Important People in Our Lives

Wow, what a week! People are important in each community. Yes, even in Lake Wales. We honor the Pioneer every year, we elect city commissioners, and there are many other important people who don't hold city positions who affect our daily lives. Although what I am about to write about isn't directly related to the City proper, all of these helped shape me to become the person I am. I now understand the importance of bringing these outside experiences back to my town.

For 10 years Lake Wales was just a city where I came to shop. I slept in Babson Park, shopped local, but worked and existed in Lakeland. Really, my home was at Florida Southern College (FSC) while I coached the men's tennis team for the MOCS.

This past Thursday I had the privilege of attending a luncheon to honor the retiring Athletic Director (AD). Pete Meyer has been the AD for the past 11 years at FSC and he has determined that it is time to clock out after 31 years of service for the college. Why is this important to someone living in Lake Wales? It's not, except for the fact that it is. You see, Pete was a believer in how I ran my team. He battled for my players and for me when he could have easily pulled the administrator card and just said "no." He was hard-nosed, you knew where you stood, and if you succeeded you kept your job. You were always required to represent the brand at the highest level.

Since this is a Lake Wales-centric paper let me bring this home. We all have people we work for, report to, or are accountable to and all we can hope for is that the best we do each day makes them proud to have us on their team.

Locally, are you doing the best in your company to improve the complexion of the City every day? Also, think of the hardest, most dedicated central figure you can think of in the City; do they back your mission and do they have your back when you go to them? This was Pete when I worked for him.

Moving forward through the week it only got better. Saturday, I had the opportunity to do two things that meant the world to me. For the 10 years I coached college at FSC I ran across a lot of coaches. Some I loved, some I put up with, and others I coached against.

We all have people in our lives who help us love what we do or....... help us love where we are. Bill Macom is one of those people. Although a rival, Bill was my best friend in the coaching world. His teams were always friendly, fought until the bitter end, and loved their coach for the man he is.

Well, his institution just announced that they were dropping his men's and women's tennis programs along with women's golf at the school. This is a sad moment for college tennis and for the people directly affected.

Think about this locally. We all have places we love, and then they are gone. Why? Well, Bill always hosts an alumni tennis event and even though his programs are being yanked out from under him he decided to continue the tradition. Since I don't compete against him anymore, I decided to attend and catch up with some of his alumni that I coached against.

This reminds me of coming back to your hometown. We go to the places that made us feel comfortable. Maybe it was the downtown arcade or hitting the drive-thru at McDonalds. Heck, maybe it is checking in with the teachers at Lake Wales High School or other local schools that shaped who you are today. Who knows, it just is comfortable to be around people who made us feel good during "important" times in our lives. The event was great, and Bill is loved by many.

Pageantry is something that has become more important to me as I have gotten older. The VFW and American Legion are full of men and women who have served this country proudly and as I have aged, I appreciate them more and more. We are fortunate to have both right here in Lake Wales and should support them the best we can. I bring them up because the last story of the weekend has to do with the military and the honor they show when they compete.

Bill, from above, has had some great assistant coaches and one of them was Andrew Veeder. He is young, vivacious, and wants to coach college tennis as his career. Once he left Bill at Florida Institute of Technology, he went to University of Central Florida, Arizona, and is now the lead assistant at the Air Force Academy. His team was asked by the United States Tennis Association (USTA) to play a College Game Day at the new USTA National Tennis Center in Orlando at Lake Nona. They were playing Army. Yes, two service academies playing one another is a big deal. There are protocols and for a civilian, there is beauty.

I've been around college tennis for 28 years and yesterday was the first day that I have ever heard the national anthem being played and seen 24 athletes salute the flag. The match was intense, honestly fought, and a victor was determined. After the match, each team lined up and they played the alma mater of each academy. Both teams stood at attention and honored the other's song while it was played. While we were watching the tennis, a who was a good college player and is a current teaching pro, posed the following question. "Why doesn't the level seem super high?" To be quite honest, the level was very good. I answered his question this way: "All 24 of these athletes have a higher purpose. Once they have completed their degree at their designated academy, they will serve this great country for five years." His eyes leveled and he stated, "I had no idea. That changes everything." He was now a fan. These athletes were playing for the love of the game, the pride of their service academy, and the knowledge that they were called to protect the rest of us. Veeder is a civilian who also has come to appreciate where he is today.

Putting all that into a local perspective goes like this. What are we doing to make Lake Wales the best City we can? How much pride do we have in what we offer, what is possible, and what we can become? Although we are citizens we can still serve with pride and can demand excellence from others around us.

Lake Wales is a town full of important people. Hundreds of them. We all have our own favorites and we need to make sure they know how much they mean to us and to others in the community. Pete, Bill, and Andrew made coaching rewarding, fun, and assisted in making me want to be better each day.

Here in our hometown there must be people who affect you the same way. Find them, appreciate them, and let them know they mean the world to you and others in our great community of Lake Wales.

Trey Heath is a REALTOR (R) with Century 21 At Your Service Realty in Lake Wales. He and wife, Michelle, live in Babson Park with their daughter, Brianna.