How Coach Beam Shaped the Path of Oakland Lacrosse

When I first met Coach John Beam, Oakland Lacrosse was in its infancy, mostly a dream that we could build something meaningful for young people in this city. It was 2012, and I was searching for one thing that felt almost impossible at the time: a home field. Someone told me, “You need to talk to Coach John Beam at Laney.” I didn’t know him, but everyone spoke his name with a mixture of respect, affection, and awe.

I walked into his office aware of everything we didn’t have: funding, connections, facilities, a long history in the community. What we did have was a desire to serve Oakland youth. And as soon as Coach Beam understood who we were trying to reach, something changed in the room. He leaned in; he saw the potential before we’d even proven ourselves.

In 2013, we started working closely together. Coach Beam didn’t just help Oakland Lacrosse get a field. He opened the entire world of Laney College to us. Turf access, the athletic building, classroom space, small things that made big things possible. Back then, we were operating on grit and donated elbow grease. Every dollar mattered, and every door opened could mean the difference between a season running or sputtering.

Beam opened doors and not just to facilities. He gave us credibility. When Coach Beam vouched for you, the whole city listened. Funders, partners, schools. People trusted us because he trusted us. Oakland knows who puts in the work, and he put in 45 years of it. He didn’t lend us his name; he lent us his belief.

So much of the foundation of OLC is built on his quiet acts of generosity. If a young person needed something—a counselor, an advocate, a chance—he didn’t hesitate. I watched him step in for kids who weren’t even his players. Gloria, an OLC alum attending Merritt College was transferring to UC Berkeley but had little support navigating admissions and mentioned challenges with financial aid.  Before the day was done, Beam connected her to a counselor at Laney. No fanfare. No bragging. Just action.

He poured that same care into our OLC kids, whether they wore cleats or carried textbooks. Coach Beam believed that coaching wasn’t about résumés or accolades; it was about heart. He mentored now-OLC Coach Moses when Moses interned with the Laney football program. Beam taught Moses that what mattered most was “the heart you put into the players.” Mose brings this approach to coaching for OLC:

“A lot of coaches are tough and want their players to succeed, but they forget to show the love part. That’s something he always wanted to show. That balance of discipline and joy is why he was so influential with so many players. He showed that, ‘I’m being hard on you, but I also love you.’”

Beam stayed invested long after the season ended. His fingerprints are on generations of Oakland Lacrosse leadership. Moses continued “he showed me how to have fun while coaching—and why making real connections mattered.” Beam could have coached in the NFL. He chose to stay in Oakland, because he was for Oakland, with Oakland. 

And then there was his presence. When Coach Beam stepped onto a field, he didn’t need to raise his voice to command attention. You felt him before you heard him. He balanced discipline with joy, toughness with love, pushing players to be their best while making sure they knew they belonged. He fought for his players, advocated for their futures, and showed—through every Beam double clap—that hard work, determination, and care could change a life.

At a boisterous retirement celebration, Coach Beam’s words of gratitude rang out across the joy filled room: “Oakland has given me all these gifts,” he said. After decades of service, he still felt that he was the lucky one. 

I often ask myself a question I hope the entire OLC community will sit with: Would Oakland Lacrosse be where we are today, thriving and growing if not for Coach Beam?

When we were just planting our roots and our future was uncertain, he held the door open and kept it open. And he made sure we had the chance to build everything that’s come since.

Many of our current families, players, and supporters may not know his name. But they feel the impact of his work every season—every event we have at Laney, every young person who finds a place to belong in OLC. It’s in the community he helped build, the young leaders he shaped, and the belief he instilled in us: Show up. Do the work. Do it for the youth. Be consistent. Be generous.