“Good Job Chipola”

We all know that winning is no problem and that it is easier to show some class when you win as opposed to showing that same amount of class when you lose. And we all know that folks in the community are eager to lend you a hand when you are winning but sometimes not so eager when their squad is on the losing side.

This past weekend Chipola College played host to the FCCAA / NJCAA Region 8 Basketball Tournament. The folks from Chipola have been doing this for more than 10 years now and it has become old hat for them. Not that there is any less work to be done,but they’ve got it down now and know how to run a first class tournament.

But this year’s tournament had a different twist. For the first time in eight years there was no Chipola squad in the tournament. The men and women’s squads have been regular attendees the past 8 years and have won their fare share of the tournaments. But no one stays on top forever and this year saw both the men and women’s squads finding the going rough in conference play.

So it would have been real easy for the hundreds of local folks that are needed to pull off a tournament of this magnitude to just say no thanks or I’ll pass. It would only be human nature to be less enthused about spending 12 hour days at a four day tournament when your local team’s uniforms are all tucked away and waiting for next season.

But that is not at all what happened as our community turned out in full force. Oh to be sure there was a tinge of disappointment that surfaced periodically. But that did not seem to damper folks willingness to put in the long hours to make this tournament another great success. I heard one of the athletic directors from one of our conference rivals make the comment that it is a tribute to the folks of Chipola and this community to work just as hard to put on a first class tournament, even though their teams weren’t playing.

Now some folks might not give a hoot about a basketball tournament of this nature being in our community. Well just ask the folks that run our local restaurants, convenience stores, lodging facilities and etc. They’ll let you know right quickly that we need these types of events, especially in these economic hard times.

I’ve often written about different times and events that make me proud to say that I was born and raised in this community and am proud to be living out my days right here in little ole Jackson County. So, Simply Put, good job Chipola and Jackson County for putting on another outstanding tournament. And I suspect Coach J would be right proud.



From the front porch: Coach said that happy is the one who learns to bear that which they can not change.