Johnson Family Reunion: Tuesday will Bring Together Officiating Brothers, Coaching Cousins
By
Mike Dunn
Special for MHSAA.com
December 12, 2025
GAYLORD – What a night it will be.
The Big North Conference game this Tuesday between visiting Traverse City Central and host Gaylord has a coaching connection that will be a draw in itself. Central is led by former Gaylord hoops standout Luke Johnson, while Gaylord is coached by Luke’s cousin Justin Johnson – another past Blue Devils hoops standout who graduated in 1995 with school records for single-game, single-season and career 3-pointers.
Luke graduated in 1997 as Gaylord’s all-time leading scorer with 1,571 points and went on to play four years at Central Michigan University. He coached the boys at Elk Rapids for 14 seasons and is now in his second year coaching in Traverse City, where he is also an assistant principal at Traverse City East Middle School. Justin, owner and operator of the local Bulldog Painting business, is in his first year as the Blue Devils’ head coach after serving previously as the JV coach.
The cousins were Gaylord teammates on the storied 1994-95 team that captured the District title with a thrilling come-from-behind victory at the old Petoskey gym. They will be facing each other as head coaches on the hardwood for the first time – and Justin’s son Carter, a junior wing, is in his first year on the Gaylord varsity.
On top of that, the Johnson cousins will be coaching against each other in the gymnasium named after Luke’s grandfather Jim Mongeau. Ironically enough, the Jim Mongeau gymnasium was dedicated on December 16, 1994, the same day 31 years before.
If that was solely the storyline for Tuesday’s game, it would make for a memorable occasion.
But there is more to this story … much more.
Three brothers with whistles
As it turns out, the biggest storyline of this memorable night is the officiating crew.
Not only will Luke and Justin be facing off Tuesday with Justin’s son also competing on the floor, but the three men wearing the striped shirts with whistles around their necks will be Johnson brothers Tommy, Steve, and Dave. Tom is Luke’s dad, and Steve is Justin Johnson’s father.
Between them, there is more than 125 years of hardwood officiating experience: Tom is in his 50th year, Steve is in his 45th, and Dave in his 32nd season.
The brothers have worked together more times than they can count over the decades, though not as much in recent years. Tom has had his own crew of officials for a while. Steve and Dave have teamed with Charlie Lovelace to form their own crew.
Tuesday’s game in Gaylord will be the first time any of the brothers have worked a game coached by Luke or Justin.
And it very well could be the final time the three brothers officiate a game together. In fact, this is quite likely given the present circumstances.
Tom’s battle with cancer
Tom has inoperable pancreatic cancer and is undergoing regular chemotherapy treatments. Just the fact that he is still actively officiating this season is remarkable in one way, given his prognosis, and yet not remarkable at all for anyone who knows Tommy and the inner drive and mental toughness that is so much a part of his make-up – character traits he has exhibited since the glory days in the late 1960s when he was a star student-athlete competing for Gaylord in football, basketball, and baseball.
That inner drive and willingness to persevere continue to serve Tom well, especially during this challenging season of life.
As Steve said, “Tommy definitely has the Johnson gift of stubbornness.”
And Dave agreed: “Tommy is fighting this with everything he has. He’s gonna go down swinging, because that’s just who he is.”
Tom has been very open about his battle with cancer. He was diagnosed Nov. 13, 2023, and at one point his weight was down to 138 pounds.
Tom was at home in his favorite chair in February with wife Jenni tending to him – “My wife’s been a saint through all this and the best nurse I’ve ever had,” he noted – when he made a decision.
“I told my wife if I just sit here in this chair, I’m gonna die and I don’t want to just give in to this,” Tom said.
“I made up my mind right then that I’m gonna take the proactive approach to this. I’m gonna live till I die. People think I’m being funny when I say that, but I’m serious. I’m gonna live till I die. I’m not gonna sit out the rest of my life. It’s all in the hands of the good Lord, and He’s the One who’s gonna let me know when my time comes.”
Tom retired as a physical education teacher at Gaylord in 2007 but has continued to coach as well as officiate volleyball, basketball and baseball. Because of recent developments, Tom was initially going to give up coaching the Gaylord boys golf team last spring but opted to stay on, extending his coaching career that dates back 49 years at Gaylord and includes a long stint as the varsity boys hoops coach from 1987-97 and then 2003-07 in addition to being the freshmen football coach for a stint, the baseball coach, and, for the past 16 years, the boys golf coach.
“The golf kids were great to work with,” Tom recalled. “I had some limitations, and they accepted and adapted and it was actually a fun season.”
‘I want to be out there’
Fast forward to the present school year. It would have been easy for Tom to lay down his whistle, but he’s not ready for that. He officiated about 30 nights during the volleyball season, and that went pretty well. Now he plans to continue officiating basketball as long as he is physically able and knows he can still call a good game.
“I just want to be out there doing one of the things God has designed for me to do,” he said. “I still enjoy it. We set a goal at the start of the school year to get through the volleyball season first and make it to Thanksgiving, and we’ve met that goal. The next goal is Christmas. And we’ll set other goals after that. But in the meantime, I plan to stay as active as I can doing things I love doing.”
Tom plans to officiate the full basketball season, as God enables him. The one date he is especially looking forward to, though, is Tuesday, Dec. 16.
“It’ll be a great night,” Tom said. “I’ve reffed numerous games at ‘The Mong’ since it opened in 1995, but this will be a very special night not just for me but for all the Johnson family.
“I only hope in the midst of it I can communicate in some way how much I have appreciated the Gaylord community over the years and how much I’ve loved being a part of this community along with my family, and especially being part of Gaylord schools for so many years.”
Tom has quite a unique history with Gaylord basketball as a player and a coach. Tom played in the final high school game in the old community center during his junior year and played in the first game at the old gym that now serves as the middle school gym. He also coached the final high school game at the old gym during the 1994-95 season and coached the first game played at the newly-dedicated Jim Mongeau Gymnasium in January of 1995 against St. Ignace.
He also coached the amazing District championship game against favored Petoskey in its old gym packed to the rafters that March of 1995, a game that many still talk about to this day. The Blue Devils, with Justin knocking down the long ones and Luke distributing and driving through the lane, narrowly edged the excellent Petoskey team that featured Trevor Huffman and John Flynn.
Brennan Fitzek hit what proved to be the game-winning shot in the waning seconds, and Gaylord made a final stop on defense to secure the hard-earned trophy.
"We had some epic battles with Petoskey in those days," Tom said. "Petoskey had some great teams with Huffman and Flynn and a great coach in Dennis Starkey, who is still a friend to this day. It was tremendous competition."
‘I was just mowing’
It was Dave Johnson, the youngest of the brothers, who first had the idea of officiating the Dec. 16 game together.
“I was just mowing my grass one day soon after Justin was hired as the varsity coach and thinking ahead about the night when Luke comes from T.C. Central to play Gaylord,” Dave recalled. “Here you have the two coaches who are cousins from Gaylord facing each other in the gym named after their grandfather and Justin’s son playing for Gaylord on top of that. Wouldn’t it be cool if we three brothers could officiate the game that night?”
Dave dismounted the mower then and there and made phone calls to Steve and Tommy to see what they thought about the possibility. Then they contacted Luke and Justin and, before very long, everything was set in motion.
“The stars all aligned,” Dave said with a chuckle. “Justin and Luke were both on board with it, and they got the approval of their ADs. Everything that needed to happen for this to come together happened. It’s gonna be a great night and a historic night.”
When the family got together for a meal in September to celebrate Tom’s birthday, all the details about the Dec. 16 game were discussed. By the time the meal was over, everything was ironed out and everyone was in agreement.
“There’s so much nostalgia and history wrapped up in this one night,” Dave noted. “You have Tommy, the son-in-law of Jim Mongeau, in his 50th year officiating. To me, this night is really a tribute to Tommy and Jen and their lives revolving around Gaylord athletics.”
It will be a milestone night in another way.
“This will probably be the final time we three brothers have the chance to officiate a game together,” Dave said. “Steve is working through a knee injury right now, and my health is not what it used to be either. But if this is our final game as an officiating crew, we couldn’t have picked a better one.”
Steve’s knee has been giving him fits lately and, for the first time in 45 seasons, has caused him to miss some games because of an injury. He is hoping to recover well enough to return to the floor in January and resume a normal schedule.
There is only one game Steve will officiate in the whole month of December, and it’s the one game he wouldn’t miss for anything.
“I know it’ll be one of the best nights of my life,” Steve said. “How great it’ll be for Dave and I to get to work with Tommy again and to see all the people there. It’ll be a night for reflecting on so many memories and making some new ones.”
Looking forward
“I’m thrilled with how this has all come together,” Luke said. “This night will not only be a great tribute to my dad but to a family that’s been involved in Gaylord athletics for 50-plus years.
“If you include my grandfather, then you’re going back 70 years or more with Gaylord. I know my dad impacted a lot of lives as a teacher and a coach over the years, and my grandfather had the same kind of legacy before him.”
Luke is naturally excited for the game itself but more excited for the moment, especially given his dad’s health challenges.
“Obviously, the circumstances with my dad create a different perspective for the night,” he added. “My hope is we can just soak in the history and enjoy the moment and not let it rush by. We likely won’t have another night like this one.”
PHOTOS (Top) Brothers, from left, Steve, Dave and Tom Johnson – here at Gaylord High School – will referee the varsity boys basketball game Tuesday between Gaylord and Traverse City Central. (2) Cousins Luke Johnson, left, and Justin Johnson are the varsity coaches for Traverse City Central and Gaylord, respectively. (3) The Johnson brothers, here during their younger days, have a combined 127 yards of officiating to their credit. (4) Tom Johnson is in his 50th season officiating, a run filled with many memories including refereeing his grandson’s game at Elk Rapids (lower left). (5) This collage, from top left, includes longtime coach Jim Mongeau speaking with a Gaylord player during the 1960s, Tom Johnson coaching a player during the 1990s, and Luke now coaching. (Photos courtesy of, in part, RD Sports Photo and Photography by Joanie Moore, with others collected by the Weekly Choice and Charlevoix County News.)
Gaffney Returns to Basketball Court for Opening Night, Continuing Incredible Recovery
By
Tom Spencer
Special for MHSAA.com
December 5, 2025
Joe Gaffney was in a familiar spot Tuesday night when Charlevoix opened the basketball season at home against Ellsworth.
The all-state guard was in the starting line-up.
But as the game was wrapping up, the four-year starter was in an unfamiliar spot.
“He was the loudest one on the bench cheering,” said Charlevoix coach Anthony Troshak. “He was coaching, giving out reminders and that's awesome for a kid that normally, in the last three years, he's out there in crunch time. Instead, he's still like, ‘Hey, I can make an impact,’ and that was a really awesome thing to see.”
The fact Gaffney was in the game at all is arguably a miracle. Gaffney nearly lost his life this spring. He was in a car crash along with the entire Charlevoix boys golf team and coach Doug Drenth.
The team was on its way to spend the night at Crystal Mountain, returning from the first day of a two-day tournament at Arcadia Bluffs. Emergency personnel transported Gaffney, his coach and the entire golf team to Munson Medical Center. Gaffney sustained a ruptured diaphragm and shattered pelvis.
Gaffney had emergency surgery to repair his diaphragm April 27 and underwent a nine-hour surgery the next day. Munson Orthopedic Institute surgeons Michael McDonald and Matthew Schuch placed 76 screws in his pelvis and femur.
“The trauma team and the general surgeons are the ones who repaired his diaphragm, and they're the ones that saved his life – that wasn’t me,” Dr. McDonald pointed out. “Joe’s done a lot of hard work. All credit to him, because it's tough to go through what he went through and come to where he has.”
Gaffney spent nine days in Munson’s Intensive Care Unit and then stayed in Munson’s Mary Free Bed rehab facility until May 9. He was non-weight bearing until July 9.
Many wondered if Gaffney would ever get back on the basketball court. Few thought it would be as early as the opening night win over Ellsworth. Gaffney played just more than two quarters and hit two of three shots from 3-point land. He also contributed two rebounds before sitting out the Rayders’ all-out press in the fourth quarter – but instead led the bench’s support.
“That’s the type of person he is,” Troshak said. “He's one of the most, if not the most determined individuals I've ever come across.”
The crash and initial rehabilitation left Troshak thinking he’d likely have his star guard available only for something like a Senior Night appearance. But incredible community and medical support, and Gaffney’s hard work gradually changed Troshak’s hope.
“In the summer, I thought it might be maybe in January or February, and maybe a couple of minutes here and there,” Troshak said. “I never dreamed it would be game one – that's just how hard he's worked.”
Gaffney never lost sight of getting back on the court. He started physical therapy and occupational therapy in Traverse City three days a week until July and then transitioned closer to home for therapy in Charlevoix.
Gaffney was walking with a cane when he left Aug. 1 with his parents, Aaron and Karrie, for the Barwis Sports Performance Center in Deerfield Beach, Fla. He underwent therapy five days a week in Florida before returning to Charlevoix on Sept. 22.
His parents took turns flying back and forth to Florida every two weeks. They carried with them tremendous community support and prayers. When he left Florida Gaffney was able to jog about 100 yards. Therapy continued in Charlevoix, along with a home exercise program from Barwis.
“I had full confidence I would play again, and I didn't know exactly when,” Gaffney said. “As the season got closer, that date when I thought I could play got earlier and earlier until it was the first game. I really had confidence that this was going to happen very early on.”
Gaffney was aware of the tremendous support the community was providing him and the entire golf team. But his awareness was heightened further when he realized starters would soon be introduced and the national anthem was playing Tuesday night.
“I've heard the hundreds if not thousands of prayers for the whole golf team and everything and all the letters,” Gaffney said. “I could really feel all the prayers and just everything people had done. And, I would say the moment, the game meant a lot more to everybody watching than it did to me.”
The Charlevoix gym was filled with supporters bearing signs for Gaffney. The team – except Gaffney – wore “Team Joe” warm-up T-shirts. Gaffney wore a “Team Doug” warm-up T-shirt in honor of his golf coach Doug Drenth, who spent months recovering in the hospital and also was in the crowd for the first basketball game.
At least one supporter was unable to attend the game. Logistic problems prevented Dr. McDonald from fulfilling his intent to make the trip from Traverse City. The surgeon is amazed, but not surprised Gaffney returned for opening night.
“I think most probably would not have been able to do that,” McDonald said. “I think he put in the work, and he really had good community support that allowed him to do that. I think it's very, very impressive.”
Aaron Gaffney – who serves as superintendent for Ellsworth Community School – had thoughts on his mind from early conversations with McDonald as he watched his son get emotional before the contest. Seven months ago, Gaffney acknowledged, he didn’t think he’d see his son play basketball again. He also noted he never saw his son cry during those same seven months – until the tip-off neared.
“It was just great to see him back out there,” Aaron Gaffney said. “My wife asked the surgeon if he was ever going to walk again. He said, ‘Yeah, he's going to walk again.’ I asked him if he would ever play golf again, and the surgeon said, ‘Maybe.’ And then I asked him if he would ever run again, and he said, ‘Maybe.’”
The Gaffneys got answers Tuesday night as the Rayders started the season on a winning note. Talan Jacobs led Charlevoix with 12 points. Carter Greenacre added 11. Jason McNamara scored nine, and Peter Yanchulis chipped in seven.
Moments before the game, Gaffney returned a good luck charm his basketball coach had given him at a breakfast meeting as he was headed for Florida. It was bracelet bearing the words “Never Give Up.”
It was a gift Troshak’s brother had given him as he battled to recover from an eye injury he suffered while playing college basketball.
“I told Joe, ‘I want you to give this back to me when you check into a game, because in high school basketball you can’t wear bracelets,’” Troshak recalled.
Gaffney played Tuesday with empathy for the fans in attendance. The accident taught him more about the hard things going on in people's lives.
“The people there I could tell were there to support me, but there were probably people in that gym tonight that knew somebody or know somebody going through something themselves that was just as hard or harder than what I went through,” Gaffney said. “If people in the world can give them half the love or a quarter of the support that I got, I think that would just make this world a better place.”
Now that he is back on the court, the 1,000-point career milestone lies just ahead for Gaffney – he scored 952 heading into this weekend’s Will Lynch Invitational at Benzie Central. He’s happy about that but is more focused on his newer role. He is the only starter back from last year’s 16-8 team.
“That (1,000-point club) would definitely be a nice bonus, but I'm really just focused, trying to do my best to leave all the sophomores we have on the team with a little taste of what Charlevoix basketball is and what it feels like to win and what it feels like to be on the basketball team. I'm not the same player I was a year ago, but I can help mentor and lead these younger guys to be very successful when they become seniors.”
McDonald did watch a live stream of Tuesday night’s game. He’s making plans to attend another game this season.
Perhaps it will be the game Gaffney enters the 1,000-point club.
Tom Spencer is a longtime MHSAA-registered basketball and soccer official, and former softball and baseball official, and he also has coached in the northern Lower Peninsula area. He previously has written for the Saginaw News, Bay County Sports Page and Midland Daily News. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Ogemaw, Iosco, Alcona, Oscoda, Crawford, Kalkaska, Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Isle, Cheboygan, Charlevoix and Emmet counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Charlevoix’s Joe Gaffney elevates on a jumpshot Tuesday in his team’s season opener against Ellsworth. (Middle) Gaffney works to get past an Ellsworth defender. (Below) Gaffney is interviewed by a local TV station after his return to the court. (Photos by In Motion Images.)