Tag Archives: holidays

Final Gift Sports Balls Tally Is…

by Woody

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

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Good Ol’ Saint Nick, when I was seven, came through with a purple stingray with a banana seat that I wished for, my first bicycle that was not a hand-me-down from my two older brothers. As magical as that morning was, however, my favorite Christmas is a tie between the last 25 or so thanks to you generous readers making “Woody’s Holiday Ball Drive” an annual success.

“Life is hard enough,” noted Lauren Siegel, who donated 15 smiles this year, “without a kid having to worry if he or she has a ball to play sports with.” Others making life easier for local kids include…

Steve Askay donated five balls “in memory of my granddaughter Mabel” who tragically died in an accident at age 6, and Rebecca Fox gave three balls “in memory of our dear friend Doris Cowart who lived an amazing 101 years!”

Shelly and Steve Brown gave one ball for each of their “six spectacular grands” who excitedly made the selections and Linda and Jerry Mendelsohn, with the shopping help of grandchildren Blakely, Asher, Garrick, Dannika, Parker and Joy, gave 28 balls.

Local coaching legends Joe Vaughan and Mickey Perry assisted with 10 basketballs; Kym King, “in memory of my beloved puppers Scarlett,” also donated 10; as did Mary and Rick Whiting; Lynne and Don Steensma likewise; and also Susan Hall.

Leslie and Mike De Los Santos donated 10 balls in memory of Leslie’s father, Arthur Seifert, “who enjoyed playing basketball on courts throughout the area until he was 80 years old.”

David Hilty, on behalf of The Bench Warmer, donated nine balls, as did Patricia and Paul Schuster “in honor of the coaches at Buena High School.”

Cathy and Gary Metelak “cheerfully” gave 11 balls; Bobbie and Dave Williams donated “with great pleasure” half a dozen; and Bobbin and Steve Yarbrough “happily” gave four, as did Sandie and Jim Arthur.

Brenda and Doug Terzian gave a dozen balls in honor of their daughters; Laura McAvoy and Sol Chooljian donated ten more; Kent Brinkmeyer added four; Colleen Scott gave three; and Chris Huseth added two.

Erin and Mike Powers donated five balls “in memory of Lance Eaton for his leadership of the Arc Foundation of Ventura County as well as his lifelong, unwavering support of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.”

Ruth Vomund and Gary Tuttle donated two basketballs “in honor of Bob Tuttle and retired Nordhoff High coach Ted Cotti,” and Susan and Tom Doria donated half a dozen balls “in memory of Ventura College Hall-of-Fame coach and mentor Larry Baratte.”

Ann Cowan gave 10 basketballs in honor of her late husband Jim Cowan, and an anonymous donor gave a dozen “in memory of Jim Cowan and Dr. Jim Woodburn III: two wonderful men who are very much missed.”

Another anonymous donor gave 10 basketballs in memory of John Wooden, and Daniel Eggertsen, inspired partly by Coach Wooden’s “Pyramid of Success,” also donated 10, noting: “In an age of AI, gadgetry, and obesity, what better way to try and help keep our youth grounded to things that really matter – like the camaraderie and life lessons borne from sport.”

The Pleasant Valley-Somis-Camarillo Lions Club collectively gave 45 balls; Patrons of The Goebel Adult Community Center in Thousand Oaks gave 73; and in another group effort, a whopping 307 balls were donated by the “A Team” of family members and friends who wished to be acknowledged by first names only: “Mom” Alma, Allen and Alast, Michael and Reina, Rick and Nancy, Andy and Connie, Lou and Carmen, Alma and Tomas, Shaun and Ruth, John and Kellie, Phil and Charlene, Mike and Claudia, Steve and Mary Kay, Dave, Pamela, Dawn and Jim, Stan, Ron and Anita, Will and Heidi, Tina, Melissa and Todd, Michelle and Michael, Deborah, Achilles and Caren, Jesus, Lane, Kelly and Lisa, Rose and Jace, Ricky and Brenda, Garny, Maddie, Carlos and Cathy, Mike and Cathy, Eric, Paulina and Peter, and Juan.

Julie and Nick Sarris donated 40 balls “in memory of Sienna’s eternal spirit.”

Tennis Hall of Famers Mike and Bob Bryan, who have also been hall-of-fame supporters of this endeavor every single year since its inception, served up an array of 50 balls.

My oldest granddaughter Maya McAuley, 7, with great deliberation picked out a green soccer ball while her sister Auden, 3, carefully chose to give an orange one. Meanwhile, my two-year-old granddaughter Amara Woodburn selected four basketballs on behalf of herself and her five-month-old brother Jayden.

And now – drumroll, please – the final gift tally for 2025, surpassing last year’s previous record by 147, is 1,491 brand new sports balls joyous young smiles!

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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 @

Earlier Deadline For “Holiday Ball Drive”

by Woody

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

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“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 deed. One such occasion remains as vivid to me as if it happened last week, not three decades ago. Actually, it is a quilt of numerous remembrances stitched together from each time I visited Coach in his Encino home.

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

A surprisingly sizeable number of these fans failed to enclose return postage. No matter. Coach trekked to the Post Office weekly and footed the bill himself.

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

To the kindhearted souls, and there are legions of you, who have made this effort part of your family’s holiday traditions, this year’s early start instead of right after Thanksgiving Day will come as a surprise but is necessary because the deadline to give has also leapfrogged sooner to December 8.

The inspiration for this annual endeavor occurred about 30 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 keep 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, 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 continued to ever 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, or similar organization.

Or bring them (weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Dec. 8) to Sanbell (formerly Jensen Design & Survey) at 1672 Donlon St., near Target, on Telephone Road in Ventura – online orders can be shipped to this same address – and I will see that your gifts wind up in deserving young hands.

While the early deadline cannot be helped, I fear it may result in fewer balls – and, thus, fewer kids’ smiles – than in years past, and that would be heartbreaking. I beseech you all to please prove my worries unfounded.

Please, also, email me at woodywriter@gmail.com about your donations so I can add your generosity to this year’s tally and thank you by name (unless you request anonymity) in a future column.

Individually we can each take a step towards living a perfect day by collectively making the holidays happier for a whole lot of kids.

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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.

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.

MVPs Scoring for Ball Drive

by Woody

Highlights during the 2022 FIFA World Cup have thus far been many and spectacular, but the flying soccer balls that have truly grabbed my attention – and heart – are those coming in for my annual Woody’s Holiday Ball Drive.

Basketballs and footballs, too, all to be given to local disadvantaged kids. For many of these recipients it will be the only holiday gift they receive. Below are some of this year’s early MVPs (Most Valuable Philanthropists)…

Jerry and Linda Mendelsohn took four of their six grandchildren – Garrick, 12; Dannika, 9; Parker, 8; and Joy, 4 – to personally pick out a mix of 20 basketballs and soccer balls.

Ben Coats, noting that “all kids need something to smile about on Christmas,” gave a baker’s dozen of soccer balls.

Some of the gifts for kids!

Kay Giles and Michael Mariani kicked in six soccer balls.

Kay and Ray Morgan dished out 15 assists in basketballs.

Ron Lay donated one basketball as did Bob and Rebecca McAuley.

“Envisioning more happy faces on boys and girls receiving these gift balls each year is such a wonderful feeling,” wrote Glen Sittel, who donated four smiles.

“It felt great!” said Carrie Wolfe, who gave three smiles.

Rick and Mary Whiting gave two each soccer balls and basketballs.

Toby Petty donated three soccer balls as did Linda Peddie.

Sally and Tom Reeder gave a variety of 15 balls, noting that their shopping spree was “a glorious day and one of our favorites!”

Fran and Kate Larsen donated one football and three soccer balls.

“One of our favorite reminders that the holiday season is upon us is when we see your column in The Star advising that it is time for your Ball Drive,” wrote Alan and Kathy Hammerand who donated a mixture of 11 balls.

Joe Wigert gave five basketballs.

Lynn Kenton gave three basketballs and one soccer ball.

Lynda Rice donated two soccer balls, and 10 ball pumps as well, in memory of her mom, Mercedes Johnson, noting: “She was the type of person who was always gathering donations and reaching out to those who needed help.”

Charis Werner donated 10 various balls: “In memory of sweet Arrow, a dog who loved a good game of chase the ball!”

Tim Hansen tossed in an assortment of 10 balls and Peggy Greathouse and family donated five basketballs.

Irma Paramo and her neighbor, Kay Handlin, donated seven basketballs, noting: “I’m sure the Ball Drive will make a lot of children happy!”

Howard Reich did his part to make eight kids happy and Kent Brinkmeyer added three more smiles.

“In memory of Tim ‘Ute9’ Fahringer, a loyal friend and teammate,” a donor who wished to remain anonymous gave four each basketballs, soccer balls and footballs.

Another kind soul who wished to remain anonymous gave one dozen basketballs in memory of the late Jim Cowan, who always donated the very same.

“I wish I could give 100 balls,” said Kym King, a queen of kindness by giving 10 basketballs.

Maya Woodburn McAuley, my precious granddaughter who turns four this month, enthusiastically picked out and gave three balls from herself and her parents.

There is still time to become an MVP by dropping off new balls (no batteries required!) at Jensen Design & Survey at 1672 Donlon St., Ventura CA 93003 (weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.); or have online orders shipped to this same address; and I will take it from there.

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.

*   *   *

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

 

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.

*   *   *

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!

 *   *   *

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

 

 

A Stack of Books to ‘Yes, Read!’

by Woody

While I sometimes fall short in my quest to read a book a week for the calendar year, in 2021 I reached the goal with two weeks to spare.

This year’s 52-and-counting tally doesn’t include the approximately 502 books I read to my 3-year-old granddaughter, including these recommendations from Maya: “Change Sings: A Children’s Anthem” by Amanda Gorman; “The Boy Who Spoke to the Earth” by Chris Burkard; “Grumpy Monkey” by Suzanne Lang; and “No, David!” by David Shannon.

As for my favorites, here is a tall stack of “Yes, Read!”

“One Long River Of Song,” a posthumous collection of short essays by Brian Doyle, is a gem that next had me picking up one of his novels. “The Plover” is such a spellbinding seafaring tale that I will soon be visiting his backlist further.

Colson Whitehead, a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner, once again displays his storytelling mastery in his new 1960’s era “Harlem Shuffle” about thievery, and humanity, while Bryce Courtenay’s “The Potato Factory” is a terrific tale about a likeable London con artist in the 19th Century.

I dare say one need but be a runner to be captivated by “The Slummer: Quarters Till Death” by Geoffrey Simpson. Taking place in 2083, athletics – and society – has been divided into genetically designed “elites” and “slummers” who were born the old-fashioned way.

“The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry” by Gabrielle Zevin is a charming story that takes place in a bookstore. Meanwhile, I owe my thanks to Ventura’s charming “Timbre Books” for tipping me off to the engaging, funny and sometimes heartbreaking “The Last Taxi Driver” by Lee Durkee.

“A Tree Grows in Brooklyn” by Betty Smith is a young girl’s coming-of-age story that is slow-paced in the very best of ways. Also taking place in Brooklyn is “Snow In August,” a touching tale about an unlikely friendship by Pete Hamill.

Fans of “chick lit” will surely love “Writers & Lovers” by Lily King because even though the genre isn’t my cup of tea I greatly enjoyed this novel.

Even at nearly 600 pages, Amor Towles’ “The Lincoln Highway” will have you wishing this 1954 road trip of memorable characters would travel along a little further.

Meanwhile, “The Busker” by Brooks Rexroat is thin at 153 pages, but thick on entertainment. This Grand Prize Winner of “The Great Novella Contest” (whatever that is) is an underdog, hard-luck tale about a guitar-playing teen.

Stephen King’s “Billy Summers” is a flat-out, fast-paced, page-turner, road-trip story about a hitman you’ll find yourself rooting for and “The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry” by Rachel Joyce is about another road trip, albeit taken by foot, that you will want to tag along on.

Speaking – rather, reading – of road trips, somehow I had never before buckled in with Jack Kerouac’s classic “On The Road” but I am glad I finally did.

“One More For The Road” by the late, great Ray Bradbury is a marvelous collection of short fiction while “The Sun is a Compass: A 4,000 Mile Journey into the Alaskan Wilds” by Caroline Van Hemert chronicles a remarkable nonfiction off-the-road trip.

If you twisted my arm to name my favorite book I read this year, I would cry “uncle” and give you a toss up between these three novels: “The Midnight Library” by Matt Haig; “The Four Winds” by Kirstin Hannah; and “City of Thieves” by David Benioff.

In closing, a thought from Groucho Marx: “Outside of a dog, a book is man’s best friend. Inside of a dog it’s too dark to read.”

For that, I recommend a backlit e-reader.

 *   *   *

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