No matter how much someone loves coaching, there are always factors that take away from that endeavor.

After four seasons with the Livermore Falls girls’ basketball team, Frank Donald has resigned. He cites a variety of reason for his decision, but says too many things were taking away from the joy of coaching.

“It was kind of a combination,” said Donald. “There were two mainly significant reasons.”

Donald says his family was one concern. Coaching took too much time away from his personal life. With grandchildren on the way, he wanted more time away from the game.

“There was a time factor, which is something any coach can relate to,” said Donald. “My faith and my family are pretty important to me. I’ve been wrestling with it for quite awhile about the time that goes into it.”

Donald also stated that parental issues created a distraction that sapped his interest and made it hard to continue.

“Though I dealt with a lot of good folks down there, I’ve also dealt with a fair share of challenging individuals,” said Donald. “That was kind of taking a lot of the fun out of it.”

Donald says he was contemplating a return after the season ended. When another parental issue appeared, he decided enough was enough.

“I just decided I didn’t want to keep fighting that battle,” said Donald. “If I had my heart set on coming back, I wouldn’t have let that faze me a bit, but I’d been wrestling with it.”

Donald’s teams went 35-37 in four seasons and made the playoffs three times. The team went 14-4 his first year and was ranked third in Western C before losing in the semifinals to Dirigo. In 2007, the Andies went 10-8 and lost in the prelims. After going 2-16 in 2008, Livermore Falls went 9-9 this winter, falling again in the prelims.

Donald brought an energetic, fast-paced style to the program and kept the Andies competitive among a challenging MVC field.

“We made the playoffs three of the last four years,” said Donald. “They’ve got a team that will be competitive for at least a couple more years. So I at least feel like I left them better than I found them and left them in a competitive situation.”

Donald, who runs the rec program in Wilton, says he will likely coach again. He mentioned the stints that Steve Hamilton and Ray Convery made as assistant coaches after stepping down from head varsity jobs. Hamilton was an assistant at Mt. Blue while Convery worked with both Winthrop and Monmouth.

“They got to do the part they liked to do, which is work with the kids in the gym, and not have to deal with all the other stuff,” he said.

If it isn’t at the varsity level, he says he would be interested coaching at lower levels.

“I suspect I’ll resurface in some respect,” said Donald. “I still absolutely love that part of it, working with the kids. I can’t see myself not doing it in some fashion but maybe in a lower level of commitment.”