Rest of the Story (11-16-09)

I used to listen to a radio personality by the name of Paul Harvey. You may have heard of him. He had a folksy way of speaking and used to end his news reports with the line, “And now you know the rest of the story.”

Last week, I wrote about the wonderful school spirit I experienced for our playoff bound football team. Now it is time to tell the rest of the story.

You see, this was the first time that our grade school ever lined up on both sides of the highway to send a team off in high spirits. Yet, this was not the first time a Hill City team has traveled down the highway to compete at the state’s highest level.

This week I learned that just four days before, on a Friday afternoon, our high school cross country team passed quietly by on their way to the State Cross Country Tournament. Those courageous and incredible athletes received no parade, no banner waving, and no entourage of faithful fans.

Thinking about this, I was reminded about league music, which, coincidentally, took place that same evening. My family and I attended this event to watch our daughter who, believe it or not, is a freshmen in high school. (Yes, I still have a hard time believing that I am somehow old enough to be the father of a freshmen in high school!) When we arrived at Stockton High School, we saw so few cars parked out front, we almost did not go in. We were in the right place, though we discovered the performers outnumbered the audience.

So how many other activities are there that receive little to no attention from our community? I’m as guilty as the next person in overlooking the multitude of prestigious accomplishments by Hill City students and Hill City teams. And I doubt we are alone. Most schools and most communities, while supporting all students in all their endeavors, tend to show the most school spirit for the more visible team sports. Plus, when a school finds success in something for the first time, as was the case with the football team, the school spirit really erupts.

It is just easy to grow complacent. For example, this Thursday I traveled to Smith Center to supervise junior high basketball. Upon entering Smith Center High School, I had to stop and ask myself if I was in the right location.

I was confused by the fact that I was practically greeted at the door by a throng of Hill City High School students wearing blue FFA jackets. I had unwittingly stumbled upon an FFA Leadership competition that was taking place at the same time as the junior high ballgames.

After the games, I stopped one of our high school kids and asked how we did. “Great!” the student replied with a wide grin. “We took first!”

I think it is fair to guess that everyone in Hill City knows what a strong FFA chapter we possess, just as most people know that we have amazing sports teams, science Olympiad squads, eco-meet teams, forensics competitors, as well as journalists, artists, and musicians. Every year, these groups and others perform at the highest possible levels, and yet few of them ever get a parade, or some of them barely get a mention.

While our football team deserved every accolade, let us use the support we gave to that team serve as a high water mark to which we can all aspire. In doing so much to support the football team, we know that we can do more to support everyone else.

And that, as Paul Harvey used to say, is the rest of the story.