Cheers and Jeers
Sportswriter Steve Tietz will use this blog to try to duly reward the great, praise heartily the hard-working, uncover the unsung, and take to task the spoilsport, the foul-mouth and the crass in the local prep sports scene. He'll try to remember that kids are just kids and that coaches aren't in it for the money. He'll try to gently remind parents that the kids are playing for fun, not for profit and that the officials, though occasionally human and therefore prone to error, are there to ensure fair play and not out to get anyone.
Homestead AD Gross enjoys fond sendoff as he prepares for new challenges at UWM
Thursday was the rare day in the tenure of outgoing Homestead Activities Director Charlie Gross where not a lot got done.
His secretary, the efficient and well-organized Julie Burke, made sure of that as people got a chance to celebrate and shake hands one more time with Gross before he heads off to be Associate Athletic Director at UW-Milwaukee on Monday.
Burke took an old cheerleading trophy and plastered Gross's likeness on it. Engraved on its surface was something to the effect "Charlie Gross, I survived Homestead High School 2002-2010". There were also photo montages of himself and staff members while Burke also made him wear a little #1 medal throughout the day.
There were also doughnuts and other treats plus a parade of visitors. A very nice touch were both red and white balloons symbolizing his soon to be past of Homestead and black and gold balloons representing his future at UWM.
Burke and others chipped in on small presents like a giftcard for gas and a little Matchbox toy car that were symbols of the effort and the mileage Gross put in representing Homestead these past eight years.
Gross was touched and pleased with the effort on his behalf as he will continue to wear his dual hat of Homestead athletic director and area recreation department director right through Sunday, where he will be supervising a Slammers' youth basketball event.
"That'll be good," he said of Sunday. "I'll be able to see a lot of community members that day."
An interim activities director will be named shortly as the search to replace Gross on a full-time basis continues.
Gross's work at UWM will begin promptly at 8 a.m. Monday.
"I'm exuberant and enthusiastic," Gross said of his new job, "and a little anxious too. It's a new adventure."
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Good luck to a class act who assumed a position very few could have succeeded in. He leaves with new and innovative policy in place in both the athletic dept and the rec. dept. He took his share of crap from the usual critics like all A.D.'s do.... best of luck to the next.
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Back to topLevelheaded - Feb 13, 2010 10:01 PM - Report Abuse