It is usually not a very good thing when the superintendent of an opponent from the previous nights game reaches out following an event. I know, I've made that call a time or two. But to be completely honest, when I receive those phone calls it is often to comment on how well our students represented their school. Seriously. In the past I have had phone calls from managers at a McDonald's, a grandmother who attended an event, or even an anonymous letter here or there. All saying how polite, thoughtful, and respectful our students are. So it wasn't too surprising when I received the following message from the superintendent at Dike-New Hartford a week ago:
Dr. Voss. I wanted to pass along a note of thanks and appreciation for what your girls basketball team did tonight. In the locker room they used they left behind a note of thanks for our janitor and a small gift for him to use. It meant a lot to him, and also me.
In a world that seems to be focused more and more on one's self and few others it's refreshing to see acts of good will such as this being carried forth. My best to the girls and the coaching staff the rest of the season. #rollblue #piraterising
Best,
Justin
Admittedly I wasn't sure what he was talking about but assumed naturally that our girls exhibited good sportsmanship and left the locker room in tip top shape, which is our expectation. Then this text message arrived on my phone:
I shook my head and thought, 'of course they did that'. There was no prompting or bad behavior that needed to be atoned for or anything that needed to be smoother over. This was exactly what it looked like: a random act of kindness and appreciation for an opponent. It was setting an example of what it means to be a Hudson Pirate.
Now, if I can put a bit of context to the story from personal experience it makes this gesture a little more meaningful. Each Monday morning, I complete an inspection of the facilities with our Director of Building and Grounds. This is where a bit of my military background comes out: in my search for 'gear adrift'. While this is an opportunity for Bryant to share and show projects that are underway, it is also time for me to point out areas that need to be dusted, mopped, etc. (I'm sure he hates it!) One of our stops is always the locker rooms, and inevitably we get to them before they have been cleaned from the previous nights game. They are usually a mess. I have also come to realize that some of our opponents (not naming names here so don't ask) aren't very respectful. Oh, we've had messages written on our whiteboards as well, but they are typically the antithesis of the message left by our girls at DNH. We've also had fixtures broken, locker doors ripped off, and toilets stuffed with all manner of items. It angers me greatly when I see this kind of behavior.
Sometimes my administrators take grief for a perception that they won't allow our students to cheer at games. Quite the contrary. We want them to cheer and cheer loudly. We encourage them to cheer for their classmates. What we are opposed to is cheering against the other team or heckling the referees and opposing teams student section. It is no secret that we have very high expectations for our students, not just in the classroom but in the way they conduct themselves. We remind all our students that anytime they are out in public wearing our logo, and our color of blue they represent the school district and whole community. We preach to them, 'Live Above the Line'. They get that, and for the most part they take that responsibility very seriously.
It fills me with tremendous pride whenever I get a note like the one above, or someone's grandmother calls to tell me about the nice young man who held the door for her and called her 'ma'am'. I sometimes get a lump in my throat and remember that we have a great school here filled with outstanding people.
I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas.
Love this!
ReplyDelete