A few weeks back I wrote about 4-year-old Owen’s debut on the ice at a local hockey tournament.
Owen is the youngest Peterson grandson, and I must admit I was impressed by his drive, determination and apparent enjoyment of the game. We also took in a Sioux Falls Stampede game that same weekend. During the national anthem prior to the start of the game was my proudest grandfather moment of the weekend.
That moment came when Andrew, age 8, the second-youngest Peterson grandson, rose to his feet and after a slight tug on his hat from his mother, he removed it. While holding it in his right hand placed over his heart, he then put his left arm behind his back at a 90-degree angle and stood at attention during the national anthem.
I remember back at the office on the following Monday telling Hockey Mom Chantel that while I enjoyed my first hockey weekend, what I was most proud of was how Andrew acted during the national anthem.
Just this past week a video of Virginia Tech men’s basketball coach Buzz Williams called “Changing the Game Project” went viral — last time I checked, it had over 4 million views.
The video came about because of Coach Williams’ disgust with his team’s disrespect for this country during the playing of the national anthem before games.
I encourage you to watch the video on YouTube. Just search Coach Buzz Williams’ Veterans Day Recognition.
I encourage all area high school athletic departments to incorporate the video into all of their pre-season parent/student athlete meetings as well as part of their regular practice sessions.