Good morning, South Windsor! Today is Friday, Friday, gotta get down on Friday, party and party and party and YEAH! Party and party and party and YEAH! Sept. 14, 2012; there are 108 days left in the year.
What I will take with me from Jim Calhoun aren’t the NCAA titles - he had three, which puts him in rarified air - nor the number of players he had drafted into the NBA, nor the scandals (both major and minor) that hit the program, nor his notoriously prickly relationship with the media.
I went to Syracuse University, when the rivalry between the then Orangemen and the Huskies was just heating up. I HATED UConn. Hated the bandwagon jumping fans who hadn’t followed the Huskies when they were bottom dwellers of the Big East and were of mild regional interest before they joined the league. I hated their success. And, naturally, I hated their coach.
That changed, however, when I lost two dear friends to cancer in 2008. That’s when I learned of all of Calhoun’s efforts to raise money for cancer research. I supported his Cancer Challenge Ride in Simsbury and even volunteered one year. I found myself rooting for my old nemesis. If Calhoun wanted to be short in an interview or be defiant with the UConn administration, well, it was a bargain I was willing to make. Heck, I wanted him to win all the titles he could if he continued to fight the terrible disease that is responsible for taking too many mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, sons, daughters and dear friends.
So I am one of the few Orange alums who is not happy to see Calhoun call it a career. I’m sure he’ll keep up his efforts and continue to use his standing in the community to raise funds and awareness for cancer research.
So farewell, Coach Calhoun. But keep up the good work.
Here’s your Daily 5:
1. OK, I got the date wrong. Apologies. Today is the game between the South Windsor High girls soccer team and Windsor at home at 3:45 p.m. C’mon you Bobcats!
2. Are you caring for a loved one or a friend? Join the Caregivers Group on the second Friday of each month at 10:30 a.m. at the Community Center.
3. The Chamber's UPTIC Committee meets on the second Friday of the month to discuss all things technology. For more information, please call the Chamber at 860-644-9442 or email info@southwindsorchamber.org.
4. Shabbat and worship services at Temple Beth Hillel tonight at 7:30 p.m.
5. There’s a social dance at Fred Astaire Dance Studio at 7:30 p.m.
