The Varsity Letter: A Tradition Upheld at CCHS
By Kevin Reing ‘06
The sun is beating down on a small practice field in Oakland on a hot summer day. As I step onto the field for the second practice of the day I am greeted by familiar faces. Bruised and battered, I pause for a moment to take in the hot August air before the whistle blows and practice begins.
It is the last three-a-day football practice of my life at Central Catholic High School, and taking a look around, I realize that there are only 17 seniors on the 2005 football team. Close to 100 boys came out for football my freshman year and now, as we move into the 2005 season, less than 25 percent of those young men remain after those four years.
Although the Central Catholic Varsity Letter is certainly a symbol of athletic achievement and may enhance one’s social status, it is, above all else, a symbol of togetherness. For the 17 Central Catholic seniors who have earned a Varsity Letter playing football, the letter is a constant reminder of the team forged by the struggles and hardships that we have endured together.
It feels as though there could be no greater bond between men than the kind formed when they sweat, bleed, cry, laugh and celebrate together. Central Catholic is a place that provides many opportunities for forming such bonds. These are bonds that one can expect to last for a lifetime, long after one’s letter jacket is faded and worn.
Today, however, my jacket is like new, hanging in my closet at home, waiting for the cooler weather. But the Letter itself is more than just an emblem on a jacket. As I stated earlier, today is my last three-a-day practice at Central Catholic. But there is a new motto for this year: “Tradition Never Graduates”. I hope to always be a part of Central Catholic. My Letter is a tangible reminder of that.
Kevin Reing is a starting linebacker on the 2005 football team.
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