Daryl Bell Receives the Prestigious Carl Erskine Values Award

Central Ohio FCA is proud to announce that Coach Daryl Bell has received the Erskine Award. It was presented at the FCA Great Lakes Region Annual Retreat, held September 28–30 at Vista Community Church in Dublin, Ohio.

The award carries the name of Carl Erskine, the Brooklyn Dodgers pitcher who was one of FCA's charter members. Erskine was among the first Major League players to use his platform to share the Gospel, and he spent a lifetime pouring into athletes and coaches long after his playing days ended. It's hard to imagine anyone in Central Ohio who better reflects that legacy than Daryl Bell.

A coach's coach

Daryl's story starts where so many FCA stories do: on the sidelines. As a coach at Worthington Christian, he saw firsthand how much influence a coach has on young people, and how much coaches themselves need encouragement, community and a growing faith.

That conviction led Daryl to become one of the first people within FCA to start and develop the Coaches Ministry. What began as a simple idea, that coaches need to be coached too, has grown over the last 20 years into a ministry that has reached hundreds of coaches and, through them, thousands of their athletes. Every coach who has been encouraged in a huddle, prayed for by a peer or equipped through a 360 Coach lesson is part of the fruit of the groundwork Daryl laid.

"When asked to nominate someone that represented the FCA values of integrity, serving, teamwork, and excellence that the Erskine award reflects, Daryl Bell was far and away the right person to nominate," explained Aaron Quinn, Multi-Area Director for Central Ohio FCA. "In fact, Daryl always reminds us to consult the Word of God before taking action and he is the servant described in Matthew 25:21. It is a true privilege and pleasure to work alongside the Bells."

Building a cross-country family

Daryl has also led FCA's cross-country ministry for years. Alongside his wife, Debbie, he leads FCA's Cross Country and Track teams, which serve about 70 middle and high school athletes each year from Columbus and the surrounding area. The majority of them are homeschooled students who might not otherwise have a team to call their own.

Each summer the Bells also host a Family Summer Running Club that draws more than 200 participants. Their athletes say Coach Bell has taught them "the importance of diligence, accountability, encouragement, and leadership," lessons that last well beyond the finish line.

Faithful over the long run

Distance runners know that the race isn't won in a single moment. It's won through steady, faithful miles, day after day. That's the kind of ministry Daryl has built: consistent, humble and focused on others.

That faithfulness has already been recognized at the national level. Daryl is a member of the FCA Hall of Honor, which recognizes FCA staff who have served for 20 years or more as a testament to the Lord's faithfulness. It's a fitting tribute to two decades spent serving coaches and athletes across Central Ohio.

Today, Daryl continues to serve Central Ohio with Debbie in the Cross-Country/Track Ministry and serves as the coach emeritus for Central Ohio FCA's Coaches Ministry through prayer and mentorship of Jeff Brenning and FCA staff.

Please join us in congratulating Coach Daryl Bell on this well-deserved honor.