Gleason left indelible mark on a community

by Peter Jakey–Managing Editor

Warren Gleason is being remembered as a special teacher and a coach. He passed away April 7 at the age of 78.

The man known affectionately, as “G” will be remembered for his stories, his dedication and for the way he cared about his students and athletes.

He came from Memphis High School to teach at Rogers City High School in 1970. He was hired as a physical education teacher, a driver’s training teacher, and taught health and history.

G left a mark on anyone who crossed his path.

“He was always there for the kids,” said Cory Malocha. “He spent a lot of long days and hours, helping us, coaching us. The kids were always a priority. He was almost like a father to me.” He coached football, track and field, golf and was a Hall of Fame wrestling coach.

Gleason took over the wrestling program when Bill Barrett’s health forced him to step down. Current wrestling coach Pat Lamb had the good fortune of wrestling for Barrett and serving as Gleason’s assistant.

“There was never a dull moment with coach Gleason,” said Lamb. “There was always something there to laugh about.”

Lamb remembers going to seeding meetings before wrestling meets. “All the other coaches would wait until coach Gleason got there, to be able to hear what he had to say. Everybody wanted to hear Warren’s words of wisdom. It was always an adventure at those seeding meetings.”

In a 1999 Advance feature on Gleason, just after he announced his retirement from teaching and coaching, Hall of Fame Huron baseball coach Howard Madsen said, “I’ve tried to steal whatever I could steal from Warren Gleason. Over the years I’ve seen what he has done with the kids and the ways he was able to get them to perform.”

“He always seemed to have a knack in knowing what to say, and when to say it, to get the very best out of student athletes,” said Lamb.

Gleason was Erik Nadolsky’s teacher and wrestling coach who later helped out with the wrestling program and spent time with him.

“As a coach, he was a great motivator, as many have said, and another trait that I got from him was that winning was important, but giving 10

0 percent was everything,” said Nadolsky. “He truly loved being around kids and would stick up for the underdog just as much as the star athletes. He had the ability to teach the mechanics that were needed for many sports, whether that was pitching a softball or kicking field goals.

G also was an avid sportsman. “He loved to hunt, loved to fish,” said Malocha. “He was always out salmon fishing.”

Gleason was an all-state athlete for Belding High School in football, basketball, baseball and track. He continued playing football at Alma where he was a fullback, linebacker and a drop kicker.