Sunday, September 8, 2024
Mr. Gordon was one of the two most important non-related people in my young life. At a very vulnerable time in my life when things really could have gone off the rails I was fortunate to play baseball and basketball for him at Lincoln Junior. I really believed it saved me from heading down a really bad path. He made everyone on the team, from stars to bench warmers, feel important. He had a drill at the end of five-on-five practices to improve our one-on-one skills by having each of us eventually play every teammate one-on one. And he kept standings and stats for those sessions. He was always encouraging, pointing out where you could improve but never failing to mention what you did well and always leaving you with encouraging words. He was a very young man then, in his 20s, but had the demeanor of someone much older. He was fun too, loved to laugh and make you laugh. Fun in the classroom, fun on the field and on the court. And he didn't like bullies, much to their chagrin should they be foolish enough to challenge him or pick on someone weaker. Everyone respected him. We all looked up to him. I never got the chance to let him know how important a role he played in my life, which has been a very good one, after being on shaky ground all those years ago. So I'm letting his friends and family know: Thank you Mr. Gordon.
