The Heritage Christian Academy archery program is looking to get back to work as restrictions begin to ease and school facilities start reopening.

The students who took part in the archery program at HCA were only a couple weeks into practice when schools were shut down by COVID-19.

Coach Tim Goode volunteered to serve as coach for the school, and as an avid bow hunter since the young age of 10, Goode has plenty of experience to share with his young pupils.

There were 14 members of the team ranging from fourth grade to eighth grade that Goode was coaching.

The first step was to get the athletes acquainted with the safety aspects of archery.

Once students were comfortable with their equipment the intricate part of practices started with the athletes understanding how to properly stand, pull and fire an arrow accurately.

A unique aspect of HCA’s archery program is that Goode interlaces archery with Christianity as a way to teach the athletes lessons that go beyond the range.

To miss the mark in archery is called a sin, which Goode then relates back to the Bible as a way to educate his archers on how to grow as people.

“We tell them when they miss they’ve committed a sin, which in archery terms is technically true, but then we talk about how everyone has fallen short. Nobody is perfect,” Goode said.

Aside from spiritual lessons Goode said the sport also teaches self-discipline, perseverance and the importance of trying new things.

Understanding what it takes to be successful in archery leads to conversations between athletes that can be beneficial.

“You don’t have to be a great archer to shoot and you don’t have to be the worst archer. You just have to want to participate. That teaches kids that you should try your best knowing there are those who are better than you and those who are less qualified,” Goode said.

Plans for the summer are still up in the air because the situation is so fluid as Goode waits for more restrictions to be lifted.

However, once things do open up more he’s hoping to have some unofficial practices to let new shooters get used to the bow and arrow while letting more experienced athletes spend time on the range.

The timing of the restart is still unknown, but Goode knows what practices will be in place to maintain the students safely as they shoot their bow and arrow.

“There are specific distances you have to stay away from one another, but we’ll also incorporate social distancing to make sure the kids are separated from each other on the (shooting) line,” Goode said.