Tracy Payne has a significant influence on our students beyond the academic world as both the Deep Run Young Life leader and girls JV lacrosse coach.
Payne first moved to the West End to become a Young Life leader at Deep Run in 2017. After one year, she transferred to be Godwin’s leader, but came back to what she calls “the best school, Deep Run” in 2021.
Then, in 2023, Payne decided she wanted to help with the lacrosse team because of her connections to the students, so she emailed the head coach of the team.
“I knew some girls who played on the Varsity lacrosse team,” Payne said.
When she sent the email, it turned out they were looking for a head coach for the JV team.
“I never played lacrosse, but I was good with high schoolers and a fast learner,” Payne said.
Ever since the day she was hired, Payne has been impacting the players on the JV lacrosse team. Payne is currently the assistant coach and was the head coach last year. Freshman Iz Lyvers is on the girls JV lacrosse team and currently sees Payne almost every day.
“Tracy motivates us to be strong and is a great role model,” Lyvers said.
Lacrosse has brought Payne and the players many memories, including the time a bird pooped on freshman Allie Fox’s head.
“All of a sudden, she just started screaming and had bird poop on her head,” Payne said.
Payne has also impacted many more students at our school than just the ones on the lacrosse team. Over two hundred teenagers attend Young Life meetings every Thursday morning when Payne leads.
Payne has built deep connections and memories with these students as well. One example is the time that about 100 kids were all in a small basement around Christmas time, and they wanted to sing songs, but the sound system broke down.
“We all just sang Mistletoe acapella, and it was the best,” Payne said.
At the Young Life meetings, Payne gives advice to everybody about how to navigate high school life through a Christian perspective. The students have learned a lot about Payne and her life through this.
“She’s a ‘there you are’ kind of person, which means that she is the opposite of self-centered and looks out for other people,” junior Hayden Jarvis said. Jarvis attends Young Life almost every Thursday and sometimes more Young Life related events.
Payne works hard to ensure that the students here at our school are doing well educationally, athletically, and emotionally, despite facing challenges of her own. Despite not being in the building every day as a staff member, she has become an impactful member of the Deep Run community.
