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It’s hard to imagine. But this month will mark the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Garrett High School Wall of Fame. The annual event recognizes past GHS athletes who have achieved outstanding athletic success in their high school careers, or have excelled in athletics or other fields of endeavor after their high school careers.
On Feb. 16, 1985, 10 men were selected as the inaugural class of the GHS Wall of Fame. Today, the maximum number of nominees selected to the Wall of Fame each year is limited to two.
The Wall of Fame also recognizes GHS coaches. In all, 49 men and 10 women grace the north wall of the Bateman Gym commons. Those athletes span nearly 75 years of sports at GHS.
An individual can be nominated by anyone. The only stipulation is that he/she can not be nominated until 10 years after their graduation date from GHS.
Nomination forms can be picked up at the high school athletic department office. The forms should be filled out and returned to athletic director Steve Rhoades by Nov. 1 of each calendar year. The nominees are considered by a selection committee of GHS patrons.
The seven-member committee examines the nomination forms and votes on the candidates. Nominees receiving the necessary amount of votes for induction, are then notified and presented with a plaque at halftime of the final home game of the boys basketball season. A reception follows after the game.
This year’s ceremony will take place on Friday Feb. 19, when the Railroaders host the DeKalb Barons. Inductees, if there are any, will be formally announced in the next week.
The breakdown of the current Wall of Fame is interesting. There are 11 athletes from the ’90s, nine each from the ’80s, ’70s and ’60s, five from the ’50s, and six from the ’40s. The larger number of modern day inductees is due in part to the advent of more sports teams and the women’s sports programs at GHS.
Rhoades would like to see more community involvement in the nomination process.
“We need families to get involved in nominating family members,” he said.
Rhoades said that patrons should feel free to call or email him at 357-4116 or
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, if they have any questions or need nomination forms.
I am honored to be one of the selection committee members for the Wall of Fame. It is naturally of great interest to me, or I wouldn’t be covering GHS sports with a column every week in the Clipper.
With that said, I too want to inspire you readers out there to consider nominating someone. Resources for nomination, like the Garrett Clipper on microfilm at the local library, and past GHS Aeolians, are great places to start your research. Many of you probably have scrapbooks of your beloved athletes as well.
While there are no assurances that your nominee will be inducted, your efforts will always be appreciated. And the GHS Wall of Fame will truly be a wonderful expression of local honor coming from the community.
Wrestlers Move On.
A record nine wrestlers advanced to this Saturday’s regional at the coliseum, following last Saturday’s second place finish in the Carroll Sectional. Coach Luke Fielden will bring three individual champions along with six others to what should be a very competitive day of wrestling.
Sectional champions Austin McCray, Bryce Schendel and Zac McCray will be joined by teammates Logan Lee, Brayden Moreau, Shea Novy, August Novy, Austin Gibson, and Kyle Lanning.
The top four in each weight class advance to next week’s semistate. Wrestling begins at 9 a.m. Good Luck Railroaders!
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