A lot of it's-nothing-ma for Maria.

Yay! on the continuing progress on the house, sj.

Sending "cope" support thru the Internet to Maria.

{{{Maria}}}

more ma~~~ going out today Maria

Continued loving thoughts headed your way, Maria.

So I don't think I posted here (I did the FB thing) about the final in the state championship with the traveling back and catching up with work and all. They won handily and are now ranked 16th in ESPN's national ranking thing. They have invited the team to their National Invitational in Bethesda at the end of the month. We are so very excited for the boys.

ESPN's blurb on the change in ranking from 20th to 16th:

Clide Geffrard sizzled with 33 points and 14 rebounds as the Tigers breezed past Oak Ridge (Orlando, Fla.) 78-46 to win the Class 7A state title. They also won in the semifinals 62-29 over St. Petersburg and made a strong claim that they should be regarded as the best public-school team in Florida.

The public school thing is a big part of the pride. So many of the teams the kids play against recruit around the world and offer scholarships to their fabulous private schools. The only out of district kids we get are sometimes one from the next county that goes to live with a relative to be eligible to play for Ely. These are local kids that have worked incredibly hard for this success.

The one thing they have going for them is 6 volunteer coaches like DH that have guided them and spent countless hours by their sides. And the head coach that is a math teacher at school.

Laura, that's wonderful! Go team!

I am babysitting G today. After finally convincing him to finish his lunch we are watching Scooby-Doo.

Laura, that is really a tremendous achievement! The disparity between private schools that can recruit versus public schools that can't/don't is a huge one. So much so that around here there is wishful talk of having two separate play-off structures. You all must be ridiculously proud. Is this the best one of B's teams has done?

congratulations! that's wonderful.

Is this the best one of B's teams has done?

This is only his 3rd year coaching, his 2nd at Ely. The head coach is a guy he played men's league with decades ago. It was quite the controversy at the time he was appointed an assistant coach. Ely has less than a 5% white student population and the parents were calling the principal and coach yelling. It was pretty nasty, but Mel handled it the same way he handles the boys. He told the parents and kids that DH was the best big man coach he knew and that the kids needed and deserved the best. He also told them in no uncertain terms that this was his friend and that he would not tolerate racism and bigotry in his gym.

A couple years later all the parents and kids are hugging me and DH and it is one big championship family. By the end of the first summer session (DH heads the summer program) they were convinced that he was a value to the program. It was just fear of something new and different.

Kind of reminds me of the East Dillon Lions!

I have a new left fan, and a quiet, happy, cool computer.