Coach "Daddy" Smiley

Those of us who have been blessed with the opportunity to participate in organized sports all have a favorite "Coach" that we can recall who forever changed our lives for the better and many times continue to influence our decisions in life. I personally know many coaches like this, but only one stands out as one of the most influential coaches in my lifetime. As a matter of fact he is still touching and changing lives today. That gentleman would be Coach Glover Smiley, Jr. He is currently the head coach of the the men & women's track team of Spartansburg High School in South Carolina. He is also the VP of the AAAA Association for Track & Field in South Carolina. He also continues to chair positions with our alma mater of West Virginia State University. What is most exceptional about Coach Smiley is he takes the least likely kid to succeed and tranforms he or she into a "Hopeless Success." Who else do you know can teach a kid to go from running the 100 meters in 11.2 to 10.4 in one season? Oh by the way that runner was ex NFL star Stephen Davis. Or to transform a high jumper from a 6ft jumper to a 7'4 All-American. I personally experienced the same influence when he convinced me to run the 800meters when I was in college. At the time I was a 200-400 specialist. I had just won the conference in the 400m and he says " you have the stride of an 800m guy so why don't you give it a try." Of course he saw something I didn't see because I thought he was crazy. So I began training for the next season. My best time for that season was 1:58. The next year I won the conference at 1:55 and qualified for the NAIA nationals. For that race I was running against the soon to be 4-time Olympian Johnny Gray. I was ahead of Johnny Gray up to 600m in the race before he blew past me to set an American record of 1:44. I guess I turned out to be "the rabbit" in that race because I ran out of gas, but I ran my personal best of 1:51. I remember hearing Coach Smiley yelling "stay with the pack." I looked at him with this look of "I'm leading the pack and dying out here." So you can imagine were I placed in that race. Inspite of getting blown away I was more than a conqueror because I excelled in a race I thought I could never run. Coach also coached numerous All-American athletes such as: Rocky Hale "The Gazelle", Larry Angle "Stretch Daddy" & Ron Pleaseant "The Leaper" & Randy Barnes-Olympian. He was "Daddy" to most of us because he protected us and taught us how to make good decisions and lead productive lives. Through his example we learned that life can be hard and sometimes unfair, but only the heart of person detemines their true character. He knows how to speak to & mold the heart of an athlete because he himself has the heart of a Champion. Through him many underpriviledged athletes have received scholarships toward their college degrees and have gone on to excel in their careers and family. He taught me how to be a Warrior before I learned the art of war in the military. He also taught me how to speak with kindness and have compassion for others. Coach Smiley has given us all a wealth of life skills to help others. He is the example of what all coaches should be:

Team Leader & Mentor
Confidant & Healer
Visionary & Influencer
Director & Strategist 
Listener & Believer

Join me in recognizing Coach Glover Smiley, Jr. as the Greatest Coach Ever.

Dentist and the Dungeon

 I recently wasn't able to chew on the right side of my mouth due to a filling falling out. So being the hardcore soldier that I am I struggled with only chewing on the left side for weeks. Well enough was enough. No excuses. I have dental coverage so why don't I use it? That was a question I was asking myself daily. I finally came to the conclusion that I don't like going to the dentist. Now my dentist is 3 minutes from my house. I am so close I could hit his windows with a rock from my porch. Ok, I'm exagerrating a bit, but seriously the office is 5 minutes walking distance. What I also discovered is I have horrifying memories of my childhood at Tiskelwah Elementary. Believe it or not as a kid our dentist was in the basement of our elementary school. Oh my! Just imagine hearing your name called over the intercom to "Report to The Dentist." The dentist was in The Dungeon.!!!  So you leave the room slowly and it takes you an hour to get to the "Dungeon"  because you stopped to wave at all your friends that were in class on all three floors. So your name is called again and a search party is dispatched to find you. Yes, it took me an hour to finally get there. And you wonder why? So the next time you need to go to the dentist remember this story.

Friday I finally went for an appointment because I couldn't take the pain anymore. I hadn't been there in 3yrs after numerous calls and reminder cards for checkups. Most of us don't go to the dentist until we are in excruciating pain and I am one of the many procratinaters. When I finally went It turned out to be a very good experience. The doctor and assistant were friendly and gentle. You noticed I stressed the word Gentle. That is a key element for any dentist appointment. So in short I needed a filling replaced and this took more time because when you prolong needed work more work has to be done, but in spite the experience wasn't bad. Now, for the ear piercing drilling. I could've done without, but hey No Pain No Gain!