We all face challenges in life, some more than others. The test is how much grace can one display when the deck is stacked against you.

  As I sort through thousands of photos in search of the ” keepers ” that will end up in the book, there is simply no way to not have the one at the top of this post make the final cut.

My lifelong love 💘 for Duke University comes from the fact that the Medical 🚑 Center fought hard to save the lives of many people who are/ were Kin to me. Now, next week, Lin and I will spend a week there in hopes that once again they will find an answer for my Bride.

The team as a whole is in the Carroll County Hall of Fame and four individuals from 2015 have been voted in. On the Page County side, Coach Knight and Kate Gordon have been honored as well.

If there was a Hall of Fame that recognized people for things like courage, strength and will to keep fighting 💪 the Good Fight, Principal Thompson and Tiff Moore would be first ballots 🗳.

https://youtu.be/vlAa0IGCXCw?si=wRhZs0cEuhEC500t

When is a win more than just a Win ?

Chuck Thompson started a chain ⛓ reaction when the Principal of Carroll County High School convinced fellow Cavalier, Rick Nester to take over the Softball program back in 2013.

Is it possible that Mr Thompson could have envisioned all of the steps 🚶‍♂️ that would follow ? Less than three years later, Carroll County High School would claim a victory that had been 36 years in the making.

That victory would translate into the modern edition of our Cavalier Park that we know today ! A number of people have been involved along the way and the hope is to include everyone who was part of the process.

Thursday morning 🌄 we begin the process of giving credit where credit is due. But in the beginning, it was Mr Thompson and his Master Plan, then it was just cause and effect from there !

By the time my next Flight ✈️ lands in Dallas – Fort Worth, Monday will have turned into Tuesday and the youngest of my five Children will have reached the age of 35.

Besides the fact that having five children 35 or older = being really old, it worth mentioning that so many things that I have accomplished over the decades simply wouldn’t have been possible without the assistance of Rebecca Carter McDowell.

The Panther Palooza, Around the Valley in 60 Days, the naming rights ceremony at Alan Knight Field and the Virginia High School League Hall of Fame ceremony in Charlottesville are just a few of the big ticket 🎟 items that we were able to team up on.

That’s just the list that involves Baseball ⚾️ and Softball.

Rebecca is back out on Orcas Island 🏝 now, with her Husband Calen, and their Son, Ronnie.

Here’s hoping that Tuesday 🙏 will be nothing short of glorious for the McDowell family 👪 !

Painted Buffaloes are spread across St George as a celebration of the Trail Blazers. They are fun to view, very similar to the Bears 🐻 down in Cherokee, North Carolina.

Crazy kinda week has begun now with stops ✋in Phoenix, Arizona ➕ Austin, Texas ( Final AAA Baseball ⚾️ park), Duke University on Wednesday, Cavalier Park on Thursday (All Day), Roanoke Airport on Friday night 🌙 to reunite with my Beautiful Bride 👰 and Saturday its Page County for an event near and dear to us, then hopefully back through on Sunday afternoon to find Vickey Ritchie.

Monday morning 🌄 starts our week long stay at the Duke University Medical Center 🚑. Hoping to fill that time with a decent amount of writing ✍.

Justin Quesenberry will be in the number two slot on Thursday morning, following Mr Darrin Mathews. Coach Nester tells us that Justin is the man behind much of the beauty at Cavalier Park and I am looking forward to meeting him !

Will need to squeeze in the time to write ✍ a check to Mr. DeHaven for the balance due on the Long Jump area as well.

Still hoping 🙏 to add a few more folks to the list for Thursday so if you have a story about 2015 and wish to share it, please let me know.

Pitching Coach from 2015, David Quesenberry is taking the 1pm slot !

  One of the reasons why I am a huge fan of High School and small College Athletic Directors is that they are tasked with the needs of every single program at their school. Hence, they are easy to pull for because they have to like everyone. Don’t underestimate how hard that is until you have tried to accomplish this.

Keith Cubbage was the AD at Page County High School in 2015 and Darrin Mathews held the identical position at Carroll County High School. The goal is to present an opportunity to both men to share what that day meant to them.

Neither AD is still active at these schools as Kevin DeHaven replaced the retiring Mathews just over a year ago and there have been a few AD’s at Page since then.

This Thursday morning 🌄 at 9am I will be back on The Hill and the first guest of honor 🎖 will be Mr Mathews !

Anyone and everyone can appreciate 🙏 the efforts of Kevin DeHaven as his fresh outlook survived year 1 in the Big Chair 💺 and is eager to begin Year #2.

But first things first, we will search out the story through the eyes 👀 of Mr. Cubbage and Mr. Mathews…