Our Favorite Quotes
"It’s amazing to me that we can take fifteen years of
rich and rewarding experiences in our lives and condense it down to one
paragraph"--Hall of Famer Dick Davis (Omaha North, 1964), on trying to put into
capsule form what high schools sports and subsequent years meant to him in advance of the
1999 awards ceremony.
Friendships
"My, my, what a wonderful day. I just received my letter informing me of the
1973-74 Omaha Central basketball teams being chosen for the Hall of Fame’s Silver
Anniversary award. Thank you so much. The thought of getting together with my teammates,
and our friends and families is overwhelming. George Brett said at his recent induction
into the (Baseball) Hall of Fame, ‘We live with our friends, not our
accomplishments." I will always appreciate what you have done for my friends and me.
May God bless you."--Kevin Van Buckner, Lanham, Maryland, member of the two
basketball teams honored.
What It's About
Typically, the award winners thank their families, their teammates, their
coaches, their God. If they don't come right out and say it, they all left
the impression that the high school sports they did so easily was a special
time in their lives.
None of them said it any better than Matt Miller,
a 2003 high school
graduate who was a part of the amazing string of 10 straight state track
championships by the Kearney High boys track program, a streak honored
in 2003 as a
Great Moment in High School Sports.
Miller's speech
brought out what the Hall of Fame wishes every high school sports program
could leave with all its participants. In part, here is Miller's
response:
"I'm still not quite sure how
I got roped into cross-country and track, but deep down I knew that if I didn't
run I would regret it. Future state championships aren't built on freshmen who
run 2:12s but on seniors who turn that into 1:57s. I do know that by my
senior year, I had turned my 2:30 into a 2:07. The
freshman who struggled to break the 6:00 mile had become a respectable Class
A middle-distance runner. At Kearney High, I was respected because of my
heart, not just because of my speed. Sometimes I wondered what it would be
like, to actually win a race. And sometimes I hated it, having no talent. I can't even begin to
explain the impact this program has had on my life. They turned me into a
true leader. . . Coach
Mathiesen showed me the fire I had inside of me. And that fire has
translated to my everyday life which is now my attitude. Kearney High does
much more than win championships; they make champions of the smallest of
men. And this is a feat much greater than any state title."
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