My first glimpse of our monument decked in Trine blue took
my breath away. I was coming home from the Thursday night game with Aaron and
Rachel and the boys and there it was all in blue. Of all the colors we put on
the monument, I do think this is my very favorite!
I don’t usually write much about sports unless it is about
our boys, Jonah and Graham, but this is different. Basketball fever took hold
of this town last weekend in a way no one thought possible. Not Trine. Not the
community. Not the coliseum in Fort Wayne. Not even the sports commentators.
What happened this weekend, and the weeks preceding, gave rise to the
Cinderella story.
The success of Trine’s NCAA Division III win this weekend,
if it were written on a playbill, would have a list of thank you’s so long you
would need to add pages to complete the list! Of course, the players and the
coaches were beyond terrific. These players and coaches forfeited spring break
and every other activity that came along to prepare for the games. In all of
that, the players still had to complete their course work while spending every
other free moment practicing, perfecting, performing so the trophy could come
home.
The list of thank you notes goes to bus drivers, and ticket
takers, and the school administration who had to work out every detail as it
was always changing as the status of the wins continued. A very big thank you
goes out to the community who came together to support Trine’s team and the
school in general. Folks who never attend sporting events were in the stands clapping
and cheering their hearts out. A record attendance was set as 4,546 folks
attended the championship game. We supported the team with their send off
around the circle on Wednesday and again when they returned on Saturday night
with all the bells and whistles from our local police department. Thank you,
Mayor Martin, for making sure this happened! As I stood on the curb filming the
return, I couldn’t help but notice how many folks dotted the circle waiting in
the cold wind for our team to return. We sure made a lot of noise as they made
their way around the circle three times before heading back to campus so the team
could celebrate with their classmates. I stayed and chatted with the Witmer’s.
We chatted about Trine and this place we call home. We said farewell as folks
sauntered back to warm cars to meander home. I stood a few moments longer to
just let the moment of the win and the night and the blue monument make a
lasting impression.
I have been thinking a lot about what binds a community,
especially one like ours. I am talking about our county as well with all the
surrounding small towns. How did we get here to this little corner of the
world. Some of my Airbnb guests actually call us Mayberry. I love it when they
do that. Other comments include, “How did we miss this town? We never knew it
existed.” Once when Mayor Hickman was in office, I asked him what we could do to
promote our town. He didn’t miss a beat when he told me to just be friendly to
the newcomers and, of course, participate in the town.
He was right. There are so many ways to participate in a
community, but in a small community it is even more important. We all need to
step up to volunteer for boards or obligations or run for office. We all need
to make sure we shop local, attend movies, watch sporting events, and support our
local theatre. We do this already. The world is a big place, but keeping our
small towns afloat in love and generosity will keep up going day by day.
To the boys and the coaches of Trine University, we take
off our hats and raise our glasses to congratulate you. Thank you for working
so hard to bring the trophy home. Thank you for sharing that with our community
and thank you for acknowledging the community in your win. We played right
along beside you every step of the way.
T. C. Steele, plein air painter of the early 1900’s, took
his hat off to the beauty of the world every morning. Let’s do the same.
I take my hat off to the Trine basketball team.
Congratulations.
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