The Homewood Star | July 2011 |
www.TheHomewoodStar.com
neighborly news & entertainment for Homewood
Volume 1 | Issue 4 | July 2011
Twin Lifeguards
new York Pizza
Dance scholarship
- pg 15
-pg 19
- pg 9
A legacy of wins and life lessons By RICK WATSON Good coaches teach you how to win games, but great coaches teach you how to win at life. These words describe David Jones’ philosophy of coaching. He has coached in some capacity at Homewood High School since its first season in 1971. He’s had a hand in all six of Homewood’s state football championships, and after more than 40 years, he’s hanging up his whistle. Coach Jones said that through the years he’s learned that winning is fun but that there are other ways to measure success. “Seeing kids reach their unique potential is one of the most rewarding things there is,” he said. When Jones first started coaching, he read a book written by UCLA’s legendary coach John Wooden, They Call Me Coach. The book had a tremendous impact on Jones. “Coach Wooden said that you should never ask kids to do things they can’t do,” Jones said. “You have to focus on what they can do.” Like many young coaches, Jones once thought that 90 percent of the winning equation was coaching. But experience taught him there are three elements
July Features • Editor’s Note
2
• Mayor’s Minute
4
• City Council
5
• Tornado Relief
8
• Fourth of July
10
• Lauren Denton
10
• Porches and Patios
11
• Homewood Sports
12
• Business Spotlight
14
• Restaurant Showcase
15
• School House
16
• Calendar of Events
18
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Coach David Jones talks with Aaron Ernest, a wide receiver who graduated in May, at the 2010 season opener against Bessemer City. Photo courtesy of Nancy Jones.
required for success: talent, coaching and chemistry. “Coach Jones had a knack for teaching on the football field,” former HHS head football coach Bob Newton said. Thanks to Jones, David Hayes, HHS Class of 2008, said he will never forget that things are never as good as you think and never as bad as you fear. Jones taught his athletes to grow more through struggles than through successes. “We all had an opportunity to grow and to learn more than when we won,” he said. “When you lose, you start understanding character, perseverance and persistence. When kids get that, it is very rewarding.” Jones’ motto is, “Life’s not easy, life is just good.” Evan Mathis, who earned a scholarship to the University of Alabama and went on to play in the NFL, said that Coach Jones had a way of communicating that helped him gain confidence and excel in the sport of football. One of the things he tells kids is that athletics is not life. Athletics gives you an opportunity to learn valuable skills such as teamwork, perseverance, discipline and
See COACH JONES | page 12
From the Holocaust to Homewood By RICK WATSON
On May 10, 1940, 10-year-old Max Herzel heard the rumbling sound of Nazi planes over his hometown of Antwerp, Belgium, and artillery shells exploding off in the distance. Herzel’s family – his father, Oscar, a diamond cutter, his mother, Nachama, a seamstress, and his older brother, Harry – fled their home country but were scattered in their efforts to escape the Holocaust. “The invasion by German troops of Belgium created a complete destruction of our peaceful family life,” said Herzel, a Homewood resident since 1972. “The war, besides destroying city blocks and killing a number of citizens, brought on many fears of the unknown.” Ever since that experience, Herzel has tried to spread the word against bigotry and hatred. “I think that my wartime experiences have made me a more tolerant individual,” said Herzel. “I have greater respect for other religions, people of other races and ethnicity.” He now is dedicated to taking his message to schools, churches, social groups and other organizations. The 1940 invasion of Belgium was only the beginning of the Herzel family ordeal. The attack caused an exodus of people seeking refuge in safer parts of Europe,
Belgium native Max Herzel survived the Holocaust. Photo by Keith McCoy.
and the Herzels headed toward southern France on a train. “The trip to France, which lasted seven days and nights, was the greatest nightmare I can remember,”
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Herzel said. “The sick and handicapped and small children suffered most.”
See HOLOCAUST | page 10