Newspapers / The Brunswick Beacon (Shallotte, … / April 29, 1993, edition 1 / Page 17
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mmmz under the sun "=*=" B: INSIDE THIS SECTION: ?Sporfs, Pages 8-11 Fishing, Page 12 c35fc!??S?SW2j<W Nelson Best Sees Athletics As Building Block Of Education IIY DOUG RUTTKR Physical fitness is the basis for all other educa tion."Those simple words of John F. Kennedy arc written on a poster board that hangs in Nelson Best's office. They arc words Best puts to use every day as athletic director for Brunswick County Schools. "My philosophy has always been educate the whole child. I'm a firm believer in that," says Best, who has spent 38 years in education?the last 24 in Brunswick County. "While I think academics arc vitally important, I don't think we're educating the child unless we're giv ing him the physical education too," adds the former principal at Leland and North Brunswick high schools. Best's four decades in education include 15 years as a coach of boys and girls basketball, baseball, track and field, football and tennis at high schools such as Four Oaks, Yadkinvillc and J.H. Rose in Greenville. A native of Grantham in Wayne County, Best has called Brunswick home since 1969. Before moving in to administration, he was principal for three years at Leland High and was the boss at North Brunswick for seven. Even as a principal. Best always had a spccial inter est in sports and physical education. He initiated foot ball at the old Leland High School and coached the boys' basketball team to 66 wins in three years. Best says sports build character, teach good work habits and create leaders. "A lot of people underesti mate the value of athletics. It's a good investment in our youth." For Best, the numbers don't lie. Statistics show stu dents who participate in athletics have better grades than students who don't and arc less likely to drop out of school. Also, most student-athletes make better grades while they arc actively participating in sports than they do in the off-season. At a national convention several years ago. Best learned something else about high school athlctics. Most of the men who earned Purple Hearts in World War II also had earned varsity letters. What do the statistics mean? Best says success in sports breeds success in other areas of life. "A person's got to achieve in something that he values if the self es teem is going to be there. I don't know anything that does that like athletics." Best has seen the benefits of sports from a teacher's point of view. He has taught history, science, physical education and health, and considers himself a strong advocate of teachers and coaches. As county schools coordinator of athletics, health and physical education for the last 14 years. Best has greatly expanded the sports menu offered to area stu dents. At the high schools, socccr, wrestling, tennis and track and field have been added during his tenure. "Girls sports have seen tremendous growth in quality and quantity in the last 10 years." The only sports offered at the middle schools when Best took over in 1979 were boys and girls basketball. Now the kids can choose from football, volleyball, soc cer, softball and baseball, which was added this spring. s Tall*!.. . {ccboh STAFF PHOTO BY DOUG RUTTfR NElJiON BEST is a firm believer that physical education should be a vital part of every child's ex perience at school. Best isn't about to take all of the credit for the ex- It wasn't until the early 1980s that the county school pansion. "I think a lot of the credit goes to the commu- board started funding coaching salaries. Before then, nity for supporting it. They go to the games and sup- Best said the only money they received camc from port the board of education funding." ticket sales and the concession stand. As an administrator in the Southport school offices. Best isn't the type of administrator who sits behind a Best tries to look out for coaches and has been instm- desk all day. You can always find him out in the trench mental in increasing their pay. "I think the supervisor's cs, so to speak, attending high school and middle main job is service, to serve the people you work school athletic events. with." "1 feel like it's part of my job to be there supporting "A persons got to achieve in something that he values if the self esteem is going to be there. I don't know anything that does that like athletics ?Nelson Best the coaches and the teams. 1 make a spccial effort to be at a lot of the games," he said. "I enjoy seeing the kids compete and being successful." Although Best and his wife, Helen, live in Leland, he says he isn't biased when it comes to schools the north end of the county. There's a spccial placc in his heart for North Brunswick, but Best roots for everyone equally. "I really love teen-agers," he smiles. "I love to be in the schools and spend as much time with them as pos sible." Hanging around cncrgctic teens has obviously been good for Best, who doesn't look anywhere near 61 years old. A basketball and baseball player in high school, he set a single-season record for stolen bases in his only year at Louisburg College. A knee injury cut his col lege career short, but Best played semi-pro ball until he was 37. In his early days in the late 1950s and early 1960s, Best said it wasn't unusual to coach three sports and handle a full course load. One spring he coached the baseball and track teams at the same time. He used to get basketball players to help him varnish the gymnasium floor in the summer. In the winter, it was up to the coach to fire up the boiler if he wanted heat in the gym. Even though coaching was a lot of work in those days. Best says coaching now is tougher in many rc spccts. "The greatest change I've seen is people expect more out of a coach. There's certain pressure to win," he said. "The coach is more on the line than he was 10 years ago." Best received his bachelor's degree from East Carolina University and master's degree in health and physical education from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. "I knew what I wanted to do when I was 16 years old and 1 haven't changed my mind yet," he said. "I was fortunate in being able to choose something 1 was suited for and 1 certainly have enjoyed over the years." Best says he hasn't seriously considered retirement, something Helen did recently after 21 years as a secre tary at Leland Middle School. "As long as 1 feel good and I'm making a contribution I'll stay on." The Bests have two children and two grandkids. Their daughter, Sally, is a math teacher at North Brunswick. Billy, who spent five years in the Kansas City Royals organization, is an assistant baseball coach at Auburn University. Parent Involvement Is Focus Of Youth Family Night Parent involvement was the focus of the fifth Partnerships for Youth Family Night held April 8 at the Brunswick County Government Center in Bolivia. Approximately 300 people attended the event spon sored by the Brunswick County Schools and Brunswick County Community Based Alternatives Task Force on Youth Needs. A culmination of Youth Week (April 5-8), the pro gram provided information and entertainment, said Wendy Milligan, Partnerships For Youth program direc tor for the Brunswick County Schools. "The response from the community suggests a com morient to support the students who are the future lead ers of our county," she said. "It appears to be evident, from the cooperation received from community agencies and school personnel, that collaborative efforts to pro vide services and support for our youth and their fami lies are very real." The West Brunswick High School drama class pre sented an original play dramatizing many youth prob lems of the '90s. They were directed by Mike Sapp, di rector of the Odell Williamson Auditorium. In his remarks keynote speaker Roman Gabriel, di rector of Charlotte Rage and a motivational speaker, en couraged young people to embrace a vision for their lives, sei goals and then work lo achieve them, and to work hard, enjoy life and don't surrender. The third- and fourth-grade honors chorus from Un ion Primary sang "Heal The World," for a standing ova tion. Also 15 community agencies offered information on their scrviccs available to young people. These were the YWCA's JTPA Summer Youth Employment program, Family Services Big Buddy program, Brunswick County Parks and Recreation, Brunswick County Schools Drug Abuse Prevention/Wcllncss/JTPA program and counsel ing service, Brunswick Community College, American Red Cross, Employment Security Commission, Home Harbor Home, Cape Fear Substance Abuse Program, Brunswick County Literacy Council, Brunswick County Volunteer & Information Center, Brunswick County Sheriff's Department Crime Prevention Division, and The Brunswick Hospital's Adolescent Center. Brunswick County Parks and Recreation was pre sented the 1993 Outstanding Display Award. Also as part of Youth Week, school counselors as sisted teachers in discussing youth and social issues such as stress, the importance of staying in school, abuse and neglect, living a healthy lifestyle and taking care of the V I 8 WFM PHOTOS CONTRIBUTED WEST BRUNSWICK HIGH winners in the "Ileal The World" art contest pictured with their instruc tor Faye Fullwood (front center) are (from left) Harry Johnson, Misty Skipper, David Fullwood, Kris Suinley and Donnie Millif>an. iMurel Keesee is not pictured. WENDY MIL1JGAN (left), Partnerships For Youth program director, presents awards to South Brunswick Middle School art students Adam Clemmons and Damian Davis for their entry, "Help the Homeless." environment. Lean and Larry Brock Jr., South Brunswick Middle; An teachers sponsored an art contest with the theme Audrey Porterfield, South Brunswick High. "Heal The World," with local school winners advancing -n, ?i?,_ ? ~ ? ., ... to the couniv contest Their an was disnlaved in the Third-place awards went to Gcorgina Matthews, to tne county contest, ineir an was aispiayea in tne Uni Samantha Watson, Shallotte Middle; Maria Schilz, pS'rarn """"CrS "* S*M?m MM"-Bmy Johnso"' Wcsl B'mick Hlsh' David Fullwood of West Brunswick High School re- Receiving honorable mention were Beth Long, Sup ceived bcst-in- show honors. ply; George Sloane, Dana Stanley, Paul Matthew, First-placc winners were Ryan Bennett, Union; Union; Candice Smith, David Powell, Shallotte Middle; Adam Clemmons and Damian Davis, South Brunswick Tanika Ballard, Leland Middle; Lauren Winfree, Boli Middle; Leigh Evcrctte Milligan, Waccamaw; David via; Bob ColTey and Steven L;inier, Michael Mitchcn Fullwood, Laurel Kecsce, West Brunswick. and Joshua Cumbce, South Brunswick Middle; Kris Second-place winners were Trey Milligan, Wacca- Stanley, Donnic Milligan, and Misty Skipper, West maw; Charlie La Brccquc, Leland Middle; Chris Mc- Brunswick
The Brunswick Beacon (Shallotte, N.C.)
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April 29, 1993, edition 1
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