No question about it, the best part of this gig is the interaction I get to have with different high school athletes and coaches. Bob Barton, the gentleman who takes most all of the pictures you see in the sports section, and I had a long drive this past Saturday to Columbia to cover St. Charles High in the State title game. We came to the conclusion there was no way in the world we were objective about the game; we wanted Charlie Meeker’s squad to win. Unfortunately it didn’t turn out that way.
During the course of the season I had the privilege to interview such great kids as Brad Bichel and Brian Randazzo. Worry not about the future ladies and gentlemen. If these two young men are indicative of what the next generation of leaders might look like, we are in fine hands.
If you wish to nominate a team for “Team of the Week” I suggest you do so sooner than later. If this past week is any indication, the column is going to be very popular. Nothing makes me happier to know everyone wishes to read what I might write about their team. Yeah, sure.
I may be slow, but I am still moving. You see I know Barton’s pictures are far more looked at than my words. I found out the hard way you see. This past Spring I was bringing the family vehicle in for a check up; I was referred to Coffey Automotive by my buddy Mark Francis. While I was conducting my business I noticed someone had clipped out one of my first “Athlete of the Week” columns – the basketball player Jeff Coffey from St. Charles West. “Nice article,” I said to the gentleman behind the counter, who turned out to be Jeff Coffey, Sr. “Yeah,” he said, “that’s my son.” Well that I didn’t know, but I did proudly inform him that I had written the article. He then went on to tell me he had heard there was an article in the most recent edition of the First Capitol News covering the High/West basketball game. “Yeah,” I told him, “me and Bob (Barton) covered that game.” Well it seems Coffey didn’t get his copy, so I promised to bring him a copy when I picked up the van.
Now this ain’t a commercial for Coffey Automotive, but rather a narrative to explain how important Mr. Barton is. As promised I brought Coffey a copy of the paper. He knew where the Sports Section was as he turned to the back page – but then he continued turning pages, continued to the center of the paper. I wanted to say “duh, my article always begins on the back page.” But I hadn’t paid yet, so I kept quiet. For those of you who remember that particular issue, the two center pages were covered with color photos of basketball games, both boys and girls, along with a picture or two of dance lines, cheerleaders, pretty much everything that happened. That’s when it hit me: Some people like Barton’s pictures more than my articles. I didn’t, and don’t understand, but am beginning to.
I guess what I am trying to say is “thank you” to Bob Barton and his camera. Luckily for me, both of his children, Jessie and Bobby are grown up and attending college. Jessie recently completed her freshman year at SEMO, while Bobby will be a junior next year at Westminster, in Fulton. As I said, Bob and I had a long road trip this past weekend, and he informed me he had to write a thank you note or two for favors people have done for him. Please consider this a public “thank you” note for all you do for me and the First Capitol News. If you turn out to be half as good of a photographer as you are dad, regular readers of the weekly are in for some exceptional photos.
