"If I am within eyesight o the winner...as it kind of dawns on them that they're about to be called up to win $36,000 for college," said James Lynn (above), "that's an exciting moment."
by Lem Satterfield
 
Among the most enjoyable moments for James Lynn at Monday night's McCormick Unsung Heroes Awards banquet will be the moment of truth.

That's when two of the 119 athletes -- football players and girls basketball players -- will be announced as the winner of seperate scholarships worth $36,000.

"If I am within eyesight of the winner, watching them, as it kind of dawns on them that they're about to be called up to win $36,000 for college, that's an exciting moment," said Lynn, the director of McCormick & Company's Corporate Communications department.
 
"Then they get called up, and so, here they are in front of 750 people. Now, usually, by then, some of the local t.v. stations have come in with their cameras," Lynn said. "That's a pressure moment for these kids. So you see a wide range of reactions. Usually, what I'm taken with is their incredible poise."

Lynn took some time to share with DigitalSports concerning , among other things, this year's guest speaker, Herman Boone, the former football coach for Virginia's T.C. Williams who endured racism on the way to turning his players into champions.

Lynn also addressed the event's evolution from its start in 1940 until now, as well as the selection process, "which we are most proud of," he said. 

(See Video Interviews Below)

 Herman Boone, retired football coach of the T.C. Williams High School Titans immortalized in the Disney movie “Remember the Titans,” will deliver the keynote address at the 68th Annual McCormick Unsung Heroes Awards Banquet to be held on Monday, May 12 at Marriott’s Hunt Valley Inn.


A total of 119 high school senior boys and girls, two of whom will be honored as the 2008 Unsung Heroes scholarship winners, have been chosen to represent 73 Baltimore City and County public, private, parochial and independent schools.

McCormick scholarships, valued at $36,000 over four academic years, will be presented to one male athlete and one female athlete selected as the top Unsung Heroes.


 The evening will also include a salute to legendary local broadcaster Vince Bagli who has been involved with the McCormick Unsung Heroes program in some capacity for nearly sixty years. 


Originally established in 1940 by the late Charles P. McCormick, the program recognizes unselfish team play and honors those who contribute substantially to the success of their teams without receiving acclaim.  The banquet will salute deserving male football players and female basketball players.


More than 700 city and county officials, school administrators, coaches and family are expected to attend.


Herman Boone will bring an inspiring message to the podium as he tells the moving story of what took place at his school in Alexandria, Virginia in the fall of 1971.  Racial tension was high as three schools merged together in an integration initiative to become T.C. Williams High. 

White and black players previously at segregated schools would try to be teammates.  In a controversial move, Boone, previously an assistant coach, was appointed head coach over a successful and popular white head coach from one of the three pre-merger schools.

This might be a formula for disaster, but instead it became a story that is a lesson in understanding and civility.  Boone, with his wisdom and perseverance, was the driving force in the Titans team melding into a single unit—and a very successful one.  The story was so compelling that, in 2000, it became a major motion picture starring Denzel Washington as Coach Boone.

Special Note on Vince Bagli, who will also be honored with a recognition award at the event:


Legendary Baltimore sportscaster Vince Bagli has an association with the McCormick Unsung Hero Award that dates back nearly 60 years.As a young sports reporter at the Baltimore News American, Vince covered the annual event.

In later years he covered it as the sports director of WBAL-TV.  He then served as the event emcee. Vince also was among the leadership group of the Maryland Scholastic Association (MSA) which included the schools that were first part of the Unsung Hero program begun in 1940.

In recent years, Vince has been part of the committee that selects the top two honorees, one young man and one young woman, who receive the Charles Perry McCormick Scholarship, each worth $36,000 over four years.

Vince retired from that committee this past winter, and he will be honored by McCormick for his many years of contributions at the May 12th awards dinner at the Marriott Hunt Valley Inn.


An alphabetical listing by school of each of the 119 players nominated for the 2008 Unsung Heroes Award follows:

 

Archbishop Curley -                            Lawrence A. Jackson


Archbishop Spalding -                        Joseph P. Brennan                   Emily Griffith


Baltimore City College -                     Troy Marable, Jr.


Baltimore Lutheran -                           Aaron Chotikul                       Catherine Kennedy


Baltimore Polytechnic -                      Christopher Acab                    Breonna Brewer


Boys’ Latin -                                       John Davis


Bryn Mawr -                                                                                       Teona Hanson


Calvert Hall -                                      Robert D. Proctor


Cardinal Gibbons -                              Ryan Staton


Carver Center for Arts & Tech. -                                                        Melanie Muszelik


Carver Vo-Tech. -                               Justin Williams                        Kenesha Thomas


Catholic High -                                                                                   Adrianne Williams


Catonsville High -                               Greg Meyd                              Nicole Chupka


Chesapeake High -                              Paul Inskeep III                      Keirsta Newman


Digital Harbor High -                          Jimmy Williams                       Sylvia Mobley


Dr. Samuels L. Banks High -             Michael Phillips                       Mozell Brockington


Dulaney High -                                   Gregory T. Flanders                Natalie C. Martino


Dunbar High -                                     Richard Chavis                       Rebecca M. Crawford


Dundalk High -                                   Kevin Allen                             Hortensia Montoya


Eastern Tech. High -                           Jonathan Butta                                    Hope Parto     


Edmondson/Westside -                       Anthony Christian                  Shaneka Baker


Forest Park High -                               Isaiah C. Nicholson                 Kadeen T. Edmond


Franklin High -                                    Ryan Mays                              Krista Frost


Frederick Douglass High -                  Allen Horton                           Tanesha Williams


Friends School -                                  Robbie Miller                          Jennifer Schmidt


Garrison Forest -                                                                                 Blair Station


Gilman School -                                  Mark Clel