For 27 years, Larry Street has coached basketball at Vanier Secondary, where he primarily taught physical education. Before coming to the Comox Valley, he had coached boys and girls for 20 years in Vancouver, Burnaby and Coquitlam.
This year, Street coached his 114th team. Besides basketball, he has also coached track, volleyball and field hockey.
“We (Vanier boys) put many hours in our quest for excellence,” Street said. “I keep coaching for many reasons, one of which is the quality of student-athletes I spend time with every year. Fantastic young men. Some of them set goals to play basketball after high school.”
At present, Vanier has five Towhees playing ball at the next level: Sam Barnie at Mount Royal, Levi Timmermans at UVic, Peter Greaves at Okanagan College, and Tristan Carriere-Bela and Aidan Walsh at Olds College.
Locally, Street has tried to build the game of basketball by co-ordinating and coaching Thunderball for elementary, the Run and Gun league for Grade 8 and 9 boys, and numerous summer camps, as well as a winter camp once in a while.
Street also enjoys conducting NCCP coaching clinics in the Valley and around B.C.
“I really enjoy watching all sports, playing golf and tennis,” he said. “Of course, playing b-ball is still a passion, and looking forward to my seventh World Masters Games.”
Street has been inducted into three Hall of Fames: the BC Sports Hall of Fame, Harry Jerome Award; Basketball BC Hall as a Builder, Coach and Athlete; and the GP Vanier Athletics Hall, Coach and Builder.