ATHLETICS
ATHLETICS
Coach Traeder is on the Mend
Senior Athlete Honored
In case you haven’t heard, Fort Worth Country Day’s very own Coach Butch Traeder is in the midst of a miraculous recovery!
Senior Savannah Norman was named a Wingstop Scholar Athlete in November 2015, earning a $1,000 scholarship. A surprise presentation was filmed as part of NBC 5’s Inside High School Sports program. David Watkins, NBC 5 sports reporter, anchor and producer, came to Upper School announcements to share the news and invited Rex Heckelman, president of the Wingstop DFW advertising co-op, to present Norman with the award. Her story aired in late November on Inside High School Sports.
On October 1, 2015, Coach Traeder collapsed on campus and was transported by ambulance to Harris Methodist Hospital in Fort Worth, where he remained in the Intensive Care Unit there for many weeks. In December, he moved to a rehabilitation hospital in Dallas, which turned out to be a brief stint, as he made significant improvements in his healing process and surpassed the expectations of his physician and therapists. In early January, Coach Traeder returned to “The Fort.” His new digs are at Pate Rehabilitation. Throughout his road to recovery, Coach Traeder has had many visitors, and now that he’s back in Fort Worth, he hopes that even more come by. Since in rehab, he’s been hard at work and has moved from a wheelchair to a
has been physical in nature. “This is a testament to how active and healthy he was prior to the event,” Chisholm said, “and that he really will follow his own advice about working hard and pushing himself past his perceived limits.
walker to a cane and is now walking on his own! When visiting Coach Traeder, you are asked to please sign in the guestbook— this helps with his memory work. Ed Chisholm, who has regularly been updating Coach Traeder’s friends and family about his progress, would appreciate if you would text, message or post on Facebook when you visit so he can quiz coach about your visit for help with memory recall. Coach Traeder’s incredible recovery
“That being said, the memory deficits are what we are focusing on now. Pate will work on these daily, and they are slow to recover,” Chisholm continued. “We have already seen great memory improvements, but it is a much slower recovery. We are hopeful that he can return to living at home with some outpatient care in March. We are hoping for as close to ‘full recovery’ as we can get in May.” Thank you for all the visits, cards, photos, letters, gifts and Facebook messages. They have made a difference in Coach Traeder’s recovery. Keep them coming! William “Butch” Traeder 232 Ben’s Trail Room 11 Fort Worth, TX 76120
Fall National Signing Day In front of family and friends, two Fort Worth Country Day senior athletes committed to take their game to the next level, signing their National Letters of Intent in November 2015. Adele Elkind committed to play softball at Santa Clara University. She has been the starting pitcher at FWCD since her freshman year and is also a captain of the volleyball and track and field teams. James Ferguson committed to play baseball at North Carolina State University. He has been a member of the varsity baseball team since his freshman year. 14
the falconer
In January, Norman earned another accolade. She was named one of five finalists for the Davey O’Brien High School Scholarship Award. As a finalist, Norman was awarded a $2,500 scholarship. Recognized by both organizations for her commitment to athletics, academics and community involvement, Norman has been a Will Stansbery “three-sport athlete” award winner since freshman year. She plays field hockey, cheers and runs track. She is a member of the Cum Laude Society, National Spanish Honor Society and has been on the High Honors Honor Roll since freshman year. She has also accumulated more than 160 community service hours and is editor in chief of the yearbook. Along with all of this, she has received numerous awards and recognition.
Senior Savannah Norman was named a Wingstop Scholar Athlete. Rex Heckelman, president of the Wingstop DFW advertising co-op, presented Norman with the award check.
Accepted at Duke University, Norman would like to major in international comparative studies and foreign affairs and minor in Spanish. She hopes to ultimately become an attorney, doing work internationally. Norman also is thinking about deferring college for a year to do mission work in Chile. She traveled to Puerto Rico last summer for a weeklong Spanish immersion program with 23 other students who were selected out of a national applicant pool.
WFAA Scholar Athlete WFAA and Dale Hansen showcase North Texas high school seniors who excel in academics and athletics, as well as contribute to making their community a better place to live. Hansen has been recognizing area athletes for more than 20 years. FWCD’s scholar-athlete Adele Elkind was featured in December 2015 on Hansen’s Sports Special and on wfaa.com/scholarathlete. Elkind is a Fort Worth Country Day “Original.” She is a member of the varsity volleyball, softball and track and field teams. She has signed a National Letter of Intent to play softball at Santa Clara University. A High Honors Honor Roll student, Elkind is a Link Crew leader and was a Bluebonnet Texas Girls’ State delegate. Winter 2016
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