it’s amazing,” she said. “It’s wonderful.”

Garcia said the food bank served about 92,000 people last year and has since seen about a 25 percent increase in those seeking its help. She said a $1 donation equates to about seven meals, and she estimated the food Monterey gathered will provide about another 1,000 meals.

So Garcia called Monterey’s contribution a “significant amount,” especially with the holiday season approaching.

“We need it so bad at this time of year,” she said. “It’s right before the U Can Share Food Drive (in December), so we’re really running low on food.

“We’re really expecting this Christmas to be a hard one,” Garcia said, “so just that these kids took the time and the effort to do this is so heartwarming.”

Jazmin Stewart, a senior outside hitter for Monterey, said it feels good to have helped.

“Giving back to the community is more important than records in games,” she said. “We’re out there on the court playing, but I think when we get older, we’ll realize that we gave back to the community and did something positive.”

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