EGR's Newton Returns to Rink Amid Speedy Recovery from Double Lung Transplant
By
Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com
January 22, 2025
EAST GRAND RAPIDS – The last thing Chris Newton wanted to do was miss any time away from the hockey rink this season.
But when the East Grand Rapids hockey coach received a 3 a.m. phone call last month, he knew it was inevitable.
Newton also knew he would be receiving the possibility for a longer life and an opportunity to continue his lifelong passion.
Newton, who was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at 4 months old, received news that a set of donor lungs was available, and he began the process of undergoing a second double lung transplant.
“I get a call and it was a 616 number so I knew exactly what it was, but I was totally shocked,” Newton, 35, said. “I definitely didn’t go back to sleep after that, and my mom was there visiting and everyone was surprised that it happened so quickly. If they find a good set, you can’t pass on it.”
Newton, a former Farmington High School goalie and assistant coach, had his first double lung transplant eight years ago.
“It was always in the cards that I would need one,” said Newton, a senior on the 2007-08 team that reached the Division 2 Semifinals and later an assistant coach for his dad, the late Bill Newton, with the 2013-14 Falcons squad that won the Division 3 title.
“I have a weird CF gene, and I don't qualify for the really good medicine they make that has made a difference in a lot of people's lives. A transplant was my only option as my health was decreasing pretty rapidly. And then, after eight years, you get rejection and they call it CLAD (chronic lung allograft dysfunction). The body starts rejecting lungs even though they had been good for like six years.”
Newton was diagnosed with CLAD two years ago, and it started slowly progressing.
He re-listed for another transplant in November, and 14 days later received the good news. It was two days after he collected his 100th career coaching victory.
“In comparison, the first time it was a 3½ month wait,” Newton said. “I had surgery on Dec. 10 at Corewell Health, and I came back to practice on Jan. 6. I missed two weeks of hockey with the three-week break we had, so it worked out.
“I feel great, and it's crazy to be back so quickly, but I feel good. The other sickness I have is coaching. I’m almost addicted to it when it's hockey season, and it’s really the only thing I think about. It’s what I do during these months, and it’s how I’m wired. When it happened, it was like this is perfect timing. I’m barely going to miss anything.”
The EGR hockey community has supported Newton throughout his transplant and recovery, and his players were motivated to give their best effort with their coach on the mend.
“Obviously it's been a long road for him, and it’s not the first time he has had this double lung transplant,” EGR senior center James Albers said. “It’s been pretty incredible, and all the guy wants to do is just coach hockey. He puts in all the fight, so I think the guys rally around him and want to do it for him, get big wins.
“We didn’t talk about it, but we wanted to play our best hockey for him because all he wants to do is show up at the rink for us. I have people at school ask me all the time how he’s doing, and it’s awesome to tell them that he looks incredible and is back on the ice after only a month.”
Senior Owen Stropkai has been on the varsity since his freshman year and has become close with his beloved coach.
“It’s great to have him back, and the positivity that he brings is awesome,” Stropkai said. “Every day it's a new level, and our team pushes for him. What he's been going through is horrible, but we think of him every day and grind together for him. He’s a great guy.”
Grant Newton, EGR’s associate head coach and no relation, took over the program in Chris Newton’s absence.
“We have a really good relationship, and we are close off the ice,” Chris Newton said. “I coached him at Farmington when we won a state championship, and he has helped me get the program to where it is.
“I went to him this summer, and we had a plan in place. I made sure he was comfortable taking over for me, and he did a great job.”
Chris Newton, whose family includes wife Jessie and sons Liam (6) and Carter (3), has transformed EGR into a perennial powerhouse the past few years.
The Pioneers have made back-to-back appearances in the Division 3 Final. They lost to Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood 3-2 in triple overtime last year and suffered a 3-2 loss to Flint Powers Catholic in 2023.
EGR reeled off seven straight wins to open this season and is currently 12-3-1 and tied for first in the Ottawa-Kent Conference Rue despite heavy graduation losses last spring.
“The one thing that is great about this team is we haven’t stopped what we've been doing the last two years when we’ve had success,” Chris Newton said. “We’re sticking to details and making it more about the program than individuals.
“Our motto this year is being uncommon. I wanted that way back in the summer before this even happened. The motto has stuck to me, that I'm uncommon, but I wanted our kids to compete and be uncommon daily, and they’ve done that. It’s been a great group to be around and a group I wanted to get back to as quickly as I could.”
Chris Newton was blessed to have a superb transplant team help him navigate the process.
“The people there were great, and my surgeon was absolutely incredible,” he said. “They are good and talented people, and the nursing staff made it way easier than I expected.
“Obviously, no guarantees or anything, and everything is going well right now,” he added. “I’m still being seen a lot and being tested, but no number can be put on it. Eight years was a good run with the first set, but you just don’t know. I don’t have a crystal ball as to what will happen.”
Dean Holzwarth has covered primarily high school sports for Grand Rapids-based WOOD-TV for five years after serving at the Grand Rapids Press and MLive for 16 years along with shorter stints at the Ionia Sentinel and WZZM. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Allegan, Kent and Ottawa counties.
PHOTOS (Top) East Grand Rapids hockey coach Chris Newton instructs his team during a practice. (Middle) Newton directs his players on the bench during a game. (Below) Newton takes a photo with members of this season’s EGR team. (Photos by Grant Newton.)
Niles' Arnold Remembered as Teacher & Leader, 'Doing Exactly What He was Meant To Do'
By
Scott Hassinger
Special for MHSAA.com
January 13, 2026
NILES – Throughout his 22-year career coaching varsity girls basketball at Niles High School, Jim Arnold required one thing from his players.
Just have fun.
"Jim always stressed to his players that the one thing he wanted them to do when on the floor was to just have fun playing the game," said George Brawley, who served 15 seasons as one of Arnold's assistant coaches at various levels.
Arnold, 81, died Dec. 9 following an extended illness.
But throughout his career, Arnold's teams did much more than just enjoy themselves. The Benton Harbor native built a highly-successful program at Niles, where he achieved an overall win-loss record of 360-139 from 1986-2008, with 19 winning seasons. Under Arnold's watch, the Vikings captured seven conference titles, 10 District championships – including nine straight from 1997-2005 – and five Regional crowns.
Among Arnold's other accomplishments were being named Class B Coach of The Year by The Associated Press in 1998 and receiving honorable mention in 1997, along with selection by the Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan as Region 5 Coach of the Year in 2002 and 2004. He was also named conference Coach of the Year seven times and received the Herb Quade Memorial Sportsmanship Award for the 2002-2003 season.
Arnold also coached Niles to back-to-back District championships in softball in 1993 and 1994.
As young athlete himself, Arnold excelled on the baseball diamond. A successful player while at Benton Harbor, he also played on Twin City American Legion teams and was known as a team captain and a coach on the field. Arnold later had an invitation to try out at the professional level with the Baltimore Orioles, but an injury ended his pursuit of that dream.
Arnold later played third base for Bargain Center, a slow-pitch softball team that won a regional championship and went on to play in the national title game in St. Louis, Mo.
His daughters Sonya and Allison were among the athletes that Arnold mentored during his coaching career. Sonya (Martinez), his oldest daughter, played for her father in eighth grade.
"He made the game fun, and you wanted to do your best because you didn't want to disappoint him. He poured his heart into each and every practice and game because preparation mattered to him. He demanded excellence, and every player became better because of his coaching ability," said Martinez, a 1986 Niles graduate.
Allison (Clay) his youngest daughter, played on the 1990 Niles varsity squad that finished 25-1, winning conference, District and Regional titles. She is a 1991 graduate.
"It was awesome playing for my dad. Some of my best memories in my life were during that time,” Clay said. “He had high standards and inspired others to be the best version of themselves. He put his heart and soul into what he did, and I had a front-row seat to that."
Linda Arnold has fond memories as a coach's wife.
"I loved watching my husband coach because of the joy it brought him. His passion, intensity and the love he had for his players was genuine,” she said. “It was more than a game. It was more about developing players in the area of discipline, teamwork and giving your all. Even in the busiest part of the season, he always made me feel like a priority. I didn't just watch a coach. I watched a man doing exactly what he was meant to do.
"My husband coached with passion, but he loved his family with intention. My girls would go to his practices and we all attended his games, and we had the team over for team dinners. His players were a part of our extended family. He made sure we felt a part. He was the best coach in the world, and he was mine."
Jim Arnold was highly respected by his coaching peers. He was kind and treated everyone with dignity. The community of Niles knew what he stood for and they knew his standards were high. He was admired for his preparation and understanding of the game as well as his commitment to doing things the right way. He was strict but fair and treated everyone the same, whether you were the star player or last one off the bench, Martinez explained.
"Developing his players' character was far more important to him than winning," she said. "Dad lived what he taught. He modeled humility, hard work and lived a life of integrity. He made people better by being a part of their lives."
When Jim Arnold first began his junior high teaching career in Niles, he also coached the boys junior high basketball team. There were no girls basketball teams at the time, so a girl tried out for the boys team. She was good enough to make the team, so Arnold kept her. The following school year, the principal asked Arnold to organize a girls team – and the rest was history.
Former Niles varsity girls basketball coach Jessica Johnson, a teammate of Clay’s, recalls the experience of playing for Coach Arnold.
"Coach Arnold taught us discipline, resilience and always required 110 percent effort from you. He would instill confidence in you while still holding you accountable," said Johnson, now an assistant women’s basketball coach at Southwestern Michigan College.
Johnson recalls Arnold's use of comic strips as a teaching tool to help his players improve upon their mistakes.
"If you had a game where you didn't shoot very well or took questionable shots, he would place pictures of bricks in the gym the day following the game," Johnson said.
"Coach Arnold went out of his way to build that relationship and trust with his players. He gave us lessons that extended way beyond the court that made us better people."
Mark Haase, a Niles alumnus and the current Vikings head varsity boys basketball coach, also had the privilege of playing for Arnold.
"I played freshman basketball for Coach Arnold. It was one of the most disciplined and well-conditioned teams I ever played on. He ran a tight ship, but it was done out of love and concern for his players. He has a great family and is a Niles legend," Haase said.
Niles athletic director Matt Brawley referred to Arnold as an amazing teacher, coach and individual in the school and community.
"Coach Arnold would never ask you to do anything he wouldn't do. He was very structured and expected a lot out of his players, and he got results without excuses,” Brawley said. “He was a true leader of Niles athletics. He was an unbelievably kind and humble individual.”
Scott Hassinger is a contributing sportswriter for Leader Publications and previously served as the sports editor for the Three Rivers Commercial-News from 1994-2022. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Berrien, Cass, St. Joseph and Branch counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Jim Arnold poses for a photo with his granddaughters following a Niles girls basketball game. (Middle) Arnold signals for a timeout. (Below) Linda and Jim Arnold, seated (middle) take a photo with their daughters and their families. (Photos courtesy of the Niles athletic department and Arnold family.)