FHC has welcomed a new site to the school: the Athletic Hall of Fame. FHC has had the Hall of Fame for four years now but never found a way to display it until this year. Past coaches, students, teams, and community members of FHC now have their names up on a plaque in the long white hallway between the two gyms. This shrine was all made possible by a committee that then consisted of Ken George, Clark Udell, Tim Jasperse, Brad Anderson, and Paul TenEyck.

“Three years ago, maybe even four, the A.D. and a few coaches were like “Why do we not have an athletic hall of fame?a��” George said. “It just seemed odd, because all of the other schools have one.”

What is the Hall of Fame?

The Hall of Fame is a huge part of the school’s history; it allows the current students to look back and see who accomplished some great things in our school. The Hall of Fame at Forest Hills Central is meant to commemorate and acknowledge hardworking individuals and teams. FHC has had huge moments in our athletic past and the student body should know about them, the Hall of Fame is the way to do that.

“I think that it’s awesome when a school has a history,” George said. “Even when an individual program has a history, there’s something about that. And I think that it’s another step in enhancing our school pride.”

The Hall of Fame consists of coaches, players, teams, and alumni of FHC. There are currently 22 individuals listed in the Hall of Fame, as well as 5 teams. More and more are being added each year, because of the abundance of talent throughout the years at FHC.

How to get in:

In order to get into the Hall of Fame, you have to be nominated. The nominees are then put onto a list which goes through the committee. The committee now consists of Ken George, Clark Udell, Tim Jasperse, and Brad Anderson. All of whom work in the FHC school system. After deciding on who should be inducted into the Hall of Fame, there is a ceremony put on by the athletic boosters to celebrate the outstanding Rangers.

“We have a list of potential inductees, we have a committee that goes through that,” said Clark Udell. ” It’s at the early stages so, a lot of times we’re trying to recognize some of the firsts.”

Rangers that have performed outstandingly in their sport are likely to be nominated. Coaches that have coached teams to state championships will likely be nominated. Teams that have won state championships, have and will be nominated. The work that an athlete, team, or coach puts into their sport really shows. Their hard work is seen and noticed by many people. When the work is noticed, that’s how you know that they belong in the Hall of Fame.

Who is in it?

Many have been inducted: coaches, players, and teams. Individuals outnumber the number of teams, there being 22 individuals and 5 teams. In the first year of induction, the 1993 girls swim and dive team was inducted, as well as some individuals: Tim Jasperse, Clark Udell, Karen (Verbrugge) Grant, Dan Pupel, Larry Cardinel, and Tim McGee.

“The individuals going in had been athletes, coaches, administrators, alumni community members,” said Udell.

Committee member Brad Anderson is also in the Hall of Fame; he was inducted as a wrestler who won two MHSAA state championships.

“I feel honored to be a part of a community that honors its traditions and accomplishments,” said Brad Anderson. “It is great to see FHC start to have a sense of its history and the people that helped build the culture of pride, tradition, and excellence.”

Why is it important to our school?

The Hall of Fame is a way for the school to show spirit and pride. The people up in the Hall of Fame have left their legacy to the school, they have left their stories about their glory days to be told and passed on.

“As the Hall of Fame starts taking on its visibility, take an interest,” Udell said. “Read the plaques, find out about some people that you might never have heard of.”

Students should know who came before them, who walked the halls of FHC before them. The marks that these people left on the school with their incredible athletic careers should be known by the student body. Now is your chance to stop for a minute or two and admire the new Hall of Fame in that long white hallway. Go learn about someone new, and what they did to get their name up on that wall.

“It [the Hall of Fame] is something for athletes, coaches, and community members to aspire to,” Anderson said. “The Hall of Fame is all about community and honoring the hard work and dedication of the athletes, coaches, and community members who excelled at FHC. There are athletes and coaches walking the halls of FHC today that will someday have their own piece of real estate in the Hall of Fame.”

The Induction Ceremony

At the end of the year, there is an induction ceremony and golf outing to celebrate the inductees’ accomplishment: getting inducted. The inductees get together for a golf outing sponsored by the Rangers athletic boosters, followed by a ceremony and dinner.

“We picked a group, told them, we had a big banquet, I think we had a golf outing and a big banquet the next day,” said George.

Udell talked about the importance of the community connection through the golf outing.

“Every May, the boosters have a Hall of Fame golf outing and then the Hall of Fame itself has a dinner and induction ceremony that evening,” Udell said. “It’s a fun night to kind of celebrate Ranger athletics.”

The Hall of Fame has added a “wow” factor to that long white hallway. The history of our school’s athletics is and will continue to be up on those walls. Give it some attention and learn a little about it.

“At Forest Hills Central, we need to continue to keep some of those stories alive,” said Udell.