Parkway plans special celebration

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ROCKFORD — Colleen Wood O’ Steen will be the keynote speaker for the Parkway and Mendon Union 50th anniversary of girls interscholastic sports celebration planned for 2 p.m. Sunday, September 29, at Parkway High School. The keynote is titled, “The Power of Parkway Sports: With Us for Life.”

O’Steen has lived in the Huntsville, Alabama area since 1987, having grown up on the family farm near Rockford. She was a member of Parkway High School’s early girls’ sports teams including basketball, volleyball, and track, receiving Midwest Athletic Conference honors in basketball and lettering in basketball and volleyball, graduating in 1978. She also played on Rockford’s traveling softball team and was named to the league All-Star Team. O’Steen has enjoyed a career as a writer, producer, and narrator developing videos, animated short films, video games, and classroom training in the software engineering, news, and defense industries.

She has published two books: From Will to Power, a book on spiritual self-discipline, and Tumbling Stones a book on developing the quality of spiritual grit in families written with her three grown daughters, Haley, Rosalind, and Claire. Colleen holds a graduate certificate from George Washington University, a master’s degree from the University of Alabama in Huntsville, and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. She and her husband, Wally, have been married since 1987. Crediting her love of competitive sports and the opportunity that Federal Law Title IX gave to her to compete in Interscholastic Girls Sports, O’Steen plans to share the female athlete’s perspective on this momentous celebration and its life-long effects.

The entire community is invited to come to Parkway High School for the program in the auditorium. Following her talk, O’Steen will moderate a roundtable to discuss all aspects of getting the girls sports program up and running at Parkway back in 1974. These perspectives come from all areas of sports. Roundtable panelists include Parkway and Mendon Union experts: Linda Stelzer, educator and first Parkway High School girls basketball, track and volleyball coach in 1974; Linda Thomas, Mendon Union girls basketball, volleyball and softball coach; Mary Thomas Olwin, basketball, cheerleading, track and volleyball coach; Teri Samples, Parkway High School graduate and educator, softball and golf coach, and current Parkway athletic director; Mark Esselstein, retired Parkway educator and softball coach; Steve Fought, Daily Standard newspaper sports director and Mendon Union grad ’71; Todd Henkle, volleyball, referee and 1981 Parkway graduate, and Norman VanTilburg, the first Parkway athletic director for girls sports in 1974, educator, principal, coach and girls program implementer.

O’Steen’s keynote address coupled with this panel of experienced coaches will provide an afternoon of exciting perspectives into Parkway and Mendon-Union girls sports.

Other planned afternoon events include: a chicken dinner from 12-1:30 p.m. , with presale tickets only available until Sunday, September 15 (call Parkway Schools 419.363.3045 for tickets); 1-2 p.m. reception and slideshow presentation in the Commons Area; 2 p.m. keynote speaker – Colleen Wood O’Steen followed by the roundtable discussion; 4 p.m. Parkway athletes homecoming parade around town, and a powder puff football game at 5:15 p.m.

Everyone is invited to this special day.