COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Daryl Griffin is a volunteer high school football coach...
"Coach Griffin is a good person," said Mesa Ridge High School senior Avant Wright. "He's definitely a players coach for sure."
A member of the U.S. Space Force...
"If anything is going on I know Sgt. Griffin is going to be the one I go to, people can call on for anything and everything," said Space Force 1st Lt. Alesha Webb-Turner.
A volunteer wildland firefighter...
"It was my dream job as a kid," Griffin said.
And a husband and a brand-new father. No matter which role he's in, it's clear Daryl Griffin is someone people around him respect and admire.
"He makes everyone else rise up to his level," said Mesa Ridge assistant football coach Jason Marthaller.
"He really embodies what it means to be a service member both inside the military and outside the military," said Webb-Turner.
At Mesa Ridge High School in Widefield School District 3, Griffin serves as the assistant defensive back coach and recruiting coordinator.
"He had a big year it's his first year of coaching with us," Marthaller said.
Whether he's on the field or off...
"I have a lot of dream jobs so football is another dream job," said Griffin.
Griffin helps to make sure students like Avant Wright make it to signing day to continue their athletic careers.
"He definitely helped me a lot in the recruiting process in terms of how I should talk to coaches and getting in contact with coaches in general," said Wright. "I honestly don't know where I'd be in my recruiting process without Coach Griffin."
The 25-year-old says his passion for playing football as a young boy helped shape the man he is today.
"It taught me how to communicate well, I think my wife appreciates that a lot, it taught me how to depend on the people to the right and left of me," said Wright. "In the military, I have to depend on my brothers and sisters in service so I think football played a big role in my upbringing."
That upbringing, Griffin says, was not always easy.
"So I just try to be the person I needed in different situations," said Griffin.
Setting an example, serving selflessly. That's why we chose Daryl Griffin to receive the News 5 Jefferson Award.
The Jefferson Awards were started more than 50 years ago with the help of Jacqueline Kennedy O'Nassis. Local winners go on to qualify for a National Jefferson Award and an all-expense paid trip to New York City. Remember if you or someone you know is deserving of the News 5 Jefferson Award, we want to know about it.
Click here to nominate someone you know.
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