Four inducted into Holtz Hall of Fame
By MICHAEL D. McELWAINPrinted in East Liverpool Review Online Posted June 14, 2009
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EAST LIVERPOOL - As always, the Lou Holtz/Upper Ohio Valley Hall of Fame induction ceremonies bring with it a certain excitement.
Take, for instance, two people who traveled from New Philadelphia to East Liverpool just to have a moment to see and speak with Holtz and this year's Distinguished American nominee, Urban Meyer.
Despite wearing Ohio State attire, the two had some University of Florida memorabilia for Meyer's signature. He obliged, and they smiled.
Smiles were not in short supply all day and all night on Saturday.
The events of the day kicked off at 10:30 a.m. when Jim Connelly, Hall of Fame board of trustee member and 2002 Distinguished American inductee, spoke to the scholarship students.
"You have to make make a plan and see it through," Connelly told the group. He said he has been inspired by others and has used the lessons he learned to forge a successful life.
Connelly served for 10 years as the general manager of the Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel in California, having worked his way up from room clerk.
He is currently chairman of Integrated Communications Services and is the author of "One More Sunset," a book detailing the account of his friend Donna Jones' brush with death and fight to live independently despite great obstacles.
Perseverance and overcoming obstacles is the key to success, Connelly noted.
Following a luncheon, Holtz spoke with the students, held a question-and-answer session and posed for a lot of photographs. Parents of the scholarship recipients were smiling just as much as their children.
A private VIP reception was held at the Hall of Fame later in the afternoon.
"It's been hectic and quite a day," Holtz noted. He still smiled and posed for countless more photos at the invitation only event.
Current and past inductees mingled and were g iven an opportunity to talk with Holtz and the Hall of Fame board of trustees.
For the first time, the induction ceremony itself headed to Midland for a cruise ship-themed dinner at the Lincoln Park Performing Arts Center.
Midland native and Pittsburgh radio station sports broadcaster Ellis Cannon served as emcee.
Cannon expressed his passion for Midland and the surrounding communities saying the richness in diversity and the strength found in families throughout the area are heavily responsible for the success of Holtz and all of the other inductees.
Those inductees included well-known local names like Larry Shaw, Martin "Tim" Sheerer, Joseph Wells III and Florence Updegraff along with Meyer.
Cannon provided the voiceover to videos giving stirring tributes to the inductees.
The audience clapped at every opportunity and despite the long day, Holtz shared a few more laughs with friends and continued to sign autographs into the night.
"It's good to be back home," Holtz said with a smile.
The following individuals were recognized this year as part of the 2009 Lou Holtz/Upper Ohio Valley Hall of Fame ceremonies:
Larry Shaw
The Oak Glen High School wrestling coach who mentored the Golden Bears to 13 state titles - 12 of them consecutive - a record for all sports in the state. The feat also ranks Oak Glen as tied for sixth place nationally with Northfork Granby, Va., for consecutive team titles. Among the many honors he has received, Shaw has been named the "West Virginia A-AA Wrestling Coach of the Year" six times, "OVAC Wrestling Coach of the Year" 11 times and most recently was named "2008 National Wrestling Coach of the Year."
In 29 seasons, Shaw has produced 50 state champions - including four three-time state champs and one outstanding wrestler and 162 all-state wrestlers. His dual record is 311-92-4.
"It's a tremendous honor to be a part of this," Shaw said. He thanked his mentors, school administrators, fellow teachers, assistant coaches and the wrestlers he's coached through the years.
Martin "Tim" Sheerer
A successful attorney and major supporter of the Hall of Fame. A 1954 East Liverpool High School graduate along with Holtz, he then went to St. Vincent's College before receiving an engineering degree from the University of Pittsburgh. After working briefly in a patent law firm, he ended up at Duquesne University Law School and became a practicing attorney in downtown Pittsburgh. His legal work, along with talk show appearances on KDKA radio's Rob Pratte show, made him one of the Steel City's best-known personalities before establishing smaller quarters in Sharpsburg, Pa.
For more than 30 years, Sheerer served as counsel for the Riverview School System and an additional 20-plus for the affluent Fox Chapel district. His expertise and communication skills were deciding factors for the Pennsylvania Supreme Court system to select him as a member of their Disciplinary Board in later years.
Joseph Wells III
The CEO of Homer Laughlin China Co., Wells began at the facility as a part-time worker in high school and college, started full-time in 1963, worked his way up into the sales department and then succeeded his father, Joseph M. Wells, Jr., as executive vice president and general manager in 1986. In June 2002, he replaced Marcus Aaron II as president of the company.
Homer Laughlin is the largest china manufacturer in the U.S., employing roughly 800 people on 37 acres, and its Fiesta product line is one of the most collected china products in the world. The Fiesta line, discontinued in 1973, was reissued by his father in 1986 and expanded significantly under Wells' leadership. In 1992, Homer Laughlin became one of the first china manufacturers to completely eliminate lead from its products.
Florence Updegraff
The late Florence Updegraff was a legendary East Liverpool High School principal.
Valedictorian of the ELHS Class of 1878, "Miss Flo" immediately began teaching in the school system and soon became principal of Union School. She was involved in the construction of "The White High School Building," which opened in 1915. She continued as principal until 1927, watching the enrollment move from 50 to 5,012 students.
She was instrumental in seeing that athletics were an integral part of the total high school program for both girls and boys, and was one of the main organizers of the Young Christian Women's Association, president of the City Federation of Women's Clubs, the YWCA and the local American Red Cross Chapter.
A faithful member of the First Methodist Church, she was considered, at the time of her death in 1935, the most influential woman in the community.
Local historian Joan Witt accepted the award on behalf of Updegraff.
Urban Meyer
The head football coach at the University of Florida, Meyer is this year's Distinguished American.
In his four seasons at Florida, he has mentored the Gators to a pair of national championships, two Southeastern Conference Championships and has posted the best record in the SEC, 24-8. He has led the Gators to 35 wins during the last three seasons, tied for the best victory total in the nation during that time. His 44-9 mark during the last four seasons is tied for the third-best total in the nation during that time span. Meyer is the first coach ever to win two BCS National Championships and he is the only coach in the history of the SEC to win two outright National Titles.
At 44, Meyer became the fifth-youngest head coach to win a pair of national titles since 1950, and he is one of five coaches to win a pair of national championships in his first four years at a school. He is the only active coach to win a pair of outright national championships, coach a Heisman Trophy winner and coach a number one pick in the National Football League Draft.
A three-time national Coach-of-the-Year, his priority on academics has resulted in more than 32 percent of the University of Florida football scholarship student-athletes earning above a 3.0 GPA in the 2008 Fall Semester and 107 players have been named to the Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll in the last four years.
"I'm very honored and admire Lou Holtz greatly," Meyer said. The two met for the first time in 1996 when Meyer was 29. He said he was awestruck then, and the two later became good friends.
Family Heritage Award
This year's Family Heritage Award was the personal choice of Holtz and went to the Bell, Spencer and Pack Families of East Liverpool.
"Since before I was born, we have had a Bell or a Pack or a Spencer play for the Potters," Holtz said. "We couldn't decide on just one family, and it was about more than athletics. All three of these families are about character and how much they have given back to the community."
The heritage of the three families goes back to their migration to East Liverpool from the south, with Less and Mattie Coleman Bell coming from Hopkinsville, Ky.; Oliver and Naomi Wooten Spencer from Waycross, Ga.; while Phillip and Sally Irene Pickford Pack arrived from Alabama by way of West Virginia.
From 1932 to 2004, no less than 20 members of the three families played football for the East Liverpool Potters.