Hometown Hero

Have y'all heard of the MTV show "World of Jenks"? It's essentially a reality show where this guy, Andrew Jenks, goes to live with different types of people to live their lives along side them and tell their stories. This reality show is actually REAL though, unlike most "reality" shows out there today. The people that have been featured have been a rapper, a UFC fighter, a homeless woman and an autistic young man, to name a few.

Last Spring, there was buzz all around town that Abilene High School's Herschel Sims would be featured in an episode. MTV made their way to tiny little Abilene, and loved Herschel so much that they decided to extend his 30 minute episode to the one hour season finale!

I'm sure that everyone in town watched the show last night, and I certainly didn't miss it either. I knew it would be interesting, but I had no idea just how special Herschel really is. I was in tears at several different times during the show. I knew what an awesome football player he is because I have seen him play many times, but what I didn't know is what kind of a man he is. And yes, at just 18 years of age, he definitely is a man. An honorable man. If you have 40 minutes to watch the show, please do so! You will not regret it.

Kids like Herschel are the reason so many coaches do what they do. Not just because he is a good football player, but also because of his background and his heart. His life has been anything but easy, but his team and his coaches are now a huge part of his life and they are family.

I know that is the reason my coach does what he does. You see, Rob lost his dad when he was a toddler, so he didn't really have a father figure at home, but his coaches were that to him. If he can make just one kid feel loved, appreciated and needed, then he has done his job well.