Saying Good Bye
by Keith Platt on Jan 23, 2012 11:59 AM EST
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How do you say good bye to someone you never met, from a school you never attended, who nevertheless had a profound impact on your life? That is the struggle with which I find myself this morning, as I try to muddle through the work day. In an effort to salvage some productivity today, I am writing this letter to Joe Paterno, thanking him for making a difference in my life. My only regret is that I never had the forethought to send this to him before he passed.
Dear Coach Paterno,
I've never met you and I did not attend Penn State. Yet, I still want to thank you for the impact that you have made on my life. I have been a fan of yours and Penn State since the age of 8, when I watched Penn State beat Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. At that time, my hometown NFL team, the Philadelphia Eagles, were not very good. So, Penn State was the only decent football for me to watch. Over the course of the next three decades, I have continued to watch Penn State Football. However, only in the past 5 or 6 years, have I realized that, even though I never attended a class at Penn State, you were still teaching me, through football. You were teaching me about being a man. Not in the biological sence, but in all aspects that make that word, man, mean something. You were showing us, all along, that you could succeed beyond all wildest expectations without selling your soul in the process. You were teaching us about paying attention to details, caring about people beyond what they could do for you and conducting ourselves with honor and dignity. You were teaching us that kindness does not equal weakness and you were teaching us that, if we just persevered, we could be better people than we ever thought possible.
You have now passed, gone no doubt to a better place. I'm quite certain that St. Peter's only criticism/question was why you didn't play action on 4th and goal against Alabama. Nevertheless, I am glad that you were able to go home, surrounded by the people you loved most. Just know that the people that love you go far beyond the hospital room, the football team and the university you devoted your life to. You were everyone's wise, loveable old grandpop and saying goodbye to you hurts as much as it did to say goodbye to my own grandpop. So, rest easy Coach. May God Bless You and Keep You. May God shine his countenance upon you and give you peace.
Rest In Peace, Coach
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you don't have to!
his body may be gone—but you never met his body anyway. this is my take: continue to live by the message he left us: We are Penn State. And we always will be.
For me, I’ll live by his mantra: “Success with Honor.” I’ll do things the right way, because they are right. I’ll be accountable to my actions. I’ll credit those that deserve it, and be reserved toward those that don’t. But most of all, I hope to make an impact. That’s what he did. And that lesson was free.
"They stalk their prey to within two or three great leaps and then launch a lightning-fast charge, striking their prey. Victims are most often killed by suffocation with a prolonged bite..."--Hinterland Who's Who
Thanks for the heads up
I think I’ll do that
I too did not attend Penn State and never had the honor of meeting JoePa in person. I didn’t grow up watching Penn State—and didn’t really know anything about the football team, JoePa or Penn State other than my boyfriend (now husband) liked them. In 2005 he took me to my first game at Beaver Stadium. I had been to NFL and CFL games before, but I had never experienced anything like Happy Valley before. From the amazing people that welcomed us with open arms, even though we had never met them before, to the blue band, to watching the team lead by JoePa running onto the field. Before we left SC that day, we had decided we were going to get seasons tickets. Since that first game, I have been blessed to meet some of the most wonderful people I know -and it seems that our Penn State family grows a little more every year.
Over the past few months I’ve been questioned by others as to why I’m upset because I didn’t go to Penn State. At first I felt like maybe they were right, that I shouldn’t be upset, hurt or angry because I wasn’t really a Penn Stater. But the more I thought about it, I realized that going to Penn State is not what makes you a Penn Stater. A Penn Stater is someone who believes in Success with Honor, someone who understands that the name on the front means more than the one of the back, someone who goes the extra mile to do things the right way, well because it’s the right thing to do.
JoePa taught us all these things and more—he epitomizes what it means to be a Penn Stater. JoePa’s death deeply saddens me, and the loss to the Penn State family is profound.
That said, I have to agree with afields—while his body is gone, his spirt lives on in all Penn Staters—Past, Present and Future.
by Jeannine Pinaula on Jan 23, 2012 1:20 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
I did not go to Penn State either.
However, I’ve been a Penn State fan since I was 8 years old, and it’s incredibly sad to see such a great man leave this world. I know he’s in a better place now, but I will always try to live by the things that Joe stressed every day when he was here! I know in the long run that Penn State will be fine, and it continues to make me feel proud that he was such a great representative of Pennsylvania(regardless of the haters and skeptics out there).
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