The Passing of an Icon

Friday evening we went to a memorial service for an old friend, Dave Hawk. Dave came to VUHS in 1955 to teach US History and coach Boy's Basketball. He stayed until he retired in 1986. He continued to substitute and in 2001 was honored by the State of Oregon for having taught 50 years in Oregon. Dave was an original and during the service stories flowed like good mellow wine. I was pleased to work with Dave for 20+ years and was proud to call him my friend. We went to the same church and hunted deer and pheasants in the Fall. He was a great hunter and an excellent shot with his shotgun. He wasn't as excited about hunting for deer, but he really enjoyed going to deer camp with his 5 sons and his friends. He usually took the position of camp cook and served up some fine meals. I suspect that the meals were cooked by his wife, Dona, and placed in gallon jars to be heated up for dinner. He did do the breakfasts by himself, hotcakes, bacon, and eggs.

Dave was a great Basketball coach, but never won a State Championship. His teams were usually present for the State Tourney, but the best they ever did was Third. His players worshipped him and always gave it their best. Vale kids were never really tall, so his teams often lacked the big man to go with the agile sharp-shooting guards.

There were 200 or more people at the memorial service. A great tribute to a great guy. It reminded me of the funeral service we held for Arnie Lewis at the High School in 2000. The two of them really kept VUHS in the sports spotlight for 20 years or more. So long old pal...