Thursday night at the newly renovated Eldora Ballroom, the Darke County Republican Party held its annual Lincoln Day Dinner. This is always a good event, and we have had people such as Presidential candidates, Senators, Representatives, and others as guest speakers. This year, due to a unique twist of fate, Coach Jim Tressel was asked to be our speaker.
Katie Deland, our Chairwoman, asked him to speak before Governor Dewine appointed him Lieutenant Governor. He did not get back to Katie until he was appointed, and he thought Katie may be a soothsayer! So, instead of a coach, we got a Lieutenant Governor. That was ok. I have heard Coach speak before, and he is very personable and engaging, making you feel like you are part of the conversation.
Now, before the Democrats read this far and quit, this was not a political speech. Coach Tressel made it clear that he is conservative, but he did make a point of saying he remembered when the Republican party was called the G.O.P. He wanted to expound on that by saying he and his teams had those three letters memorized, but they meant something totally different! His G.O.P. was inspirational and a clear message to everyone, especially young folks, and he said he would ask some of them what they stood for when he left. His G.O.P. is GRATITUDE, OPPORTUNITY, AND PERSPECTIVE.
Coach started by saying we need to start every day with an attitude of gratitude. Count your blessings every morning, and you will find out that the blessings in your life far outweigh the negatives you incur. Sometimes we forget just how lucky we are to live in Ohio, and in our little community, where we have things pretty good, good schools, good jobs, good churches, good kids, good, hard-working parents, and a pretty good standard of living. Look around and be grateful for what we have; most people are not as fortunate as we are. I looked around while he talked about this, and the students there, from all 8 High Schools, I might add, were intent on his words. Coach is that kind of speaker; you listen because he talks to you, not the whole audience.
Opportunity was next. He reminded all of us of the opportunities we have every day if we just look and take advantage of them. They are there; we never know when the best opportunity will approach us. We must learn to accept that they will come along and not be afraid to see if that is the opportunity we are looking for. They are always coming our way; some are good, some are bad, and we must be ready to seize the moment when it gets here and make good life choices.
Perspective is important. He said that when he lost a game, people would treat him awfully. One guy even FedExed a $10 box with a tube of Preparation H in it to him after a loss! He reminded us that one event in your life like that does not define you; you may have won 10 other games, so keep it in perspective. Nobody wins all the time, every time. Your perspective on life and all the good you do defines you, not one small thing like a loss. Keep your life in perspective, and you will make better decisions. Coach Tressel talking about his G.O.P. reminded me of another coach, Lou Holtz, who has a great perspective on life. Lou Holtz has said, “Life is 10% what happens to you, and 90% how you react to it”. Both coaches are real leaders of young men, and we can all learn a lesson from them.
Coach Tressel was kind enough to let everyone have a picture with him who wanted one, and never hurried anybody away. I know this was a problem for Katie, as she tried to keep the program moving! Anyway, the young people around him, I am sure, learned a lot last night, and the few I talked to said they really enjoyed meeting such a legend here in Darke County and were glad they came. They found his presentation really comfortable and learned a few lessons from him.
All in all, it was a great evening, with about 250 people there. We have a lot of good speakers come to our Lincoln Days, but in my opinion, having Coach Tressel was our best yet. He is just a regular guy, has no real political aspirations, and really enjoys talking to and teaching young people, his admitted first loves. We were lucky, and I think last night we all learned something!
That’s the way I saw it … from the sidelines!
