Don,
I am thankful for my wonderful family. Especially my wife, Kristen, and daughter, Sarah.
Thank you, Kristen, for being the best wife there is. They have been my biggest support over the past few years getting me through several surgeries.
Also, my loving parents, Ray and Donna Webker. They are always there when you need something. Our family has had several medical issues over the past few years and we have all been there for each other. Barb,Patsy, Debbie and Allen and your families, I love you all. Thank you to my wife’s parents, Robert and Bu Hoover for being there at all times. I love you.
The biggest thing to be thankful for is my 100-year-old grandmother, Mary Webker. She is the pride and joy of our family.
As I write this on Oct. 20, she is flying to Florida for the winter. We love you, Great Ma. It’s great you are to be going where it is warm.
Our family is very close to each other and it is sad to see so many that are not.
Hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving and enjoys being with their families.
Rusty Webker
Andover
Don,
After two straight appearances in the South Carolina AAA state football championship game, I honestly think this team I am coaching this year is the best one yet. I know I wouldn’t be here in this position without a great “athletic upbringing.” I wanted to thank some of those who helped me achieve what I have.
It is all a reflection of my love of sports, particularly football, which starts with my family. My parents always supported everything I did in sports. My dad was my first baseball coach. My mom was at every game, whether it was playing football for the Jefferson Patriots, or baseball for the Royals or Tigers. Also in elementary school, the only real impetus for me to get my homework done was not being allowed to watch the Browns on Sunday afternoon unless my weekend homework was completed. It always got done.
I was also the beneficiary of some great coaching role models. Most notably, my high school football coaches. Joe Kearney taught me, among other things, that its OK to rip a player pretty bad, but you always follow it up with some positive words.
My high school offensive coordinator, Matt Bradley, taught me to play football with level of nastiness. While I am not anywhere near as fiery as Bradley, I still impart that nastiness to my players on the Chester High School offensive line. Bill Nye, my high school offensive line coach, imparted upon me the technical side of offensive line play. Offensive line play is a much more technical endeavor than the casual fan realizes. To most, it seems like a bunch of fat guys running into another bunch of fat guys. But I can assure you to do it right, you need a bunch of technically sound, precise fat guys.
I am also thankful for the care and love that the late Bill Phillips always showed all his players. While I didn’t play more than 10 to 12 snaps of defense in my high school career, I still felt loved by Coach Phillips, as all of his players did.
I am also thankful for my interactions and work with several coaches during my short tenure as a volunteer coach and 7th grade coach at Jefferson following my college graduation. I was very impacted by the leadership and poise Jason Root showed while leading a program as a young guy. I have always strived to be a head coach, and can only hope that if the opportunity comes at a young age, I can succeed both on and off the field as well as Root did and I am sure continues to today at Pymatuning Valley.
Another great coach I worked with on that staff was Rick Havens. On the field and in the classroom, Rick Havens was simply the best teacher I have ever been around (John Patterson, Janice Smith, Becky Reese, Carol Bragga, Rick Hoyson, Nancy Stevens and many others I am sure I am forgetting are a CLOSE second).
I also had the opportunity to work with Rob Mead, who came to Jefferson after coaching several years in Virginia. I am thankful for his influence, because he is the one who really got me thinking about moving south to start my teaching and coaching career. Don Feren, also helped teach me the game from a mental preparation aspect. He brought a “Steel Valley” attitude to Jefferson. I am also thankful for the opportunity to coach with T.J. Furman, who was one of my good friends from high school. I feel like T.J. has always been a coach and teacher his whole life, whether he knew it or not.
Also, I couldn’t write about gratitude without mentioning the coaches I have had in other sports or observed from afar. There is not a coach I have been around that is more organized, confident and efficient than Scott Barber. Not a second of practice time is wasted when Barber is in charge. As an offensive line coach, using Barber as an example, I take as much advantage of the 20 minutes of individual time I am given each day.
If I were to accurately, completely and honestly thank every one of the coaches from Jefferson who helped get me to where I am, I would need to write an entire book, but I don’t have the time to do such but I wanted to mention as many people as I could. So in addition to the coaches mentioned above I also wanted to thank the following for teaching me a lot, whether they knew it or not:
The Legendary Rod Holmes, Jeanine Bartlett, Jim Baker, Ray Webker, Bill Lipps, the late Larry Daniels, Jim Richards, Steve Locy, Tim Mizer, Ralph Misinec, Steve “Slug” Stehura and Scott Francis, among others.
Sorry if I forgot anyone.
In short, thank you, Jefferson.
Eric Park
Hi, Don,
Thanks for letting me tell some people how “thankful” — I am to have them in my life!
I am a great fan of your column!
I am one of six kids. I have muscular dystrophy, and so do my two brothers and two sisters. My parents feel so very guilty. Maybe if you print this, they will feel a little less guilty...
For a long time, I thought “WHY US?”... About 15 years ago, I figured it out!! My brothers have taught me the love of music and history. We can’t walk but we are all a whiz at Jeopardy! My brothers were always playing guitars to Simon and Garfunkel and the Beatles.
My sisters have taught me patience, forgiveness and to have a great sense of humor.
THANK YOU FOR OUR CARING SUPPORT GROUP WE HAVE AMONG EACH OTHER. I LOVE YOU ALL AND SO VERY THANKFUL FOR EACH AND EVERYONE ONE OF YOU.
Love,
Julie
Julie Ann Steward
Geneva
Don,
I am thankful that Mom is doing so much better than she was several weeks ago when she was admitted to Hillcrest Hospital in critical condition. Thanks go to God and to the doctors and nurses who provided such excellent care.
I am thankful for my husband whose sense of humor helps me tremendously, though he probably doesn’t realize it.
I am thankful for my daughter and stepdaughter and their unique personalities and impact on my life.
I am thankful for friends who always seem to know just what to say or do when I’m feeling particularly sad, frightened, angry, etc. There’s Stephanie who is always so happy (in fact Happy is her nickname) that you simply can’t stay upset when she’s around. There’s Angel who always compliments me and boosts my ego. There’s Barb in Kansas whose sympathetic ear is invaluable. There is Roz in California who I can always count on for a smile. There is Jeff whose goofiness and tenderheartedness can always make me feel better. There is Don, who most definitely DOES NOT have a stone-cold heart, but rather a caring and compassionate one. There are Laurie and LuAnn who each have a unique understanding of the things I’ve been going through. And there are many others who touch my life and make it better in ways they probably will never know but who all hold a special place in my heart.
I am thankful for all of my family, immediate and extended.
I am thankful for my relationship with God and for Pastor Meredith and her compelling sermons.
I am thankful for autumn and the gorgeous colorful leaves of the season, my favorite season of all.
I am thankful that I have a job when so many across America do not.
I am thankful for my health.
And I am thankful for the opportunity to list just a few of the things I am thankful for.
PEG
Jefferson
Don,
As I sit here on my davenport, where I spend the great majority of time (muscular dystrophy), watching our dark calico cat, Molly, stretching out on the floor, captured by the perfect shadows cast by the rays of the rising sun shining through the shimmering leaves of the maple tree then the small square panes in the front window, I say to myself, “Had Van Gogh seen this sight, I’m sure Starry Night would be his second most famous painting. “Molly in the Shadows”... That would be his masterpiece!
Whether it’s because I don’t get around as much anymore or whatever, I don’t know. But I just seem to be blown away by the grace and beauty of everyday life.
Also, my wife, Cindy, is Heaven sent. She is like the Army — s he does more before the sun comes up — in a good way. She gets more than a mere “Thankful For!”
My mom and dad, in their 80s and going strong — Buz and Dody are the best. They raised us Steward kids, Janie, Jim, John, Julie, Joel and Jac in a way that I don’t see done much anymore. If I got in trouble at school, I got in more trouble at home, followed by a big guilt feeling for letting them down.
I still remember the time I got caught throwing stones though the windows of the abandoned old Fork and Hoe building on West 57th Street. I actually told the policeman (Badge #2) that I was a pitcher for in Little League and was trying to throw the stones through the existing holes. Dad just gave me a very good talking to. He handled that just right.
I thought I was gonna go up the river or worse (Lancaster Boys Reform School) because my buddies yelled this to me as the ran off, as office Badge #2 drove up.
I am so thankful that all of us J-siblings cherish each-other! I miss my twin brother every day.
I have the absolute best nieces and nephews on both sides of the family. Carol, at 5 years old, cupped my face in her hands, a la Shirley Temple to “Cap’n January,” and said “I’m gonne be a doctor someday when I grow up and cure you, Uncle Jim.”
My future Josh Cribbs nephew and I were watching “Spiderman” a few weeks ago and I made an observation about how very, very attractive the starlet was. He told me it’s more about what was on the inside than the outside. Out of the mouth of a 9-year-old, wise beyond his years.
I am also thankful for growing up in a small, industrial, lakeside thriving community. We could catch a bus to Lake Shre Park and rent a rowboat or spend the day at Walnut Beach. CHEAP!
The “PREVIEW” Saturday night at Sheas’ Theater was the next week’s movie plus the current one, and all for the price of mmmmm 50 cents. I remember being in the front lobby with a few hundred other innocent people, plus a line around the counter, waiting to get in. All of a sudden, we heard this huge, BLOOD-CURDLING SCREAM, iminate from the main theater that make us all JUMP!
Then the movie ended and the screamers filed out past us all, not even giving us a hint about what the heck just happened.
“Wait Until Dark” was great!
The “Bula” was a real treat, if you were brave enough to go. I loved that old place and the B movies.
I thought B was for BULA.
Jim Steward
Ashtabula
Hey, Don!
Here is what makes me Thankful...
WHAT I am Thankful for is all the hardships in my life that I have gotten through.
WHO I am Thankful for ALL the cemetery workers and GREATLY appreciate their HARD labor!
Your Loyal Reader,
Trisha Patton
Don,
I remain thankful for my father, Kelly Altonen, and his large brood of family. Although there were 13 altogether, four did not survive infancy. Nevertheless, the nine who lived full lives passed on to us through the gene stream, numerous talents and abilities.
In adddition to the athletic prowess bestowed upon my brother, Jon, who went to college and coached football his entire life; he is a tight friend of OSU’s Jim Tressel and has been for decades and he has worked alongside Bernie Kosar. Those same athletic talents were carried down to both of my sons along with other great gifts.
My oldest son, Jeffrey, became a teacher of music in Cleveland Heights and earned a master’s degree in French horn performance; but in high school he played well at both football and basketball.
Our son, Sgt. Alan Altonen of the APD garnered both athletic and dramatic talents from the family and he has used them both to his benefit widely in football, basketball, golf, baseball, in song and dance at the Ashtabula Arts Center and at Baldwin-Wallace’s School of Musical Theatre. And now his gifts are being passed to and expanded by his three daughters (our granddaughters) who play basketball and tennis at Lakeside, enjoy creative arts including drawing and painting, and the dramatic as in thespians as well. All three are learning musical instruments and each takes piano lessons from Mummu, at which they do well.
One of the main reasons our family has had such good educational and learning experiences is due to the Finnish Temperance Unions that once flourished her. My paternal grandfather was a co-chairman along with another Finn named Perskari for the building of Sovinto Hall which once graced the corner of West 8th and Joseph Avenue. This hall and its members provided every athletic and educational endeavor possible for young Finnish immigrants and their growing families.
Many of those endeavors included a lending library, drama club with regular presentations of plays, choir and of course the famed Humina Band. There were dances, contests, trips, lectures in two languages and a dedication aimed at contributing greatness to a yooung and growing America. That society and the hall have been gone for more than 40 years, but the gifts continue to flow.
We cannot ask for more.
Chuck Altonen
Ashtabula
Dear Don,
When I read your article about being thankful, I felt the need to respond. In my life I am both thankful and indebted to my parents. Steve and Beverly Wludyga raised (9) children. We were raised with a few of simple principals, work hard, be honest and always do your best. My father served his country in World War II.
As a young father, he would often work three jobs to make ends meet. I have a very strong work ethic, because of my father. I remember my father rising every morning at 6:30am and heading out the back door to work at Rockwell. Missing work was never an option. Being slightly ill did not mean you missed work. My father taught me that in life we all have responsibilities; we were taught to face our responsibilities head on. One morning, I got up for school and my father’s car was in the driveway. I knew something was wrong. My father had been transported to the hospital. As soon as he was better, it was back to the daily grind.
My mother kept our home organized. How she did this, I will never know. This woman is small in stature ( only 5’2” ) but to me she is brave and strong. Nine children! OK, nine kids, we can deal with that... but everyone of them was active. My sister Quinne was in the band and Head Majorette, Steph - cheerleader & beauty queen, (6 boys) all athletes and lastly - me.... sports were my life. The thought of just having uniforms ready for each of us is mind boggling! Here is the kicker, they never missed a game, or a wrestling match. They were always there for us. It was like magic. At the time, I just expected to look over to the bleachers and see them. I just expected my uniform to be laid out and perfectly clean. I just expected to get a new pair of volleyball shoes, basketball shoes and spikes each season. As a child, you never wonder how these things happen. But now that I am a mother, with three very active children, I look back and say — HOW DID THEY DO IT?
I remember one particularly busy time for me. I was in the band and it was basketball season. I had basketball practice after school and then a band practice immediately after. Again, my Mom came through. After practice, I walked out of the locker room and there she was with my dinner! She handed it to me and said she would be back to pick me up after band practice! The funny thing was, everyone came to our house if they needed to eat. We lived right in town and on any given night, you would walk in to my house and see kids eating at the table. Mom always made sure there was enough for any one who stopped by. All the kids knew they were welcome at our house.
My parents taught me to always do my best. Dad always told me, “If you are going to go out and play a game — go out and give it your all, go out and win!”
It’s because of these two people that I am where I am today. I have a wonderful family and a business that I love. I work hard and I do my best. I can only pray that my father is looking down from heaven watching and proud of what I have done. I am trying hard to raise my children in the same manner.
I now have three very active children. My husband and I never miss a game, we are now on the bleachers. When they look over, we will always be there for them.
The Wludyga’s now have a large extended family with many grandchildren who have also been touched by these two people. Their legacy will live on, in their children, their grand children and so on and so on. So thank you Mom and Dad (Steve and Beverly Wludyga) I will always love you!
Tammy Wludyga McTrusty
Don,
I’m glad those who wrote about the Tommy and Shirley story. I, too, appreciated that.
The Lambros family has been a credit to this area for a long time. I don’t know which one it was... who was on their way to speak at a political meeting when I had stupidly ran out of gas. I think it was Gus, but he stopped when he saw my emergency lights, took me to a gas station to get gas and brought me back. Even though it made him late for a political gathering where he was scheduled to speak.
I am thankful my morning paper is here for me to read when I get up. I am furious when it isn.t here. So it is most of the time now. I am thankful for that. I am thankful I have a local newspaper that covers the folks I know and want to hear about their achievements, joys and sadness, too.
I have thousands of things to be thankful for — a warm home, a roof that doesn’t leak, furnace is working etc. there have been times in my life when I didn’t have those so I appreciate them more. I am thankful that I didn’t have much at times makes me appreciate all the good things I do have. Good friends, family, wonderful great grandchildren, the oldest great grandson a sophomore on the Geneva NEC champion football team. He is the grandson of my deceased son, Wally, Jr. When he was on the Geneva football team, they were champs then, too. He graduated in 1964.
He managed his boys’ Little League teams and football teams as some of my other sons also did. We do love sports of any kind not just auto racing. I am grateful for the 45 years I enjoyed him being here, though the hole in my heart from losing him will never close.
Likewise, I am grateful for the 54 years my son, Harold, was here, helping me care for his father in his dad’s last days. I am grateful for the 55 years I enjoyed being with Wally, Sr. and the joys we had. Of course, there is never joy without sorrow. So we have that, too.
Lastly, I repeat I am so lucky to have little and been taught to work I am grateful for that. I feel sorry for folks who have too much and never enjoy it... always wanting more.
There is a column in your paper today: Dr.Dobson — “Harm in Leaving your Kids Money.” It is excellent.
I am greatful that so many newpaper people write. It takes a lot of thought and effort to write. Bob Lebzelter — I enjoy all your writings. I shouldn’t name just one. I enjoy Neil. Of course yours, oo. Kathleen Parker. Chris Larick. Bill West. Warren Dillaway... many mor, but when folks say they don’t see anything to read in the Star Beacon, I think, “Duh where are you looking? Must be you cant see.”
Cora R. Arkkelin
Geneva
