By BETH PRATT
A-J Religion Editor
Living a Christian life is much easier than living in the world, Danny Soliz tells the young people he coaches in Bible study and in basketball.
He knows because he tried the other life before he became a Christian, he tells them.
''I was a regular member of bars,'' he said. ''I've been there. I've done those things.''
Living a worldly life is harder ''because you're trying to keep up with everybody. With Christ, you only are concerned with what he thinks is important,'' Soliz said.
Working with children is at the top of what is important, he said, noting that Jesus invited the children to come to him when the disciples would have pushed them away.
Soliz is a deacon at Sunset Church of Christ, joining the church when he and his wife, Charlotte, moved here in 1976. He was in marketing with Texas Instruments, and opted for early retirement rather than move to Dallas. He works for Grinnell.
''Danny is very patient and understanding,'' said Alton Thomasson, also a member of Sunset Church of Christ. He assists Soliz with the Bible Bowl. Thomasson had taught fourth, fifth and sixth graders in Bible school for 31 years before volunteering for the Bible Bowl program.
Both men began volunteering when their daughters were involved in the Bible Bowl. They also coached in the Lubbock Girls Basketball League's high school division.
''We were coaching against each other back then,'' Thomasson said.
After their daughters, now in their late 20s and early 30s, got out of school, the men started coaching basketball together.
Thomasson and Soliz have worked about 20 years together now on the Bible Bowl and 12 or 13 years as basketball coaches. They coach the No Limits Team. Their team won the city tournament championship in 1998 and 1999. That was accomplished with only two girls returning from the 1998 team, Soliz noted.
''His philosophy is the same as mine Ð we love kids,'' Thomasson said. ''That's why we're still coaching.''
In the Bible Bowl, they work with youngsters in sixth grade and younger.
''If we feel like we can touch one kid in 20 years, it's been worthwhile,'' Thomasson said.
In both the Bible Bowl program and in basketball, their focus is on building self-image and responsibility.
They like to win the game as much as anyone, but when one of the girls has a scheduling conflict with school work, Soliz stresses that the most important thing is school; ''this is recreational.''
The leagues provide an opportunity for girls and boys who may not make it on the school team, and it gives them a constructive activity for after school. Sometimes it is a way to undo damage that has been done in school programs.
''I have seen coaches scream and holler at kids, and I hate to see that,'' Soliz said. ''There's no need for that Ð they are not professional or college players. They are out there trying to enjoy it.''
He understands that high school coaches have a problem because if they are not winning, they do not have a job for long.
One of the girls on his team had her confidence taken away by high school coaches, he said, but ''we picked her up again and she regained her confidence.''
Coaching in the city league is ''not about winning or losing Ð that's why its not just basketball.''
Soliz once counseled a too-critical father who was his assisting with the coaching to treat his daughter like the other team members.
''When he slacked off on the criticism, she started playing up to her potential,'' Soliz said.
Until 1995, when he embarked on an 18-month project for TIthat required his presence in Dallas during the week, Soliz played in the Lubbock Christian Athletic Association men's division basketball league.
Soliz got an early start in doing volunteer work with children and youth.
He was a freshman in college when he started coaching his two youngest sisters' fourth and fifth-grade softball team in Garland, where he grew up.
When his sisters entered junior high, he coached them in basketball.
A few years later as the father of two daughters, it was a natural transition for him to begin coaching them in sports and in Bible study. His 7-year-old granddaughter, Hilary Moneymaker, will be eligible for a basketball league next year, but so far she is not showing much interest, he said.
''If she decides to play, I'll start all over again (with the younger girls), Soliz said. If not, he will continue to coach the high school girls.
Mrs. Soliz said she is surprised that he has continued to work with both time-consuming programs. ''He keeps saying one more year,'' she said.
In his spare time, Soliz enjoys golfing. ''I can always make time for golf, but ''I don't play on Sundays unless its a tourna-ment and I can't get out of it. But I don't miss worship to play,'' he said.
Beth Pratt can be contacted at 766-8724 or bpratt@lubbockonline.com
Children test knowledge during Bible Bowl
By BLYTHE CLAYTON
A-J Special Contributor
Many can recall memorizing the books of the Bible in Sunday school, but few people can remember studying and memorizing an entire book.
Children from area Churches of Christ did just that. After studying the book of Luke for a year, they tested their knowledge and competed with other children at Sunset Church of Christ's 18th annual Bible Bowl on a recent Saturday.
The children, in third through sixth grades, and their coaches traveled from Abilene, Monahans, Cisco, Buffalo Gap, Morton, Oldham, Tahoka, Lawn and Portales, N.M., to prove their knowledge.
Every year, children study a predetermined book of the Bible to prepare for the competition. This year all questions were from the book of Luke.
More than 200 children were divided into teams of four and some churches had more than one team representing them.
A ''quizmaster'' at the front of the room asked a multiple choice question and the children selected a letter that corresponded with their answer. Each child was given a cardboard box that had a single letter A, B, C and D on each side of the box. They indicated their choice by showing the letter of their answer to a scorekeeper, who sat in front of each team to tally the results.
Jared Thurne, a sixth grader from Sunset Church of Christ, said he participated in the Bible Bowl because it was fun.
''Most of my friends are around too,'' he said.
More than 50 adult volunteers helped throughout the day and each church had a coach who showed as much intensity as the children, who listened intently to each question.
Connie Chrane was the Bible Bowl coach for the Church of Christ in Buffalo Gap, 20 miles south of Abilene. Two of her own children participated in the Bible Bowl.
''I like to coach because my kids learn about the Bible,'' Chrane said. ''They're excited about learning and they're excited about the competition.''
Chrane's daughter Kelsey, who is in the third grade, attended Sunset Church of Christ's Bible Bowl for the first time, but she was no newcomer to competition.
''The last Bible Bowl I went to was pretty fun and I was doing pretty good," Chrane said.
Third and Dwight Church of Christ in Monahans hosts a Bible Bowl in March. Wood Lawn Church of Christ in Abilene hosts a Bible Bowl in April. Sunset Church of Christ follows up with a Bible Bowl every May, said Danny Soliz.
Soliz has coordinated the Bible Bowl for 18 years because his daughter, Fonda Moneymaker, now 27, competed in the bowl as a child.
''The reason I stayed with it is because when you work with kids, you have to love them,'' he said. ''You have to love them, even though you have to tolerate a lot sometimes.''
The day of competition was over after the awards ceremony. Members of Sunset Church of Christ calculated scores:
Buffalo Gap Church of Christ won the Sweepstakes award for the highest percentage correct as a congregation. Hunter Sanders of South Plains Church of Christ in Lubbock and Jenny Huddleston of Third and Dwight Church of Christ tied for the highest percentage correct for individuals.
The team that had the highest score was from South Plains Church of Christ. Hunter Sanders, Starla Doyal, Alex Revelski and Savannah Harris all took home trophies.
Soliz announced that next year the Bible Bowl questions will be over the book of Second Kings.
Soliz said he just wants the children to do their best. ''It's just encouraging to see a group of kids learn about the Bible.''
A-J Special Contributor
Many can recall memorizing the books of the Bible in Sunday school, but few people can remember studying and memorizing an entire book.
Children from area Churches of Christ did just that. After studying the book of Luke for a year, they tested their knowledge and competed with other children at Sunset Church of Christ's 18th annual Bible Bowl on a recent Saturday.
The children, in third through sixth grades, and their coaches traveled from Abilene, Monahans, Cisco, Buffalo Gap, Morton, Oldham, Tahoka, Lawn and Portales, N.M., to prove their knowledge.
Every year, children study a predetermined book of the Bible to prepare for the competition. This year all questions were from the book of Luke.
More than 200 children were divided into teams of four and some churches had more than one team representing them.
A ''quizmaster'' at the front of the room asked a multiple choice question and the children selected a letter that corresponded with their answer. Each child was given a cardboard box that had a single letter A, B, C and D on each side of the box. They indicated their choice by showing the letter of their answer to a scorekeeper, who sat in front of each team to tally the results.
Jared Thurne, a sixth grader from Sunset Church of Christ, said he participated in the Bible Bowl because it was fun.
''Most of my friends are around too,'' he said.
More than 50 adult volunteers helped throughout the day and each church had a coach who showed as much intensity as the children, who listened intently to each question.
Connie Chrane was the Bible Bowl coach for the Church of Christ in Buffalo Gap, 20 miles south of Abilene. Two of her own children participated in the Bible Bowl.
''I like to coach because my kids learn about the Bible,'' Chrane said. ''They're excited about learning and they're excited about the competition.''
Chrane's daughter Kelsey, who is in the third grade, attended Sunset Church of Christ's Bible Bowl for the first time, but she was no newcomer to competition.
''The last Bible Bowl I went to was pretty fun and I was doing pretty good," Chrane said.
Third and Dwight Church of Christ in Monahans hosts a Bible Bowl in March. Wood Lawn Church of Christ in Abilene hosts a Bible Bowl in April. Sunset Church of Christ follows up with a Bible Bowl every May, said Danny Soliz.
Soliz has coordinated the Bible Bowl for 18 years because his daughter, Fonda Moneymaker, now 27, competed in the bowl as a child.
''The reason I stayed with it is because when you work with kids, you have to love them,'' he said. ''You have to love them, even though you have to tolerate a lot sometimes.''
The day of competition was over after the awards ceremony. Members of Sunset Church of Christ calculated scores:
Buffalo Gap Church of Christ won the Sweepstakes award for the highest percentage correct as a congregation. Hunter Sanders of South Plains Church of Christ in Lubbock and Jenny Huddleston of Third and Dwight Church of Christ tied for the highest percentage correct for individuals.
The team that had the highest score was from South Plains Church of Christ. Hunter Sanders, Starla Doyal, Alex Revelski and Savannah Harris all took home trophies.
Soliz announced that next year the Bible Bowl questions will be over the book of Second Kings.
Soliz said he just wants the children to do their best. ''It's just encouraging to see a group of kids learn about the Bible.''
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