Home team: Mitzie Charles talks about a busy life built with LCA Coach Doug Charles
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Lexington Christian Academy’s football head coach isn’t perfect. That’s the point
Football is both ministry and sanctuary for 61-year-old Pikeville native who uses his platform to help his players and others on and off the field.
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Life coach: Lexington Christian Academy’s Doug Charles isn’t perfect. And that’s the point.
Home team: Mitzie Charles talks about a busy life built with LCA Coach Doug Charles
‘Football is a microcosm of life.’ Why coaching is Doug Charles’ calling.
Slideshow: LCA football’s Doug Charles a role model through good times and bad
Mitzie Charles and Lexington Christian Academy football coach Doug Charles began dating as divorced single parents of young children. In the years since, they’ve raised those kids, married and started over again with two adopted sons, ages 10 and 6. They also have custody of a 2-year-old boy while also helping out with their grandchildren.
It’s never dull, and Mitzie Charles wouldn’t have it any other way. The following is a Q&A with Mitzie Charles about how football and family fit together. It has been edited for clarity.
You met Doug Charles when he began coaching your son’s youth league team. What were your initial impressions?
He was such a nice guy. … He was just a busy person and a great coach. All the kids loved him.
Weston was always excited about going to football practice because he just loved going to play with Coach Doug.
But the second year, he grabbed Weston’s helmet (her youngest) and told him, ‘You go home and tell your mom to cut your hair.’
Weston comes up and says, ‘Mom, toach tays you have to tut my hair.’
I thought, ‘There wasn’t a rule you couldn’t play with long hair. … That coach can’t tell me to cut your hair.’
Little did I know we’d be spending a lot more time with Coach Doug.
Did you think that you would remarry?
I always said I would not remarry because I was happy being a single mom raising Jessye and Weston and running my nursery. And I enjoyed going out with family and friends and that kept my social life busy.
What was the courtship like? You dated for 13 years?
It was fun. It had its ups and downs, but we got through it.
With me being already married once I wasn’t in any hurry. We were together, so it was no big deal.
We were just so busy, me with my kids and him with his kids.
We started talking after a football season and he sent me flowers and a little note that said he really enjoyed my company and he would like to get to know me better. …
We just started talking on the phone and we were like teenagers. He’d call and we’d talk for hours.
He’d tell me all about his past and I’d talk about my past, so we talked on the phone forever before we ever went out. He was just so easy to talk to.
And when he explained about all his divorces (Charles had already been married three times), I understood.
I had to explain to people that he’s a good guy.
It didn’t matter.
How did you get introduced to football?
When I was growing up, there were 12 of us in 13 years — I had 11 brothers and sisters — I was the first girl. There were five older boys.
And I was a big tomboy, so I played football with my brothers.
Having two boys playing football made me enjoy it that much more. So, I love football.
I’ve had friends ask, ‘How do you stand to just go out there and watch?’ And I’m like, ‘Well, I love it. I love watching football.”
What inspired you to take in children and ultimately adopt?
Growing up with five older brothers and six younger (siblings), I just always loved kids. Once we all started school, my mom, babysat during the day.
I had a daycare and I kept newborns to 5-year-olds. When Weston was 3 or 4, I missed that baby (experience). … I started volunteering for young moms at the nursery and I would take them to church on Wednesday nights and keep some of them on weekends.
And now you have two adopted sons and custody of another.
And it’s fun. I love every minute of it. I’d be bored without the kids, and I love that the grandkids want to spend time with us.
How does Doug’s coaching fit into your family life?
I don’t mind it because I know that’s what he loves. … I would not stop him from coaching because he’s been doing it since I met him.
Since I have the kids, it’s easy. … If I didn’t have them, I’d probably be at every football practice.
When we were dating, and even when my sons weren’t playing, I was still at every football practice that he had. So, we were just always together.
Now, with the kids — and I have three granddaughters that spend a lot of time with us because they are all so close in age — they keep me busy and they love going to the games, too.
And he doesn’t have to go to the office every day. He can work from home, so he’s home a lot. Now, he might be on the phone, but he’s here.
It seems you’re constantly on the go.
“I can’t imagine my life being any different. … My neighbor saw me going to the mailbox and drove by and said, ‘Do you ever stop?’
He said, ‘You go all the time,’ And I’m like, well, they keep me on my toes,’ because I don’t have time to sit down and do anything, unless, you know, I’ve got six of them in my lap.”
This story was originally published September 1, 2022 at 10:16 AM.
