About Us

Our Mission

Use a holistic approach to sports
Allow for both directed and exploratory learning
Strike a balance between structure and freedom

Create a community environment
Develop life-long love of sport and activity
Provide a continuing and varied sporting experience for the community

Meet The Founder

I grew up with a passion for sports and always knew I wanted to be involved in sports. As a high school and collegiate athlete, I learned first hand the importance of good coaching and a strong mental game. Originally intending to become a college soccer coach, I spent nearly every weekend during the year, and several weeks each summer, coaching soccer teams in South Carolina, Florida, North Carolina, California, and Oregon, improving my craft.

Through my experiences in coaching teams and camps, I found that while the soccer skills training was typically good and the activities fun, by and large they missed the bigger picture.

From my early days of coaching, I envisioned an organization whose coaching included not only skill-building and learning the game, but also stressed the importance of nutrition, proper stretching, positive thinking, and the mental game.

As an athlete, coach, parent, and sport psychology consultant with over 20 years experience in youth sports, I created BaxterSports – Camps, Clinics, Coaching, and Consulting – to continue my work and provide a great environment for athletes to learn and grow in all aspects of life.

Brian Baxter Owner / Director / Sports Psychologist

Jake Weiss
Head Coach / Program Director

Coach Jake

Coach Jake is BaxterSports’ first new Director since the camp’s inception, taking over for the

universally beloved Coach Blake. In fact, Jake & Blake’s rivalry spans countless millennia and

infinite planes of existence, where their various incarnations have nobly competed in sporting

tests of strength, speed, and skill. And their names always rhyme. In East Portland’s corner of

the multiverse, Jake defeated Blake in an epic whiffle ball battle by belting a knuckle curve into the highest branches of an elm and thereby earning the coveted mantle of Camp Director.

Much like Coach Blake, Coach Jake is a fun-loving sports nut and dad of two. He’s worked with kids in many capacities, with experience including 10 years of little league coaching, 5 years of advocacy for foster kids, and 1 year as recess coordinator at Abernethy Elementary. In that role, he was tasked with inventing and implementing inclusive games and creating a YouTube channel to entertain at-home schoolchildren when recess activities were shelved by distance learning. He has also been a Special Olympics volunteer, a mentor to underprivileged youth, a manny, a stay-at-home dad, and a certified coach in multiple endeavors. Coach Jake also plays all the sports. Some of his athletic accomplishments include varsity table tennis at Portland State, 2x MVP of Baseball USA Camps, a bowling high score somewhere in the 230’s, the record for most touchdowns all-time in SE PDX Ballers’ Annual Joey Bowl, and being the only person in the world who can claim to have attended high school with both Kobe Bryant and Paul Konerko.

While Coach Jake shares much in common with Coach Blake, there are some small differences that your campers may notice. For one, Jake’s got his own unique coaching style that is part drill instructor, part pro wrestler, and part honey badger, and is eager to teach your kids all of llife’s most important lessons, from “doing whatever it takes to crush your competition” to “there’s no I in TEAM, but there is M-E.” He’s also staunchly opposed to sunblock and napkins, so don’t dare send your kids to camp with either of those items or risk his wrath. Other than that, he’s super fun and normal.

He is very excited to begin what is more or less his dream job, and is thrilled to be a part of the BaxterSports family! (Until, of course, he is defeated by Coach Drake, as the prophecy foretells.)

Tiare Farris
Executive Assistant

Tiare Farris, Executive Assistant

Our executive assistant, Tiare (tee/are/ee) is a true believer in the value of sports and the opportunities they provide to harness passion and promote a sense of self while simultaneously creating a feeling of community. She is bananas about tennis. She is also the mom of a BaxterSports camper and knows first hand just how important it is to get kids moving. Have a specific question about your camper’s registration or a general inquiry about our organization? Just call or email, and she will get you set!

Coach Dupree
Director of Coaching

Coach Dupree, Director of Coaching

Dupree (he/him) has been a fixture in the Franklin community for years. I met him when he coached my older son in middle school. He has coached basketball, track, and football over the last 8 years, and he will be on the staff of Westview HS football this fall.

Coach Dupree will serve as the Director of Coaching for BaxterSports. His knowledge of sports and calm demeanor make him a perfect fit for the position.

In his own words…

My coaching philosophy is—Connect, Commit, Control. Connect to each other and ourselves; define our goals. Commit to the process, how do we achieve what we have set out to achieve. Control what we can, our attitude and effort in everything we choose to do. I believe we are all capable of becoming the best version of ourselves with these three keys.

Coach Rose
Director of Programming

Coach Rose, Director of Programming

Rose (they/them) reached out to us after witnessing the fun energy at our All Sports Camp while working at a different camp at the same park last summer.

Rose is an outdoor enthusiast and 15 year outdoor education veteran whose work includes curriculum development, science education, youth mentorship, peer counseling, staff training, and lots of playing outside. Rose is incredibly talented, organized, and passionate about serving youth in the community.

Rose has been heading up the Youth Leadership Development Program and will serve as Director of Programming. Rose spends any time they are not working on new ideas and camps for BaxterSports hiking, swimming and exploring Oregon’s awesome wilderness or playing frisbee at the nearest public park.