AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL

        For two decades I participated every summer in the national conferences of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. In the first fifteen of those years that always included the conferences at the YMCA of the Rockies near Estes Park, Colorado, on the edge of the Rocky Mountain National Park. Within a few years additional conference sites around the country were added to accommodate the rapidly growing program, including Ashland, Oregon, Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, and Henderson Harbor, New York. Today there are scores of campus and conferences served by a staff of more than four thousand instructors, and the FCA is the largest sports program in the world.
       Although I am a Trustee Emeritus of the National Board, I'm not as actively involved in the FCA as I was for many years on both the national and the local level, having helped found four local chapters, and having served in just about every role in the summer conferences, from huddle leader to song leader, from platform speaker to devotional leader, from editor of the camp newsletter to Conference Dean. In my book A Sense of Being Called I have related the story of how I came to be involved in the FCA at the very beginning of the program.
        But that's not what I want to talk about in this article. Rather I want to talk about our country, about America the Beautiful. This is not about politics, or sports, or music, or any of the other topics I'm usually writing about. The reason I mentioned the FCA and my participation in the national summer conferences was to explain how it came about that my family and I in the course of the first ten of those fifteen years were in every one of our contiguous forty-eight states.

IS IT POSSIBLE TO LOVE TWO AT THE SAME TIME?

By Bob Golon

Special Contributor

Baseball teams, that is, lest anyone get the wrong idea!

Back in 1960, I was a baseball-obsessed eight-year old, fully devoted  to the likes of Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, Yogi Berra, Whitey Ford, and of course, the inimitable Casey Stengel. I took my second trip to Yankee Stadium that year, and arrived early enough to gasp, as ball after ball flew into the stands during batting practice. Nothing could be so good!

I suffered my first broken heart in October, 1960, when Bill Mazeroski’s home run went flying over the Forbes Field fence, denying the Yankees the World Series. That disastrous (from  my point of view)  loss was  followed immediately by the firing of Stengel. But along came Ralph Houk to replace him. Roger Maris hit 61 home runs in 1961, and Whitey Ford won 25 games while losing only 4 that year. My heart mended quickly.

In late 1961 it was announced that this new team in New York being planned for 1962, the Mets, were hiring my beloved Casey Stengel to be their first manager. Hmmmm, pause for thought. As the 1962 season began, I now realized that I often had two games to watch on TV, which was especially convenient when one of them was rained out or was being played late at night on the West Coast.

The 1962 Mets, even though a dreadful club, simply provided me with more baseball! It was a chance to see National League stars like Willie Mays and Stan Musial, and besides, they never played the Yankees. Where was the conflict? There was none, in my young mind.

I lived and died with these two clubs as a young man. The hollow feeling of the Yankees' futility, which began in 1965, was soon replaced by the utter euphoria of witnessing the Mets’ World Series “miracle” trouncing of the thought-to-be-invincible Baltimore Orioles in 1969. Thurman Munson, Tom Seaver, Bobby Murcer and Jerry Koosman were equals in my mind and heart.

So, it was no surprise that last night, as I was driving home from the Trenton Thunder game, I tuned in the “subway series” finale on the radio. I was immediately appalled that the Yankees could not touch Dillon Gee for more than one run. When  Joba Chamberlain bounced a pitch that set up the Mets insurance run in the eighth inning, I cursed under my breath. Yet, just two seconds later, I felt happy for the upstart Mets. They remind me of the 1967 Mets: one very good young pitcher (Matt Harvey) among a not so talented young team.  Yet those ’67 kids accomplished great things within two years.

Maybe these kids will, too.

They say you can’t root for two teams, but I am living proof that you can. Tonight, I can go back to being “myself” again. Go Yanks! Go Mets! The TV remote will be where it always is, squarely in my hand, switching between my two loves

THIS IS THE MOMENT!

        I love this arrangement, and I think you will, too. It is sung by one of my favorite choruses, the Masters of Harmony, then under the direction of Jeff Oxley, who also sings the solo. It was their acceptance song, after winning the 1999 International Barbershop Chorus Championship. Click here, then turn up the volume, enlarge your screen, and sit back and enjoy an inspiring rendition of "This Is the Moment!"

A POEM FOR MEMORIAL DAY

This poem was written in August, 1945. I was inspired to write it while I was on the island of MogMog, Ulithi, in the Marianas. The island I was writing about was an imaginary island in the Pacific to which my imaginary soldier had returned, having been there before during combat. It contains a message that seems appropriate for Memorial Day.

RETURN TO AN ISLAND

He heeded not the ocean's muffled roar,
as sweeping waves refreshed the baking sand.
He stood and gazed along the golden shore,
and brushed his sweating forehead with his hand.
 
He marveled at the change before his eyes.
Could such a transformation really be?
Here was indeed an island paradise ---
a tropical oasis of the sea.

The air was still, save for the faintest breeze,
that breathed upon the greenish tufts a while
and rippled through the bent palmetto trees,
reluctant to escape this magic isle.

Could this sweet spot that same inferno be,
where scarce two years before amidst the slain
he prayed to God that he would live to see
his country, home, and loved ones once again?

No shrieking shells, whose mission to destroy
leave silhouetted in the blinding glare
the crumpled, blood-stained body of a boy
whose eyes, once clear, are fixed in glassy stare.

Not long ago this same enchanted isle
  where now he walked had been a blazing hell.
O demon War, so murderous, so vile,
because of you now tolls the mourning bell!

Return now to your gloomy heritage
and rest you from the efforts of your work
of ruin, sorrow, havoc.  Let the age
of peace return anew.  You will but lurk

behind the curtain of a few more years,
till once again you burst upon the world,
when human pride and greed eclipse the tears
of death, and flags of hatred are unfurled.  

God grant the prayer that now bestirs his soul,
that humankind might learn what ne'er before
their minds have grasped, that this must be the goal:
to win not wars but peace forever more.

RSA

"TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALL GAME," Sung by the American Boychoir

        In case you were not able to open the video in my previous post of the American Boychoir singing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" in the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, try clicking on the song title below.
        As I explained in the earlier post, the boys had just learned this song and were singing it publicly for the first time. Tour Proctor Matt Caruso had written the creative arrangement just the day before!
        You will see boys raising their hands throughout the song. They were invited to do so by Music Director Fernando Malvar-Ruiz, whenever their favorite Major League team was mentioned.      Listen carefully and you may hear your favorite team, as well!
        Click here: "Take Me Out to the Ball Game"

HISTORIC FAN SURVEY

        Way back in 1954 the Baltimore Orioles conducted the largest fan survey in the history of Major League baseball and the first of its kind ever taken. The survey covered a stretch of twenty home games over a two-month period, during which approximately 2,500 questionnaires were distributed on a random basis throughout Memorial Stadium. More than 2,400 completed forms were returned, representing an amazing response of close to 97%! Without going into detail about the carefully supervised and deliberate procedures we followed, I want simply to say that having studied public opinion polling and having conducted numerous surveys for various clients and organizations, including the Philadelphia Athletics and their farm club in Portsmouth, Ohio, I made sure that approved polling methods were used throughout the massive project.        

        From 100 to 150 carefully designed questionnaires were distributed by the well instructed ushers on each date at the start of game and collected by the third inning. Those who received the forms were most cooperative and seemed delighted to have an opportunity to participate.

        Not having computers at our disposal, the massive amount of information gathered took us several weeks to tabulate. The results were first reported publicly at a major press conference, with colorful charts to portray the highlights graphically. It had taken about two hours to present the full report to the Board of Directors. The results were also summarized and published in a 24-page booklet, attracting huge interest throughout the country. The Sporting News, for example, featured this two-page cartoon spread on the story: 

AMERICAN BOYCHOIR AT THE BASEBALL HALL OF FAME

The American Boychoir, direct by Fernando Malvar-Ruiz

        This weekend the world renowned American Boychoir is celebrating its 75th Anniversary. Established in Columbus, Ohio, in 1937 by Founding Director Herbert Hoffman, the Columbus Boychoir moved to Princeton, New Jersey, in 1950, where until the current school year it was located at Albemarle, the former Lambert family estate. It is now located on the expansive campus of the Princeton Center for the Arts and Education (PCAE), with two other schools as its sub-tenants.
        In 1980 under the enterprising leadership of  Board Chairman Herbert W. Hobler, who got a green light from the American Choral Directors Association, the name of  the school was officially changed to the American Boychoir School, which remains the nation’s only non-sectarian boarding school. The American Boychoir is America’s most widely touring and frequently performing choral ensemble.
        On their recent Spring tour they were the over-night guests of the First Presbyterian Church of Cooperstown, New York, where my daughter the Rev. Elsie Armstrong Rhodes is pastor. With the help of

THE LEGACY OF RITA KAY THOMAS

By Bob Golon

Special Contributor

. Rutgers University President Robert Barchi looks on as
 newly appointed Athletic Director Julie Hermann takes
questions. (A. Evans/AP)

        As a Rutgers’ alum, a former employee, and an aficionado of all things Scarlet, I have high hopes that yesterday will be remembered as a good day for Rutgers and its beleaguered Athletic Department. Julie Hermann was announced as the new Athletic Director. Her appointment is being called “historic,” as she becomes the first woman Athletic Director in the University history, as well as one of only three women currently serving in that capacity at BCS level schools.

        After the Mike Rice fiasco and the fallout that followed it, I was beginning to wonder if the otherwise positive historic nature of the Rutgers athletic program could ever again be appreciated. After all, good old RU is the “birthplace of college football” in November, 1869. It has a men’s basketball final four appearance in its distant past, as well as national championships and numerous tournament appearances in its storied women’s basketball program.

        It should be understood, however. that Ms. Hermann is not the first woman “pioneer” in Rutgers athletics history. The trail was blazed for her and others by a remarkable woman named Rita Kay Thomas.

FOR THOSE WHO LIVE IN GLASS HOUSES

By Bob Golon
Special Contributor to "Minding What Matters"

Sergio and Tiger exchange a brief handshake
after the match (AP photo). 

        At the completion of yesterday’s Mother’s Day festivities, about 5PM, I settled in front of the TV to see what sports were on. Mid-May is a great time for this. Major League Baseball is finally starting to sort itself out from the Spring Training malaise, do-or-die hockey games are being played, and the NBA playoffs are in full flower. 

        But the most compelling event of the weekend was played at the TPC Sawgrass Golf Course at Point Vedra Beach, Florida – The Players Championship of the PGA. For the first time since 2001 Tiger Woods prevailed in this event, but, like anything involving Tiger these past few years, it was not without controversy.

        On Saturday, Woods and Sergio Garcia of Spain were locked in an epic struggle at the top end of the leader board. On the par-5 second hole, Woods, after receiving clearance from one of the tournament marshalls that Garcia had completed his shot, committed the sin of reaching into his bag to select his club, causing a loud gasp from the gallery. The only problem was that Garcia was

CLEAR THE TRACK!

        As I explained in a previous post, two of our fellow Nassoons, because of other obligations, did not feel they could participate in the Triangle Show. They would be sorely missed, but their absence did not dampen the enthusiasm of the remaining ten of us It was not that we didn't have other demands on our time as well. Everyone of us was heavily involved in other extracurricular activities. A few of us, of whom I was one, were also facing the daunting requirement of a senior thesis.
        But being in the Triangle Show was an experience we all felt we could not afford to miss. There would be many rewards, including our being inducted into the historic Triangle Club. So it was full speed ahead for "Clear the Track!" Learning the songs, rehearsing with the cast, the dress rehearsal ---it all went so fast. Opening night was upon us sooner than we ever could have imagined, when we first agreed to take part, and before we knew it winter break was over and we were on campus again, looking back on the tour and sharing stories with our friends.

The Princeton Nassoons in  the 1946-47 Triangle Show "Clear the Track!" - L to R: Bill Rogers '48,
Jack Pemberton '49, Jim Buck '46, Ed Knetzger '46,  Jeff Penfield '49, Og Tanner '48, Al Burr '49,
Don Elberfeld '47, Dick Armstrong' 46, Don Finnie '47

A HARD DECISION: THE GLEE CLUB OR THE TRIANGLE SHOW?

        If this part of the Princeton Nassoons’ history is ever to be told, I realize that I’m the one who will have to tell it, as there are only two other living  members of the original twelve post-WWII Nassoons. I have spoken with my two fellow surviving ‘Soons, Jack Taylor ‘45 and Jack Pemberton ‘49, and while neither of them recalls too many details of that first year (1946-47), they do recall our having to face a major decision early that fall.
        We were proud of the fact that several of our members also had been or were currently in the Princeton Glee Club, including two stellar first tenors, Jack Pemberton and Steve Kurtz, who was President of the Glee Club that year. It was a tacit assumption that we would resume our affiliation with the Glee Club, and perform as a special added attraction at their concerts at home and on the road. This, of course, would work out well for those who were also in the Glee Club. We were already lined up to make our public debut at their joint concert with the Dartmouth Glee Club on November 22.
        We had hardly begun practicing, however, when we were invited to become the featured singing group in the Triangle Club’s first post-WWII production, “Clear the Track!” Having been involved in conversations with some good friends who were producing what sounded like a very exciting musical, with a great story-line and some wonderful songs, our Music Director Don Finnie and I were all for accepting the invitation, hoping our fellow Nassoons would agree. We realized, of course, that it would be a particularly tough decision for our Glee Club members, especially for Steve Kurtz, given his responsibilities with the Glee Club.
        So we faced a really tough choice between the Glee Club and the Triangle Show. There were strong feelings on both sides, and our newly organized singing group, which had gelled so nicely, was in danger of becoming divided over the issue. At the request of Steve Kurtz President Og Tanner called an “emergency” meeting to decide what to do. Unfortunately, I couldn’t be at that meeting, and I was most distressed when I was informed that the group had decided to go with the Glee Club.

HOW WE GOT STARTED: The Early Days of the 1946-47 Nassoons (revised)

 The Princeton Nassoons' logo 

        My article on the 1946-47 Princeton Nassoons attracted such interest that I decided to tell more of the story. My original account of "How We Got Started" has been slightly revised, based on some information I garnered from some faded clippings in an old scrapbook I hauled out this morning.

        I am sad to report that of the original twelve reconstituted Nassoons, only three of us are still living. Later in this article I have included links to obituaries for some of the deceased members.

        It has been hard to lose such good friends over the years, and each death has stirred wonderful memories of that first amazing year, when twelve men from several different classes, including mostly returning veterans, had to start from scratch and develop a repertoire in a few short weeks. 

       Along with our own new arrangements we wanted to include some of the favorite songs of the pre-WWII Nassoons, whose "modern" harmonization had distinguished them from other college men's a cappella groups like the Yale Whiffenpoofs, with their traditional four-part harmony. The accomplishment was all the more remarkable considering that we had never sung together as a group, and we had no members of the earlier Nassoons to serve as a nucleus to build upon.

WELCOME ABOARD, BOB GOLON!

        I have decided to expand MINDING WHAT MATTERS by inviting a number of special persons with expertise in various disciplines or who are keen observers and analysts of life here on Planet Earth to participate as occasional contributors.
        One of the first persons I immediately thought of was my friend Bob Golon, whose book NO MINOR ACHIEVEMENT is not only a fascinating history of minor league baseball in New Jersey but an intriguing example of how baseball reflects and is interwoven with the history and growth of America. I heartily recommend it. 
        I was delighted when Bob readily accepted my invitation, and amazed at how quickly he responded with his first article, in which he reveals his own interesting background and why he is excited to become part our Blog team. Welcome aboard, Bob! I look forward to your future contributions! 
        And here, dear MWM readers, is his introductory article.

What a Pleasant Surprise!

By Bob Golon

        Sometimes the most pleasant of surprises comes totally unexpected, as was the case when I received a phone call from Dick Armstrong inviting me to join “Minding What Matters” as an occasional contributor. I enthusiastically accepted!

        By way of introduction, let me say that Dick and I have three very major things in common: 1) our intense love for baseball, 2) we were both “career changers,” and 3) an affiliation with Princeton Theological Seminary. Yet, our paths only crossed for the first time within the past three years. Let me describe the road I have followed here, which is much different than Dick’s.

        After the typical years of growing up, doing military service, marrying my wonderful wife Jill and establishing our family, I took on a business career for a major technology firm. That job paid the bills, bought the house, and took care of the kid’s college. But, there was always something missing.

        I found it in my pursuit of knowledge for the game of baseball. It led me to the publication of articles, speaking engagements at the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, an appearance on a “Yankeeography” TV program, and it culminated in the publication of my book No Minor Accomplishment: The Revival of New Jersey Professional Baseball in March 2008. 

        Along the way, my company gave me an early retirement and I gravitated to library and archival work, which is how I landed at the Princeton Theological Seminary Library in early 2009.

When Dick’s book, A Sense of Being Called, came out in 2011, I read it immediately, and was astounded and touched by such a wonderful story of the intersection of baseball and faith. We met, talked baseball, and even though Dick roots for the Baltimore Orioles and I root for that team in the Bronx, we are indeed baseball and Princeton Seminary buddies!

        I’ll be providing occasional articles, not only about baseball but about other sports as well. I tend to focus on the societal aspect of sports, even though I’m not averse to writing about outstanding performances, even if they are not by my favorite teams.

        So, I’m pleasantly surprised to be here, and I hope to provide to you readers with the same high level of enjoyment that Dick provides through his work. 

        See you soon!

   

THE TIGERTOWN BLUES AS IT SOUNDED 66 YEARS AGO!

Nov. 22, 1946, the post WWII Nassoons make their debut in
Alexander Hall. Music Dir. Don Finnie gets the pitch for the
next song.

        If you read my earlier post and watched the video, you saw that Princeton University's premier men's a cappella singing group, the Nassoons, have made a most entertaining production of The Tigertown Blues, which has been one of their signature songs since it was introduced way back in the fall of 1946.
        While sticking with my original harmonization and basic arrangement, the Nassoons over the years have added some clever choreography and varied the original blues tempo. I was most impressed by the presentation of the current Nassoons, a link to which was included in the previous post.
        For an interesting and I hope enjoyable contrast, you might like to hear the original version, as sung by the reorganized post-WWII Nassoons in the album they recorded in the spring of 1947. I don't know whether or not this is going to work, but I'm hoping if you click on The Tigertown Blues below you will be able to listen to the song, as it was sung sixty-six years ago! I first made a cassette tape from the old vinyl record, then last night was able to re-record that copy on to a disk, which in turn was copied into my storage cloud, Sugarsync.
        After listening again to the way I sounded doing the solo way back then, I wasn't sure I wanted to go public with this, but my wife Margie and sons Andy and Woody insisted, so here goes. Now let's hope it works! The link will take you to my storage cloud, Sugarsync, which will say "Richard S. has sent you a file." Right under that you will see "91 Track 1.wma." If you click on that, you should then be able to play The Tigertown Blues. 
        I hope you enjoy this brief musical relic from my college years. (If it doesn't work, we'll try something else.)

THE TIGERTOWN BLUES

The Princeton Nassoons

        The Nassoons, Princeton University's oldest (and in my biased opinion best) men's a cappella singing group have a small part in the recently released movie "Admission," starring Tina Fey and Paul Rudd. They are singing one of their signature songs, The Tigertown Blues, in Blair Arch, when Princeton admissions officer Portia Nathan, played by Fey, breaks through their ranks.
        In the movie you hear the Nassoons for only about twenty seconds. To listen to the same song in its entirety, click here, turn up the volume, and enlarge your screen. In this video they are singing at a recent performance at the Friends School in Moorestown, New Jersey. These young gentlemen of song and their predecessors of recent years have added lots of choreography to the arrangement, which makes it even more of an audience pleaser.
        The tempo and rhythm have varied over the years, but the words, melody, and harmonization are the same as when I wrote the song way back in 1946.
        Actually I had written the music and the arrangement two years earlier, while I was at the Naval Supply Corps School at Harvard, but I changed the words for the newly reorganized, post-WWII Nassoons. We introduced the song at our debut, as part of a joint Princeton and Dartmouth glee clubs concert in Princeton's Alexander Hall.on Friday night, November 22, 1946. The song was an immediate hit, even though I was chosen to sing the opening solo that first year. Later on it became a Nassoons' tradition for the current president to sing the solo.
        When I wrote the lyrics Princeton was an all-male college. After the University finally began admitting  women as undergraduates in 1969, I updated the words to reflect the fact that Princeton was now coeducational, but the Nassoons at that time decided they would stick with the original lyrics and treat The Tigertown Blues as a "period piece."
        It seemed to make no difference to their audiences, and the song has remained one of their perennial favorites with their admiring fans of all ages to this day. The original Nassoon arrangement is included in the Centennial Edition of the University's song book, Carmina Princetonia (G. Schirmer, Inc., 1968).

Still the Nassoons!

        Click on Princeton Nassoons for their home page. To see the above and lots of other photos, click photos.    

THIS SHOULD MAKE YOU FEELGOOD!

Hello, friends!

In the midst of all the terrible news we've been deluged with in recent days, here's something that
should make you feel good.

I'll be surprised if you don't love this video, which I've just seen this morning for the first time.

The world does have something in common ---dancing!

Share this with your friends.

THE HEIGHT OF HYPOCRISY

        For Republicans across the board to blame the President for the flight delays resulting from the forced layoff of flight controllers at several airport hubs is the height of hypocrisy.
        The layoffs are the result of the sequester, which in turn is the result of the refusal of the Republican controlled Congress to compromise on budget cuts.
        President Obama had warned Congress and the nation of the dire consequences of the House’s failure to act and specified the severity of the cuts that would result from sequestration.  When he described the airport delays and long lines that would occur, he was accused by the Republicans of using scare tactics.
        Now those same voices are screaming about the delays and blaming the President for effects he predicted and for which they themselves were responsible!

Rep. Sen. Mitch McConnell

        To quote Yogi Berra, it’s “deja vu all over again” for Mitch McConnell and the other finger pointing Republican Senators, who also blamed the President for their own failure to pass gun legislation. Now McConnell, for example, is saying, "As a result of the administration's poor planning and, I would argue, political motives, thousands of people were stuck on tarmacs."
        I have a hard time listening to any of them without shouting at the television! They and their Fox news friends misquoted and misrepresented the President throughout the presidential campaign and they’re still at it. They have never accepted the fact that Barack Obama was reelected by a decisive margin. Republican right-wing ideologies were rejected by the majority of the American people.
        Since then the GOP admittedly has been in disarray, but that’s no excuse for their hypocrisy!

THE REAL STORY

        In an interview on WCVB early this morning Dave Henneberry, the owner of the boat in which Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was hiding, tells a much different story from that originally reported by the police.
        He did not follow a trail of blood to the boat in his backyard. To read Henneberry's own amazing account click here.

AN AMERICAN JIHADIST?

As more information is being released about the background and motivations of the Boston Marathon bombers, following the capture of the younger brother, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, widespread discussion of and speculation about the wider implications of their dastardly crime continues.

The young men, we are told, were religiously motivated.  We are warned of the possible increase in this type of terrorism. It is frightening to think that any religious faith could blind its adherents to the obvious contradictions implicit in any act of terrorism against a country whose Constitution guarantees the freedom of thinking and of speech, and of religion, that we Americans enjoy. The very concept of an American jihadist is an oxymoron. 

But, then, who can expect the mind of a terrorist to be logical? Here's an interesting article you may have missed. Click here.

THE GREATEST COACH I'VE EVER KNOWN

Herbert E. Armstrong
1893-1984

       The scandalous behavior of so many coaches we have been reading about lately and a while back has caused me to ask myself, What would my father think of all this? In my younger days I played for and worked with many great coaches, but I have to say that my Dad was the greatest coach I have ever known. He was a coach of coaches, many of whom would say the same thing of him, if they were alive today.
        I could spend many pages backing up that statement, but I’ll simply say that my father was an amazing analyst of every sport he coached. He could decipher, articulate, and communicate the mechanics of every individual move or team play in a way that enabled players and teams with mediocre talent to hold their own against opponents with much greater talent and size. He amassed an amazing record over the years, and his exploits were legendary in the state of Maryland, where he was revered by his players and respected by everyone in the athletic world.
        I wonder what my father, if he were alive, would think about the coaching profession today and how it has changed. He would not believe the salaries of coaches, which like those of professional athletes have skyrocketed. Many “big time” college coaches are being signed to seven-figure contracts. Some football coaches are paid more than the presidents of their universities!
        Television can be credited or blamed, depending upon your point of view, for this development, because it has made celebrities of coaches. To be sure, television has impacted all aspects of every sport, usually but not always for the best, and in my view its effect on coaches’ and players’ salaries is not one of the better ways. Given the alarming increase in poverty in our nation and the growing gap between the rich and the poor, I think the exorbitant salaries of some professional athletes and coaches are morally outrageous.
        That’s not to denigrate the importance of athletics or the coaching profession. Coaches, especially high school coaches, have a tremendous influence on the character development of the young people under their charge. Some of the most valuable lessons of life, like the importance of teamwork, self-discipline, hard work, loyalty, and sacrifice, and how to deal with defeat and success, are learned on the athletic fields. My values were shaped there more than in the classroom.
        My father recognized that and took it seriously. He attended a football coaches conference one year at which one of the speakers jokingly made reference to what he called “a character building season,” meaning a losing season. The remark and the laughter that followed it infuriated my Dad, who rose to challenge the speaker with the comment that every season should be a character building year! His timely objection was greeted with immense applause.
        That’s who he was —a man of integrity, a man of character, for whom honesty was a quality to be expected not commended. He believed character building should be every coach’s foremost responsibility. He himself taught by word and by example. I can imagine how upset he would be by the behavior of some coaches today, the chair-throwing Bobby Knights and the abusive Mike Rices of this world, who for many folks give the coaching profession a bad name.
        Today it’s all about winning. My Dad wanted to win as much as anyone. And he was a winner. But he never sacrificed his values on the altar of personal acclaim, or let expediency compromise his principles. He was humble and modest, fair in his reprimands and generous with his praise. He was always eager to give others the credit they deserved, especially his colleagues. That’s why his fellow coaches and players admired and respected him so much, and why they gave their all for him.