COMMUNITY SCENE
PUTTING FOR HINSDALE CENTRAL FOOTBALL HINSDALE CENTRAL FOOTBALL CLUB GOLF OUTING
Left: Dan Hartman, Bill Duffy, Gary Gamen, Tom Dorrance, Todd Koehler, Preston Letts and Ken Lager; Center: Participants practicing their putts before the shotgun start; Right: Wendy Barber, Amy Goss, Betsy Bradley, Sally Guglielmo and Susie Dunphy
by Haleigh Monyek
T
hose Friday night lights. The sun has just set, and the stands are packed with Hinsdale Central football fans—a sea of red. The marching band performs the NFL on FOX theme song; cheerleaders toss girls soaring into the air; pommers gracefully twirl and kick. Football is a Hinsdale Central High School tradition. To fundraise for the team and provide the opportunity for current coaches, players’ parents and alumni to mingle, the inaugural Hinsdale Central Football Club golf outing teed off at Oak Brook Hills Resort on June 12. “It was a great way to bring families together, and gather alumni and have a great event,” said Amy Goss, who was instrumental in planning the event. The golf outing consisted of an 18-hole tournament with a shotgun start, along with entertaining contests such as outdriving the coach and target practice, with the target being a lion, the mascot of Hinsdale Central’s archrival, Lyons Township. Seventy-two golfers swung and putted their way through the light rain that misted that afternoon. “There were mostly parents of current players who played today, but next year, we plan to bring more of the alumni back,” Goss said. Families who could not attend the event could still be a part of it by sponsoring holes. Lowell Huth, father of senior wide receiver Brad Huth, said came to the event to support the football program, play a little golf and get off from work. “It’s a great way to spend a Friday afternoon,” participant Chad Susie said. Athletic director Dan Jones said the event offered an excellent opportunity to get people together in an environment that fosters
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sports paired with leisure. “I like being out with the community and football community,” Jones said. “It just cultivates camaraderie.” “Two things pull me out of the office early on a Friday afternoon: football and golf,” Hinsdale Central principal Mark Kolkman said. “The best part is seeing former coaches and parents. As a newcomer to the school, it is nice to become more and more a part of the Hinsdale Central family.” A few participants practiced their putting in the misting rain, before mounting their golf carts to conquer the course. Umbrellas and rain jackets were in tow by many. This event was inspired by head coach Dan Hartman, who started a similar event at his previous school, Evergreen Park Community High School. The money raised will go towards purchasing new equipment. “We will get new helmets—top of the line and the safest on the market,” Hartman said. Hartman said his favorite part of the event was getting to meet everyone from current players’ parents to those who were a part of the program in the past. “Our strength as a team is that we are a close group,” he said. “They get along well and are not afraid to do the hard things. It’s the tradition of our program that sets us apart from the other schools in the West Suburban Conference.” Kolkman explained the virtue of players earning their horns through progressing both on the field and developing character off of it. “The goal is to compete,” Hartman said, “[to] compete for the conference championship [and] compete for the state championship.” n