I visited Chuck Roser, his husband Tom, and their sweet rescue dog Patsy in their Pittsboro, NC, home on Friday, September 12, 2025. As a gesture of my gratitude, I took Chuck and Tom a six pack of 12-ounce bottles of Kona Big Wave Liquid Aloha. I gave Patsy dog treats and gentle pats on […]
Gratitude Tour
Gratitude Tour: Kelly Chung
“Aunty Mom” is what her students affectionately call her. My wife Merf and I called her Kelly throughout our high school days. Kelly is one of my wife’s best friends. That creative spelling of my wife’s nickname comes from Kelly. My correspondence with Kelly in the months after I saw her in Knoxville last summer […]
Gratitude Tour: Carl and Nancy Frye
Carl Frye was one of the first colleagues I came to know well at Blue Ridge when I arrived in 1998. I wouldn’t coach until the winter, but, as the athletic director, he welcomed me to the School during the opening faculty meetings that August. He was already a legend at Blue Ridge, but that […]
Gratitude Tour: Bob O’Connor
Bob O’Connor and I met during our 7th grade year at South High (a small neighborhood school that included 7th through 12th grades) and became best friends fairly quickly. I immediately liked Bob because of his positive outlook on life, his sly sense of humor, and mostly his family values. Only later did I discover […]
