School: Roosevelt | Graduation Year: 1981 |
Year Inducted: 2020
Sports Played: Gymnastics, Cross Country, Basketball, Track and Field
High School Honors: 4 Gymnastics Letters. All around performer—floor, beam, bars, and vault. 1 Cross Country Letter senior year. 3 Basketball Letters. 2nd Team All-PIL and team captain as a Senior. 4 Track & Field Letters. Held school records in 100M, 200M, 300M hurdles, and Long Jump. Finished 5th in long jump and 6th in 300M hurdles at State in Senior year. MAC Scholar-Athlete Award as Junior & Senior. School Salutatorian; honored for perfect attendance all four years.
Post High School Career: Portland State University on Track & Field scholarship; 4 letters, competed in heptathlon; BS degree in Mechanical Engineering, 1988; On USA Bronze Medal team in European Korfball (Euro basketball), MVP 1985. Engineering Manager for past 32 years at Daimler Trucks in Portland, starting in 1989 at Freightliner. Perfect attendance continued, no sick leave in 32 years. Played in company softball and golf leagues; volunteer in local lake and beach clean-ups for many years.
Commentary:
: It is such an HONOR to be inducted into the PIL Hall of Fame. My dad always told me I was his favorite son; my two brothers didn’t like it much. He told me that probably because of my interest in mechanics and my competitiveness in sports.
One of my fondest sports memories was showing up on crutches for track practice after a basketball injury. I was bound and determined to get my varsity letter as a freshman. At 5’1” and 99 pounds I learned how to shotput on one leg to get enough points. Way back in grade school my folks would drive the basketball or track teams in the back of their station wagon to away games and then out for dime ice cream cones. They never missed a game all the way through high school and became teammate’s parents, too.
I will be forever grateful for their support and inspiration. I also credit the coaches for not only teaching classes, but guiding athletes to be their best. I saw my teammates and coaches as family.