Heroes

I'm not sure who said that “heroes are made, not born” but someone knew something worth repeating. Recently, John Wooden passed on to his eternal reward at age 99.

For those who don't remember Wooden, he was a basketball coach for the UCLA team whose win-lost record may never be excelled. Some 88 wins in a row and ten national titles. Unheard of.

What I vaguely remember is this story about one of his stellar players who went on to star among the professionals. Bill Walton was an individual in the era of individualism. One day he showed up for practice after a break in the season sporting a wild, red beard. “It's my right,” he told the coach who didn't allow facial hair. “That's good, Bill,” Wooden replied. “I admire people who have strong beliefs and stick by them. We're going to miss you.” The beard came off and eventually Walton moved on, a better man as well as a super player.

Wooden was known not only for his coaching skills and no nonsense demeanor but also for his love for his players as well as the game. Basketball will miss him as we all miss our heroes when they are gone. If heroes are not born, how else could they achieve this distinction? There seems to be several ways. They could become celebrities, heralded by the media, and endowed with certain abilities. Or, they could simply be blessed with riches, enhanced by achievements, and in some instances, a highly visible philanthropy. Another way would be to be in the right place at the right time to perform an act of extreme bravery.

Then there are heroes who have toiled long and hard to find a medical cure or labored valiantly to unearth a long-lost clue solving a heinous crime. Heroes come in all kinds of shapes and sizes, male and female, youthful or elderly, rich or poor. But there are also those who are heroes undeservedly.

Unfortunately, we don't really have a name for them that fits except perhaps rogue or villain but these are not heroes except perhaps to another kind of assemblage. Why was John Wooden a hero? Because of his incredible record at UCLA? In part. But primarily because of the kind of a person he was which made him the kind of a coach he became resulting in the making of men out of boys, producing champions with character.

Coach Wooden, you are to many of us a real hero. Thank you and our thanks also go to those who helped inspire those heroic qualities.