Letter to Editor: Defending Coach Patton

The following letter to the editor was submitted by Kristy Trenary, who assisted with San Clemente High's football program and is a mother of two girls who attend CUSD schools.

I am writing to express my objection to Superintendent Joseph Farley and CUSD’s abhorrent treatment of San Clemente High football coach Eric Patton. This is a man who should have been praised by them for his commitment to our students, our revered high school football players and our district.

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Instead, they chose a path to destroy his flawless reputation as coach, mentor and teacher. I have been appalled by their behavior and lack of respect toward this hardworking, dedicated man.

I am shocked that they would not have had all the facts before making a judgment that would completely alter the life of another person. I believe they listened to what the Sandos offered as “evidence” and ran with it. This then put them in a position to have to defend the superintendent’s irresponsible statements to the press and do everything in their power to make biased, skewed, shoddy information work for them so that they didn’t look the fool.

Let me give you some facts about Patton. He has been a loyal employee of CUSD. He has given 100 percent to his students and players. He arrived at school every morning before 6 a.m. and very often was there until after 7 p.m. There are very few teachers who gladly put in 13-hour days to make sure their students are getting the best the teacher has to offer.

He taught four periods of Advanced English or Bible Literature a day and then headed out to the field to work with a football team of outstanding boys. (Boys he coached so well that they made it to the championship this year. Make no mistake: That was his team on that field that night.)  

On the field, he taught them respect and dignity. He took his lunch hours to meet individually with students (to discuss classwork or study suggestions) and players (to discuss how to interview with recruiters or how to get the most out of their team or positions). Patton made a commitment to teach and coach, and did it proudly every day.

Prior to soaking up all of the erroneous information the Sandoses gave to the district, had they taken the time to fully look into everything that Patton had to offer in his defense, and listen to what the sons of the former owner of Lapes had to say, I believe there would have been a very different view of this travesty. Not only is Patton not guilty of taking anything from the district, he actually has donated his time and a significant amount of his own money toward the football program.

The district has very little financial investment in the SCHS football program. Many of the items the team needed would be purchased from monies donated to the Booster Club or out of the Summer Camp funds. If there was not enough money for a specific need, Coach Patton would pay for it personally. He always paid himself last, making sure the team or additional coaches did not go without. Many times this meant he did not get paid or reimbursed. He provided items the team continues to use every day, including equipment and anything he could get to make the football office comfortable for players and visitors.

I am in disbelief that a man that has given so much of himself to his community has been removed from our small pool of quality teachers due to “change orders” and improper paper pushing. Given the amount of time Patton spent with students and players, this seems like such a petty excuse by the district. The district did not lose any money by Coach Patton having to exchange items through Lapes directly. If a correct protocol was not followed, whose responsibility should it have been to explain how the system worked? Why was the coach held solely responsible for not following procedures that were not being practiced when he took the position? Why wasn’t an administrator assigned to handle these things if it was such an important policy, rather than a man who already was working 10-13 hour days?  

It is as simple as this example: If there were not enough large helmets and a medium one could be quickly exchanged, isn’t it more important to worry about the safety of a player than whether or not the correct form was filled out? I think the priorities are backwards here. If CUSD had done its due diligence, this all would have been avoided. Instead they chose to waste an unfathomable amount of money chasing a nonissue to prove a point and make sure enough commotion was made to hide a horrible mistake.  

We live in a society where one should be innocent until proven guilty. Farley and the CUSD school board convicted Patton without having all of the facts. Their stance was based on ideas from angry people with an ax to grind. This poor man has been dragged through the mud for months and months. By not looking into this quietly and first gathering every fact to make an educated evaluation of the situation, Farley allowed Patton and other coaches to be persecuted by journalists who published the same skewed information over and over again. All the while, Patton acted with dignity and grace (this alone should give you insight to his character). Not only did these actions, decisions and statements by Farley harm Patton, they affected players, students, his family and an entire community.  To what end? 

Farley was hired to help CUSD overcome horrible financial circumstances, bad press and a declining educational system - not to mention the increasing drug problem at our middle and high schools. Over the last year, these are the items they should have been focusing on. It sickens me that my children are sitting in classrooms with 35-40 students at the high school. This is where the district’s money and time should be spent.

Kristy Trenary
San Clemente