Tag Archives: ball drive

Kind Givers Get Ball Drive Rolling!

by Woody

Woody’s new novel “The Butterfly Tree” is available at Amazon (click here), other online retailers, and orderable at all bookshops.

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“Give every day the chance to become the most beautiful day of your life,” Mark Twain wrote. And, “It is higher and nobler to be kind.”

Once again, Woody’s Holiday Ball Drive is off to a fast rolling start as Star readers have proved themselves to be noble and kind in making the Christmas season more beautiful for local disadvantaged kids.

In the spirit of The Star’s long-running Bellringer campaign, originated by the late legendary editor Julius Gius, I would like to publicly thank the givers to date here in print:

Susan Sadamich donated nine soccer balls, noting: “Since I have no kids of my own it gives me joy to give to the kids who need a gift.”

Some of the gifts for kids!

Anita and Arthur Pulido gave five each basketballs and footballs.

Gary and Cathy Metelak dished out 10 basketballs with two additional football spirals tossed in.

Mike and Jo Ann Smith gave two each soccer balls and basketballs.

Rebecca Fox kicked in two soccer balls in honor of hers and my shared dear friend Doris Cowart.

Kent Brinkmeyer gave the kids a high-five with five basketballs.

A whopping 48 balls were generously donated by an anonymous Good Samaritan.

Another anonymous kindhearted soul gave a baker’s dozen basketballs “in memory of Tim Fahringer – ‘Ute9’ – a loyal friend and teammate, VHS Class of 1980.”

My loyal friend and longtime teammate in The Star sports department, Jim “Swami” Parker, donated two basketballs.

Judith Smith kicked in two soccer balls.

The Conejo Valley Genealogical Society generously gave five each basketballs, soccer balls, and footballs.

Tom and Jan Lewis donated 10 basketballs “in loving memory of Leonard “PeeWee” Keep, who passed away in May this past year. He was huge part of our lives when our daughters were growing up playing for the Ventura Stars Girls Basketball Club and was a coach of the game and teacher of life lessons.”

Nita and Nick Perkins dished in eight basketballs.

Laura McAvoy and Sol Chooljian donated10 soccer balls and four basketballs.

Indiana University Hoosier alum Tavis Smiley gave, fittingly, 10 basketballs.

An anonymous giver passed in five basketballs in memory of Jim Woodburn III and five soccer balls in memory of Jim Woodburn II.

Brad and Mia Ditto gave a baker’s dozen assorted balls, with Brad noting: “My dad, who was a high school football and baseball coach for many years, would absolutely love what you’re doing for these kids.” Correction: Brad’s dad would love what all you dear readers are doing for the kids!

In the Introduction to a collection of his “Editor’s Notebook” columns published in 1988, Gius wrote: “I have had a rich and rewarding life. Everything has come up roses for me. I count my blessings every day and wish them for everyone.”

If you similarly have been blessed, I encourage you to follow Gius’ example by dropping off new sports balls (no batteries required!) at a Boys & Girls Club, YMCA, Toys For Tots, or similar program. The organizations will see that they wind up in deserving young hands.

Also, through Dec. 13, you can hand off your bouncing gifts at Jensen Design & Survey at 1672 Donlon St. (weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.) near Target on Telephone Road in Ventura; or have online orders shipped to the same address; and I will take it from there.

And please email me about your gifts at woodywriter@gmail.com so I can add your generosity to this year’s ball tally as well as acknowledge you, with a dedication to a loved one if desired, in a future column.

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Essay copyrights Woody Woodburn

Woody’s new novel “The Butterfly Tree” is now available in paperback and eBook at Amazon (click here), other online bookstores, and is orderable at all bookshops.

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Woody writes a weekly column for The Ventura County Star and can be contacted at WoodyWriter@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @woodywoodburn.

Birthday Gift for ‘Holiday Ball Drive’

by Woody

Woody’s new novel “The Butterfly Tree” is available at Amazon (click here), other online retailers, and orderable at all bookshops.

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I love my oldest granddaughter Maya “to the moon and beyond,” as I often tell her, for a million reasons and let me share just one.

Last December, the day before her fifth birthday, little Maya went to a big box store with her mommy to pick out a sports ball. Purple being Maya’s favorite color, odds were good she would select a soccer ball of that color; or perhaps a basketball with pink stripes, her second-favorite color; instead, she surprisingly chose a brown football which she proudly carried to the checkout line…

A small sampling of gifts from “Woody’s Holiday Ball Drive.”

…and, even more proudly—“beaming” was her mommy description—later that day dropped it into a Toys For Tots bin at her swim class. On the drive home, her hair wet and smelling of sour chlorine, Maya sweetly tried to imagine the smiling face of the child—not necessarily a boy, she told her mommy, “because girls like to play football, too”—who would receive it.

 “It was a real positive experience that she enjoyed and learned from,” Maya’s mommy, who happens to be my daughter, shared. “For the first time, giving really registered with her. She understood some children don’t have a ball to play with, much less many balls and many toys, like she has.”

Maya’s enlightening experience is not unique. Every year I hear similar stories of kids participating—many picking out balls their parents or grandparents pay for; some using allowance or birthday money; a few raising group funds—in “Woody’s Holiday Ball Drive” that kicks off once again today to give sports balls to local disadvantaged youth.

The seed for this endeavor was planted three decades ago at a local youth basketball clinic when Ventura College legend and former NBA All-Star Cedric Ceballos awarded autographed basketballs to handful of lucky attendees. Leaving the gym afterward, I happened upon a 10-year-old boy who won one of the prized keepsakes…

…which he was now dribbling on the rough blacktop outdoor court, and shooting baskets with, all while perhaps imagining he was Ceballos with the game clock ticking down to the final buzzer.

Meanwhile, the real Ceballos’ Sharpie signature was wearing off.

Curious as to why the boy did not carefully carry the trophy basketball home un-smudged to put safely on a bookshelf, I interrupted his playing to ask.

“I’ve never had my own basketball,” he answered matter-of-factly between shots.

That Christmastime, visions of that boy—and other boys and girls who don’t have their own basketball to shoot, or soccer ball to kick, or football to throw—danced through my head. So I asked you dear readers to help make the holidays happier and you responded like MVPs—Most Valuable Philanthropists.

Once more, I am asking you to drop off new sports balls (no batteries required!) at a Boys & Girls Club, YMCA, Toys For Tots, or similar program. The organizations will see that they wind up in deserving young hands.

Also, through Dec. 13, you can hand off your bouncing gifts at Jensen Design & Survey at 1672 Donlon St. (weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.) near Target on Telephone Road in Ventura; or have online orders shipped to the same address; and I will take it from there.

If you participate, please email me about your gifts at woodywriter@gmail.com so I can add your generosity to this year’s ball tally as well as acknowledge you, with a dedication to a loved one if desired, in a future column.

Maya’s Scottish last name McAuley translates to “danger is sweet,” but as she will now tell you, “giving is sweeter.”

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Essay copyrights Woody Woodburn

Woody’s new novel “The Butterfly Tree” is now available in paperback and eBook at Amazon (click here), other online bookstores, and is orderable at all bookshops.

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Woody writes a weekly column for The Ventura County Star and can be contacted at WoodyWriter@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at

Ball Drive Cannot Fail Thanks to Givers

by Woody

“The gift is to the giver and comes back most to him,” wrote the wise, and Santa Claus-bearded, Walt Whitman. “It cannot fail.”

Sometimes the gift that comes back is a sweet memory, as Joe Paul can attest after giving 10 basketballs to “Woody’s 2023 Holiday Ball Drive” for local disadvantaged youth.

Specifically, Joe gave Mikasa brand balls, recalling fondly: “When I was a little kid, I got a rubber Mikasa basketball every year for Christmas. I can still remember the squeaking noise the rubber made on the wood floor on the rare occasions I got to play indoors. Usually, I was on the outside courts or in my backyard counting down the final seconds and taking the last shot for the Lakers in the NBA finals. By Christmastime of the next year, I had worn off all the rubber nubs and the ball was perfectly smooth.”

This Christmas promises to create countless similar happy memories thanks to generous givers like Joe and…

Kym King donated 10 basketballs, as did a person wishing to be anonymously recognized as “Basketball Jones,” and 10 more came from the Lewis family of Jan, Tom, Cory, Emily, and Maddy.

Representing opposite bookends of life, Nick Sarris gave 41 assorted smiles “in memory of baby Sienna” and Rebecca Fox donated two soccer balls “in memory of Arlys Tuttle, a dear friend and the beloved matriarch of the Tuttle family” who passed away recently at age 101.

The Hein family of Chris, Julie, Audrey and Howie gave 25 assorted balls and Sally and Tom Reeder donated 13 more “including one basketball because that’s how the whole thing started.”

Terry and Draza Mrvichin gave five basketballs; Nita Perkins dished out four; Signe Smale gave three; Scott and Randi Harris assisted with two; and Dennis Jones, Susan Adamich, and Kris Young contributed one each.

Jim Parker, my ol’ sports colleague, donated six balls as did Lynn Kenton, noting: “I hope these will make it to some deserving kids and make a difference in their lives.” To which I reply: They will and they will.

“In memory of Tim Fahringer ‘Ute9’, a loyal friend and teammate, VHS Class of 1980,” an anonymous benefactor gave a baker’s dozen of smiles while Kelly Lanier gave five more in honor of her recently deceased mother, Judy Lautenschleger.

Alan and Kathy Hammerand kicked in three each soccer balls, footballs, and basketballs; Olivia Reddy-Daly assisted with the same triple trifecta; and so did Don and Lynne Steensma.

Paul and Patty Schuster contributed five basketballs in memory of Charlie Feyh, “an instrumental and influential coach for our youngest daughter during her formative years,” and five soccer balls “to acknowledge the great coaching our older daughter received at Buena High School.”

Jeff Barks passed in eight balls, Sherrie Basham gave six, James Barney added three, and Allison Johnson donated two basketballs in honor of “my brother Michael Demeter who played basketball for CLU and is a very generous person.”

Dave Stancliff, my first newspaper boss, donated one basketball, noting: “I still remember getting my first ball on my fifth Christmas and going over to a nearby school that had an outside court. It was just me that morning. I heaved the ball towards the hoop … and missed, and missed again and again, for what seemed like hours. When I finally made a basket, I was sold. This was going to be my game. Sadly, old age and injuries keep me off the courts these days, but I still play vicariously in every Lakers game.”

There is still time to become an MVP – Most Valuable Philanthropist – by dropping off new balls at Jensen Design & Survey at 1672 Donlon St., Ventura CA 93003 (weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Dec. 11); or have online orders shipped to this same address; and I will take it from there. The Thousand Oaks Goebel Adult Community Center also has a bin for ball collection.

And please be sure to email me at woodywriter@gmail.com about your gift so I can add your generosity to this year’s tally and thank you in an upcoming column.

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Essay copyrights Woody Woodburn

Woody writes a weekly column for The Ventura County Star and can be contacted at WoodyWriter@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @woodywoodburn. His SIGNED books are available at www.WoodyWoodburn.com.

Holiday Ball Drive Tips Off Again

by Woody

In the days leading up to Thanksgiving, annually for more than two decades, I always gave thanks for – and to – Jim Cowan for always helping get my Holiday Sports Ball Drive off to a fast-break start.

Always, Jim donated ten basketballs because the sport was especially dear to him. He had played on an undefeated CIF championship team at Ventura High under legendary coach Bob Tuttle in 1949; on two state championship teams at Ventura College; at Whittier College; and, while serving in the military, on the Far East Army All-Star Team.

Always also, Cowan, a longtime former Ventura County Superintendent of Schools, dedicated his gift basketballs, often posthumously, in honor of coaches and teachers and other individuals who had played important roles in his life.

Jim passed away four years ago at age 87, but his spirit remains an indelible part of the ball drive thanks to his widow, Ann, who has continued to donate 10 basketballs each year in his honor.

“I remember my dad telling me a story about playing basketball and a young boy came up and wanted to play,” Janice Heverling, Jim’s daughter, shared with me. “Dad said, ‘Sure,’ and when they were done playing, he asked the boy if he had a basketball. The boy said, ‘No,’ and my dad gave him the ball they were playing with and said, ‘Well, now you do!’ And that’s why he loved your ball drive so dearly.”

This lovely remembrance perfectly echoes my own encounter, more than 25 years ago, that was the inspiration for starting my ball drive. At a youth clinic former Ventura College and NBA star Cedric Ceballos awarded autographed basketballs to a handful of lucky attendees. Leaving the gym belatedly afterward I happened upon a 10-year-old boy who had won one of the prized keepsakes…

…which he was now dribbling dribbling dribbling on a blacktop outdoor court, and shooting baskets with, all while perhaps imagining he was Ceballos with the game clock ticking down to the final buzzer.

Meanwhile, the real Ceballos’ Sharpie signature was quickly wearing off.

Curious why the boy had not carefully and protectively carried the trophy basketball home to put safely on a bookshelf, I interrupted his playing to ask.

“I’ve never had my own basketball,” he answered nonchalantly between game-winning shots.

That Christmastime, thinking of that boy – and other boys and girls who do not have their own basketballs to shoot, soccer balls to kick, footballs to throw – Woody’s Holiday Ball Drive was born. Then, and each year since, you dear readers have responded like MVPs – Most Valuable Philanthropists – by donating avalanches of balls for local kids in need of an assist.

Are you up to the challenge once more, perhaps even topping last year’s total of 1,038 young smiles? If so, drop off new balls (no batteries required!) at a Boys & Girls Club, YMCA, Toys For Tots, or similar program. The organizations will pass them into deserving hands.

You can also drop off new balls (weekdays, except Thanksgiving and Black Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Dec. 11) at Jensen Design & Survey at 1672 Donlon St. near Target on Telephone Road in Ventura; or have online orders shipped to this same address; and I will take it from there.

Please email me about your gifts at woodywriter@gmail.com so I can add your generosity to this year’s ball tally as well as acknowledge you, with a dedication to a loved one if desired, in a future column.

As Jim Cowan once told me, “It feels golden to help others.”

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Essay copyrights Woody Woodburn

Woody writes a weekly column for The Ventura County Star and can be contacted at WoodyWriter@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @woodywoodburn. His SIGNED books are available at www.WoodyWoodburn.com.

Making The Holidays More Perfect: Woody’s Ball Drive Kicks Off

by Woody

“You can’t live a perfect day,” John Wooden believed, “without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you.”

He taught this lesson by example. One such occasion remains as vivid as if it happened last week, not three decades ago. Actually, it is a series of remembrances that merge into one from every time I visited Coach in his Encino home.

In my mind’s eye I can still see the plastic postal bin, the size of a laundry basket, filled with outgoing fan mail: photographs, trading cards, magazine covers, even basketballs and UCLA jerseys people sent Coach to autograph. Requests for a signed Pyramid of Success were also common.

These gift balls are stacked in a real Pyramid of Successful Giving!

Surprisingly, most of these fans did not enclose return postage. No matter. Coach trekked to the Post Office once a week and footed the bill himself.

Once again, we all have a chance to emulate Coach’s example and live a perfect day by helping others who can never repay us through Woody’s Holiday Ball Drive that kicks off today.

The inspiration for this annual endeavor occurred 25 years ago at a youth basketball clinic when former Ventura College and NBA star Cedric Ceballos awarded autographed basketballs to handful of lucky attendees. Leaving the gym afterward, I happened upon a 10-year-old boy who had won one of the prized keepsakes…

…which he was now dribbling on a blacktop outdoor court, and shooting baskets with, all while perhaps imagining he was Ceballos with the game clock ticking down to the final buzzer.

Meanwhile, the real Ceballos’ Sharpie signature was quickly wearing off.

Curious as to why the boy had not protectively taken the trophy basketball home to put safely on a bookshelf, I interrupted his playing to ask.

“I’ve never had my own basketball,” he answered matter-of-factly between shots.

With visions of that boy – and other boys and girls who do not have their own basketball to shoot, soccer ball to kick, football to throw – dancing through my head that winter, I asked you dear readers to help brighten the holidays by donating new sports balls for disadvantaged kids. You responded like champions then and have every year since.

Are you up to the challenge once more? If so, drop off new balls (no batteries required!) at a local Boys & Girls Club, YMCA, Toys For Tots, fire department or house of worship. The organizations will pass them into deserving young hands.

You can also drop balls off (weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Dec. 16) at Jensen Design & Survey at 1672 Donlon St. near Target on Telephone Road in Ventura; or have online orders shipped to this same address (California, Zip Code 93003); and I will take it from there.

And please be sure to email me about your bouncing gifts at woodywriter@gmail.com so I can add your generosity to this year’s tally.

We are already off to an early start as Jim Parker, my old Star colleague, bought three basketballs way back in July. Jim is usually the first to donate, but this year he was beaten to the punch. In March, various members of the Somis Thursday Club donated 12 basketballs with John Vincent, a retired firefighter, adding 10 more, noting: “I didn’t always give to my church the way I should have when I was younger. Now that I’m retired and wiser, I’m trying to make up for it.”

And just before Halloween, Katherine and Frank Anderson gave an early treat with four basketballs while my dad tossed in five footballs.

Together, we can make the holidays a little more perfect.

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Essay copyrights Woody Woodburn

Woody writes a weekly column for The Ventura County Star and can be contacted at WoodyWriter@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @woodywoodburn. His SIGNED books are available at www.WoodyWoodburn.com.

Personalized Signed copies of WOODEN & ME: Life Lessons from My Two-Decade Friendship with the Legendary Coach and Humanitarian to Help “Make Each Day Your Masterpiece” and  “Strawberries in Wintertime: Essays on Life, Love, and Laughter” are available at WoodyWoodburn.com

 

Balls Rolled In In Record Numbers

by Woody

Words fall short in fully expressing my gratitude to everyone who generously participated in “Woody’s 2021 Holiday Ball Drive.” The best I can come up with is this: whether you gave one ball, or many, you filled my heart with birdsong.

And no music was sweeter than that offered by Teagan McAllister, whose grandfather, Chuck Spence, shared this: “My 9-year-old granddaughter expressed how she wanted to help kids that were not as fortunate as herself. She has been, for quite some time, very sensitive to ‘fairness.’ ” And so it was that Teagan, with the help of her “P’Pa,” gave four soccer balls, four basketballs and two footballs.

More musical notes of kindness…

Walt Oliver and his grandsons, Brandon and Tommy Kendlinger and Elijah Ontiveros, dropped off 13 assorted balls in memory of their brother/cousin Michael Kendlinger who “supported the Ball Drive the past several years and recently passed away.”

Some of the gifts for kids!

Randi and Scott Harris donated six balls; Shelly and Steve Brown passed in four balls; and Connie and Stephen Halpern donated one ball.

“Because our nine grandkids have enough!” Max and Sherry Stovall donated 28 assorted balls.

In memory of local coaching legend Bob Tuttle, five basketballs were donated by 99-year-old Arlys Tuttle and her children Gary Tuttle, Gayle Tuttle Camalich, Trudy Tuttle Arriaga and Toni Tuttle Santana.

Legendary coaches Mickey Perry and Joe Vaughan and their Perry-Vaughan Basketball Camp donated 10 basketballs.

“In loving memory” of his father, Coach Harold McFadden, Steve McFadden gave three basketballs, one volleyball, one soccer ball “and, of course, a football.”

Christine Weidenheimer donated six balls; Bob Vrtis gave four balls; and Anna and Tom McBreen kicked in one soccer ball.

Bob and Bev Millhouse donated three balls “to add some Christmas spirit to kids in memory of our son, Michael Obradovich, a USAF and Fresno firefighter, who left this world too early and is loved and remembered daily.”

Audrey, Julie and Chris Hein donated 10 soccer balls; neighbors Irma Paramo and Kay Handlin added five balls; and Lauren Siegel gave three balls.

Audrey Rubin donated two balls “in gratitude for the blessings of my two amazing grandkids who are masterpieces in my life” while Jim and Sandie Arthur similarly donated three balls – “one for each of our stellar grandchildren.”

Jim Barrick donated a dozen balls; Fran and Kate Larsen gave four balls; and Katherine and Frank Anderson gave three balls.

Carol and Laurie Fredericks gave 10 balls; Nancy and Eric Reynolds passed in two balls; and Brad and Mia Ditto donated 10 balls.

A Santa’s Samaritan, who wished to remain anonymous, organized a team of first-name only all-stars who together donated 150 soccer balls and 50 basketballs. They are: Juan, Alma and Alma, Rick, Achilles, Jace, Rose, Deb, Pam, Shaun, Will, Maddie, Mike, Lane, Ruth, Michael, Rachel, Dave, John, Lee, Michelle, Steve and a trio of friends from the St. John’s Bosco Class of 1973: Phil, Mike and Steve.

“There’s no better feeling than to be able to help a child in need,” said David Willson, who donated six basketballs while Leslie De Los Santos also donated six basketballs in remembrance of her father, Arthur Seifert.

Draza Mrvichin passed in eight balls; Sheila and Vivienne Raives donated six balls; and Rebecca Fox gave one ball “in memory of Jim Cowan, my first boss.”

Chuck and Ann Elliott donated five basketballs “in honor of former Ventura College-and-NBA star Cedric Ceballos and his successful COVID fight, as it was his generosity that helped inspire the Ball Drive.”

Cristina Kildee donated four balls in memory of her “fur baby, Bear” who she “recently had to say a sad goodbye to.”

Doris Brown donated three soccer balls, noting: “We can’t all be shining stars, but we can all twinkle a little” while Mike and Bob Bryan twinkled a lot by donating 20 of each: basketballs, soccer balls and footballs.

Maya McAuley gave five basketballs, as did Kym King.

Special thanks to my Santa’s helpers and sleigh drivers: Denelle Rutherford, Lisa Barilone, Josh Spiker, Clint Garman, and Lisa Woodburn.

And now, the final tally for 2021 is … drumroll, please … a whopping 891 gift sports balls, surpassing last year’s previous record by nearly 100 children’s smiles!

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Woody Woodburn writes a weekly column for The Ventura County Star and can be contacted at WoodyWriter@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @woodywoodburn. His SIGNED books are available at www.WoodyWoodburn.com.

Personalized Signed copies of WOODEN & ME: Life Lessons from My Two-Decade Friendship with the Legendary Coach and Humanitarian to Help “Make Each Day Your Masterpiece” and  “Strawberries in Wintertime: Essays on Life, Love, and Laughter” are available at WoodyWoodburn.com

 

 

“Holiday Ball Drive” Kicks Off

by Woody

Editorials are generally as disposable as the newsprint on which they are printed, and yet one that appeared in The New York Sun in 1897 might as well have been carved in granite because it remains relevant and favored well over a century later.

Headlined “Is There a Santa Claus?” it began with a letter from young Virginia O’Hanlon:

“Dear Editor –

“I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, ‘If you see it in The Sun, it’s so.’ Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus?”

The Sun’s reply included the now famous line, “Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus,” and continued: “He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus! It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence.”

A mountain of gifts from “Woody’s Holiday Ball Drive.”

Indeed, how dreary would the world be with no Virginias – and, alas! no Sarahs, Davids and Briannas. Those are the names of just three fabulous kids who have contributed in past years to “Woody’s Holiday Ball Drive” that kicks off once again today to give sports balls to local disadvantaged youth.

Indeed, 10-year-old Sarah emptied her “Jar of Chore Money”; 14-year-old David used his birthday gift cards; and 9-year-old Brianna collected and redeemed recyclables for a full year; all to buy a small sleighful of gift balls to donate.

The seed for this endeavor was planted about 25 years ago at a youth basketball clinic when former Ventura College and NBA star Cedric Ceballos awarded autographed basketballs to handful of lucky attendees. Leaving the gym afterward, I happened upon a 10-year-old boy who had won one of the prized keepsakes. . .

. . . which he was now dribbling on the rough blacktop outdoor court, and shooting baskets with, all while perhaps imagining he was Ceballos with the game clock ticking down to the final buzzer.

Meanwhile, the real Ceballos’ Sharpie signature was of course wearing off.

Curious as to why the boy had not carefully taken the trophy basketball home to put safely on a bookshelf, I interrupted his playing to ask.

“I’ve never had my own basketball,” he answered matter-of-factly between shots.

At Christmastime, visions of that boy – and other boys and girls like him, who don’t have their own basketball to shoot or soccer ball to kick or football to throw – danced through my head. So I asked you dear readers to help make the holidays happier and you responded like champions.

Once again, I am asking you to drop off new sports balls (no batteries required!) at a Boys & Girls Club, YMCA, fire department or house of worship. The organization’s leaders will see that they wind up in deserving young hands.

Also, through Dec. 15, you can handoff your bouncing gifts at Jensen Design & Survey at 1672 Donlon St. (weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.) near Target on Telephone Road in Ventura; or have online orders shipped to the same address; and I will take it from there.

If you participate, please email me at woodywriter@gmail.com so I can add your generosity to this year’s tally.

Together, we can prove The Sun’s long-ago words still ring true: Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and ball-giving MVPs – Most Valuable Philanthropists – exist.

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Woody Woodburn writes a weekly column for The Ventura County Star and can be contacted at WoodyWriter@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @woodywoodburn. His SIGNED books are available at www.WoodyWoodburn.com.

Personalized Signed copies of WOODEN & ME: Life Lessons from My Two-Decade Friendship with the Legendary Coach and Humanitarian to Help “Make Each Day Your Masterpiece” and  “Strawberries in Wintertime: Essays on Life, Love, and Laughter” are available at WoodyWoodburn.com

 

Holiday Generosity Bounces In

by Woody

FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM: @woodywoodburn

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Holiday Generosity

Bounces And Rolls In

The coronavirus pandemic has wrecked havoc in 2020 and, due to stay-and-sheltering, I feared “Woody’s Holiday Ball Drive” would in turn fall victim with a serious deflation in donated gifts for disadvantaged youths this year.

Never before have I have been so happily wrong. You, dear readers, have slam dunked in COVID-19’s face! Below are some of the MVPs – Most Valuable Philanthropists – who have scored on behalf of the kids to date…

Glen Sittel donated two basketballs and one football and said: “Knowing each ball represents a huge smile and a healthier child is a blessing.”

A mountain of gifts from “Woody’s Holiday Ball Drive.”

Sally and Tom Reeder donated 10 huge smiles and Kathy and Joe Vaughan added two blessings while noting to us all: “We will get through this challenging time.”

Judy and Dan Dugan passed out six basketball assists while Irma M. Paramo and her neighbor Kay Handlin teamed up to contribute five basketballs.

Two balls were anonymously donated “In memory of Austin Gambill, the young Ventura High School track and cross-country runner who was tragically taken from us far too early.”

Walt Oliver and his grandsons Elijah Ontiveros and Michael, Brandon and Tommy Kendlinger donated 26 assorted balls.

Mike Spahr and his grandsons Caden, Liam and Leo dropped off one each basketball, soccer ball and football.

Linda and Jerry Mendelsohn, and their five grandchildren, donated 20 balls; Maureen Durkin gave 13 assorted balls; and Jim and Linda Peddie gave 10 balls.

Albert Rodriguez, noting that he grew up as a “huge John Wooden fan,” epitomized Coach’s quote that “It takes ten hands to put the ball in the basket” by recruiting more than 100 hands of family members, friends and former coworkers in donating 127 assorted basketballs, soccer balls and footballs.

Bobbie and Dave Williams gave one football and one basketball while Ethel Yim gave one soccer ball, noting: “I hope it will make a child happy.”

Juan Sanchez made 38 children happy while Sherrie Basham donated 10 smiles “In memory of my mom, Janice Manjoras.”

Carol Ann Roth gave five basketballs; Katherine and Frank Anderson gave three basketballs; Vince O’Neill gave two basketballs; and Anna and Tom McBreen spiraled in one football.

Tom Calvin and the rest of the Mt. View Men’s Golf Club hit a 350-yard drive, so to speak, by donating 30 basketballs, 30 soccer balls and 10 footballs.

The Friday Morning Coaches Breakfast Club gave basketballs in honor of Bob Swanson and Jim Cowan; Ann Cowan, as her late husband always did, donated ten basketballs; and Jim Parker continued his tradition of battling Jim/Ann Cowan in being the first to donate – and won this year with two basketballs.

Charis Werner passed in seven assorted balls; Chuck and Ann Elliott gave four balls; and Lynne and Don Steensma gave three balls.

Alan, Kathy and Tyler Hammerand kicked in three each footballs, soccer balls and basketballs; and Mary and Rick Whiting gave one each of the same.

Allison Johnson gave a basketball and football “in honor of my brother, Michael Demeter, who has all he needs and is generous to others.”

Sheila Raives kicked in four soccer balls; Jeff Barks gave a basketball and soccer ball; and Judy Windle passed in two basketballs.

Howard Reich contributed four assorted balls while Randi and Scott Harris donated three.

Dena Mercer gave two basketballs; Derry and Peggi Clayton gave one basketball and one soccer ball; and Joan Donley gave six softballs.

The Lewis family – Tom and Jan, and daughters Cory, Emily and Maddy – donated a baker’s dozen basketballs while Maya McAuley gave ten basketballs in honor of everyone battling cancer or COVID-19.

There is still time to drop off a new sports ball at a local Boys & Girls Club, YMCA, church, youth group – or to Jensen Design & Survey (9 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Dec. 18) at 1672 Donlon St. in Ventura and I’ll take it from there. Online orders can be shipped to the same address.

Also, please email me about your gift at woodywriter@gmail.com so I can add your generosity to this year’s growing tally.

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Woody Woodburn writes a weekly column for The Ventura County Star and can be contacted at WoodyWriter@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @woodywoodburn. His books are available at www.WoodyWoodburn.com.

Check out my memoir WOODEN & ME: Life Lessons from My Two-Decade Friendship with the Legendary Coach and Humanitarian to Help “Make Each Day Your Masterpiece” and my essay collection “Strawberries in Wintertime: Essays on Life, Love, and Laughter” …

 

Kindness Makes Ball Drive Beautiful

by Woody

FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM: @woodywoodburn

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Kindness Makes Holiday

Ball Drive a Beautiful Success

            “Beauty lives with kindness,” wrote Shakespeare, perfectly describing kind Star readers who made the holidays more beautiful for local disadvantaged kids by donating to my annual ball drive.

Tim Hansen, dressed as Santa Claus but with a more impressive real beard, gave 10 assorted balls.

Draza Mrvichin donated 10 basketballs, three footballs and three soccer balls; Kay Giles and Michael Mariani donated five assorted balls; and Pat McGovern donated three basketballs in honor of his “darling grandsons.”

Jerry and Linda Mendelsohn involved their grandchildren – Garrick, Dannika, Parker, Asher and Joy – in a field trip to donate 10 basketballs and 10 soccer balls.

Shelly and Steve Brown donated four basketballs; Corey, Danielle and Paige Clayton gave three basketballs; and Sheila and Tom McCollum dished in two basketballs.

Karen and Dave Brooks donated two footballs, three basketballs and three soccer balls. Additionally, Karen noted: “My husband and his golf buddies donated dozens of Titleists to the depths of the water hazards at River Ridge Golf Course.”

Tennis legends and legendary role models Mike and Bob Bryan served up 25 assorted balls.

Ian Eaton gave two soccer balls and one football while his dad, Lance, added two basketballs “in honor of Jim Cowan who was my football coach in 1958 at Ventura High and in 1962 at Ventura College as my counselor. We continued to be lifelong friends.”

Steve and Bobbin Yarbrough gave one basketball; Steve Richardson donated one soccer ball and one basketball; and Audrey Rubin kicked in two soccer balls “in honor of my two incredible grandkids.”

Brad and Mia Ditto donated 10 assorted balls, plus a bat, in honor of Brad’s late father who was a high school coach.

Brent Muth, with an assist from The Mob Bike Shop in Ojai, held his third-annual “Ballapalooza” and collected 31 various balls “in memory of Mike Sandoval and Gerry Carrauthers.”

Jan and Tom Lewis donated 21 basketballs, the figure bearing significance because their three “point guard” daughters – Cory, Emily and Maddy – all wore jersey No. 21. Noted their proud dad: “We would like to recognize VYBA, Ventura Stars and Buena Girls Basketball of years gone by. A special thank you to coaches Mike Giordano, Joe Vaughan, Ann Larson and David Guenther.”

Glen Sittel donated one basketball and two soccer balls and Sandy Tubis and Don Rodrigues donated five basketballs from “on behalf of Jim Cowan.”

An anonymous donor gave four basketballs “in memory of longtime youth coach, YMCA leader and Channel Coast referee Jerry Nelson” and Steve Askay donated two basketballs “memory of Cal Houston a longtime teacher, coach and official.”

Jim and Sandie Arthur donated three balls and Linda Peddie gave two basketballs, noting: “I’m especially motivated to participate in getting kids off their screens and out to play.”

Wendy Spasiano donated 30 baseballs in memory of her father, Tom Pitkin, who for many years coached Little League and Pop Warner teams in Ventura.

Kelly Lanier gave four basketballs; Lynn and Jim Kenton donated one each basketball, football, soccer ball; and Chris Werner donated two footballs, two soccer, and two basketballs.

“In memory of Mr. & Mrs. Fred Zielsdorf” an anonymous donor gave two each basketballs, footballs and soccer balls, plus a dozen baseballs.

Kate Larsen donated three soccer balls; Sally and Tom Reeder donated eight various balls, plus a baseball glove; and Maya McAuley donated three basketballs as did Jess Ahoni.

The finally tally . . . drumroll, please . . . is a whopping 551 new sports balls – nearly 100 more than a year ago!

Thank you, dear readers, your kindness is as beautiful as our coastal sunsets.

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Woody Woodburn writes a weekly column for The Ventura County Star and can be contacted at WoodyWriter@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @woodywoodburn. His books are available at www.WoodyWoodburn.com.

Check out my memoir WOODEN & ME: Life Lessons from My Two-Decade Friendship with the Legendary Coach and Humanitarian to Help “Make Each Day Your Masterpiece” and my essay collection “Strawberries in Wintertime: Essays on Life, Love, and Laughter” …

Holiday Sports Ball Drive Tips Off

by Woody

FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM: @woodywoodburn

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Woody’s Holiday Ball Drive

Tips Off Honoring Cowan

            Some things can be counted on like clockwork: Flowers and birdsong arriving in spring, sunburns coming in summertime, colors changing and leaves falling in autumn.

And, in the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving, Jim Cowan being the first person to donate to my annual Holiday Sports Ball Drive. Always, he donated ten basketballs because the sport was especially dear to him. He played on an undefeated CIF championship team at Ventura High under legendary coach Bob Tuttle in 1949; on two state championship teams at Ventura College; at Whittier College; and while serving in the military he played on the Far East Army All-Star Team.

Always, also, Cowan dedicated his gift basketballs in honor of coaches and teachers and other individuals who had played an important role in his life.

A few of the hundreds of balls from last year’s drive.

This year, sadly, birds have fallen silent and leaves seem gray. The first ten basketballs will not be contributed by James F. Cowan because the longtime former Ventura County Superintendent of Schools died this past March at age 87.

However, the first ten basketballs to tip off this year’s Ball Drive still have Cowan’s fingerprints on them: I am making the donation in his honor. Perhaps there is a special person or role model, loved one or friend, deceased or still living, you wish to honor with a donation of a sports ball?

The Ball Drive also has the fingerprints of another former Ventura College basketball player, Cedric Ceballos. About 20 years ago, I was at a local youth basketball clinic when the NBA All-Star presented autographed basketballs to a handful of lucky attendees.

Leaving the gym afterward, I happened upon a 10-year-old boy who won one of the prized keepsakes – which he was dribbling on the rough blacktop outdoor court, and shooting baskets with, while perhaps imagining himself to be Ceballos.

Meanwhile, the real Ceballos’ Sharpie signature was wearing off.

Curious why the boy had not carefully carried the trophy basketball home and put it safely on a bookshelf, I interrupted his playing to ask.

“I’ve never had my own basketball,” he answered matter-of-factly between shots.

That Christmastime, thinking of that boy – and other boys and girls who do not have their own basketball to shoot, soccer ball to kick, football to throw – Woody’s Holiday Ball Drive was born.

Once again, I am encouraging you dear readers to join in by dropping off a new sports ball – or balls – at any local Boys & Girls Club, YMCA, youth club or church and they will find a worthy young recipient.

Or drop balls off (weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Dec. 20) at Jensen Design & Survey at 1672 Donlon St. near Target on Telephone Road in Ventura, or have online orders shipped to the same address, and I will take it from there. Among those who will receive a ball and a smile thanks to your generosity will be Ventura County Foster Kids at their annual holiday party.

Clubs and groups can also make it a collective endeavor. For example, once again the Camarillo/Somis Pleasant Valley Lions Club has pledged to donate 33 footballs, 33 soccer balls and 34 basketballs.

Also, please email me about your gift at woodywriter@gmail.com so I can add your generosity to this year’s tally.

With his donation last year, Jim Cowan noted his deep belief in “the Golden Rule” and to “love your neighbor as yourself” concluding: “I am 87 now and these principles have guided me and my family over all of these years.”

These worthy principles also apply to everyone who donates to this year’s Ball Drive.

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Woody Woodburn writes a weekly column for The Ventura County Star and can be contacted at WoodyWriter@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @woodywoodburn. His books are available at www.WoodyWoodburn.com.

Check out my memoir WOODEN & ME: Life Lessons from My Two-Decade Friendship with the Legendary Coach and Humanitarian to Help “Make Each Day Your Masterpiece” and my essay collection “Strawberries in Wintertime: Essays on Life, Love, and Laughter” …