Sat, Nov 21 2009
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Published January 18, 2009 08:12 pm - ASHTABULA — In the coming days, weeks and years, tributes, memorials and monuments will be made to SS. John and Paul assistant football coach John Buskirk. The multitudes of people — including those who never met him — that were touched in even the smallest way by the teacher and football coach have been relaying stories to anyone that will listen about the impact he had on their lives. Legacy is all the Buzz Buskirk’s spirit will live on BOB ETTINGER Star Beacon A Bob Ettinger column...
ASHTABULA — In the coming days, weeks and years, tributes, memorials and monuments will be made to SS. John and Paul assistant football coach John Buskirk. The multitudes of people — including those who never met him — that were touched in even the smallest way by the teacher and football coach have been relaying stories to anyone that will listen about the impact he had on their lives. That impact was profound and no doubt has changed people’s lives. But it pales in comparison to the everlasting effect Buskirk, who was laid to rest Saturday in Mount Pleasant Cemetery following a mass of Christian burial at Assumption Catholic Church in Geneva after losing his battle with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL), had on the students and athletes under his tutelage. “As teachers, you don’t know the influence you have over children,” SJP Principal Bina Larson said. “Sometimes, you don’t think you have any at all. I read recently that children don’t remember what you taught them, but how you made them feel. Not too long ago, one of the kids came back, one of the girls, I never had her in class, said I always made her feel happy here. “I taught John. I was always proud of the man he was and of the direction he’d taken. I’m proud of the school and any part that we shared in that. I’m proud he shared part of his life with us. You always remember how people made you feel.” The impact Buskirk, a 1993 St. John graduate, had on his students and athletes was immediate. He had a way of letting them know he cared. He gained their respect. Most of all he gained their trust. “Buskirk was my track coach at Harvey and was one of the most inspirational people I have ever met,” Ashley Schaefer wrote as a comment on the Buskirks’ blog after learning of John’s passing. “You could tell that he loved what he was doing, and it quickly gained him so much respect from his students and athletes.” Buskirk was the exact kind of educator and coach every parent hopes his or her children have. “I was honored that my son played for John and Devlin (Culliver, the current Harvey coach),” Harvey athletic director Mike Mohner said. “As a father, you hope your child will forge a relationship with a coach. I’m 100 percent certain (Mick) will instill those life lessons he learned from John in his own children and other young people he might come in contact with.” The classroom Buskirk loved being a teacher even more than he loved coaching football. After he was first diagnosed with ALL, his biggest regret was that he would have to leave the classroom he taught history in at Harvey High School in order to begin the process of beating the disease. One of his greatest thrills was returning to that classroom after beating the disease into remission the first time. “It does shed a light on all teachers and educators and the impact they have on kids,” Mike Mohner said. “John taught (his students) a lot.” Almost universally, the students Buskirk taught mention his sense of humor as a big reason they call him their favorite teacher. They mention how he was always smiling and trying to make sure they had a good time in class. 
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