Dianna Jordison, a local softball coach, has been chosen to be part of Softball Canada's Female Mentorship Program.--SUBMITTED PHOTO
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A Hatter will be representing the Medicine Hat Minor Softball Association when Softball Canada launches its 2021-22 Female Mentorship Program.
Dianna Jordison, head coach of the MHMSA U12 Thunder team, is one of 11 coach mentors participating in the program – the only mentor from Alberta.
“I was really shocked that I was the only one in Alberta and I’m really proud of that,” said Jordison. “I’m really excited to share those experiences that we have in Alberta and the successes that we do have. There are so many great women in our leadership roles in Alberta, so I’m hoping to represent them the best that I can.”
The mentorship program is 18 months and Jordison will be paired with a number of mentees where she will share her experiences with the game of softball and show all the possibilities of where the game can take you.
“It’ll be on the field, off the field, post-athletic careers, so what to do after college, how to give back to the community, how to get involved with the community, how to start programs for inclusivity, how to translate into your careers what you want out of it and just that reflection of women in sport I think is really crucial,” she said.
Jordison played in provincial, western and national competition in Saskatchewan during her minor softball career. She further pursued softball and played at the Division 1 level for the team at Montana State University Billings before returning to Alberta to play Senior A ball in Calgary.
She says she wants to show other female athletes they can pursue softball at an elite level like she did, and she also wants to show that you can continue to be a leader in the game after your playing career.
Jordison coaches at her own business in the Hat, Turn 2 Training, which she says is a developmental and advanced skills program focused don hitting, pitching and fielding. She runs camps, clinics and private lessons in Medicine Hat and surrounding areas in Alberta and southwest Saskatchewan.
“I just have this passion for the game and to develop their self-confidence and to show them that they have the opportunities to go further in the sport. A lot of girls don’t know they can develop their skills into going to college or trying out for elite teams like Softball Alberta or Softball Canada. Just getting those opportunities for the girls is so important to me for sure,” said Jordison.
Jordison says it’s important for these girls to see other women in leadership roles, but she adds she will be a “mentee” in some ways as well.
“These women that are in the mentorship program, they are so qualified,” she said. “It’s a little intimidating because their portfolios are so amazing and to be included in that group of women is a little overwhelming and I’m pretty proud of being involved because the women listed are amazing, I’m going to learn a lot from them as well.”
Jordison says she is excited to get the mentorship program started and that Michelle Campbell, MHMSA president and the rest of the executive team have been her No. 1 support and they push the association’s coaches to do more.
