THE WINTER SOLSTICE and the snowfall received Monday in parts of the North Olympic Peninsula had me thinking about the passage of time as we transit through this historic period.
As we begin the slow process of hurtling toward the light in this darkest stretch, there are some hopeful glimmers on the horizon, pointing us not toward back to normal, but maybe more in the vein of how do we move forward?
That process will be difficult for prep sports, which have properly taken a back seat to efforts to hold in-classroom student education.
Schools finally found common ground with insurers in the fall, enough for a brief athletic training window that was quickly shuttered by rising case numbers.
Recent “Let Us Play” pleas from area athletes are likely to fall on deaf ears at the state level as health officials have taken a measured approach from the beginning.
It’s hard to foresee a change coming in time for this school year and even with expanded access to COVID-19 vaccines in 2021, I’m still pessimistic for prep sports, as we formerly knew them, to resume until next fall.
We all know how we got into this mess, a lack of leadership, a void of empathy, a complete abdication of responsibility.
I’d prefer casting a spotlight on those prep athletes, Peninsula College players, community volunteers and others who make up the sporting world on the North Olympic Peninsula and embody those sorely needed qualities during the strangest portion of life most of us will ever live through.
My hope is to present weekly time-capsule like stories on area standouts that allow us to learn about the athletes, coaches and organizers that we would normally be covering.
Maybe the stories will end up in a family scrapbook (if families still compile those types of heirlooms) and kids in the future can page through and ask their parents or grandparents about living through this era.
I’ll need assistance in this effort, so send me nominations with a little bit of information on why these people are profile-worthy. My contact information is found at the bottom of the column.
In memoriam
I missed the obituary for former Port Angeles High School assistant swim and dive coach Patti Reifenstahl that ran in the Dec. 6 edition of the paper. It can be found at www.tinyurl.com/PDN-Reifenstahl.
As the obit stated, Reifenstahl embodied the quality of selflessness in every pursuit, be it for William Shore Memorial Pool, Clallam County Fire District No. 2, or working as a paraeducator in the Port Angeles School District.
Reifenstahl served as an assistant on the Roughriders’ boys and girls swim teams for 12 years and was a stalwart in providing recognition for Port Angeles swimmers through another passion of hers, photograpy.
Countless Rider swimmers competing in back strokes, individual medleys and relays appeared in the pages of the Peninsula Daily News over the past decade and she was always sure to send along group photos of those who would represent the school and community at district and state meets, making sure that those athletes would always receive their due.
We need more Patti Reifenstahls in our lives.
Her family has set up the Patti Reifenstahl Memorial Fund through the Port Angeles Education Foundation with funds dedicated to providing swimming lessons.
Donations can be sent to Port Angeles Education Foundation, P.O. Box 787, Port Angeles, WA 98362 or PA-EF.org.
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Sports reporter Michael Carman can be contacted at 360-406-0674 or mcarman@peninsuladailynews.com.
