By Steve Carter
June 04, 2007 09:09 pm
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I am always getting from people, “Man, I would love to have your job. You get to go to all of the ball games for free and be on the field at the Georgia Dome,” you know, things like that.
Well, it is nice, but there are those three letters there, you know, j-o-b, and there are a lot of times this is a, well, a JOB — like late last week when I tried to get everything done I had to do up here even though I was taking so much medicine for my allergies, I couldn’t think straight.
But all thoughts of being sick quickly vanished Friday night when I arrived in Dalton to cover the annual Georgia Athletic Coaches Association Sports Hall of Fame induction.
On Friday night, I was able to talk to several people that had been in the life of Coach Arthur Mott, one of the inductees.
It was like a history lesson come to life. Some of the many stories I heard were about players practicing on rocks, having to wear hand-me-down cleats and playing golf with tin cans for cups.
Then came the main event on Saturday.
Not only was I there to cover Coach Mott’s induction, I had also been personally asked to receive Mr. Charlie Ridgeway’s award for him. Mr. Charlie wanted me to accept the Beverly Sanders Raines award, because he was unable to travel due to health concerns.
It was perhaps the greatest honor I have ever received. I think the world of Mr. Charlie and it meant a lot that he thought so highly of me he asked me to be his representative Saturday.
By the way, that is the only reason you are seeing the picture of me — yes, that’s me with the tie — accepting his award. Mr. Charlie wanted everyone to know that I was the one that he wanted to honor.
It was especially nice, because I didn’t trip or something like that. There is a reason I write about sports and don’t play, because you have to be at least partially athletic to play sports.
Then came Coach Mott’s induction as the GACA executive director, Ray Broadaway, made the presentation.
Coach Broadaway talked about how much Coach Mott had done for the children during his 33 years in the Tift County School System.
As Coach Broadaway stated, Coach Mott taught his students lessons in the classroom, the football field, the baseball diamond and the basketball court.
One of those biggest lessons was about respect.
That was a word I heard often Friday and Saturday when people were describing Coach Mott: the respect Coach Mott had earned, as well as the respect Coach Mott wanted his students to have for others, as well as themselves.
“My father touched a lot of people’s lives,” said Dr. Alfred Mott, Coach Mott’s son. “He impacted them not just on the playing fields, but he showed a serious interest in the person. He taught a lot about life and determination, and he also taught them you should have respect for everyone.”
During his induction speech, Coach Broadaway stated about Coach Mott, “He taught his students the dignity of simplicity and leadership by example. Many of his former players still speak of how Coach Mott’s work ethic positively affected their lives. He taught them to respect themselves, and he demanded they respect others. He taught them self-reliance and how to do more with less.”
With the lack of respect we all seem to show each other these days, I think that says a lot for Coach Mott. He knew that was an important part of what makes each of us a good person — showing respect for others, as well as ourselves.
Respect is certainly something I now have in abundance for Coach Mott and his former players that I talked to over the weekend.
Those men went through a lot and their stories are something I hope to be able to tell through the rest of the summer. We did not have much time together Friday and Saturday, so almost all of the players that I talked to promised they would come by and talk to me when they were in Tifton during the coming weeks. It is something that I look forward to writing about as their stories should be documented.
Well, back to my weekend. Between Mr. Charlie and Coach Mott, these were some of the best moments I have ever had in my career.
I have used the word, honor, a lot in this column, but I can’t think of a better word to describe what writing about Saturday’s events meant to me. Heck, it was a honor of the highest order.
And I shouldn’t forget, Coach Milt Miller and Mr. Dick Kitchens.
Coach Miller, who was a long-time fixture at Worth County, was also inducted into the GACA Sports Hall of Fame.
I will never forget him for one big reason.
Right after my daddy passed away in 1989, I wrote a letter to the editor of the newspaper in Sylvester. I wanted everyone to know how my daddy still considered Worth County his home, even though he was living in Ocilla at the time of his death.
I also made a point of telling Coach Miller and the Rams they would have a fan watching down from heaven during every Friday night’s game that coming season.
Coach Miller responded by making a donation to the American Cancer Society in my daddy’s name. That was very cool for him to do, since he did not know my family or me. It was a special gesture and it meant I would always be a fan of Coach Miller.
Everyone in Tifton knows of Dick Kitchens and his work as not only a sports official, but also in promoting the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
There is no better person in this community and it was great to see him honored Saturday as the state Football Official of the Year.
It was an honor that could not have gone to a more deserving person.
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