Dear Editor:
On the front page of The New York Times Sports/Sunday, December 1, 2002 edition, Thanksgiving weekend, it was a delight seeing one of our own, Keeon Walker, defensive back at Syracuse University, (action-photo), chasing one of the best college players in the country, Miami’s Willis McGakee; I just wish Keeon had the ball and not Willis. However, it was an additional delight seeing Hoboken’s Carlos Perez of the University of Florida on national television a few weeks ago making a number of outstanding catches against the University of Auburn.
In addition to the more recent accomplishments, there are other, perhaps more significant accomplishments that merit attention. First, there is an impressive list of Hoboken football players who have attended and graduated from the HPS over the past five years and who have won full athletic scholarships that collectively surpass $2.5 million dollars. Even more importantly, however, these college athletes from Hoboken’s Public Schools have graduated from fine colleges and universities. We need to realize that this accomplishment is indeed a formidable one, especially when we consider that so many college athletes do not ever finish their 2nd year of college. It is indeed inspiring to note that solid values have been instilled and developed by many young Red Wing men and women who go beyond the level of high school and college athletes in pursuit of a degree and a career.
While crossing a goal is what usually consumes our attention, it is this other goal, namely remaining mindful of degree and career despite the competing demands of college athletics, which deserves our praise and admiration.
Red Wind College Scholarship Graduates: Rashard Casey, Penn State, graduated; Wilbur Valdez, University of Miami, graduated; Steve Berson, Rutgers University, graduated; Ravon Anderson, Rutgers University, graduated; Joe Radigan, Rutgers University, on line to graduate; Keeon Walker, Syracuse University, graduated; Michael Forcum, New Haven University, graduated; Louis Turso, New Jersey City University, graduated; Carlos Perez, University of Florida, on line to graduate; Tyrell Dortch, Michigan State University; Dwayne Peterson, Northeastern University, graduated; Ruben Gonzalez, Montclair State University, graduated; Lenny Averhoff, Dennison College, graduated.
Dennis Sevano