Steve Fergusen Story

Just Another Runner’s Story August 2024 Written by Gale Fischer

Redemption

“The most authentic thing about us is our capacity to create, to overcome, to endure, to transform, to love, and to be greater than our suffering.”

—-Ben Okri

The benefits that running can offer its participants are well documented. Those who implement a running routine reduce their risk of suffering from heart disease, diabetes, and other physical ailments. As valuable as one’s physical well-being is, the mental and emotional rewards of running are often equally if not more important. Our sport can sometimes serve as a bridge in guiding one from a dark chapter in life to the light at the end of the tunnel. For this month’s featured runner, Steve Ferguson, running served as one of the supports that pulled him from a deep pit of emotional distress. 

Steve realized early in life that being physically active was a passion for him. “My first experience with sports was in fourth grade when I started playing baseball. I loved baseball and thought that it would be something I would do forever.” Steve enjoyed playing baseball for five years but his time on the diamond would be cut short. “When I was a freshman in high school I threw my arm out. This was the end of my baseball career.” 

Fortunately, another sport helped to fill the void for Steve. “I started wrestling in seventh grade. As a freshman at Harper Creek High School, I competed on the junior varsity team. I wrestled on the varsity team in my final three years of high school. I competed in the lowest weight class all four years at ninety-eight pounds.”

His body may have failed him as a baseball player but wrestling was something he would excel in. “I held a national record for the number of wins for a three-year period of time with one hundred and eight wins. Over that period of time, I had less than ten losses. I qualified for state all three years but never was a state champion. I always struggled at this level. I would lose to individuals at the state meet that I beat during the regular season.” Winning at the state meet became a mental hurdle for Steve. “I was close to winning in the semi-finals my senior year losing 3-2. It was a heartbreaking loss for me.”

Steve spent his childhood being active. His wrestling coach helped to reinforce the importance of this concept. “I have always been active and still maintain this lifestyle at the age of sixty-nine. My high school wrestling coach, Coach Studer instilled this in me early on.”

Steve and his first wife, Martha, married in 1976, three years after he graduated from Harper Creek High School but the union wouldn’t last long. “We divorced two years later. The divorce was hard for me mentally. I felt like a failure. I was starting to put on weight.” The failed marriage took a toll on Steve emotionally. He needed something to help him get his feet back under him. “I started running and completed in my first ten-kilometer race. I realized that this was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. Pushing my physical and mental limits through running was something that I enjoyed.” Steve tried cross-country during his junior year of high school as a way to stay in shape for wrestling but absolutely hated running. Now he had fallen in love with the sport.

A few years into his running journey Steve decided to try a marathon. “In 1980 I ran my first marathon in Detroit. It was a way to challenge myself. The last six miles were a nightmare. I hit the wall at mile twenty. I talked myself into running from telephone pole to telephone pole through to the finish line. I finished in three hours and thirteen minutes. It is still my best time at this distance. Despite the physical pain, I felt a high emotionally.”

Completing his first marathon was a milestone for Steve but this wasn’t the highlight of 1980 for him. “ I married my second wife Maureen in 1980. She was also a runner and we would run together. We stuck to the five-kilometer and ten-kilometer distance.” Steve and Maureen’s family would have an addition a few years after they married. “We were blessed with Carly our daughter in 1982. I continued to run and would run a five-kilometer or a ten-kilometer race now and then.”

Steve had survived a divorce and was now a happily married man with a beautiful daughter. His life seemed on track but he was on the road to disaster. “After I graduated from high school I started experimenting with drugs. I also became hooked on alcohol. I had always been shy but when I was using drugs or drinking I felt like I belonged. I learned how to pace myself with my drug and alcohol use so as not to impact my running but in 1983 things began to spiral."

Steve felt as though he had his running and his family life under control. The drugs helped him to come out of his shell and he was managing this lifestyle while still enjoying running, working, and maintaining his life as a husband and father. It seemed as though he was managing his life without any issues but he was fooling himself. “The addiction grew stronger and it got to the point that my running became limited because of the drug use. I quit racing but would continue to run once or twice a week. Running was also an addiction but drug use made it more difficult.”

As his drug use began to pick up Steve would invest a great deal of effort in hiding his addiction. “I used cocaine and meth and would hide this from Maureen with the alcohol. My theory was that Maureen would think my behavior was caused by alcohol and not drugs. I also started coaching wrestling at St. Phil in 1989. I was still using drugs and tried to limit it so that it wouldn’t be noticeable around the kids. I coached there through 1993.”

Steve’s life was spinning out of control and he was locked in a vicious cycle not knowing how to change. The guilt that he felt as a husband, father, and wrestling coach was unbearable. He was in an emotionally fragile state of mind. “During this period of time, I hated myself but I couldn’t stop the drug and alcohol consumption. I was disappointed in myself. Each time I used I promised myself that this would be the last time.” 

He was in deep and hiding his addiction was not a long-term fix. Fortunately, his secret would be unlocked before the drugs caused unrepairable damage. “In late 1992 I took a large sum of money out of our bank account to fund my drug addiction. Maureen got a call from the bank about this transaction and she confronted me. She suspected before then that something was up and now her suspicions were confirmed.” Having Maureen know his secret may have been devastating for Steve but it was exactly what he needed to have happen. “She gave me an ultimatum to stop or she and Carly would leave. I joined the NA’s (Narcotics Anonymous) twelve-step program. It was the best thing that I ever did in my life. I was able to stay clean.”

Steve was able to stay away from drugs and alcohol but things would get worse before they would get better. “The first year was the hardest. There were times that I wanted to use so badly. It consumed my thoughts. I would intentionally drive by a drug house but fortunately, find the strength to drive on by. I prayed for just one day to not think about drugs. Suicide crossed my mind.” Although he wasn’t out of the woods, Steven finally navigated over a major hump in his recovery. “One night I was driving to Kalamazoo for an NA meeting. At the time I remember seeing a huge cross along the side of the highway but when I drive by the cross today it is not so big. It was a sign. This was eight months out. The thought of drugs didn’t dominate my thoughts any longer.”

Although recovery for an addict is ongoing, Steve eventually reached a point in which he seemed to finally have some control over his life. “I was going to NA meetings a few times a week. These saved my life. I went to these meetings for fifteen years. I have not gone since consistently but have gone now and then to take people who need help. The twelfth step of this program is meditation. Meditation turned into my therapy. My mentor was also a key to my recovery. His message about staying clean helped me and has helped other addicts tremendously. I have also mentored others.” 

Drugs had taken Steve away from running for a period of time but he would eventually find his sport again. Steve couldn’t have changed his life without the twelve steps of NA but he needed more than this to set him free. “When I started the NA meetings I also needed something else to fill the void. I turned to running again. The drug use had torn down my body. It took me nearly four years but I was able to get back to marathon form. I ran my second marathon in 2000 at the age of forty-five. I finished in three hours and nineteen minutes and was able to qualify for the Boston Marathon. I have run seven marathons in total.”

Things were going well for Steve. First and foremost he had overcome an addiction to drugs and alcohol that had taken control of his life. He had created a positive change for himself and with this had become a positive influence for others. His running was going well and he had even qualified for and run in the Boston Marathon. His marriage and family life had been saved.  Life would throw him another curve ball but with everything that he had experienced, Steve was prepared to face and conquer any challenge that would come his way. “In 2001 I started experiencing pain in my left hip. It would get worse but I was still able to manage it well enough to run. The pain got so bad that I had to quit running in 2003. I finally went to a doctor and was diagnosed with arthritis. It was bone on bone. In 2007 I had the Birmingham hip replacement which I thought would allow me to run again. I tried running after the recovery from surgery but it just didn’t feel right.” 

Over the years running had blessed Steve in many ways. It had served as a coping mechanism to guide him through the lowest points in his life. Steve would no doubt miss running but he wasn’t about to sit on the couch for the remainder of his life. “I still had the mentality of being active so I turned to cycling. This became my new running. It didn’t bother my hip. I cycle as much on the roads as I can and also set my bike up on a trainer to ride inside when conditions outside don’t allow for this.

It seemed fate would continue to test Steve but he has remained steadfast to his tenacity to remain physically fit. “In 2014 I crashed my bike and broke my prosthetic hip, my hand, and scapula on my right side. I had a second hip replacement and was back riding two months later. I had a back fusion in 2017 and in 2019 had my left hip replaced but I continue to ride my bike and also do some walking and hiking as well..”

Steve’s zest for life is a true source of inspiration. “My theory is to keep moving. I enjoy being active and don’t know how to stop. My advice for others is to learn from your experiences. For years I thought that I wasn’t a valuable person but NA has taught me that we all have good qualities. We are placed here to have experiences and to learn from them.”

Steve has walked through the lowest of valleys in his life. Much of his pain has been self-inflicted but his resilience and patience to change his life is one of inspiration and optimism. Running and physical activity have been a part of the recovery process for Steve but he couldn’t have done it without the help of NA and the support of friends and family. He is proof that no matter how helpless your life may seem, change can be made. At one time what seemed like a life of hopelessness has turned into a life of contentment, happiness, and positive influence for others. I personally have been graced with Steve’s positive influence.

Everyone has a story.  Stay tuned next month for another runner’s story.

Richard Grady Story

Just Another Runner’s Story December 2023 Written by Gale Fischer

Never a Day Off

“Life is so full that you just take it one day at a time.”

—Sheryl Crow

Many in the running community are driven by goals. Goals can be measured by distance or pace. Some may be centered around race PRs or races completed. Others may be short-term while goals that require months, years, or decades to complete are what some runners may strive for. Whatever your goal, patience, persistence, and dedication are usually required. Battle Creek runner Richard Grady set his sights on a unique goal more than fourteen years ago. He has not created a timeline for achieving this goal. He might accomplish his goal tomorrow or it might be another fourteen years. To keep his goal alive requires a commitment every single day. There are no days off. Richard’s mission has been something that has kept him running as a middle-aged adult but as a child his future as a runner was doubtful. Many may know  Richard as the goofy guy who runs in shorts even through Michigan’s bone-chilling winter months while sporting toe shoes on his feet. His running story goes well beyond this perception and is one of distinctive inspiration.

When Richard was six years old he endured a traumatic accident. “I was crossing the street in front of my house. I saw a car coming so I turned back toward the sidewalk.”  The car didn’t stop, hitting Richard and running over him. He suffered a compound-complex fracture of the right tibia and fibula. The bones of his right calf spun in place but his ankle stayed put. “I spent several months in the hospital. The scar tissue in my leg is still noticeable from both the initial accident  as well as the series of skin grafts that were completed to save my leg.”

Initially, the surgeons were not sure if his leg could be saved.  “For one of the procedures scheduled a few days after my accident, I was wheeled into the OR. There were two sets of instruments for the surgeons to use: one to continue the work to save my leg and the other if my leg would need to be amputated.”

Ultimately the surgeons were able to save Richard’s leg. “When the cast was finally removed I began PT. I had to learn how to walk again. The early prognosis was that for the rest of my life, I would need a cane or a crutch. As I began to progress with PT my medical team realized that I would not need a cane to walk but I would always walk with a limp. Any chance of ever running was a lost cause.”  Richard would go on to prove his medical team wrong.

Like many adult runners, running wasn’t Richard’s first sport of choice. “I played soccer in middle school, switching to cross country in high school. Soccer was the sport I enjoyed playing as a kid. I was on the soccer team as a freshman but I didn’t earn much playing time.”  

Richard’s experience in his freshman year left him questioning his future as a soccer player. “We had a terrible team and were often punished by having to run. I remember thinking I was getting punished for losing a game that I really had no part in. I had a friend who was running cross country and after talking to him I realized I could participate in every competition as a cross country runner, unlike what was happening in soccer.”

Richard signed on for track in the spring of his freshman year, running the mile and two mile. He came back from summer vacation and joined the cross-country team as a sophomore. He recalls some fond memories as a high school runner. “My junior year I remember one moment in particular. During a race on our home course, I rounded the last corner. There was a competitor ahead of me and my coaches kept screaming that I needed to catch this boy. He heard my coaches encouraging me to catch him so he picked up his pace and I gave up. After this, I decided that I needed to build a kick into my racing strategy.” 

Richard was never an elite high school runner but this didn’t bother him. “I was always a consistent eighth or ninth runner on my team so I usually raced on the JV team. Even though I wasn’t a star,I always enjoyed it.”  His experiences as a high school runner left a lasting impression on him, creating not just a hobby but a lifestyle.

Richard and his family packed their bags in 2004 moving from Omaha to Battle Creek. Richard joined a gym to stay in shape. “My family moved to Battle Creek in 2004 and I immediately joined the YMCA. They had child care so I thought that dropping off my son Kevin, who was ten months old, at a gym with childcare would be a great way for me to exercise. I joined the YMCA to work out with no intention of running long distances. I jumped on the treadmill at first thinking it would be easy but it wasn’t. Eventually, my go-to cardio activity became the treadmill.” 

Richard’s wife would plant a seed for him pushing him to increase his training and race distances. “My short runs on the treadmill were enough to keep me running but soon I would make the jump to longer distances. My wife and her sisters had started talking about running the 2006 Disney Half-Marathon, a race that was a part of the Disney Race series which at that time consisted of a weekend with a half marathon on Saturday and a marathon on Sunday.”  While training for the Disney Half, Richard ran his first half marathon, Labor Day weekend of 2005, the Runner’s Edge Trail Half, and then ran the Disney Half in January of 2006. 

With two half-marathon finishes, Richard was comfortable with the distance and had not considered a full marathon. His interest in the next logical step as a runner would soon come during his stay at Disney. “ After running the half we were sitting in a restaurant on the marathon course. I remember seeing the runners go by and thinking that running a marathon was something I could do and wanted to do.”

Running long distances was a challenge for Richard but also rewarding. He began to understand that running could be an easily accessible activity. “I began to realize that running could be a simple, inexpensive sport. You can make it as cheap as you desire. You can run whenever you want. At the most basic level, all that you need is a pair of shoes, socks, shorts, and a shirt.”  

After returning home from Disney, Richard committed to the training required for the marathon distance. “I ran my first marathon less than a year after running the Disney Half, the Equestrian Challenge Trail Marathon. I read a couple of John Bingham and Hal Higdon books which gave me some ideas for training for a marathon. I experimented with nutrition. I worked up to a long training run of twenty miles and finished my first marathon in a time of three hours and forty-five minutes. I felt good physically. I knew that I wanted to run another marathon but really didn’t have plans of when.” 

Richard’s interest in running longer distances was growing. Within his running network, he began hearing about other runners enjoying their sport every day, building a daily running streak lasting weeks, months, and years. He had run a few half-marathons and a full marathon but realized that he was still lacking consistency in his training. “I looked at my running logs and discovered that my training routine lacked discipline. I decided to test a running streak by running every day for two weeks. My journey with my running streak began August 20, 2008. After two weeks I decided to keep going to see if I could run every day for two months. Two months came and I decided to keep going for a year. Now more than 5,000 days later, (over 14 years) I am still going.”  

Richard began his running streak as a way to make his sport a steady routine but it would eventually turn into the focus of his running journey. Within his local running community, there are few runners locked in to the same goal as Richard but he has found support and motivation through social media. “I belong to a Facebook group of streaking runners. There is an ongoing competition among us. There is always an up-to-date list of how many consecutive days each of us has. Currently, I sit at  209 on this list for the most consecutive days. To keep my streak going I have to run at least one interrupted mile a day. My goal is to just keep going as long as I can.”

Like anything in life to excel at something or accomplish a task sacrifices are made in other areas of life. Richard understands that you can’t always have the best of both worlds. “There is a trade-off. Running every day with no recovery days has taken away some speed but I do feel that with my mileage I can go out and run a half-marathon or marathon anytime I want. It might not be an easy task but my training base would allow me to complete the longer distances”

For a seasoned runner going out and running a few miles requires little effort or commitment. To do this every day, however, might present some challenges. There have been occasions when Richard’s streak was at risk of coming to an end. “I have had to deal with some things that have made keeping the streak going difficult. I have run through plantar fasciitis. I have had to run through two elbow surgeries, within three months and the recovery required for each. When I was scheduled for my elbow surgeries I was a bit worried the streak would come to a halt. I ran after the stroke of midnight the day of each surgery and then I ran later in the evening the day following each surgery”  Richard spent a few weeks after each surgery having to run with a sling.

To run every day for more than fourteen years has required hard work, discipline, and patience for Richard on a personal level, but he is not in it alone. “My son thinks this streak is cool. My wife indulges me. I wouldn’t be able to do this without her support and willingness to let me run on Christmas Day or each day if we were on vacation. It is a sacrifice for her on these days.”

In the midst of his running streak, Richard has been blessed with experiences that are common among other runners. He has finished twenty marathons to date. Of these twenty marathon venues, there is one in particular that is his favorite. “I am a University of Illinois graduate. In 2009 the University was home to the inaugural Illinois Marathon which finished in the football stadium. Because this was where I went to school I decided I wanted to run it. I liked the course and I was able to see some college friends. I decided that I would like to run this race every year. So far I have run it ten times.” Due to COVID the Illinois Marathon has not been run since 2019. Richard is anxious for organizers to bring it back and would love to run it as many consecutive years as he can, another streak that he embraces. 

A running craze that gained popularity among many in the running community just after the turn of the century was barefoot running. The ideology behind this is that running without shoes allows for a more natural stride and gate. Shoe manufacturers began producing a minimalist shoe that protected the foot from pebbles and sharp objects while also mimicking barefoot running. For nearly a decade many runners embraced running barefoot or with a minimalist shoe but eventually, the popularity wore off. Richard is one of the few who has continued with this trend. “Several years ago I read the book Born the Run which promoted the benefits of running barefoot. After this book came out there was a big hype for running with minimalist shoes.”  Richard joined the hype shortly after reading the book but quickly realized he would have to ease into it. “I decided that I would need to ease into them gradually before running exclusively in the minimalist shoes. It took a few months to transition to minimalists full time and now it's the only shoe I run in.”

When looking back at overcoming a traumatic accident as a child with the possibility of never being able to run to the lifestyle that running has now created for him as a middle-aged adult Richard understands how running is a metaphor for life. His words of advice are a perfect illustration of this. “It is important to remember that what works for me as a runner may not work for you and what works for you may not work for me. You need to figure out what part of running you want and figure out what you need to do to get there.” 

Richard’s running story provides us with a great example of how life is often unpredictable. His parents were told by doctors when he was a young boy that he would forever need the assistance of a cane to walk and that he would never be able to run. Doctors are blessed with a wealth of knowledge but even with their extraordinary wisdom, it is impossible to predict an outcome with 100% accuracy. No one can place themselves inside the soul of another to see what one is truly capable of. Richard’s run streak in a way resembles the attitude he possessed as a six-year-old. There are times when it is best to put on the blinders and not look behind or ahead but simply live in the moment. I would suspect that this attitude is part of what keeps Richard going. One day at a time and one run at a time.

Everyone has a story.  Stay tuned next month for another runner’s story.

Larry Quick Story

Harper’s Unsung Heroes August 2024 Written by Gale Fischer

Coming Home

“The best thing about sports is the sense of community and shared emotion it can create.”

—-Bob Costas

For many, high school is a stage of life filled with fond memories. Athletics and extracurricular activities are two venues that provide these experiences that will be etched in stone in the minds of many for years to come. As a high school athlete, success can create a legacy for some. This month’s Harper Unsung Hero, Larry Quick, was fortunate enough to build a legacy for himself back in the 1980s, as a high school athlete for the Beavers. He played a part in providing memories for teammates, classmates, his coaches, and local residents that helped fuel the community spirit of Harper Creek’s fan base. Larry has been blessed with the opportunity to return home and build another layer to his legacy as a long-time coach for Harper Creek. Through this coaching role, Larry has also helped to enhance the joy of high school athletics for the locals, while also creating long-lasting memories and life lessons for the teenagers that he has coached.

Larry’s destiny to become a Beaver for Life started as a second-generation Harper Creek student. Larry gives a brief summary of his Harper Creek lineage. “I was born here in Battle Creek on January 21, 1965. My younger brother, Randy was born three years later. My parents, Larry and Margaret both graduated from Harper Creek in 1962.”

Larry and Margaret raised their boys on a farm on the southwest side of Battle Creek just two and a half miles from the high school with both Larry and Randy attending Sonoma Elementary School in their early years. Larry explains how sports were a big part of his life for as long as he can remember. “Sports has always been important to me. My first experience with sports came when I played t-ball as a young boy. I couldn’t hit the ball well once t-ball switched to baseball, so later on in high school, track became my spring sport. I started wrestling in seventh grade. Very quickly this became my first passion in sports.”

Many in the Battle Creek area have seen or heard of Larry’s success as a high school runner, and as a track, and cross-country coach for Harper Creek but early on, before running became a part of his life, football was something that Larry enjoyed. Larry reflects on his experience on the gridiron. “We had so many kids on our ninth-grade football team that Mike Seedorff and I had to share the same jersey number. I received much of the credit for what Mike did on the football field from the PA announcer as a result. There was no rocket football for Harper Creek at that time and we played non-contact flag football in middle school. I also played football in my first year of high school with Doug Sikora and Mike Malony as our freshman coaches.” 

Larry had found out as a freshman that football was not a sport that suited him. He would eventually transition from an athlete competing on the turf to a harrier on the cross-country course, but it was more than his lack of success with football that pushed him in this direction. Larry explains how this transition came about. “I switched from football to cross-country in my sophomore year. My middle school wrestling coach, Gary Stoner, also coached varsity cross-country. I lacked the size and skills to succeed as a football player and Gary talked me into coming out for cross-country my sophomore year. I had the mindset that my sport was wrestling so initially I didn’t take cross-country seriously.” The theme for Larry as an athlete in high school, college, and beyond became, injury, surgery, and rehab. This would set the tone for him to begin to experience success as a runner. “I hurt my back my junior year and wasn’t able to wrestle the entire season so my thought process changed and I began to take cross-country more seriously. I figured that if I couldn’t wrestle I could put my heart and soul into another sport. I started to experience success with running and I was able to make an even bigger jump my senior year.”

Larry experienced a life transformation with running. The success turned to joy which quickly changed how he defined himself. Larry was now a runner. This was his lifestyle. Running was not just restricted to cross-country season and track season. He was running year-round. It may have been his passion and a stress release for Larry but his competitive juices were also an ingredient that became a major source of his training regimen. By his own admission, the extensive amount of miles that Larry was running and the intensity of these workouts may have been too much with the injuries that he experienced. 

Larry summarizes his career as a high school cross-country runner. “The one thing I feel was one of my greatest accomplishments was finishing as city champion in my senior year. I hurt myself during a race halfway through my senior year slipping on wet grass during a race and tearing my groin muscle. I ran the rest of the season but my times really suffered because of the injury.” Larry’s fastest race came in his senior season with a time of sixteen minutes and eight seconds for five kilometers, which at the time put him at the number four position on the Harper Creek leader board. With a name like Quick, it seems that Larry was destined to be a fast runner. He currently has dropped a few spots on the school leader board and sits in the number seven position. Having runners sneak ahead of him on the leaderboard has always been gratifying for Larry. To have an athlete that he has coached surpass his spot in the leaderboard has become a great source of satisfaction for him. 

As a cross-country runner, it really was a no-brainer that Larry would join the track team. Larry provides a summary of his high school career on the track. “I decided to run track starting my sophomore year. My thought was it would help me with cross-country. Gary Stoner was also my track coach. At that time boys and girls competed at different sites. Because boys and girls didn’t run together there wasn’t as much rest time between events.”  This lack of rest time between events would take its toll but also teach Larry a valuable lesson he would use later in his coaching career. As a coach, he limits his athletes to two, sometimes three events for each track meet.

Running became Larry’s bread and butter but his first passion was wrestling. He reflects on his time as a wrestler. “Dave Studer was my high school wrestling coach. I wrestled a few varsity matches in ninth grade. I was unable to complete the last half of my sophomore season because of knee surgery. I hurt my back my junior year and didn’t compete at all. Because of all of the injuries I decided not to go out for wrestling my senior year. I also wanted to focus on being ready for my senior track season.” Although wear and tear on his body took the steam out of Larry’s high school wrestling career he would return to what is perhaps his favorite sport later in life. 

Larry was blessed to continue his passion for sports at the next level. He talks about the recruiting process. “Western Michigan’s coaching staff and some D2 coaches in Michigan began reaching out to me during my senior year to come and run for their schools. Eventually, I decided to go run for Ferris State.”  Larry graduated from Harper Creek in 1983 and enrolled at Ferris State. Becoming a teacher and coach was not yet a career of choice for Larry, but this would change. “I started in the Building Construction Technology Program at Ferris State. I earned my associate's degree after two years and then had to decide what to do with this degree. One of the options was Trade Tech Education. I thought it would be fun to teach and possibly coach so I decided to continue in the Trade Tech Education program with hopes of teaching in a trade curriculum at a high school or career center.”

Larry’s vision for a future career was coming together but his athletic career continued on the injury roller coaster. Larry describes his time as a Ferris State athlete. “I ran track and cross-country at Ferris State when I was healthy. I had several knee issues. I had five knee operations while in college and have had fourteen total to date. I think that I have just been unlucky. I probably trained too hard and logged too many miles which was probably my downfall.”  Despite his bad luck with injuries, Larry was still able to compete for Ferris State.  “My best eight-kilometer time in college was twenty-six minutes and twenty-eight seconds. I had just come off another knee surgery during  the middle of my junior year at Ferris and the team doctors wouldn’t pass my physical.”

Larry refused to give up on his collegiate athletic career. He talks about a fork in the road for him as a college athlete. “The coaches and doctors at Ferris State thought that it was time for me to throw in the towel but I felt I had more years to compete so I decided to reach out to other schools. I had talked to some runners from Michigan State University about running there. I liked this option but I would have had to sit out a year if I had transferred there. A friend of mine from high school, Dave Carl, was wrestling at Olivet. He reached out to me and encouraged me to come to Olivet.”  Larry immediately felt as if Olivet was where he should go. “I went one weekend to visit and instantly felt comfortable with Olivet. I fell in love with their wrestling coach Jare Klein. Coach Klein taught me many things that have influenced me as a coach. I ran cross-country and track both years at Olivet and wrestled my senior year. It was a great experience being an athlete at Olivet. I changed majors when I went to Olivet and graduated with an endorsement for teaching physical education and history.” 

Larry graduated from Olivet in 1988 and just like that his years as a student-athlete were over but that didn’t mean he was done competing. He continued to run non-competitively and he also wrestled competitively for many years until his body had had enough. His path back to Harper Creek would navigate through a few twists and turns. Larry reflects on the transition from student to the workforce. “Coming back to Harper Creek to teach was never necessarily part of the plan. After graduating from Olivet I couldn’t get a teaching job so decided to go back to Western Michigan to get my special education certification a year later. I worked at Star Commonwealth as part of a grad assistantship program to pay for my coursework at Western. I worked in residential treatment while at Star.” 

Earning his special education certification opened the door for Larry and his teaching career began. Larry gives details about the first few years as a teacher. “I taught at Mendon for a year as a high school special education teacher and then at Homer for a year as a middle school special education teacher. I was also an assistant wrestling coach while at Mendon.”  Larry’s love for athletics and coaching is what ultimately brought him back home to Harper Creek. “While teaching at Homer I also was an assistant wrestling coach under Dave Studer at Harper Creek. A year later the cross-country coaching position became open at Harper Creek as well as an assistant track coach position. I decided to quit teaching at Homer and return home to coach cross-country, wrestling, and track and fill in as a substitute teacher starting in 1993.”

Larry’s plan to spend his days as a substitute teacher for his home school district would be short-lived. He talks about how quickly things came together when he returned to Harper Creek. “I started a long-term sub job at the high school in the Emotionally Impaired classroom my first year back and eventually took over this position. Later this turned into a Resource Room. I would eventually transition to part-time special education and part-time physical education in 2014 before becoming a full-time physical education in 2018.”

Teaching for his alma mater was gratifying for Larry with coaching raising the level of satisfaction. Larry reflects on his time as the cross-country coach for the Beavers and the changes made to the sport during this time. “I was Harper Creek’s head varsity cross country coach for ten years, stepping down in 2002. When I first started we didn’t have a girl's team. The athletic director at the time, Ralph Kenyon, wanted to add a girl’s cross-country team. We had enough girls come out to field a team in my second year of coaching. Another change that was made to our cross-country program during my second season leading the team was the addition of a middle school squad.” 

Harper Creek’s cross-country program was able to grow under Larry’s leadership. There was also team and individual success. Larry highlights some of these. “Our girl’s team finished fifth in the state in 1997. In 2000, our boys won the league championship, as members of the Twin Valley Conference, the first championship in twenty-five years. Laurie Meyers, Nikki Sackrider, and Jenny Sackrider were all-state runners the year we finished fifth. Matt Sackrider was all-state his senior year and went on to run for Western Michigan.”

Just as he transitioned from football to cross-country as a high school athlete for the Beavers, Larry would transition between the two sports as a coach giving up cross-country and then joining the football coaching staff later. Larry talks about his time as a football coach. “Eventually, I transitioned from cross-country to football. I enjoyed helping out with football but took a break from coaching this for a few years when my son, Cody was in high school and college. I spent my falls watching him play soccer. Once he finished his soccer career, I returned to football. Mason Converse approached me during his second year as head coach and asked me to return to the coaching staff as the head junior varsity coach, a position I still hold.  I have served in this role for five seasons. Initially, I really didn’t know the nuances of the game,  but fortunately, I was surrounded by good assistant coaches who have helped me to evolve.”

Although not currently part of the wrestling coaching staff, Larry helped coach the team for more than a decade. He gives details about how wrestling continued to be a part of his life after college. “I helped Dave Studer as an assistant coach for twelve years. We had some pretty good runs in the late 90s and early 2000s. I also wrestled competitively until I turned thirty-five, something that I really enjoyed.” 

Larry’s coaching experience has been extensive with his involvement with Harper Creek’s cross-country, wrestling, and football teams, but his time as track coach is where he has left the biggest imprint. He gives us a glimpse into this journey that has evolved over more than three decades. “I just finished my thirtieth year as our head coach for the varsity squad. My first three years were a struggle. We didn’t win a single meet. I had a difficult time getting more than twenty kids on the team. Our first winning season didn’t come until 1999 when we finished second in the conference.” Larry’s first six years leading the boys were not easy but he has had his teams flourishing since the initial sputter. “We have grown since those early years with eighty kids on the team this year. We have had only one losing season since 1999. During that time we have had pretty good numbers come out each year. We were fifth in the state in 2001. We finished third in the state in 2013. Since 2013 we have been very solid, finishing top ten in the state every year. We finished third in the state in 2022 and second in 2017. Our boys have really dominated since 2012 with a record of forty-and-four at home. Since 2012 our duel meet record is seventy and eleven”

As good as his teams have been over the course of the last twelve years, this past year’s squad did something no other sports team has been able to do in the history of Harper Creek sports. Larry reflects on this year's group of boys and what they were able to accomplish. “This year we were state champions, the first Harper Creek sports team to accomplish this. At the start of the year, we knew we would have a good team. We were ranked second in the first week of rankings. This was somewhat of a surprise. I knew we were going to be good but not that good. We were really looking ahead to next season at a shot as state champions but eventually, senior captain Bronson Carpenter kept asking “Why not this year?” Our state meet was a true team effort.”  Larry has experienced great success through the years as an athlete and a coach and created some amazing memories but what his team was able to do this year is the pinnacle of his athletic career. “This season has truly been one of my fondest moments as a coach and as an athlete. It has changed my life. I had strived to be all-state in high school and all-American in college but fell short. My goal then became to win a state championship as a coach. It feels great to have accomplished this. The best part of it is that it was kind of a surprise because Parma, who we edged out for the championship at the state meet, had beaten us for all three meetings during the regular season. The reaction of the kids was amazing.” Larry understands that the credit for the team's success this year and every year should be shared with the athletes and the assistant coaches he has had by his side.

The run that Larry and his athletes made this year will be something that they can cherish for their entire lives. It was a true defining moment for them but Larry reminds us that something of this magnitude has an impact on many. “This was cool for our kids but it has also been great for the Harper Creek Community. I have had so many people who are currently part of the Harpe Creek Community and those who no longer live here, reach out and congratulate me. To give this to Harper Creek is pretty neat.” 

Larry has left his imprint on Harper Creek as an athlete, a teacher, and a coach. His story cannot be told however without another twist to what he has brought to the Harper Creek Community. Through the years while attending sporting events at other schools throughout Southwest Michigan Larry noticed that many of these venues honored military alumni with a display in their hallways. This is something that Larry decided he wanted to see at Harper Creek. Larry talks about this. “We were able to start the Military Hall of Fame at the high school in 2006. To date, we have almost three hundred names on the wall.”

  Larry gives credit to perhaps one of his biggest fans. “My wife, Julie has been a big part of my success the last few years. She has kept me grounded. My faith in the Lord has strengthened with her help. The athletes that I have coached in this time have also helped with this transformation.”

The primary function of our school systems is to educate our children, teaching them the academics that they will need to carry them through, high school and the world that awaits them as adults. This will always remain the primary function of what we do every day in our schools, but Larry’s story reminds us that athletics provides an important element for our institutions. First and foremost athletics teach those who participate valuable lessons that will benefit them throughout their lives. Sports can provide these athletes with positive memories that they can cherish through all stages of life. Beyond what sports can do for the athletes who participate, they can also be a rallying point for classmates, teachers, and individuals in the local community. Athletics may not be the primary function of our school districts but the positive benefits they provide trickle through to all corners of the community.