FAME & FAMILY MIX: HOF inductees honor love's lessons

The concept of family took on different manifestations at last month’s Bartlesville Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Celebration.

But the heart of what family means — love, trust, memories, shared sacrifices, friendship, and a common cause — proved to be identical.

The induction activities — overseen by the Bartlesville Sports Commission — took place at the Hilton Garden Inn. New inductees included Ricky Jackson, Jerry Benedict, Erika Derryberry, Terry Hughes and the 1982 Bartlesville High softball team.

A strong familial strain ran through the inductions of Jackson and the diamond crew.

“It was a fantastic night,” said veteran Bartlesville Public Schools coach Annie Collins, who assisted head coach Jerome Gibson guide the ’82 powerhouse to the state title — the first one by a Bartlesville High team after the school first opened its doors in the fall of 1982 — about the induction experience.

Collins was not a typical assistant. She had created both the Sooner High School softball and volleyball programs and coached them for many years.

When Sooner and College High School merged in 1982 to create Bartlesville High, the district appointed Gibson as the new head softball coach and Collins as his assistant.

“It was so awesome,” Collins said about the experience. “These girls were our very first. They had already played together in summer ball and knew each other.”

In fact, the girls took merger in stride, as opposed to their parents and others that wondered what would happen when girls from previously rival schools became teammates.

“The girls told me they never gave it a thought,” Collins said.

The girls focused only on working hard together and being successful, she said.

The Hall of Fame induction provided an opportunity for many of the girls and coaches to get together again for the first time since their high school years.

“It was the most wonderful weekend,” Collins said. “All the girls were so appreciative, and so was I and so was Jerome.”

The saddest moment for them was the mention of teammate Tooter Stoia, who had passed away.

“It just made the team cry,” Collins said.

Stoia was one of only four former players from the big group not to attend the Hall of Fame induction.

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Brotherly moment

For the second time in a decade, former Col-Hi student-athlete standout Ernie Jackson stood at the podium of a Bartlesville HOF induction ceremony.

The first time — back in 2012 — Jackson accepted the honor in behalf of himself.

Ten years later, his participation was a labor — a bittersweet one — of love.

With his nephew and spouse looking on — Jackson stood in proxy of his younger brother Ricky to be included among the list of Bartlesville’s inaugurated sports legends.

In his acknowledgment remarks, Ernie wanted the audience to understand the Ricky “in a more rounded way,” than just his athletic accomplishments in youth sports and Col-Hi in the 1960s and 70s.

“I wanted them to know he was a well-rounded, talented person,” Ernie said. “He was just an all-around good, young brother to have in household. That’s the thing I cherish most about him.”

The Jackson boys grew up in a large household — they were two of the three youngest in a family of 12 children and two parents.

“Given the socio-economic circumstances at the time, a lot of people struggled to stay afloat and to keep their families afloat,” Ernie said.

The boys were blessed with good parents but suffered hardship when their father passed away when Ernie was 14 and Ricky several years younger.

They still developed into accomplished student-athletes — Ernie would receive a football scholarship to Notre Dame, succeeded in law school and went on to a noted career. Ricky earned a basketball scholarship to Centenary College, although he eventually chose to make his mark in the music industry.

“Our father didn’t really get a chance to enjoy a lot of our athletic accomplishments,” Ernie said. “Our mother got to see both of us. I think she would have been proud beyond words. She had so much pride in the things I did and the things Ricky did. She would have been beyond proud.”

As for Ricky, “I think he would have been proud,” Ernie said about the HOF induction. “There were a lot of people there who remembered him. … Some of the people recognized he was a fairly generous individual. He was a person who didn’t boast.”

Ricky’s former teammates recalled how helpful he was, Ernie said, adding: “Just the fact he was recognized, I think he would have been proud of that moment. … He was definitely a team player. He was definitely about the team.”

Ricky and Ernie are now one of very few sibling pairs to be inducted as individuals into the BaHOF.

“I appreciate it,” Ernie said about the BSC’s decision. “It’s something special to be there alongside your brother and feel that satisfaction a d pride. I’ll always think of myself being alongside him. … That’s one tie we’ll always have.”

This article originally appeared on Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise: Hall of Fame honor very personal for inductees and families