Tigers Show Support For 'Rev'
August 23, 2018 at 5:10 p.m.
Tigers Show Support For 'Rev'
By Dale [email protected]
He's stood on the sidelines during football games, even ran wind sprints with the players during practice, and many remember him wiping the Tiger Den floor and rallying the cheer block at basketball games.
Now the Tigers are pulling for Blake, the man who is known to many simply as “Rev.”
Blake, a longtime reverend, retired substitute teacher and United States Navy veteran who served in World War II, suffered a broken hip after a recent fall and is recovering at Mason Health And Rehab in Warsaw.
Dave Baumgartner, a longtime coach in the Warsaw football and wrestling programs, posted the news about Blake on Facebook and encouraged community members to show support for Blake.
After football practice on Tuesday, the Tigers posed for a picture with some of the players holding signs that displayed the message “Tiger Football Loves Rev.”
“When I started coaching here in wrestling, Rev was there, he was with us every step of the way,” said Baumgartner, who is still an assistant coach with the Warsaw football program. “He laughed with us, he prayed with us, I mean he's just been an integral part of everything I've been a part of as far as Warsaw athletics, whether it was wrestling or football.
“He's just an iconic figure. We're talking about a man whose heart is as big as this town, and he just embraces it. He's just a man that inspires us. He was in his late 80s and he was out here running wind sprints with the varsity football team. I just can't say enough about him. The town, the people, now that they're aware that he's down a little bit, the love that people have given back is a great tribute to a great man.”
After football practice on Wednesday, the players signed a giant card that was to be delivered to Blake at Mason Health And Rehab.
The Warsaw Football Moms Club, according to Baumgartner, had plans to decorate Blake's room orange and black.
First-year Warsaw football coach Bart Curtis spoke highly of Blake's passion for the Tigers and the community.
“I got to meet him this summer, and it was great to have him come out here ... he had his cane and he got in the middle of the action, about got run over a couple times," said Curtis. “What a sweet gentleman who cares so much for this community and cares so much for Warsaw athletics.
“Our prayers go out to him. We took a picture and sent it to him, we've got a nice card tonight that we signed, and I think Dave (Baumgartner) put it best when he said Rev is a cherished commodity in this community. He's an icon in this community.”
He's stood on the sidelines during football games, even ran wind sprints with the players during practice, and many remember him wiping the Tiger Den floor and rallying the cheer block at basketball games.
Now the Tigers are pulling for Blake, the man who is known to many simply as “Rev.”
Blake, a longtime reverend, retired substitute teacher and United States Navy veteran who served in World War II, suffered a broken hip after a recent fall and is recovering at Mason Health And Rehab in Warsaw.
Dave Baumgartner, a longtime coach in the Warsaw football and wrestling programs, posted the news about Blake on Facebook and encouraged community members to show support for Blake.
After football practice on Tuesday, the Tigers posed for a picture with some of the players holding signs that displayed the message “Tiger Football Loves Rev.”
“When I started coaching here in wrestling, Rev was there, he was with us every step of the way,” said Baumgartner, who is still an assistant coach with the Warsaw football program. “He laughed with us, he prayed with us, I mean he's just been an integral part of everything I've been a part of as far as Warsaw athletics, whether it was wrestling or football.
“He's just an iconic figure. We're talking about a man whose heart is as big as this town, and he just embraces it. He's just a man that inspires us. He was in his late 80s and he was out here running wind sprints with the varsity football team. I just can't say enough about him. The town, the people, now that they're aware that he's down a little bit, the love that people have given back is a great tribute to a great man.”
After football practice on Wednesday, the players signed a giant card that was to be delivered to Blake at Mason Health And Rehab.
The Warsaw Football Moms Club, according to Baumgartner, had plans to decorate Blake's room orange and black.
First-year Warsaw football coach Bart Curtis spoke highly of Blake's passion for the Tigers and the community.
“I got to meet him this summer, and it was great to have him come out here ... he had his cane and he got in the middle of the action, about got run over a couple times," said Curtis. “What a sweet gentleman who cares so much for this community and cares so much for Warsaw athletics.
“Our prayers go out to him. We took a picture and sent it to him, we've got a nice card tonight that we signed, and I think Dave (Baumgartner) put it best when he said Rev is a cherished commodity in this community. He's an icon in this community.”
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