The Warriors -A Band of Eleven Brothers-

By G. E. Shuman

It’s 5:05 am, and I’m in my teenage son’s room, grudgingly shaking him; awaking him to his first, and most driven task of the day. He groans a bit, then forces his legs over the side of the bed and sits up, eyes still closed. As long as he is upright, I feel safe to head downstairs to make my pre-dawn pot of coffee. I then go out to start the car, and reenter the kitchen moments later, listening carefully for his size-seventeen footsteps upstairs, as he gets his things ready for the day. Soon we are out the door, and driving through the darkness to Andrew’s early appointment for training with the nine other Warriors.

This is a ritual of dedication to a cause, to a team, which is repeated the entire winter, five days each week, by these eleven young men. Their’s is a noble and worthwhile pursuit of excellence in what they do. Their extreme dedication to each other, and to their unified cause has held them together through many recent trials of faith and challenges of spirit which have not been of their own doing. They have weathered injury and defeat, and have also tasted great victory, all as a team. Each time they go out to face some giant of another team, they make their school and their families very proud. Each time they topple one of those giants, scores of applauding fans in the stands are amazed.

Call this a blatant plug for a high school sports team if you wish, but those of you who have been to one of their games know exactly how I feel. The team is Websterville Baptist Christian School’s Varsity Boys Basketball. They are eleven young men of a total high school of only about sixteen guys, and they practice at Spaulding High School in Barre at five thirty each morning because they don’t have a gym of their own. They go out to battle together, and very often come back victorious. They usually make the state finals, and, this year, may just go all the way to the championship.

As the very proud father of one of this team’s players, let me invite you to enjoy a game of high school basketball at its very best. Check the school’s website for the schedule, and come watch The Warriors play very hard, and very fair. Believe me, the Hoosiers had nothing over this band of brothers!