Who was Joe "Coach Q" Quinones

Coach Q was the most generous, caring, courageous, and encouraging person. To most, he was the coach who believed in them and taught them how to believe in themselves through his favorite thing, sports. Generations of athletes can look back at his love for sports and recall the strength of his passion for sharing the values sports provides with students who need it most, from encouraging them to find the right sport for them to provide his players with anything they need to succeed. He always had a closet full of cleats, basketball shoes, dress shirts, slacks, and ties in all sizes for the athletes to feel confident and ready for the games they loved. Every game day, his players would be dressed up and ready to proudly represent their school and community. 

To others, he was Joe Quinones the guy they grew up with who made sure everyone could play and was having a fun time sharing in his love for sports and his community. He cared for anyone and everyone, from complete strangers who happened to play at the park that day to kids from his school who needed a friend. He became an amazing coach, teacher, friend, and husband while staying an incredible son and brother. Joe is my big brother and hero who taught me what it means to be a genuinely caring person and role model to future generations of kids just like us. I watched him form connections with students whom he said just needed someone to believe in them and show them how talented, smart and courageous they could be. He spent every day thinking of how to better support his students and athletes in all aspects of their lives. “Student always comes first,” he’d say as he encouraged his kids to excel in their school work and build on the skills he taught them to envision and achieve a brighter future for themselves.  

Without him, we are at an immeasurable loss, and he will be forever loved and missed. As his family and friends, we will always strive to continue his mission to provide students with the tools they need to succeed and find their love for outlets such as sports that can provide a safe and meaningful environment to build life skills and connections that will stay with them forever.