Telge teaches tennis, as well as life lessons

As my time at Central comes to an end, I think about how just successful my graduating class was at sports. We won Turkey Bowls, state championships in boys soccer, hockey, and basketball, as well as many playoff berths in girls soccer, softball, tennis, and basketball. And as nice as these memories are to us, and me, I believe that these wont be the memories we remember. It will be the life lessons we learned from the sport, experiences, and the coaches. Throughout my four years at Central I played tennis for Mark “Coach” Telge, and during this time not only did he help me grow as a tennis player, but as a human being.

Before I talk about how great of a guy Coach is, it would be unjust to discuss the relationship we have. From day one we have been giving each other a hard time, whether it was about how the tennis balls looked, or how he had a cat. During each one of my years he always picked on me about one certain thing: my freshman year because I didn't know how to jump rope, sophomore year when I was just lazy, junior year when I just stopped caring, or my senior year when half of the comments he made to me were about how thankful he was I was graduating. Though at times I wondered why I took his crap, it was because I knew deep down two things: he was trying to make me a better person, and he was also right about some things.

Joe Paterno once said, “What is a coach? We are teachers. Educators. We have the same obligations as all teachers, except we probably have more influence over young people than anybody but their families. And, in a lot of cases, more than their families.” It is an understatement to say that Coach hasn't had an effect on my life, and how I live it. He taught me how to be dedicated; over my four years of playing Central tennis, I could count the amount of times coach ashen been to a match or practice on a single hand and anytime he hasn't been there it is because of a doctors appointment. He taught me that in order to be successful in tennis, or in life, there is no such thing as easy street. Whether it was to put in the extra time jumping rope, or serving more, maybe I didn't do it during my time at Central, but he made me learn that this was the only key to success.

Over his forty plus years of coaching, he has won countless team, singles, and doubles

state championships, but has never gone out of his way for recognition. Whenever you talk to the man, even if he doesn't like you, he will be polite, kind, and funny. He lives by the golden rule: treat others the way you would like to be treated. I may not be the person I am today because of him pushing me to be the greatest athlete, and person I can be. If there is anything I wish I could have done for him over my four year span, it would have been to win a state championship for him. If there is anything that this man deserves it is to for him to be appreciated more, instead of the school and the team taking him for granted, we should be looking back and seeing just how much he has done for this team, and community. Tennis is a great sport, but he makes it more then a game, he make sure that the way you act on the court, carries off of the court.

One reference that he always uses is, “Who do you think I am Nostradamus?” Well he may be old enough to be Nostradamus, but to this point in time he has not announced any prophecies I am aware of. But there is one prophecy I would like to make: that many years down the road, when I am no longer attending Central High School I will look back to my time at Central, and it won’t be playing tennis I will remember. It will be the man who taught me how to play, the one who could make me laugh whenever he felt like it, and the man who was kind enough to give me a cashew on a long bus ride home one time. I will remember Mark Telge because he made me a better person, and I would not have the drive in me today if it was not because of him. So even though he will probably kill me for this, I love you coach, and I hope one of these days you will give me a hug.

#dedication #tennis #manchester #central #thelittlegreen