Last year tornadoes ripped through the small community of Parkersburg, IA, destroying much of the town. Today another tragedy struck as the head football coach, Ed Thomas, was shot and killed by a former student as he was overseeing the weight training of some of his players.
This story hits close to home for me since this community is only a few miles from where I grew up in Cedar Falls, IA. My high school was in the same conference as the one Coach Thomas coached in and so I spent much time competing against many of his former players.
One of his former players, Aaron Kampman, who currently plays for the Green Bay Packers, just released this statement:
Coach Thomas was very special to me and many other young men from the Aplington-Parkersburg communities. His legacy for many will be identified with his tremendous success as a football coach. However, I believe his largest legacy comes not in how many football games he won or lost but in the fact that he was a committed follower of Jesus Christ. He lived his life trying to exemplify this faith and convey those values to those under his influence. His faith in Christ pervaded everything that he did and that is why in the midst of the heartache we all feel there is comfort in knowing he is with his Savior.You can read more about this very sad story here.
Below is a video that was made by a local TV station profiling the events leading up to the first game played by his team after the destruction of the tornado.
4 comments:
ya - this is so sad. It even made breaking news on Chicago WGN Radio when it broke this morning. (how I first heard.)
Were this the science teacher at AP, or the bank teller in town, it wouldn't be national news.
Our fascination with, and elevation of, sports personalities in this country is disturbing, in my opinion.
Hey there, Zach. Thanks for posting this. Luke's dad was asked yesterday to do the funeral. You can be praying that it will help people see Jesus- what Ed would want!!
Sife- I don't really think this is elevated b/c he's a sports guy. It's elevated b/c of the incredible man he is. He is the pillar of the community, not because he coaches football, but because he genuinely loves people, encourages everyone he's in contact with, shared his faith & hope with others, and helped thousands of students become better people. Yeah- he had success on the football field, but there are hundreds of coaches who do that. He's well-known b/c people love the man he is. I do understand what you are saying, but had to get my thoughts on here... the bank teller in town might have gotten this press if he/she had this kind of impact and was the one to rally the town after a devastating tornado??
"Sife- I don't really think this is elevated b/c he's a sports guy."
- 80% of every story about him is about his status as successful coach. Even the breaking news story about the shooting was one line about the shooting, then two paragraphs about his team records and state championships. Nearly every memorial played on TV/radio (and ESPN) are from former players.
It sounds like he was a great guy. But let's not kid ourselves: were he simply the language arts teacher, Sportscenter (and many others) wouldn't have covered this.
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