Eakins Forms Fast Friendship with 'Inspirational Young Man'

Ducks head coach Dallas Eakins spends his summers on the move.
An active guy at heart, Eakins has an unrelenting desire for self-improvement. Over the last few years, the Ducks bench boss has made a habit of traveling to observe prominent coaching staffs across multiple mediums, hoping to learn more about how others manage the challenges of overseeing a complex operation.
This past summer, one of those trips was to Tuscaloosa for some time studying the University of Alabama football program and legendary head coach Nick Saban.
Saban's reign at the highest peaks of the college football world are well-known, as are his patented snark and obsessive attention to detail. He's a seven-time national champion, a former NFL head coach and will surely go down as one of the best coaches in the history of the sport.
For Eakins, the trip was a chance to gain some valuable insight in a place much different from home, in the midst of one of the profession's greats. What he didn't expect was to meet an influential figure from just down the road, 30 years his junior.

In some ways, Eakins and Alex Chery are quite alike. Chery, a 16-year-old from Newport Beach, is a fitness fiend himself, constantly eager to learn more about self-improvement and what drives elite athletes.

Chery, who was born with Cerebral Palsy, was also in attendance in Tuscaloosa, spending the week interning with the Alabama training staff. Watching practice on the field one day, he was introduced to Eakins, and an instant friendship was formed.
As the two got to know one another, Eakins was struck by Chery's outlook on life. Here was a kid who, despite an early prognosis that he would likely never walk, was a living embodiment of one of Eakins' guiding principles - "Win Today."
"I pride myself on doing my best in everything I do," Chery said. "I want to be perfect, even though I know it's not possible. I want to win every day. I want to win at everything I do. You can't do that without trying your best."
"We talk a lot about "Win Today" here. We're trying to check off wins all day, not only from a hockey point of view but a life point of view," Eakins said. "That young man has an incredible amount of challenges but he goes into every day with an incredible attitude. Every day is a great day. He's basically winning every day."
Chery told the coach about how he manages a condition that limits his mobility on his left side, and prevents him from building typical leg strength, outlining his weekly workout routine and how mental dedication drives him through the tough days.
"I could be sad that I can't walk as well as you," Chery said. "I could be sad that I don't have this or that, but what does that do for me? That doesn't benefit me. It would be just me sulking in something I can't control. So you have to take what you got and work with it and build on it. Look forward and take one step ahead every day."
So Eakins presented Chery with a special opportunity, an invitation to shadow the Ducks coaches at #FlyTogether Fan Camp at Great Park Ice in September. Chery spent the day watching and learning, eager to take in as many aspects of the hockey operations and management processes as he could. He chatted with Ducks players going through morning workouts, sat in on a pre-practice video meeting, discussed practice plans and drills with Ducks assistant coaches and eventually watched the open scrimmage in the stands alongside Eakins.

"He's an inspiring young man and someone who has inspired me," Eakins said. "Any time you can find inspiration and share it with your family or team, it's an important thing."
"Seeing the guys and seeing how they work was great," Chery said. "It was great to see how they trained and how they orient themselves and present themselves...It was also great on the sports medicine side how the players recover and how it's different for each person. I feel like I learned a lot."
"I watched him light right up when we got here," Chery's mother, Marissa added. "Coach Eakins introduced him to all the coaches and players and took him on a tour of the place, and Alex was just so excited. When I saw him at the end of it all, his face was all lit up still."
Now a junior at Newport Harbor High School, Chery lives his life with an infectious positivity. Marissa believes it's what allows him to manage his condition so beautifully while focusing his future plans on how he can best support those around him.
"He's kind of an old soul and he's always been that way," she said. "Nothing stops him. He has always figured out a way to do anything he set his mind to."
Both Alex and Marissa were also quick to point out how much Eakins' support means, and how honored they felt to be recognized at training camp.
"He is such an incredible person and incredible coach," Marissa said. "For him to be concerned about people and give these opportunities to interact with the team, is amazing. It was such an amazing opportunity he gave Alex."
Chery wants to take some of his recent hands-on experiences and further his talents in college, potentially at Alabama, hopefully laying the groundwork to one day open a commercial gym geared towards assisting people with disabilities.
"I put in the work and put in the time, and I want to be able to provide that opportunity to other kids like myself," Chery said. "I want to give them the opportunity where, if you work at it and try, you'll get stronger too. I want to help them get out of a wheelchair, like I did."
It's something that brings his mother great joy and pride, as she watches her son navigate his own challenges with a passion for helping others.

"I'm just so proud of him," she said. "He's done so much but the fact that he's 16 years old and has these goals, to me as a mom, that's what's important."
"He understands he's been giving lots of help along the way and he wants to give that back," Eakins said. "When you see someone like that, it reinforces how important it is to have a positive effect and influence on others."
Alex will now rejoin his friends this weekend, providing a boost of positivity and strength as he attends the Ducks' battle with the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday.
"I got to see the science behind the sport in all of the meetings so I'm excited to see it up close," Chery said. "I got see how they make plays on the film, how the players move and how positions work on the ice...So I'm excited to get to see more hockey."