The Football Journey

“I came to Flemingsburg because it was the first high school that offered me a teaching position. When I graduated, I interviewed at Bath County Middle School and Fleming County High School on the same day, and they both called me back and offered me a position. I accepted Fleming because at the time, I thought I’d rather be at a high school than a middle school. When I first went to college, I wasn’t a hundred percent sure what I wanted to do. I went in as an undeclared major and thought about exercise science or physical therapy, but the more classes I took, the more I was led back to education. My high school football coach at West Carter had a lot to do with that. Once I stopped playing football at Morehead, he asked me to help coach the junior pro kids at Olive Hill. That experience made me realize that teaching and coaching were something I’d enjoy as a career. Football has always been a big part of my life. I started playing in middle school because the elementary school I went to didn’t have a team, and I played all through high school at Carter County. Football to me is a great microcosm of life. If you want to accomplish things in life, you have to work hard, just like in football. Nothing that comes easy is something you’ll remember, and that’s what I try to teach my players. When I first came to Flemingsburg in 1999, it felt familiar. It reminded me of Carter County and Rowan County—rural areas where kids worked hard, and a lot of them grew up on farms. There were tobacco farms and dairy farms everywhere back then, but those have changed over the years. Now there aren’t as many farms, but the rural feel of Fleming County is still here. One thing I’ve always appreciated is how supportive the community is. Anytime the school system or sports programs need something, people always pitch in to help. That’s rare, and it’s one of the reasons I’ve stayed here for 26 years. All three of my kids were raised here, and that’s been one of the greatest joys of my life. My son is 25, my oldest daughter is 21, and my youngest is 16 and a junior at Fleming County High School. Watching them grow up here and seeing my students grow up, too, has been amazing. Now that I’m teaching at the elementary school, I’m getting to know the kids of some of my former students, and it’s incredible to see how they’ve started their own families and lives. I’ve never really thought about leaving. This is home, and it would take something big, like a job or a move to be closer to my kids, to pull me away. For now, though, I’m happy here. It’s been a good life.”

Photographer: Kerri Washington