I have shared about my Dad on my blog several times before. I share about him a lot because I got a good one. I was blessed with a Dad that believed in me, with a Dad who never told me I “couldn’t” do anything because I was girl. I was taught the exact opposite. I was taught there was nothing I couldn’t do if I put my mind to it, whether it be the first female United States President, a Supreme Court judge, driving a tractor, or pulling a trailer full of round bails of hay, or riding a bull.
My Daddy believed in me.
I remember being in 3rd grade and telling my Daddy that I wanted to play basketball. Well that next year, he took me right down and signed me up to play. I was one of two girls that signed up. That meant I could play, but I would be the only girl on the team.
There I am. Front row, wearing that #2 jersey. It was my first year to play, not only did I play with all boys, but none of those boys went to my school. I was the only girl and I didn’t know any of them, but I played. Terrified. But I played… and I learned.
The next year my Daddy took it upon himself to sign up to coach and I guess he got to spreading the word, because this year there was enough girls that signed up that we had the first all girls team in Hartselle Alabama rec basketball. We had to play the boys, but we had a team.
The following year my Daddy got on the phone with the Morgan County Park and Rec and he was able to get our Hartselle girls basketball team into the county so that we could play against other girls. To this day the Hartselle girls continue to play in the Morgan County circuit… thanks to a Daddy who believed in his daughters.
As anyone who follows my blog knows, my Daddy was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer this past May. He has been undergoing chemo since then. Today, we wait for the next PET scan to see if the imaging reflects what the blood work has been saying… and that’s that the tumors are shrinking and dying.
I really wanted to do something in honor of my Daddy just for being the amazing man that he is. I am not sure if the ladies who played or are playing in Hartselle, Alabama have a clue what my Daddy did to fight for your equality in the Hartselle community league athletics program. He fought hard with others (Joe Berry and Ronald Wallace to name a couple) to build up the softball program and he started the basketball program.
So really I am just curious… if you are a woman and have played softball or basketball in the city of Hartselle would you share this post and hashtag #Iplayed #teamwayne
I would love to see how many “daughters” got the opportunity to dream of slam dunks and home runs because my Daddy wasn’t a man who said, “girls can’t” but instead said, “heck yeh, girls can!”
My Daddy went home to be with his Lord on May 2, 2015. He has experienced the highest healing possible as he stepped out of this fallen world and this decaying body and into the arms of His Savior.