The Health Initiative salutes Anne Barr as its Real Woman of the month. Anne was recently named the Health Initiative's 2008 Healing Angel, in honor of her establishment of the Decatur Women's Sports League. The sports league has grown from an initial membership of 200 women playing softball to almost 1000 women playing a variety of sports, from softball to basketball to bowling, with even more sports to come.
Anne Barr's own healing journey through sports began as a little girl who attended a strict Catholic school, and who, after a few short years, was no longer allowed to play with the boys because she was, after all, a girl. When finally at age nine she was allowed to play on a girls' softball team, her tomboy spirit joyfully blossomed again. From a grade school softball team, middle school basketball and back to softball through her twenties, Anne found her home and soothed her spirit on any field or court where a ball could be hit, thrown, caught and chased.
Anne played softball in high school and beyond, playing in increasingly tough leagues until the sport just got "too mean"-competitiveness among the players seemed increasingly to encroach on fair play, "sportswomanship" and respect in general. Those who know Anne will tell you these are three values she insists on in the Decatur Women's Sports League.
Without sports in her life, Anne turned to work-lots of it. And she eventually turned to alcohol, as many in the LGBTQ community do. She struggled for a decade or more before she realized she had to change.
She began the next phase of her healing journey-one in which she began to help others to heal. She got sober and reclaimed her faith. She dedicated the rest of her life to service to others-so much so that when she left her job at UPS, she never looked back.
First she volunteered with Meals on Wheels, and then turned her volunteer work into a job, where she still serves today. She also coached teams for the Hotlanta softball league. Anne started by coaching the women's teams. But when the men witnessed her ability to bring out the best in people, they asked her to help them, too. Along the way, she picked up the nickname, "Sarge," for her short haircut, her discipline and her vague resemblance to Sergeant Carter from the old Gomer Pyle TV show.
Sarge especially liked helping men who had been the awkward sports outcasts in their school days learn the basics of softball and be themselves at the same time. After the Hotlanta league lost its intown sports complex and was relegated to locations far beyond the outer perimeter, Sarge crafted a new dream-a league where women of any age and any skill level could come together and come to love sports the way she did.
About the same time Sarge was working to turn her dream into reality, a long-time friend was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Sarge helped her as well, accompanying her to support meetings at the Health Initiative. When Sarge started the Decatur Women's Sports League, she named the Health Initiative as recipient of all proceeds from the league.
When she first organized the league, the only time slot available was on Friday nights. She thought the Friday night slot might present a barrier, but 200 women signed up almost immediately. The Decatur Women's Sports League was off and running. Attendance remained so strong and the women were so enthusiastic that she added a bowling league for the off-season. More women joined. From there, the teams multiplied.
What's next for the sports league? The League currently runs leagues for softball, basketball and bowling. Volleyball, tennis and badminton are in the works. Almost 1000 individuals have signed up since the start of that first softball season. The only downside for Sarge is that with so many sports and teams and games, she can no longer attend every game personally. Sarge is looking to add more league leaders with the same dedication to fair play, sportswomanship and respect. With those standards and the spirit of Sarge in its leaders, the Decatur Women's Sports League and all the women who play should thrive for some time to come.
In closing, Real Woman features Anne's answers to nine questions adapted from the well-known Proust Questionnaire:
What is your idea of happiness? Anne: Appreciating what you have
What quality do you most admire in a person: Anne: spirit
Who are your heroes in real life? Anne: Dr. Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks, Donna Narducci, Linda Ellis
What is it that you most dislike? Anne: inequality
What natural gift would you most like to possess? Anne: playing a musical instrument
What is your favorite occupation: Anne: Directing the Decatur Women's Sports League
What is your favorite exercise? Anne: swimming
What is your favorite color? Anne: blue
How would you like your tombstone to read? Anne: Thank you, God, for all my blessings.
