The best stories

They were among the very best—if only for a moment or a day. Their stories inspire us to want to do better—to strive for just such a moment of greatness.

Doug Thompson behind the wheel of the fastest boat among hundreds one afternoon on a lake in DePue, Illinois—soaring on a knife’s edge between victory and catastrophe.

Faye Roblin hurling a javelin farther than any other women in the country.

Paul Rosebush powering up the wing on his way to earning the Guelph Gryphons a national championship. Then putting on his ball glove and earning a gold medal at the Pan Am Games.

Earl Marvin shooting clay pigeons out of the sky with machine-like precision—the best in Ontario for seven years running.

John Sibthorpe gazing across Picton Bay as competitors from all over North America skimmed across the water to compete for the Gold Cup boat races he brought to the County.

Sam Mulholland pulling on the jersey for the Philadelphia Rockets of the American Hockey League in the winter of ‘49, then heading north that summer to compete for a spot in the lineup of the Brooklyn Dodgers baseball club.

Keith MacDonald grinding his opponent into the boards, elbows high, in Prague in 1959—demonstrating how hockey is played in Canada.

And Garry Lavender hoisting the Dudley Hewitt Cup high above his head in 2003—on this day Wellington was the best there was.

It is their stories that linger. They look like you and me. Yet they are extraordinary. Something inside them has propelled them further. Pushed them harder and made them endure more— want more.

So it seems right and overdue that these folks and their accomplishments are at last being recognized—that their achievements are etched in a lasting tribute, rather than left to faltering memories.

These eight folks became the inaugural inductees into the Prince Edward County Hall of Fam, located at the upper level of the Wellington and District Community Centre, at a ceremony on Saturday. The list of athletic accomplishments compiled by these individuals is astonishing. Each has been a true competitor, excelling at any sport they put their heart into.

Yet it is their stories that offer the most important lessons. It is clear that behind these individual achievements are many equally devoted and committed people—family, friends and supporters. Their accomplishments have been built upon work of the volunteers who train, who coach, who organize, who referee and who clean up afterward. The folks who run ahead to make sure the path is clear—that enable the best to compete.

It is the parents who trade a bit of their lives to see that their children are at practice, get the right training, travel to competitions when and wherever they may be. It is the visionaries who see that a successful event or activity might work in this community— and then make it happen.

These folks do what is needed to be done.

Each of the Hall of Fame inductees understood this. They understood they hadn’t achieved anything on their own. They know better than anyone else that it took a legion of folks encouraging, nudging, pushing and supporting them on their journey toward being the very best.

You could hear it in the stories. They are proud. They are fierce. They are joyful. But they are also humble. And thankful.

As we all must be now that there is a place we can gather to celebrate athletic and sporting success in this community. A place we can come together and listen to the stories of extraordinary people doing exceptional things.

rick@wellingtontimes.ca