Stripes Worn Well (Muskegon Chronicle)
March 1, 2012
Tim Flahive has battled diabetes for all but a few years of his life. But he's also filled half of those years with high school sports as a longtime official based in the Muskegon area.
The Muskegon Chronicle's Mark Opfermann tells the story of Flahive's final basketball game last week -- and makes us appreciate even more the significant role our officials fill to no fanfare.
A powerful excerpt:
He left the court with no fanfare, took off his whistle and shed a few tears.
But Flahive's story isn’t just about sports and an official leaving the hobby he loves. It’s about courage, getting back up and pressing on.
So, I guess it’s a lot like sports after all. But it’s a whole lot more about life.
That’s because when Flahive took the court last week, he did it with half of his left foot missing.
Captain Salata leads Whitmore Lake (AnnArbor.com)
May 22, 2012
Emma Salata twice has been named all-league and her golf team's Most Valuable Player, and holds the school's 9 and 18-hole records. And she's done all of that playing each spring for the boys team at Whitmore Lake, which does not have a girls golf team.
AnnArbor.com's Matt Durr tells how Salata got started playing the game with her grandparents, and then became a star of the spring after playing her first season of high school golf during the fall with the Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard girls. Salata has signed to play next season for the Western Michigan University women's team.
Whitmore Lake girls golfer earns college scholarship by playing with the boys (AnnArbor.com)