Making memories: Readers share favorites from the Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival

The Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival is about making memories.

Whether it's marching in The Canton Repository Grand Parade.

Or watching the hot air balloons float by.

Or shaking hands with a football great.

Or walking the runway at the Fashion Show.

Or simply hanging out with family.

The festivities are in full swing, with plenty of opportunities remaining to create lifetime memories.

The major activities still on tap include the Hall of Fame Game between the Cleveland Browns and New York Jets on Thursday; Fashion Show Luncheon and Gold Jacket Dinner on Friday; and The Canton Repository Grand Parade and enshrinement ceremony on Saturday — not to mention the Zac Brown Band headlining the Concert for Legends on Saturday night at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.

The Repository asked people to share their favorite memories from the festival so we could share them with you. Here they are:

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Pam Cook: Interviewing Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Terry Bradshaw

I’ve covered every Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrinement since 1989 so I have a lot of wonderful memories.

But, as they say, it’s your first that you’ll never forget. For my first, I had only been with WHBC for six months.

I’m a diehard Steeler fan. The 1989 Class of Enshrinees included Terry Bradshaw and Mel Blount. This 27-year-old news/sports reporter wanted to prove her worth.

I found out the NFL was holding a private party at the hotel down the street from the radio station. I got my tape recorder (yes, it’s 1989) and headed to the hotel to grab an interview or two. As I waited at the entrance, I saw Terry Bradshaw.

I swallowed hard and approached him — “A few questions, Mr. Bradshaw?” His huge paw went up in front ofmy face and he said “NO, no interviews please.” And off he went into the ballroom.

You can take the girl out of Pittsburgh but you can’t take the Pittsburgh out of the girl. I parked myself in the bar and waited until Mr. Bradshaw decided to leave the party, 2½ hours later. As he walked out, with a drink in one hand and a stogie in the other, I walked up and said, “Mr. Bradshaw, a few questions please?”

He said, “Well sure young lady, shoot."

He was kind and answered all my questions. I was so proud of what I had accomplished.

My dad was going to be so proud. A moment I will never forget.

Do I remember what I asked him? Nope. Can I listen back to the interview? Nope.

I went back to the station to let our Hall of Fame Sports Director Jim Johnson listen to it. As he played it, he said in his voice of God, "I can’t use this, you giggled through the whole thing."

JJ never let me live it down.

It is still one of the best nights of my life.

Veteran broadcaster Pam Cook anchors Canton's "Morning News Weekdays" on WHBC-AM (1480).

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Bryan and Tracy Dawn Brewer: Meeting and talking with Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones

In 2013, my husband and I worked at Fieldcrest Estate in North Canton and Jerry Jones loved the grounds and requested to stay on the entire property with his whole family during enshrinement week.

In fact, as soon as the enshrinees were announced, we were contacted to reserve the property! Not only did we meet them upon arrival, they would call or text any needs directly to us.

We also stayed on the property to ensure no one would stop by and bother them during their stay. It was a working farm back then and when we fed the horses or managed any of the animals, they took a lot of interest.

We had caught some groundhogs in the horse field and the kids had never seen one up close and were taking selfies and pictures of them. The family was very involved with finalizing their stadium upgrades at that time and had their plans with them and it was so neat to hear them make some exciting decisions.

I still have the text messages with their meal requests and his assistant making arrangements for the week. Jerry sat on the porch with us and reminisced about his career for a long time one evening. The whole week was so much work but a lot of fun. It was just a great time getting to know him and his entire family that week.

They were all very kind and very personable.

Tracy Dawn Brewer is a media specialist in health care and artist who owns Brewtifully, a creative service store and business. Her husband Bryan Brewer is a diesel technician and retired Air Force master sergeant with 22 years service. They reside in Plain Township with their four dogs, four cats and dozen Koi.

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Deja Givens: 'Everything seems a little more exciting.'

Ihave a lot of fond memories of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Grand Parade, as it has been an important event for me for many, many years.

My experience with the ceremonies began when I was in high school at McKinley, where I had the opportunity to march all four years as part of the flag line.

Every year, it feels like the atmosphere of the city changes when the enshrinement festival draws near. People come in from out of town.

All of a sudden, our humble city may bring possible sightings of celebrities or high-profile individuals you’d probably never see in Canton otherwise, and there are lots of events being celebrated around town. Everything seems a little more exciting.

One of my favorite traditions is going to First Friday, which usually has a record turnout just before the Grand Parade, then waking up early to find a spot on the parade route with my friends and family.

I knew I wanted to continue to be involved in the parade after I graduated, so I looked for other opportunities. Currently, I help organize Aultman’s contribution to the parade, and I’m happy I get to remain connected to this big event every year!

Deja Givens works in human resources at Aultman Hospital.

Lee-Ann DeMeo: 'Proud Mama Moment' highlights my Hall of Fame memories

The Hall of Fame festivities have resulted in many memories I’ll cherish.

When I was younger, my mom, sister and our neighbors would go to the parade every year and camp out the night before. We’d sit in front of St. Peter’s Church to watch the parade. We’d get Mary Ann Donuts and enjoy the fun atmosphere. Sometimes, we’d get lunch and go to Mother Goose Land.

We went from the time we could walk until high school graduation. It was a family tradition. My dad went a few years, but it was my mom who made the plans to camp out and take her girls.

We’d go to the rib burn-off at the Stark County Fairgrounds, the balloon lift-offs early in the morning at Kent State University at Stark, the fireworks at Monument Park, and see the Bluecoats perform.

After college, I got tickets for friends and me to see a few Hall of Fame games and saw Maroon 5 with other friends. I continued the tradition by taking my children, Isabella and Antonio, to the parade and local activities from the time they were small until their high school years. We’d stop to get Mary Ann Donuts, milk, and juice before the parade.

But one memory stands out. My friend, Dave Richard, who’s an AP sports photographer and who I went to McKinley High School with, asked my son, Antonio, to help on the field at the Hall of Fame game. Antonio ran digital files back to the other photographers on staff, downloaded them, and brought the memory cards back to Dave.

Antonio made it on the big screen with Brett Favre. That was a proud mama moment!

As an adult, Antonio has worked on electrical jobs through Hilscher-Clarke at the stadium.

Lee-Ann DeMeo is creative director at Innis Maggiore.

Lydia Lee: Fashion Show 'sparks my memories of growing up in a family that appreciated fine fashion.'

I once aspired to become a fashion designer, so I am naturally drawn to the Hall of Fame Fashion Show.

I love seeing the ladies and gentlemen dressed up in fancy clothing, and the atmosphere of excitement for this spectacular event that blends people in the community with the wives of the enshrinees. The wives and models take the runaway with flare and flavor, step to the rhythm of the music, and shine in the lights.

I served as a hostess for this event for many years and eventually joined in as a guest so that I could also wear my finest like the ladies in the crowd.

The HOF Fashion Show sparks my memories of growing up in a family that appreciated fine fashion. My mother, (Regina Bess) was a sharp dresser and my dad (Carl Bess) had tailored suits. They made sure that my two sisters (Carole and Marguerite) and I wore nice clothing.

Sometimes, they were made by a seamstress, purchased at Stern & Mann, Parisian or Rapports in downtown Canton.

I love fashion, shopping, and putting outfits together and I love how fashion can help to build self-esteem and make you feel beautiful on the runway of life.

In 2009, Betty Smith was chairwoman of the Fashion Show committee and emceed the Top Model Competition. My sister, Marguerite, was a finalist in this competition and had the opportunity to walk the runway at the HOF Fashion Show Luncheon. This was significant to our family and the Canton community because it showed that diversity was being embraced in the boardroom and on the runway.

I continue to enjoy the festivities of the Hall of Fame, but I especially enjoy the HOF Fashion Show.

Lydia Lee is program director at the Stark County Minority Business Association and board chair for ABCD Inc. She grew up in Canton, graduated from Timken Vocational High School and has a bachelor’s degree in business from Malone University. She has been married to Terry Lee for 45 years, and they have three sons, Terry Jr., Korry, and Karl, and six grandchildren.

Todd Porter: Terry Bradshaw lifts up Mike Webster

Coming up with just one favorite memory from the Pro Football Hall of Fame isn’t easy. After all, I spent 29 years working at The Repository providing many of us with a front-row seat to watching history come to life each year.

Easily it could have been some of the behind-the-scene moments such as during the Enshrinees’ Civic Dinner at Memorial Civic Center. About 90 minutes before Chris Berman, or now Rich Eisen, would take the dais, some of the game’s great players would share a cocktail or three in a social hour just for them.

Stories would grow and laughs would grow louder. Each year, some of the same stories would be shared, only this time some aspect was embellished just a little more to squeeze out a loud belly-laugh.

In 1997, Mike Webster was being enshrined on the steps of the Hall. It seemed more intimate back then, like guests on our porch with a block party that spilled onto George Halas Drive.

Certainly, things change and great things grow. We have witnessed that at the Pro Football Hall of Fame, which begat Hall of Fame Village. Let us not ever forget which birthed the other, either.

On this sun-splashed day in 1997, it was Webster’s day. Leading up to that day, his life was unraveling for us all to see (it was reported he was homeless). He was battling depression. He was separated from his wife. Clearly, he was struggling. But Terry Bradshaw, enshrined in 1989, delivered a rousing presentation speech for Webster. He sounded part TV personality and part Baptist minister.

“What good is a team if you ain’t got a center? Oh, did I get a center. I just didn’t get any center, I got the best to ever play the game," Bradshaw said. And then he pulled a football from the podium. “What I wouldn’t give to put my hands under Mike Webster’s butt on more time.”

A smile grew on Webster’s tired face that day. It seemed like the pressures on his world had been lifted. He crouched down in cowboy boots, and snapped the ball to Bradshaw. They shared a hug. It had to be one of the happiest days of Webster’s life.

Five years later, Webster died.

In Canton, in 1997, on our porch in our block party, Webster was content as his teammate gave him a hand up. The world needs a lot more of that these days.

Todd Porter worked for nearly 30 years at the Canton Repository. He now serves as director of communications at Jackson Local Schools.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Readers share Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival memories