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And then the coach had an unusual idea
By Riney Jordan
 The retired teacher didn’t recognize the name on the return address as she slowly opened up the envelope and read the letter inside:
I just wanted to say ‘thank you’ for all you did for me back when I was in your seventh grade classroom. I’ve never forgotten the extra time you gave me. You took the time to listen to me when it seemed that no one else would. My husband and I have three children, and when I remind them to show their manners and be kind to others, I think of you.
Yes, getting a “thank you” is one of the great rewards of our profession. Let’s face it: Ours can often be a thankless job and we need to treasure those times when others recognize our efforts with a sincere and heartfelt “thank you.”
Oh, I guess a “thank you” can be overdone. I’m reminded of the 15-year-old who once told his parents that whenever he was reading a good book, he would stop and thank his teacher. “That is,” he added, “until she got an unlisted number.”
But occasionally you hear of something done by a teacher that is truly extraordinary. Such is the case of Coach Kris Hogan. Because he currently works for a private school, his football schedule is a bit different from those of most public high schools. This past season his team was slated to play the Gainesville Tornadoes in a Friday night football game. You may not have heard of the Tornadoes, but they are a team of about 13 young boys who have made a mistake or two along the way and consequently attend Gainesville State School. This school, operated by the Texas Youth Commission, is a fenced, maximum-security facility.
Coach Hogan started studying his opponent and was suddenly struck with the realization that they couldn’t have much of a fan base. All of their games were played on the opponents’ fields, and the only ones who followed them week after week were a handful of staff members who worked at the state school. After all, most of these kids came from dysfunctional and broken homes, so it was rare for family members to be at the game to support them.
Because Coach Hogan realized that all kids need to know that someone cares about them, he developed a plan to encourage his own fans to sit on the visitors side of the stadium and to cheer for the opponents on this special night. Knowing that this was a bit unorthodox, he explained to the parents that he wanted to let the team from Gainesville know that someone cared about them.
That night, hundreds showed up and filled both the home and visitors sides of the stadium. As the Tornadoes came out of the locker room, they couldn’t believe their eyes, or their ears. Many spectators in the stands were wearing the Tornadoes’ school colors. Up ahead was a giant banner that had been made for them to run through. These fans erupted into ear-shattering cheers as the players burst through the large Tornado banner and came crashing onto the field. This was truly unlike anything these guys had ever experienced.
When the game ended, no one really cared who had won or lost. When scores of locals rushed onto the field to congratulate the team, tears welled up in the players’ eyes as they were embraced by the new fans.
As one on the Tornadoes team players said, “I couldn’t believe there was actually someone in our corner. I’m not embarrassed to say that when I got back in the locker room, I cried like a baby. I’ve never known so many people cared how I felt.”
So for one star-filled Texas Friday night, 13 young men, who assumed they had been forgotten by the world, kept shaking their heads and saying, “Thank you.” And I, for one, have no doubt they meant it.
A special “thank you” to Coach Kris Hogan and the students and staff of Faith Christian School in Grapevine for realizing that winning a kid is far more important than winning a game. Sometimes we do what we have to do.
RINEY JORDAN, whose best-selling book, “All the Difference,” is now in its fifth printing, is an international speaker and humorist. He can be reached at riney@htcomp.net or by visiting www.rineyjordan.com.
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