In The Pipeline:

Not too long ago, I received an e-mail.

It read, in part, “Hello, Chris, my name is Judy Barbish. Would like you to join us at Fountain Valley High School for a great day of fun? The Barons Jr. Midget team will be playing their 1t League game. Their standing is a 3 and 0 record. ... The boys on the Jr. Midget team are 11 to 13 years of age. Hope to see you there.” Signed, Judy Barbish.

I was unable to make the game, and, in fact, Saturdays are a challenge because they’re when my son’s tennis team plays. Still, Judy and I stayed in touch as she kept me up to date on the great season the team was having.

She shared something else with me about the Barons and her soon to be-14-year-old son, Matt: “This is my son’s third year with the team. I put him in football after we suffered the loss of his dad, my husband. It has helped him and other young men on the team with personal tragedies.”

The Barons kept winning. As the clock ticked down to the big game against Carson Saturday, Judy shared more about her situation.

“November 2006 was a great loss, a tragedy, for a young man, my son Matt, just 10 years old at the time of his dad’s death. He really needed to put his anger and sadness outside and not internally; he played baseball up until that time and then we made the decision to sign up for football. Our first year was difficult and Matt played once or twice that year, 2007, but we continued with every practice and event. In 2008, we were invited back to play by Sean Detloff the chapter president, and here we are in our third year.”

Judy told me more about the pain that she, Matt, and her two other sons (Tommy, 18, and Ryan, 23) were going through, and how tough it especially was on her youngest. Her husband, Tom, passed away from complications after surgery.

Judy is very proud of Matt and his team.

“I believe Matt is a key player on the team, and I think the coaches would agree. The closeness of the team really has made us feel part of a special family, and Matt and I have really used it as a form of therapy. It also helped me get out of the house again and be a part of what my son really needed for his heart to start healing, an ongoing process, and a slow process.”

Judy goes out her way to credit the coaches.

“They gave Matt that father figure and toughness to be a young man, and it allowed me to let go just a little of my little boy who was already missing his dad,” she told me. “Plus, Matt has made many friends on the team; it has taught him to have compassion and empathy for others. He also learned that there were other boys his age that were going through a similar or difficult situation. He likes to bring humor to others and make them laugh. He gets a lot of respect from his teammates because he gives it.”

The team’s coach, Mark Nakashima, says the attention given to helping the boys cope with pain is no accident.

“The whole Junior All-American program has a great approach — it teaches us as coaches that we may be the only male influence in a young man’s life, so we have a strict responsibility as role models to set standards for these young men. And if you can’t be a role model, then don’t coach,” he said.

Nakashima, who has owned the Chuck Dent Surf Shop in downtown Huntington Beach since 1988, has coached youth football for 10 years and has a son, Cole, on the team.

“A kid like Matt was going through a very rough time,” he said. “And as a coach, I knew we had to try hard make this experience work for him. Well, he’s earned his success on the team. He’s applied himself, and we’re very proud of him.”

And so is Judy. “I am so proud of Matt and his achievements. He is a great player, and he puts his all into the game. He is fun to watch not only for me but for other parents as well, and I believe football has helped him academically as well as physically and emotionally.”

I filed my column late last week to include the results of Saturday’s third-round playoff game. The Barons played a mighty team from Carson and suffered a tough loss, 30-0.

Judy checked in with me one more time to add, “No more games, but the ‘all conference’ boys were picked. Four from each chapter: Dominic Kane, Eduardo (Lelo) Perez, Mikey Hanson — and Matt Barbish. Congratulations, guys.”

And hold your heads high, Barons.

It sounds like you played marvelously this year, under the watchful eye of a great coach and staff.

Thanks to Judy Barbish for making me aware of the team, and to her, Matt, and the other Barbish boys, we wish you strength and healing.

I will be signing my Huntington Beach books and “Vanishing Orange County” at the Huntington Beach High School Educational Foundation’s Holiday Boutique from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Dec. 5 at the high school. I look forward to seeing you there if you can make it.

CHRIS EPTING is the author of 14 books, including the new “Huntington Beach Then & Now.” You can write him at chris@chrisepting.com .