Gov. Mifflin boys basketball coach Kyle Conrad remembered at celebration of life event

Oct. 16—The life of Gov. Mifflin basketball coach and alumnus Kyle Conrad was remembered with a celebration of life ceremony at the Gov. Mifflin Intermediate School Saturday afternoon.

Led by Rev. Megan Huesgen, a pastor at Immanuel United Church of Christ in Shillington, the event included reflections from those who knew Conrad best as hundreds gathered in the gym to remember the Elizabethtown College graduate who passed away last month due to esophageal cancer.

"He was a great person, he was always a great coach," said Delsin McNeil, a senior at Mifflin who played for Conrad. "He was always nice. He was a very humble man. I don't know how to explain it; he was just a good soul, and honest."

A good soul with an abundance of love to give was the theme of the reflections given by lifelong friends as well as coaches and teammates from Conrad's days with the Mustangs and the Blue Jays.

Conrad's love of basketball and anecdotes offering glimpses into his personal life were frequent topics. Friends and teammates recalled his love of singing and quoting movies — his favorite as a child was the Rocky film franchise — while his coaches recalled stories of Conrad's competitive drive.

His wife, Lauren, was the final speaker and spoke about their history together. They went from childhood friends attending Gov. Mifflin and the Immanuel United Church of Christ to reconnecting in their late 20s after Kyle's dad passed away in 2007. Lauren said that Kyle was her soulmate and that their love only grew as the years went on. The two married during the October blizzard of 2011 and have two kids, Carson and Logan.

Lauren said that Kyle's relentless passion for coaching never faded in spite of his condition, and that he always lived his life and loved his family to the fullest.

"Nelson Mandela said, 'The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid but he who conquers that fear,' " Lauren said. "Kyle made the conscious decision to live everyday, choosing love over fear; choosing to love to live his life and continue to find joy and gratitude each day. ... Despite the difficult hand he was dealt, he continued to show up every day for his people: for me, our boys, the rest of our family, his friends, his basketball players and this community.

"He continued to shine his light and share his love and passion with basketball, and spread kindness wherever he went. Even though the cancer weakened his physical body over time, his spirit remained strong; I still feel him with me all the time. The love that we shared, that he shared with so many, that is what lives on."

Conrad was first diagnosed in March 2019, but continued coaching the Mustangs. According to those who knew him best, Conrad's enthusiasm for basketball and his selfless nature were two qualities that exemplified his character.

"I was fortunate, I got to know the Conrad's way back," Gov. Mifflin football coach Jeff Lang said Saturday after the event. "I had Kyle in ninth grade in my earth and space science class. I got to know them (the Conrad family) very well. I met his parents and they were just great people. Kyle was that kind of kid, as you heard today, he was that model kid. He exemplified what you want in a son as a parent, what you want in your pupils as a teacher, and you know, it's what you want your athletes to be as a coach. He was that exemplary person; his intensity, he was focused, grounded, well mannered, that's what you want to be.

"And then he carried that through life as an adult, as both a father and a coach to his kids. It was evident when you watched him coach practice. He was very competitive. He was very fair to his kids. His kids loved him; you can see the love between him and his and his players. And that's what you strive for, as a coach, as a teacher, as a parent to have that kind of person. And that's who he was."

The ceremony began with words from lifelong friends Alison Tannous and Colin Waszkiewicz, who spoke about Conrad's youth and days at Gov. Mifflin, and his high school basketball coach, Dave Argentati.

Argentati shared that some of his favorite moments with Conrad were his victories against Reading High as a player and a coach.

As a player, Conrad scored 18 points to lead Mifflin to a 55-48 win over Reading High in 2001.

As a coach, Conrad guided the Mustangs to a 55-48 victory over the Red Knights in 2020, their first win over Reading in 37 games. Mifflin ended up as the Berks runner-up that season and advanced the District 3 Class 6A playoffs, where it defeated Warwick 77-70 in double overtime in an opening-round game.

Mason Woolwine, a 2022 Mifflin graduate who played for Conrad, also recalled the win against the Red Knights as one of his favorite Kyle Conrad basketball stories.

"Even though I wasn't playing in it, when they won at the Geigle, I was actually recording it for the team," Woolwine said. "At that time, I was a sophomore, and I got the job to record the game. I saw him on the sidelines. He was so hyped, it was so good to see."

The enthusiasm that Conrad showed for basketball was not limited to big games or high-pressure scenarios. According to McNeil, Conrad consistently supported all of his players and helped encourage everyone to try and reach their full potential.

In a game against Twin Valley, Conrad put McNeil in late with the Mustangs up big. McNeil ended up making his first 3-pointer, much to his coach's delight.

"He'd been looking at me and my brother (Adrian) since we were in like sixth or seventh grade," McNeil said. "He always knew we were gonna be one of the stars on his team one day; he always pushed me and my brother to be the best. Like, we would stay after practice, even though we were on JV at the time, but he would let us stay and just keep working with the varsity kids to always get extra work.

"We'd play some teams, and we'd be up a little bit. But when they (the varsity team) were up, the JVs would go in. I can remember (against) Twin Valley we were up by like 20, and he put me in and I made like my first 3-pointer on varsity, which was one of my first varsity points. He was just so happy for me; it was exciting."

Adrian McNeil also said that Conrad's encouragement made a profound difference in his playing career. Adrian said he and the Mustangs will carry on Conrad's legacy of perseverance during the upcoming basketball season.

"He kept pushing us, he encouraged us every day," Adrian McNeil said. "I remember when I was in seventh grade, he took us in for an open gym. I was the only seventh-grader there and he allowed me to play with the upperclassmen. And I just knew that he saw something in me and I played ever since then.

"It's still kind of unreal, it still kind of feels surreal that he's not going to be here coaching next season. But I mean, he's a person that would just keep going and keep pushing forward and just not let anything stop him. So that's kind of the mindset that we're gonna go into the season with everybody on the team and everybody in the community."

The ceremony closed with two videos of Conrad that perhaps best captured the ideals he stood for.

The first video showed Conrad delivering an acceptance speech after receiving a distinguished achievement award from the Reading Berks Basketball Association, in which the coach highlights and thanks all the people who have helped him along his basketball journey.

The second showed Conrad on a small stage with a band singing a cover of one of his favorite songs, "Friends in Low Places" by Garth Brooks.

The clips of his extensive gratitude and joyful singing left Saturday's audience with a sign to make the most of the time we have in this life and with the people who matter most.

"A couple years ago I had a custom sign hung up above our bed," Lauren Conrad said. "It says, Love always wins.' And that's the truth. It's not about how long we are here; none of us have control over that anyway. But what we do have control over is what we do with the time that we have. ... That's how we win, and Kyle most definitely won."