NATCHEZ — After sitting on the bench for a while, Edwin White is ready to get back into the game.

The former Huntington School boys and girls basketball coach was recently hired by Trinity Episcopal to coach the varsity and junior varsity boys basketball squads beginning this winter.

The position will be White’s first coaching job since Huntington School closed in 2010. White said he’s been helping his mother, Barbara Crenshaw, run the Prince Street Day Care Center in the meantime.

“I decided to take a break,” White said. “We were shorthanded at the daycare, and I couldn’t coach. I just wanted to help my mom.”

White didn’t take a break from learning the game, however, and he said he doesn’t expect there to be any problems adjusting back into the coaching scene.

“I’ve always kept trying new things,” White said. “Sometimes I’d go to different games and camps and coaching clinics, just so I could keep my skills fresh.”

White said a friend of his, Renard Cage, whose son Tanner will be a senior at Trinity this fall, recommended that White pursue the job after it was announced that boys basketball coach David King would be leaving Trinity to coach at Adams County Christian School.

“I said, ‘Why not?’” White said.

After making contact with the Trinity Board of Trustees, White said he was one of 12 or 13 applicants that the school interviewed, and he was humbled that Trinity ultimately hired him.

“I feel privileged,” White said. “I know that program has a rich tradition in winning, and for them to pick me to carry on that tradition, they must have a lot of stock in me as a coach. I think they want to continue that winning tradition.”

White said he knows a few of the players at Trinity, and based on what he’s heard, he said he should inherit a good nucleus to build around.

The Saints under White will run a fast-paced type of game designed to keep opposing defenses off balance, he said.

“You don’t want anyone to be able to predict what you’re going to do next,” White said.

When reflecting on his time at Huntington, White said he was happy with the work that was done coaching the Hounds, and he would have liked to finish what he started.

“In the short time I was there, I feel like the kids really gravitated toward me and that we got a good foundation of basketball in place,” White said.

“Some of the parents told me how impressed (they were) with how much progress they saw in their kids and with their attitudes. I think I brought a different mindset there, and if it had stayed open, I feel like we would have taken it to the next level.”

With Huntington closed, however, White said he’s happy he’ll get to remain in the area in which he’s used to coaching.

“It’s good to be home,” White said. “I live in Natchez, I’m a product of Natchez, and to have the opportunity to give back to the community as far as the kids are concerned is a privilege. I feel like I have a lot to offer as far as my coaching abilities, and I thank God for this opportunity.”

White said he would like to give a special thank you to Board Chairman Dr. Rod Givens, who helped work White through the interview process.