Maya Angelou summed up the power of mentoring in a single sentence: “People will forget what you said, forget what you did, never forget how you made them feel.”

Tulare Police Officer Derek Burrell remembers how he felt as a kid: lost. But there’s a shining light in the dark memories of his childhood. A few good men gave young Burrell a ray of hope—the mentors who made him feel good about himself. Burrell is all grown up now. He’s a college graduate, a former football player, a dedicated family man, and a kind-hearted policeman. He did more than succeed, he excelled. And now it’s his turn to return the favor.

Officer Burrell is giving back to the community, on and off the job. He’s the leader in several youth sports organizations, role model to thousands of local youth. Through sports and through his profession, Burrell now mentors kids and helps them find their paths to success. “It’s my calling in life,” he says humbly. “It’s all about the kids.”

A Cycle Broken
Burrell had a hard life growing up. His tale is sad, but certainly not common. He came from a broken home in a poor neighborhood in Tulare. Fatherless and without direction, he often hung out with troublemakers. It would have been easy for young Burrell to take the doomed path that so many of our at-risk teenagers take, the dead-end road that leads to juvenile delinquency, gangs, a life of crime, and poverty. It’s a vicious cycle that repeats itself too many times, a dismal future that perpetuates failure.

Someone made a difference in this young man’s life, though. A mentor took Burrell under his wing. It was a man named Tyrone Watley, a teacher and coach at Tulare Western High School. “He was my football coach and my father figure,” Burrell recalls. “He really cared about me. He changed my life.” Watley emphasized the need for education and urged Burrell to go to college. For the first time in his life, Burrell understood that football could be his ticket to a university. “To this day I have boxes of letters from colleges that were recruiting me in high school. If it wasn’t for Coach Watley I don’t know if I would have made it as far as I did. He believed in me and I will always be thankful.”

It’s his gratitude, Burrell says, that motivates him to help young people today. “There are lots of economically disadvantaged kids that have never been outside of Tulare,” he says. “Playing sports is one way to show them what’s out there. When they travel to games, it plants a seed—they see other communities, they see that there’s something beyond the negativity of their impoverished neighborhoods.”

Taking the time to work with kids is more than a hobby for Burrell. It’s his mission in life. He recalls the dedicated adults who volunteered their time at the sporting events Burrell participated in as a teenager. “Willard Epps is another of my heroes,” he says. “Not only did he volunteer countless hours in the community and help guide my youth, but he was also the only African American firefighter that any of us had seen in the city of Tulare. For us, he was proof that an African American poor kid could make it and be successful in society. Epps was the fire chief and a school board member. He motivated me, kept pushing me to keep going when times were hard.”

It was through football that college became a reality for Burrell. First it was Allan Hancock College in Santa Maria. Then Boise State University, playing defensive end for the Broncos. And he did it all on scholarships, and all while applying the same dedication to his studies that he’d developed on the football field—self-discipline, perseverance, responsibility. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree, majoring in social science with a minor in history.

“College opened up my life, opened a lot of doors in the workforce. It seemed that a lot of companies were willing to interview me just because I had a degree. And having that education helped me with promotion opportunities later on,” he says. “With that degree behind me, it makes me a strong role model for my kids and the kids that come through the sporting organizations I work with now. It’s easy to uphold education and motivate youth when you’ve been in their shoes, when you actually practice what you preach.”

A Mission to Serve
It’s easy to spot the common thread that has woven Burrell’s professional career. “Now it’s my turn to give back,” he says. Before joining the police force he worked first as a youth development program coordinator for CSET (a nonprofit organization that offers employment training in Tulare County) and then as a high school recruiter for San Joaquin Valley College. It’s been a little over six years since he joined the Tulare Police Department. “I became a police officer because I wanted to make a difference in the place I call home. An officer’s job is to serve, and there’s nothing better than serving the community that you were born and raised in.”

Burrell has also been busy raising a family of his own. Together with his wife, Georgina, a science teacher in Tipton, Burrell has three children: 7-year-old twin boys, Jordan and Elijah, and 9-year-old daughter Shania. Like their father, the little ones are already showing athletic quality. Between baseball, football, basketball, and softball, the Burrell kids have a full schedule. “For us, sporting time is togetherness time. Everything I do, all the youth sports organizations I’m involved with—it all includes my family. My leadership in youth organizations doesn’t take away from my family time, it brings us closer together.”

Reaching Out, Reaching Kids
Burrell reaches young people through three organizations: Tulare Youth Athletic Association, Central Valley Freeze Softball Association, and Football University. “Athletics is a tool to get kids’ attention,” he says, “to open their eyes to the possibility of college. Many are exposed to the idea of scholarships for the first time—they travel to games, see the world outside Tulare. They learn that if they play well, their sport might just foot the bill for a college education.”
With that in mind, Burrell founded Tulare Youth Athletic Association six years ago, a group that provides structured sports activities. With over 3,000 participants, it is one of the largest organizations of its kind in California. Programs include NFL flag football, tackle football, cheerleading, and wrestling. “We have a dedicated board and hard working volunteers. We believe that athletics teaches kids important life-long skills: discipline, people skills, and teamwork,” Burrell says.

He is also the co-founder and president of Central Valley Freeze Softball Association. In addition to coaching a team, he oversees the business operations and makes sure the rules set forth by the board are followed. Burrell is also regional director for Football University, an invitational camp for elite-level players.

Sound like a lot? It is. This coach is driven. “I know what it’s like come from a broken home and not have the proper support of two parents. I know what it’s like to be poor, to feel the pressures of joining a gang to make some fast money. Many of the kids I work with remind me of myself. It’s important for them to see a person that was once in their situation who is now successful.”

Back on Campus
After serving five years as a patrol officer for Tulare PD, Burrell got the chance to bridge the gap once more. For the last two years he’s been assigned as the student safety resource officer for Los Tules and Mulcahy middle schools. He spends much of his day on both the school campuses and patrolling the surrounding areas. “My time on the job is very people-oriented,” he says, working directly with school administration and building relationships with students. “Fortunately, I have no ‘harrowing moments’ to relate, no crisis stories to tell. My position on campus is a positive one, and by being a ‘real person’ to the students, by being a role model who is available … I think that goes a long way. Yes, I investigate potential gang problems and break up some fights. But I also mingle with the students. We toss a football during their breaks. We get to know each other.”

Burrell’s journey has brought him full circle, back to the place he calls home, a place he feels good about. He has not forgotten what his mentors said, or what they did. He remembers what it felt like to be a boy, once lost then empowered. He’s joined the ranks of those who serve and protect, those who make a different each and every day. “I want to thank all the men and women of law enforcement, those of yesterday, today, and tomorrow. I truly believe that I work for one of the top agencies in the state. I am forever grateful that Chief Roger Hill gave me the opportunity to come back home and serve in the community I grew up in.”

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