Sunday Observations - Apr 26

- Congratulations to Felisha Garren. The former North Henderson athlete and Western Carolina freshman ran on the 4x400m team that won the Southern Conference Championship this weekend at Georgia Southern. Their time was 3:44.99. Fe also placed 4th in the 400 and 5th in the 200.

- I went to a presentation from the Grace team that went to Uganda in February. Pray for me and see if that's something that is in God's will for me in the future. In the meantime, check out the video: http://graceinfo.org/video-av/ugandapresent.html

- Please go to this website and sign the e-petition if you support it. The proposed trail would go along my backyard. When I first bought the house 7 years ago, the train ran twice a day. It hasn't run for at least two years. Here's more info: http://www.ncrailtrails.org/BREVARD.HTM

- Quote of the Week:
"Somalia is what happens when you let teenagers run a country" - Paul Larate

- Quote of the Week II (While at a cookout at Laura's on a beautiful spring evening):
Sara: "Why would anyone want to leave Asheville?"
Ruth: "The better question is: Why would anyone want to leave us?"
True, so true...

Song of the Week:
It showed up on my TV last week and then was used at Grace this morning.

Tracy Chapman - Change
Uploaded by TracyChapman

Crush of the Week:
When I was hired at North Henderson, David Pierce was teaching in my room. He was moved so I could be next door to the great Dot Case. Coach Pierce was also the girl's track coach. When he retired, I was asked to fill his position. Coach Pierce was an avid outdoorsman who liked to fish, bike and canoe/kayak and we often talked outdoors adventures.

He retired from teaching but continued to coach track at rival West Henderson. Two years ago, during a windstorm, he went to his favorite spot to fly fish. On his way out, a large tree branch fell and hit him, causing severe head injuries. A friend found him when his wife called because he had not returned. He spent several weeks in hospital because of his head injuries and several more weeks in rehab. For a while, it was a huge question mark if he would regain all his motor skills because of the head trauma.

Here are some of the Times-News articles:
Pierce Returns to Role of Starter for WHKP Relays
After Severe Injury, Pierce Back at West
Pierce Remains in Critical Condition

Good news is that Coach Pierce is back. He was the starter for the WHKP Relays that we hosted before spring break and again this past Tuesday for the County Meet. The photo above is him working as starter for the Mountain to Seas meet at Western Carolina a few weeks ago. Two years ago, many wondered if he would even walk again for how productive he might be. Truth be told, he looks pretty good.

Sunday Observations - Apr 5

- The talk is weather. It was nearly 70 degrees today. Weather forecast calls for snow on Tuesday. Welcome to spring in the mountains...

- Tom Izzo can coach my team any day.

- I went from the 98th percentile in my ESPN Tournament Bracket two weeks ago to 82.52% today. Really? The rest of the country must stink if I am ahead of 82% of them. I only got half the final four and one finalist (UNC). I do have Carolina winning, however.

- Next time you see a law enforcement officer, thank them or give them a hug. What happened in Pittsburgh breaks my heart. These are men with families that put their lives at risk every single day.

- Here's a great article on repentance and forgiveness: One man's ambivalent retreat from his racist past

- I made it to Western Carolina yesterday and got to see my former athlete Felisha Garren run a collegiate meet. Fe was a state champion for North Henderson last season and now a freshman at Western. She ran a 56.38 to place 3rd in the 400m dash and ran the 3rd leg on the first place 4x400 Relay Team [3:48.15]. Not bad for a girl who spent most of the winter in a boot because of stress fracture in her foot (note the high wrapping on her left foot).

- My fellow blogger and friend, Brent, likes to use the word "glorious". It's a great word. Today's teaching at church was from II Corinthians 4:7-11. The words "glory" or "glorious" are used 10 times in those 4 verses.

And here's Scott Stewart's, the pastor at Grace Foothills, blog post today: “Everything Glorious” by David Crowder Band

Crush of the Week:
Gloria (there's that word again) "Glow" Nock is one of my heroes. She works as an officer for the Henderson County Sheriff's Department, primarily with the D.A.R.E. program. Her husband, Bill, is an policeman with the Hendersonville Police Department. They both work hard in service of our county and I appreciate what they and their colleagues do for all of us.
Glow also is the mother of my "son" Wayne (above left, who's finishing his 3rd year at Elon), and my buddy Natalie (who in the picture just shaved her hair because she met a goal to raise $2000.00 for cancer). Also in the family is Allison, the oldest and not pictured because she's off doing theater all over the country. Glow is well known in the community as an advocate and role model for children. That makes her awesome. The amazing kids she has raised makes her even more awesome.

Fe's first college meet

I meant to blog about this yesterday in my Sunday Observations. Felisha Garren, the NC 2A State Champion in the 400 meters last season kicked off her college career at Western Carolina without missing a beat.

At the ASU Invitational, she ran a solid 58.14 to place 8th overall in the 400m. She called me and humbly, yet excitedly, told me she finished second in her heat and still had the 4x400 to race. Fe was the third leg on Western's 4x400 team that ran 3:48.16 to set a new Holmes Center track record.

Here's Fe's bio at Catamountsports.com.