When people think of hall of fame worthy moments, there're usually times where crowds of people get to witness things outside of the norm being performed. As a former athlete, I've observed some of those kinds of moments. In a recent trip back to my home town of High Point, North Carolina, I had a chance to relive some of those times. In an effort to celebrate the contributions of myself and twelve other amazing people, my high school T. Wingate Andrews, and its' Hall of Fame selection committee, chose us to represent the TWA Sports Hall of Fame class 2015.
I can recall on the day that I received the message about being selected, my mind immediately took me on the journey of when and where it all started. I thought about the thousands of student athletes before me that had endured things that made my career simpler than theirs had been. I also paid homage to those that mentored me through my growing pains.
Soon after receiving the individual phone call, there was a public announcement made with the names of twelve other inductees. When I read the names on the list, I was humbled and excited about what was to come. In every hall of fame class there is one person that stands out. In our class, that person for me was my good friend Adell Harris. See, Adell was a superstar standout women's basketball player, and was often one of the few female athletes that I hated to see coming during our gym class pick-up games. Mainly because she wouldn't stop talking trash while lighting up my teammates with jump shots and crossover moves.
Now that we're older, I find myself living in a reflective space about the motivations of her journey. She and I have had countless conversations since high school about the sacrifices of those that contributed to our success. I've come to understand that her journey to greatness has grown to outweigh her basketball talent. Life has a funny way of teaching us that we all have a story about what it takes to be mentioned in the conversations of the greats of our respective schools, and it takes time to pass for us to fully realize what motivates people beyond their circumstances.
On the night of the ceremony, emotions were high, great stories were told, and we were able to share the moment with some of the most beautiful people in the world. We were even presented with the opportunity to connect with our newly appointed principal, Mr. David Miller. Following the ceremony he proudly invited Adell and I on a tour of the school. The following morning we showed up armed with Krispy Kreme donuts for the administrative staff, and after a few brief introductions, we started the tour.
It was amazing to see how much a little paint and some weed pulling could do to improve the visuals of a place that many had written off. As we walked through the building, Mr. Miller rolled out his vision for what was to come. Most of which were ideas and action items that could very easily be carried out with assistance from every level. On the final leg of the tour, we entered the gym area. The gym has always been considered the, "sanctuary", for athletes past and present. For many of us, the gym is still considered to be the epicenter of pride for the school. The proof of our pride hangs on display from the gymnasium rafters. It's decorated with countless state and conference title banners, all of which validate the greatness that our school represents.
As we entered the locker rooms more reality begins to set in. Adell and I immediately realized that the place that had nurtured and saved thousands of lives, now had real-time needs. Much more than in years past. The lower level has little to no ventilation, the lockers are showing obvious signs of rotting, the showers are rapidly degrading, and the list goes on. Unfortunately, that was only on the men's side of the gym. As we worked our way across to the women's side, it was apparent that facility upkeep has not been a priority for many in years. The horror stories that we'd often read about in The High Point Enterprise were true. The narratives about the school being underfunded, its' reduced student population, and the notes about a disinterested/disconnected school board were telltale signs as to why we were fighting so hard for redemption.
Adell was escorted ahead of me by our new Athletic Director Derek Anderson. In mid-step she paused. She'd spotted something familiar. It was a box full of jerseys from her playing days. She reached into the box and on top was her old game jersey branded with the iconic number 23. The old jerseys were preserved by Mr. Miller and his team during this summer's massive campus cleanup day.
That moment was an anchor statement for all of us. It was "Our Hall of Fame Moment". The old box was the testimony of someone willing to remember the past, while investing in the present and future.
I immediately came to the conclusion that we'd failed the young people of our community. The epic night before had turned into a series of silent questions. I was fuming on the inside, I wanted to yell, when the hell did the powers that be stop caring?! When did everyone stop giving a damn about the conditions for OUR kids?! I was having an internal tantrum about an extension of my home. I was frustrated with the school board members that were entrusted with the responsibility of protecting the house of education for the children of our community! I realized instantly, in a moment of swirling emotions, being a hall of famer didn't matter.
By this point in our tour, Adell and I we were both visibly disappointed by what we'd seen. In the days that followed, she and I had countless conversations about what our next move would be in helping to re-write the TWA narrative. We agreed that others needed to know publicly about our experience. We also came to the conclusion that our story mirrors that of many public schools across America. In addition, we also had to acknowledge that the state infrastructure continues to ignore the local levels of accountability for school funding. We get it! We understand it!
That tour confirmed that the educational landscape across the globe has changed. However, even with those changes, education at its core is still about saving lives. It's about taking young people on a journey of hope, and not hopelessness. It's about inspiring them to believe in things that they've not yet experienced. Education is about creating hall of fame moments daily. We cannot continue to turn a blind eye on the needs of our children.
J.J. McQueen TWA C/o 95'
Left to Right: Adell Harris, J.J. McQueen, TWA Principal David Miller
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