Being Fall in New Hampshire, I spent most of the day in the yard blowing leaves into the woods and winterizing my summer equipment. As late afternoon approached and the daylight started retreating, I decided to call it quits and head in to grab something to eat and watch some TV. Of course I couldn’t find anything of interest to watch on my hundred channel cable listing, so decided to see what was on On-Demand.

Was all caught up on my favorite shows, so decided to check out what was on HBO. At first nothing caught my eye until I say McFarland USA and after a quick trip over to IMDb to see what this movie was about, I decided to watch it. McFarland, USA is based on a true story and an inspiring sports drama starring Kevin Costner about an unlikely group of high-school runners competing in 1987 California.

Kevin Costner plays Jim White, a high school football coach with a history of losing his temper coaching and getting fired. Because of his track record any new job opportunities become harder to get that he has no other choice to accept an assistant coaching position at a small town school in McFarland, California. Jim packs up and moves his whole family into the poor farming town of McFarland and soon regrets his decision. McFarland, which is predominantly Hispanic, was not the suburban neighborhood Jim wanted for his family, but his wife convinces him to stay and give it a go.

While teaching Physical Education classes, Jim notices notices a physical strength and speed in some of the students that he hasn’t seen anywhere while running around the track. We soon learn that these young men are “pickers” in the local community. They wake up at the crack of dawn and work in the fields picking fruit and vegetables until it’s time for school, only to go back to the fields after school. Additionally, many of them have to run to and from school because they don’t have cars. Imagine that?

Jim starts connecting the dots here and has the idea to put together a cross-country running team for McFarland.

He enlists seven Hispanic young men onto his team and begins training them. After some missteps, he pushes the young men to achieve the unthinkable and actually beats cross country running teams at schools much larger and better funded than McFarland’s. As Jim begins stepping into the lives of these young men and walking it out with them, something awesome begins to happen — hope returns to McFarland.

This group of young men begin to believe that anything is possible, the community begins to heal and band together, and Jim’s family begins to fall in love with the people of this forgotten town.

I highly recommend that you add this movie to your watch list to see what happens…and I guarantee that you will find yourself rooting for these underdogs to win!

A couple of things really stood out for me in this movie. The struggles these young men endure, with little opportunity to succeed and the difference one person can make in the lives of people. The vision, sacrifice and perseverance of one person inspired a group of young men to overcome what they thought was the impossible. Despite all the odds stacked against them, Jim White was able to prove that champions can come from anywhere!

McFarland, USA has a good moral, redemptive message about sacrificing and working hard to build a better life. It’s is one of the best movies I’ve seen in recent years. It’s not just a feel good story, it’s a good story period!

There are many who say that one person can’t make a difference, that it’s impossible for an individual to have a major impact or start a trend or create a culture. I wholeheartedly disagree! It has always been some act of compassion that has changed the hearts and minds of people. Step out of your comfort zone and look for opportunities to serve others and to let your compassion help them come alive. Once you’ve found that opportunity…take it and have a profound impact on someone!

Let us all choose to impact the world, rather than have the world impact us.

What are you going to do to impact the world around you?