Carmen Johnson has experienced every emotion known to mankind over the past week – ranging from the type of happiness that comes with the arrival of a new baby, to the sadness of finding out her mother has a brain tumor.
Oh, yes, she also has informed the girls on her Blue Springs South volleyball team that she was resigning her head coaching position after four years at the school.
The reason for leaving the Jaguars was to move with her husband Paul, their three sons – Landon, 10, Hayden, 6, and Coltin, 5 – and recently born little sister, Isabella Marie, to Little Falls, Minn., where her husband will begin his new job in the Little Falls Orthopedic Center and she will coach volleyball at Little Falls High School in a community of 10,000.
“We had our banquet last week, and I didn’t want to tell the girls about my resignation because I wanted the banquet to be about them, and not me,” said Johnson, who has been at South the past four years.
“Last Tuesday, I called the girls in and told them of my decision. It was one of the hardest things I ever had to do. There were tears – lots of tears – but it was the right time to make the move.
“We always knew we wanted to move back near our home in Minnesota and Paul (an orthopedic surgeon) found a job and they needed a teacher and a volleyball coach at the high school in Little Falls.
“It was the right time to move the boys, too, although they’re going to miss the girls as much as I am.”
Following that traumatic Tuesday afternoon, Johnson went to school and wasn’t feeling well.
“Natalie (Gieseke, a senior setter and aide in Johnson’s classroom) was timing my contractions,” the coach said, “and they were about a half hour apart.”
Johnson called her husband and he picked her up from school at 11 a.m. She delivered Isabella at 2:30 p.m., Wednesday at St. Mary’s Hospital in Blue Springs.
“A minute or two after she was born, I got a text,” Johnson said, chuckling. “It was from Natalie – all the girls were in the hospital lobby.”
Paul and I wanted the boys to be the first to hold the baby, and after they held her, we let the girls come up. Oh, my gosh, were they excited.”
After the delivery, Johnson received news that her mother, Mary Jo Kreibich, was going to the doctor for some tests.
“She hadn’t been feeling well, so we finally got her to see a doctor and they discovered a tumor on her brain,” Johnson said on the phone as the family drove to Minnesota. “She’s having surgery this week.
“So, to say my life has been a roller coaster would be an understatement. I have enjoyed my time at Blue Springs South and will miss the girls, and the school and the community. It’s been a special time in my life and the life of my family.”
Blue Springs South activities director Mark Bubalo said the school has not yet begun the search for a new coach.
“We have plenty of time for that,” Bubalo said. “We want to get the right coach – like we did when we hired Carmen. She’s done a great job with this team. You can tell by the reaction of the girls on her team what she meant to them.”
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Carmen Johnson has experienced every emotion known to mankind over the past week – ranging from the type of happiness that comes with the arrival of a new baby, to the sadness of finding out her mother has a brain tumor.
Oh, yes, she also has informed the girls on her Blue Springs South volleyball team that she was resigning her head coaching position after four years at the school.
The reason for leaving the Jaguars was to move with her husband Paul, their three sons – Landon, 10, Hayden, 6, and Coltin, 5 – and recently born little sister, Isabella Marie, to Little Falls, Minn., where her husband will begin his new job in the Little Falls Orthopedic Center and she will coach volleyball at Little Falls High School in a community of 10,000.
“We had our banquet last week, and I didn’t want to tell the girls about my resignation because I wanted the banquet to be about them, and not me,” said Johnson, who has been at South the past four years.
“Last Tuesday, I called the girls in and told them of my decision. It was one of the hardest things I ever had to do. There were tears – lots of tears – but it was the right time to make the move.
“We always knew we wanted to move back near our home in Minnesota and Paul (an orthopedic surgeon) found a job and they needed a teacher and a volleyball coach at the high school in Little Falls.
“It was the right time to move the boys, too, although they’re going to miss the girls as much as I am.”
Following that traumatic Tuesday afternoon, Johnson went to school and wasn’t feeling well.
“Natalie (Gieseke, a senior setter and aide in Johnson’s classroom) was timing my contractions,” the coach said, “and they were about a half hour apart.”
Johnson called her husband and he picked her up from school at 11 a.m. She delivered Isabella at 2:30 p.m., Wednesday at St. Mary’s Hospital in Blue Springs.
“A minute or two after she was born, I got a text,” Johnson said, chuckling. “It was from Natalie – all the girls were in the hospital lobby.”
Paul and I wanted the boys to be the first to hold the baby, and after they held her, we let the girls come up. Oh, my gosh, were they excited.”
After the delivery, Johnson received news that her mother, Mary Jo Kreibich, was going to the doctor for some tests.
“She hadn’t been feeling well, so we finally got her to see a doctor and they discovered a tumor on her brain,” Johnson said on the phone as the family drove to Minnesota. “She’s having surgery this week.
“So, to say my life has been a roller coaster would be an understatement. I have enjoyed my time at Blue Springs South and will miss the girls, and the school and the community. It’s been a special time in my life and the life of my family.”
Blue Springs South activities director Mark Bubalo said the school has not yet begun the search for a new coach.
“We have plenty of time for that,” Bubalo said. “We want to get the right coach – like we did when we hired Carmen. She’s done a great job with this team. You can tell by the reaction of the girls on her team what she meant to them.”
