The Crying Towel
by Gil Truitt
This column has a dead
line to meet each week, and
this irks me no little. The past
week or so has been one mess
after another and if these
spaces fill the next edition of
the Banner it will be out of
goodness from the boss’ heart
since this column is already
two days past the zero hour,
if this conglomeration goes
to press I will have survived
another week.
W ith school beginning a
new year and hundreds of
students from all over the
new state flooding the Island
campus, finding copy for this
week was by no means an
easy task. Continue reading
and you will get an idea of
how hard up this bureau was
in finding a story for this
week's copy.
About 14 years ago John
Borbridge experienced his
greatest moment while the
writer went t li i o u g h his
worst. That was the day that
we met for the first time.
Much water has over the
dam since that historic meet
ing, hut basically, that man
Borbridge has remained the
same sincere soul that lie was
14 years ago.
As for the author, no notie
able changes are visiable ex
cept a dozen or two gray
hairs blit this can be attribut
ed to the profession rather
than age.
Bqrbridge needs no intro
duction to local sports enthu
siasts since he guides the for
tunes of the famed SJS War
rior basketball team and is
one the finest personalites in
the coaching profession. Mr.
borbridge is the quiet type
during the course of a gruell
ing contest and if lie so much
as scratches his ears, the Blue
to be in a high state of excit
ant! Gold bench is considered
tumult. John behaves on the
bench the same quiet way as
does Phil Woolpert of the
San Francisco Dons.With a
player like Bill Russell, the
f o r m e r Don dandy, who
would get excited? If Bor
bridge seems and appears to
be calm during a basketball
game, ask his wife what he is
like when he gets home. 1
did.
W ithout a story for the
week 1 phoned the SJ mentor
and asked him to meet me in
the Pioneer and he readily
consented to be the victim ol
these spaces. After hashing
over old times, we had a long
talk on sports. Over a few
AND LIT OS PASS IT ON TO HELP OTHEftS IN SOLVING THEIRS
BY JOHN and JANE STRICKLAND
TODAY’S PROBLEM:
Fear.
HARRY LAWSON, Cabot Ave
nue, Detroit, Michigan, writes
us of his fears during Ins early
childhood: he was afraid of the
dark; he was afraid of being alone
for any length of time; but most
of all he was afraid of people.
When callers came, he kept out
of the way. Since he was brought
up on a farm, there were not too
many callers Keeping out of the
way for a short call was all right,
but when the caller stayed for din
ner or overnight, little Harry suf
fered tortures. There might be an
attempt, to bring him into the con
versation, and. horror of horrors,
he might be pulled up on someone’s
tap!
Going to school wasn’t so bad.
He knew the children for they had
in a way been in his life all his life;
and the teacher never became fa
miliar with the pupils As he grew
older his fear dissipated to seme
extent but he still stayed1 close to
his father if he went to town.
Strangers were fearsome beings.
This worried his parents to the
point that they knew something
must be done about it. An appeal
to an uncle was made and he eaine
to visit them Harry hadn't seen
him since babyhood so the urele
paid little attention to him at first,
gradually showing friendliness.
Soon he liked this uncle and when
it was suggested that he return
with him for a visit, he was rather
pleased. They drove two days be
fore reaching his uncle's home, and
Harry stayed in the ear all of the
first day, eating sandwiches from
a drive-in. The next day he actually
got out and stood near the gasoline
attendants. After reaching their
destination, the uncle found it nec
essary to go away for two weeks,
leaving Harry with a strange aunt
and three stranger-cousins. It was
like plunging a non-swimmer into
the deep water. But it proved t© be
the salvation ©f young Harry. By
the time his uncle returned he was
at ease with all the family. He says
he remembers one remark of his
uncle til at has carried him safety
among strangers throughout the
years: “When you’re afraid, just
forget youi fear and plunge in;
you won’t be afraid long.” And this
has been the keynote of his success
as a salesman, a job thoroughly
enjoyed toctay.
Many cardigans & pullovers to
choose from
McGregor
Jantzen
Jersild
Sitka Men's Store
beers the root beer type we
agreed that whatever sports
was about and neither of us
was sure it had nothing to do
with blueberry pie, eleetric
refigerators, or what a noisy
lady columnist kept calling
“Civilization as we have
known it!
To get our readers straight
and the employers of Bor
bridge, the rendezous for this
story took place in the Cafe
and not the other place.
W e concluded: (1) Blue
berv pic1 was okay, but you
were a so-so fool it you talk
ed sports over it; (2) The guys
w ho wrote those refrigerator
ads probably spent most ot
their time on their butts at
the Stork (Tub; and (3) Civil
ization as we know it just isn't
good enough.
Having made those weigh
ty decisions, we got right
clown to the main purpose ot
this meeting basketball.
Borbridge begins his four
th year at the Presbyterian
school and last season came*
up with his finest team only
to lose in the finals to the
Crimson Bears ot Juneau.
The S| basketball head
man was happy that 1 picked
the Edgeburnbe Braves to he
one of the toughies in South
eastern since it sort oi takes
him off the spot, for the mo
ment at least.
Having lost most of last
year’s championship team,
Borbridge will greet a slim
list of lettermen come Nov
ember 1 and the man JB ant
icipates a dismal season for
bis W arriors but emphasized
that hisboys would show up
for all their games. Like most
coaches in every land, Bor
1) r i d g e cried out that hr*
couldn’t see how his team
could win a game this year
1 le said that last year,
Borbridge will be endowed
with four returning letterme
tins season but that may not
be enough to win second
place in the local high school
league, which is the most un
predictable e i r c u i t in the
land. From, here it looks like
the Edgecombe Braves mav
be "it for the coming season.
Borbrklge was captain ola
fine Jayhi team in his senior
and later played on a great
SJJC team that include fler
by Didriekson. From SJJC'
Borbrige enrolled at the Eni
versity of Michigan and stud
law and under-graduate stud
ies for four and a hall years.
Besidi-s attending \Iiehigan,
the SJS coach also studied at
Northeast Missouri State.
The call to coach was too
g r e a t so Borbrklge found
himself at the coaching helm
of the S|S Warriors three
years ago.
Having had Borbride as a
friend for marry years, the
w riter has noting but resnect
even though we met as toes
on the basketball court Once.
rta\ mu; w atched hornnug s
coaching tactics off and on
during the past three years or
so, I have kept a mental note
”1 all manuevers and seeni
i n g 1 y have all his secrets
down pat. Though friends,
iiorbridge and 1 agreed that
there would he no friendship
the event we mot as oppo
' te coaches. When that
wond he or w here is some
thing we could not answer.
Snell a time would probably
take place in our second child
booth which is in the not too
far distant.
W hen and if we ever met us
opposite coaches. Borbridge
warned me that he would
Keep his first string in the
game even if his team was 30
points ahead of mine. That’s
my friend.
New Boats
Through the efforts of the
Sitka Sportsman’s Associat
ion, the Forest Service & the
Fish tx Wildlife Service, two
boat kits were'procured for
placement on Platinkoff Lake
and Davidoff Lake, Mr. Ce
cil McClain, Secretary of the
Sitka Sportsmen's Assn, an
nounced today.
These boats which were
assembled by a group of local
sportsmen, were taken to
whale Bay by the Forest Ser
vice Boat “Ghugach.” From
then1 they were flown by
helicopter, piloted by Joe
Solas, to the respective lakes.
Another boat, already assem
bled is Sitka, w as flown to
Resinoft 1 ,ake.
These lakes are situated
on the southern end of Bar
anof Island and offer excel
lent rainbow fishing, Cabins
on Davidoff, Resinoft and
Gar Lake as well as other
cabins and boats in this area,
are maintained by tin1 f or
est Service and tin1 Sports
mens Association for public
use.
T h e S i tk a Sportsmen s
Association washes to thank
all those people who assisted
assembling of the boats; the
boats; the helicopter people
and Joe Soley and the Forest
Service for transporting the
boats to Whale Bay.
This & That
A marriage license was
issued by the U.S. Commis
sioners Office on Tuesday,
Sept. 9th to Gibson B. Young
and Mary L. Cruese.
| e ii n y Prichard filed a
complaint \v i t h the U.S.
Commissioners Office again
st Charles B. Ellis. A preli
minary hearing was conduc
ted last Tuesday at 9:30 A.M.
Mr. Ellis was bound over to
the next grand jury. Bail was
set at $1000.
The City of Sitka filed
suits for delinquent person
a! property taxes against:
S anie\ Sutton, Fred Roman
and Bov Svendson, d.b.a.
Baranof Paint Shop, Paul
|acobv, Harry and Evelyn
J o h n s o n, Emery Merrill,
Charles Olson, Fred Roman,
|ack Shaefer, Nick Pelayo,
d.b.a. Star Cafe. Trial has
been set for Sept. 26th.
Ivan E. Rezek, President of
the Sitka Building and Con
struction 1 r a d e s Council
leaves for Fairbanks this Sat
urd a y to attend the 13th
Convention of the Alaska
AFL-CIO. Mr. Rezek, Bus
iness Agent for the Painters
j.ocal, 1774, will attend as
will Danny Doyle of the La
borers Local and frank
Cashel of the Carpenters
Local.
T h e y will present the
views and conditions of Sitka
Labor and invite the conven
tion to meet in Sitka in two
\ ears.
V i s i t o r s, distinguished
guests and speakers from all
over the Nation plan to be in
the Golden City of the North
for what will undoubtedly
be the largest labour con
clave ever held in Alaska.
The convention will last one
week.
Mr. Fred Geeslin, partner of
the Sitka Realty and Insur
ance Company was elected
President of the Chamber of
Commerce last week for the
coming year.
Two big projects, a barge
service and an airport for Sit
Please Turn 1 o Page 8
Sitka Coid Storage Co.
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