"There hath passed away a glory from the Earth..." (Wordsworth)

.....I am feeling very well this year, but sadly, several of my colleagues, friends, and former students have passed away. During WWII, I saw more than enough of death and destruction, that I am loath even to talk about the subject; I am inured to it. During the 30 years that I was teaching and coaching, I never said anything about my experiences in WWII, and so lately many colleagues and students have learned about it--some from my book, "Memoirs of a Tailgunner", some from elsewhere...I don't know. But lately, death has once again, after these many years, come to invade my spirit. It has been several months since John "Moose" Reardon died. He was our athletic director and football coach for many years, and loved by everyone. When he retired Rhoda and I met John and his wife for dinner dates a couple of times. Just in the past few months, Sam Schiffer, Tom O'Connor, and Howard Wolfe have passed away. Sam and I spent many years coaching soccer together; Howard and Marge were here for dinner only about a month ago, and his death so soon after that was a stunner--but no more so than the passing of Bob Marsden yesterday.  Bob was a fine athlete and he was going to play baseball until I told him that he could win lots of medals if he joined my track team and ran in the sprint events because of his speed. 

.....The thought of winning medals appealed to Bob, and it came to pass over a couple of years that he did win many medals running the 100 and 220 yd. dashes.  I called him "Flash".  Bob and I became very close as an athlete and a coach often relate in that way. I loved Bob as a son, and he reciprocated that love. The height of his career came one year as he ran in the mile relay with three of his fellow athletes at the Millrose Games in Madison Square Garden. This became possible when that relay team won the Nassau County Championship on Long Island. But he is no longer with us. He will not be forgotten...and neither will the rest of that team, Bill Sherwood, Barry Meyer, and Chuck Hendrickson...the Four Horsemen! Bob Marsden never stopped smiling. He was a star athlete and a star person; I mourn for him. He shall be missed.