Well, the winter season is over. It's not as much fun hosting a tournament when your team loses. BUT, our sectional was a good one. The games were competitive and tonight's championship was a great back and forth game filled with emotion and great intensity. Congrats to all the teams on a great tournament.
The best part of hosting a Sectional is the pure pride of Garrett is displayed for everyone to see. I can honestly say no one hosts a tournament like Garrett. That started with John Hutton and has continued through tonight. It would not happen without all the great workers we have. My chest gets so pumped up when people compliment us on a great tournament. Tonight, we got compliments from officials, fans, and media for all the teams.
We have the best facilities, we have the best people. Becky Blotkamp is the greatest and she is such a big part of all of our events. She is the MAIN reason we have such a great athletic Department. My WIfe Stephanie also is a big help in more ways than you can imagine. I get paid to be the Athletic Director, but she is always by my side when I have to work late or show up in the early am to get things ready. The two ladies take such pride in what they do and get very little credit.
I want to personally thank all the following people for their great work in making this the Best School in Northern Indiana and helped run such a classy tournament.
Our Gate Workers are the best. They handled all the pressure of the large crowds and got everyone into the game very quickly: Alice Yingling, Sue Pearson, Mary Baker, and Mallory Clifford
My Bench Workers are also second to none. Nothing gets by these people. They work so well with the officials and have a real talent for managing the game: Becky Blotkamp - stats/financial, Stephanie Rhoades - scorekeeper, George Wilmore - scoreboard, Barney Mahnesmith - timer, Greg Griffin - announcer, and Jacob Clifford - music
Our Security people provide such an orderly tournament and are always there to make sure everyone has a positive experience: Ron Frickey, Kenny Yingling, Bob Lapadot, Gaylon Wisel, and Ronnie Barron
Our Team Hostess takes care of making sure the teams have everything they need and make sure all the workers are taken care of. Thanks Patti Weller!
The 0fficials Host was Chad Sutton. He made sure the officials are taken care of and get anything they need:
Our Hospitality Room feeds officials, workers, coaches, and school administrators every night. Thanks Matt Smith and Judy Anspach. There's nothing like homemade cooking when you have to work such long hours!
We use Student Workers to dust mop the floor, make sure the balls are available to teams, and officials are taken care of during timeouts. Thanks everybody for all your hard work: Becca Oliver, Katie DePew, Kaitlyn Hinkle, Shelby Hartman, Kaitlyn Wisel, Emma Riedly, Alaina Creager, Taylor Smith, Logan Smith, and Cameron Smith
The IHSAA has us gather Stats on every game for a national report. Cameron Stockdale did that for every game. I'm sure no one even knew. He just quietly did a great job every night!
Our Athletic Trainer, Carmen Smith, is the best. She takes care of all the medical needs for each of the six teams and the officials. She is there for team practices and lives at GHS all year.
We always open the tournament with a live National Anthem. Paul Marlow and his kids always provide a great sound and class for the tournament.
This year our Concessions were handled by Tonya Weaver and Camp Discovery Staff, GHS Academic Teams, and Girls Soccer. They served a lot of Chick Filet sandwiches, pizza, popcorn, and drinks. They had a huge crowd to feed every night and did a great job making sure we were good hosts.
Worker Supervision is always handled by Bob Novy. He helps check-in and take care of all the workers each night. He is and has always been a great asset to GHS!
I also can't thank enough Rosemary Blust, her great staff of custodians, John Bennett, and the rest of the maintenance staff. They work behind the scenes all year long, but they are such a key part of our school.
Garrett is a great place to be. I wouldn't work anywhere else. I get the opportunity to talk to a lot of administrators from other schools. I hear nightmares about the people they have to work with. I am just busting with pride when it comes to the people at our school. Thanks GHS!
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