Choose one character that touched you in some way

I would have to say Coach Luma herself was a great inspiration. With her degree in anthropology she could have done a number of things. She decided to go to the American South and help boys from war torn countries. THese boys come from some horrible situations yet must quickly adapt to American society. Many of these boys desperately needed to belong to something positive that they were familiar with. Coach Luma gave them structure, discipline, belonging and fun. Coach Luma's authoritarian yet caring style gave these boys exactly what they needed. She had an unpopular rule about cutting long hair. This gave the boys not only a better image but may have contributed to them not associating with gangs where long hair was part of gang identity.