Sean C. Morgan
The District 55 School Board voted Monday night to name the wrestling room in the new high school gym facility the Norm Davis Wrestling Room.
A dedication will be held at a meet to be announced later.
Plans to name the room for the late wrestling Coach Norm Davis or to call it a wrestling room at all had apparently come under fire. Several weeks ago, a woman who would not identify herself call The New Era office apparently concerned over the plans. She said the intent, when the $18.6 million bond that built it was proposed, had always been to call it a multipurpose room.
“A bond oversight committee member raised the question as to the appropriateness of this room being called a wrestling room,” Supt. Larry Horton said in notes to the board. “Apparently there were discussions/concerns voiced early on that the room should be available for use by multiple groups, not just the wrestlers. (Principal Pat) Stineff has assured me that this intent is being honored. In fact, to date, five different groups have already used the room.”
Wrestling Coach Steve Thorpe, PE teacher Debbie Temple and Coach Davis’ widow, Donna Davis, asked the board to officially name the room Monday night. No others appeared before the board to discuss the issue.
Thorpe outlined Coach Davis’ accomplishments. Among them, he had 11 district titles, six state trophies, 81 athletes placing at state and 20 individual state champions. He was on the original committee that designed and chartered the Oregon Cultural Exchange. He coached the 1976 Cultural Exchange team to the Olympic Games in Canada and another exchange team to South Africa in 1988. He was voted Coach of the Year for Oregon in 1976 and was nominated for national Coach of the Year in 1989.
With 504 dual meet victories, he is placed within the United States National Wrestling Record Book in the top-20 category for Most Dual Victories. Only nine other coaches in the top 20 have won more in 35 years or less.
Coach Davis died in July 2001.
“He was loved and respected by his fellow teachers, his administration and his students,” Coach Thorpe said. “Because he touched so many lives, I see that it is only fitting the new wrestling room be named and dedicated to the memory of Norm Davis.”
“His integrity was above reproach,” Mrs. Davis said. “When he said something, he followed through. He was as proud of a wrestler who competed hard and lost as he was of one that competed hard and won. He sometimes saw to it that his athletes got needed medication, dental work, wrestling shoes and fees to attend camps. None of these things were ‘give me’s.’ The athletes worked off the payments. He believed one never got anything for nothing but nothing.…
“If a football stadium, an entire college or a building can be named after a person who contributed huge sums of money but has not had any other connection with the property, why then, can’t this wrestling room be named after a man who contributed more than money?”
Temple explained to the board that the wrestling room just off the old gym was used by many groups, ranging from the dance team to PE over the 24 years she has taught in the district. As long as groups follow basic guidelines, it has been available for anyone.
Since 1952, it has been a “wrestling room,” Coach Thorpe said. “This room was built to replace the one that was torn down.”
There is no doubt “that Norm was an extremely good role model for all the youth,” Board Chairman Don Hopkins said. He was a professional, outstanding coach who was well-respected.
The board’s dilemma, Hopkins said, surrounded the concern that the room was supposed to be a multipurpose room.
A chorus among the board members, Coach Thorpe and Temple said it was always supposed to be a “wrestling room,” which other groups would use also.
“This was never referred to as an activity room or a multipurpose room,” Coach Thorpe said.
It’s just called a “wrestling room,” Director Barbara Snow said. It doesn’t really matter what it’s called.
The board voted 9-0 to name the room. Present at the meeting were Snow, Hopkins, John Dundon, Tim Crocker, Scott Proctor, Milt Moran, Mike Reynolds, Diane Gerson and Dave VanDerlip.