A Helping Hand

From: Charlie Rhodes
Cc: Tim Priest; 'Marshall F. Priest MD, FACC' ; 'john pitts' ; 'Tom Portis' ; 'Scott M. Portis' ; 'Ronnie&Nancy Rice' ; 'Randy Clement' ;'John Clement' ; 'Joe Smothers' ; 'Gloria Fortner' ; 'Betty Ann Tanner' ; 'Fred Holladay' ; 'Gary Hall' ; 'Paul Allen' ; 'Ray Ivey' ; 'Wallace Pinkley'

Sent: Thursday, December 06, 2007 6:30 AM

Subject: Re: Coach Ward

My apologies for the delay in joining in the discussion here. I have been distracted for a few days with prepping for, having, and then blogging about, my first... and last ... colonoscopy. For the brave, curious, or perverted among you who have a few minutes to burn, you too can experience it at: http://www.nobodyasked.com/2007/12/01/colonoscopy/
For those who do not know, I write under a pseudonym, or chosen name, Winston Rand, in an attempt to retain some decency with the Rhodes family name.

Being a 98 pound weakling with allergies to everything, it was impossible for me to play football. But growing up in Huntingdon, I couldn't help but learn to love the game. That allure continues now, decades later, as an avid Vols and Titans fan. Playing in Mr. Tate's band helped me to grow into a 198 pound weakling who anchors the Lazy-Boy on Saturdays and Sundays, and works out by walking Neyland Stadium steps a few times each fall. While I had no close association with Coach Ward, I developed a deep and abiding respect of him ... at times it took on the trappings of fear ... from some of my closest friends. That group included Bill Rice (R.I.P.), Levoy Brown (anybody know where he is?), Jim Fortner, James David Woodard, Buddy Ezell, and others. So, while I have no real story to tell about Coach Ward, I will relate one strong and meaningful memory of him. Anyone who can fill in or correct the details, please do so.

There was a lad being raised in less than desirable circumstances. Some would call in squalor. In the cities, they would have been called "street people". I never knew what happened to his parents, but he had been taken in by his grandfather, who was known as Buffalo. Having no real family, and missing the building block foundations that the rest of us had as kids in family environments, the young man got into trouble frequently. He had learned to fight and would take on ... and whip ... any kid in town. To his credit, or perhaps by a combination of efforts by his grandfather and teachers, he did come to school most of the time. When he applied himself, he was not a bad student. Recess, whether picking a fight on the playground or sneaking smokes, was his strength. Motivation and discipline were not to be found among his strengths.

Whether in phys ed class, by casual observation on the playground, feedback from other teachers, I never knew. But Coach Ward took an interest in the young man. Coach became a surrogate father in many respects, even to the point of making sure the strapping young man had food and clothes. My memory is fuzzy here, but some of you may recall -- Coach Ward may have taken the young man in to live in his home the last year or so of his HHS career. This kid, who had nothing, was pulled out of a hopeless situation to become Co-Captain of the football Mustangs his Senior year, when he was also Senior class ('60) president. After college (Memphis State, I think) he became a contributing member of society and the community in Dyersburg, where he lived until his untimely early death from cancer at age 45. Without the firm but gentle, caring hand of Coach Ward, that young man would likely have spent his life like his grandfather -- rummaging through trash and doing odd jobs about town, when he was not a resident of City Jail. You might remember him. His close friends called him "Razor", for reasons long forgotten. His name was Ray Chandler.

Many of you have related stories of the stern discipline and hard work you learned from Coach Ward on the gridiron. There is no doubt he was a great teacher and coach who helped many boys develop into men. But when I think of Coach Ward, what stands out first and most is his generosity and caring as demonstrated by his nurturing of Ray Chandler.

Incidentally, Scotty mentioned my blog, and while I would not dare to bore you with it, there are a couple of stories that you might enjoy:

Mr. Tate: http://www.nobodyasked.com/2007/02/09/senior-math-mouth/

Firetower: http://www.nobodyasked.com/2007/01/25/journey-to-fear/

Charlie Rhodes