Hope you all had a good Christmas holiday....
I've made a ton of friends through this game both as a youth coach and official over the past 20 years. Some of those folks you'd like to forget...others have an impact on you and my buddy "Big Fella" is one of them.
"Big Fella"....A fellow Official that I met through coaching and officiating about 8-9 years ago, a guy that has been a HS official for 30+ years, a guy who helped me get games in my community when I moved from the north side of city to a small south side community and was the "new guy" around the area. A guy that didn't care I was new. He remembered me from the times I was the coach and he was calling my games. A guy that I've since called games with and also a guy who has 3 of his 6 daughters who are working their way into officiating that I've worked with and helped out...A guy I call a friend and he's one that I respect and look up to as not only an official but as a person. He's just one of those guys that seems to never know a stranger and would do anything to help you out, official or not.
KB was diagnosed with cancer, I think it was last year. Due to chemo he wasn't strong enough to officiate last season (at least I didn't see him out on the schools or courts where we would run into each other).
FFWD to late September this year, I was working one of the kids weekend travel leagues we have worked together so many times and low and behold, there he was...all 6'7" of him, in great spirits and looking healthy. And MAN, you could tell he was happy to be out there...even if it was just some youth travel league games. You could tell his spirits were lifted that day. As a fellow ref, it was great to see the guy back in stripes and between the lines.
About a month ago I texted him to check in and bounce some officiating stuff past him and he told me he was just getting out of the hospital. What I needed wasn't important and I told him to rest up. So this past weekend, as social media will do for us sometimes...I was informed he was coming home from hospital... again.
This time though, him going home seems to be for good....because the decision has been made that there will be no more chemo treatments or doctor appointments...hospice is being called in. I can only assume that my guy knows it's the fourth quarter and his clock is ticking down to have make a decision like this. He's already missed and this game and our local brotherhood of officials will continue on but it will not be the same without you, Big Fella
Games are short....Life seems shorter sometimes...
