I dont want to be guilty of overstating this... but the legion of championship teams from Port St. Joe have helped our small community overcome economic disaster, social divides, and racial disharmoney. Im not trying to insinuate that we are perfect or that weve achieved a nirvana of equality and happiness. A lot of it comes from the kids: the Band of Gold, the Cheerleaders, and, of course, the Football, Basketball, Track, and Baseball teams. Maybe its, in part, from growing up as a mill town... There was a time when the stacks were pumping out steam and pollutants from the paper mill, Arizona Chemical, Michigan Chemical (Basic Magnesia), and Allied... Now, they are all silenced by progress. Visitors would come to St. Joe and would exclaim, Oh, this place smells so terrible; how can yall stand it? And, the popular refrain from one of our citizens would always be, Smells like bread & butter to me! (bacon & eggs, biscuit and honey, BACON...whatever) We knew it smelled, but we didnt abide out-of-towners saying so! Now, our citizens scrape and claw as best they can... As in the days of prosperity, were all in it together. Maybe Im missing the mark here... Still, I believe that the success of Port St. Joes athletic programs has helped us maintain a sense of pride and a bonding that transcends all of the differences that plague so many other communities in America. We had a horrible white-on-black murder here and the entire town anquished over it; the victim was one of our own, a young man in the prime of his life. His family held their heads high with dignity and character, and enjoyed the respect and praise of everyone. When one of ours hurts or suffers, we all join them and do our part to tend to their needs. When our boys or girls do well, we all join in singing their praises. Athletics have done more to knock down barriers than have any politicians or preachers. I wonder if anyone agrees that it is entirely appropriate that this championship came last night in the final month of a year that saw us lose the legendary coaches, Wayne Taylor and Vernon Eppinette... I dont know about what others may think, but Da Joe still smells an awful lot like bacon & eggs to this old native.
Posted on: Sat, 06 Dec 2014 15:51:06 +0000
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