The History of…
Kent County High School Sports
After researching and interviewing many people over the past 15 months, Larry Lahey (Author) is happy now to share his findings with all of us through his new book “The History of KENT COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS.” This book documents when each school sport began on an inter-school basis from 1903 through to the 1960’s, while recognizing the outstanding local athletes, coaches, and teams.You will read about what has changed, what has stayed the same, and what needs to be done to have an excellent athletic program.
About the Author: Larry Lahey
Larry was born in the old St. Joe’s Hospital, Chatham, Ontario and raised on a farm near Merlin.
He attended Merlin DHS from 1958 to 1963, Western from 1963-1967, and taught and coached at JMSS from 1967 to 1998 (31 years). Presently he is coaching the tennis team at JMSS.
Through the years, Larry was fortunate to coach many talented basketball players which led to many Kent and SWOSSAA championships and four OFSAA gold medals.
Larry is an honoured member of the Chatham Sports Hall of Fame (2002). “The History of KENT COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS” is Larry’s third book, following “Lenover Meats – Seventy Years, 1938-2008” and “John McGregor Secondary School – The First Fifty Years (1957-2007)”.
TAKEN from the book…..
“When I learned that the Kent County Secondary School Athletic Association (KCSSAA) would be dissolved in June of 2014 I realized that our KCSSAA history could be lost because the present trophies would no longer be needed. The trophies were collected and I recorded winning teams, some going back to 1930. Local high schools now play in a new athletic association, the Lambton Kent Secondary School Athletic Association (LKSSAA).”
‘Although my focus will be on winning teams it may surprise many that a coach can be successful without winning a lot of games. He/she can do this by teaching punctuality, commitment, how to work as a team, poise in the face of adversity, time management, respect for opponents, etc.’
This book is now available for $25 (taxes in) at the following locations:
Lenover Quality Meats, Chatham – The Instant Print Shoppe, Chatham – The Instant Print Shoppe, Wallaceburg
Information and photos for this editorial provided by: Larry Lahey
