Every parent hopes / prays that their Kiddo can make it through High School without needing the services of our beloved Nathan Jones, let alone a surgical procedure.
Our Faith Clontz, the one with the “I enjoy life” smile, pictured above, was not as fortunate as most.
Grandma 👵 was her biggest fan, and not having her energy on the roster has been a setback for the program. Not once, but twice, Miss Clontz required surgery on her shoulder.
Gone, but not forgotten !
Hopefully, the shoulder will heal up correctly this time, and Faith will be pain-free going forward.
It turns out that Dan’s last name is Puckett, and he used to play Ball with Rick Nester and knows Paul Nester fairly well.
See, Paul and one of his grandsons, Landon Phillips, just completed some outdoor work for one of our neighbors. Brenda is in my cellphone as Nice Lady in Unit A, and it’s been fun to watch her interact with Paul over the past few weeks.
Dan is connected to Ted, and it’s Ted’s job to keep all the rest of us out of trouble out here. Ted is a wise soul and a huge part of Olde Mill !
Back to Dan and his last name. I am currently working on a proposal that I hope to present to the powers to be at the High School in hopes of improving the chances for our Soccer ⚽️ programs.
Three years of sinking a great deal of time and energy into both Forrest Johnson and Adrienne Harris McGuire, which also includes Jeremy Puckett and Brittany Kinney, has led to a typed out set of recommendations. While it be put into place, maybe or maybe not, but I feel better for trying hard !
Just like when I asked for a sign before launching the efforts of the High Jump area and the very next day, Brenden Fariss qualified for State in that event.
Fast forward to today, and I am sitting here deciding on whether to push my thoughts forward on Carroll County High School 🏫 Soccer. There’s a knock on my door 🚪and the incredibly kind soul stopping by for the third time ( the first time I was home) to touch up on some work he’s doing, turns out to be the Father of one of the people that I’m trying hard to help !
If you don’t believe in God, we can chalk it up to Bill Engvall, saying, ” Here’s your sign.”
Greg Talley is a resident of The Hill that I cross paths with on a number of fronts, including Vickey Ritchie’s Special Olympics Basketball program. ” Money 💰” Talley is a fan favorite when he joins us at practice.
When we ( Lin and I) made the change to our format here on our site after the State Track 👣 meet loop had concluded, it led to a question from Greg, which allows me to expand for others that might have a similar thought process about the recent change.
We are NOT stopping coverage of Carroll County. We are simply dialing it back to people who want to interact with us.
Whether it has been The Carroll News, Special Olympics, Cavalier Park, or any other place where I have spent a great deal of time, I simply have no official capacity. This means that NOBODY is required to interact with me. It has to be by choice.
Spring time is a great example. We have 12 teams, 8 Varsity and 4 Junior Varsity.
Baseball ⚾️ – both Casey Burcham ( Burcham Bunch ) and Adam Nester ( The Nester Nine) sent me their game information, won or lost. I am a big fan of both of these young men, and there’s nothing that I wouldn’t do for either of them.
Boys & Girls Track – Shawn Montgomery and Jon Delp. We have an unofficial partnership, if you will. Hence, the fourth straight trip to Lynchburg for the State Meet. Shawn sends me every name and result for every Student Athlete that competes for his teams.
Softball and JV Softball – our home base of operation and the sport that will always be near and dear to me. See, a lifetime ago, I was coaching a softball team and married my second best player. The funny thing is that it turned my best player into my sister-in-law.
Our four soccer teams – I am getting ready to head out for a six week journey in which I will criss-cross North America and doing so without attending a World Cup game.
See, soccer ⚽️ is simply not my passion, but Adrienne Harris McGuire is a fellow ” Driven ” individual. When a person has an infliction of a burning 🔥 desire to complete a task, you find comfort in others who fall into that same category.
In my time here in Carroll County, I have met a handful of people who there is a wiring connection with. The short list includes Seth Greer, Casey Burcham, Kris Richardson, Adrienne Harris McGuire, and Alyssa Ervin. Thank God that Forrest Johnson and his bride 👰♂ are raising two young kiddos right now, or he would make that list too.
I think that McGuire has the skill set and the drive to be our next Casey Burcham. The fact that they both graduated 🎓 from Emory and Henry makes me ask what is in the water 💧 supply down there ?
Three years into giving any spare time I have for the spring tennants of Tommy Thompson Field has been a blessing and a curse. See, in my world 🌎, you can not help one and not help the others. I truly believe that I have a folder that contains the information needed to help our programs continue to move forward in the right direction. But once again, it’s not my program, so all I can do is suggest.
Our other two teams in spring are Boys and Girls Tennis 🎾. This season, both teams had new coaches, and both made a choice not to interact with us. I am absolutely pulling for both of them because they are part of what we do, and it’s their right to not participate.
It is a challenge to try to build a safe zone where we can protect our youth from the number of challenges out there. The world 🌎 has become a scary place as just this week a Track and Field meet included a murder of a Student Athlete by a competitor.
I have built a safe haven, a glass Kingdom if you will. It’s called The Hill and Principal Chuck Thompson is the gatekeeper. Fun names for teams and The Boulevard is one of my favorites. We don’t change scores or create false results, just trying hard to create a safe place for as many as possible.
Seth Greer is THE MAN, and we are very, very fortunate to have him here. Dude operates on a plane that is legendary, and his efforts don’t stop at the end of his football program. I have nothing but love, appreciation, and respect for everything he does for The Hill !
If it was up to me, we would start a rotation of 30 people, and every day, one of us would drive to Starbucks and bring him back a latte of his choosing and a scone !!! King Arthur, in my fictional place of The Hill. That makes Burcham one of these two:
King ArthurI’m thinking it’s #2
Yes, I hear voices, and yes, one of those voices is God telling me I took care of you for a long time, so I’m sure you will do the same for others.
Great line from a great movie 🎬 that has a tie to Greg Talley and Russell Smoot. In the original Blues Brothers, you heard the line – ” We’re on a Mission from God”. That is the pull quote here – a Mission from God.
Pastor Stephen Puckett preaches inside a sanctuary of a Church ⛪️ that sits on US-58 every Sunday morning. It’s much safer than if he stood in traffic on the highway and tried to do the same.
Greg, thank you for asking the question about if I’m quitting my work here. No Sir, just trying to stop playing in traffic because it really is dangerous !
This is the tricky part, getting people to read this one. See, everyone appreciates a story if they know the subject matter, but this one doesn’t fall into that category ???
My world 🌎 needs more people like Bill Gallimore and Sharon DeHaven or Danny Dean. Residents of The Hill who simply want to be Cavalier fans ! Fans of All-Things Cavalier !!
Thank you to Travis Leath for nudging this is my direction. Athletes Unlimited now has a team based out of Duke / Durham, and I love ❤️ the fact that they chose a regional name in Carolina !
Home 🏡 games will be played in a park where I have spent many a moon 🌙!
Yesterday was opening day, and the team stays in the Bull City today and tomorrow.
Through the eyes of a Greater Fool 