SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
April 5, 2023
Sullivan’s Salvos 4/11/23
In this edition:
*RIP Chris Kemp
*Tornado Damage
*Passover
*Happy 76th Birthday Gary!
*MLK Reading
*Iowa Women’s Basketball
*Did You Know?
*RIP Chris Kemp
I wanted to note the passing of Chris Kemp, who along with her late husband Bob was an inaugural member of the Johnson County Democratic Party Hall of Fame. Chris ran the local blood donor program for over 15 years, and was a reliable community volunteer. RIP Chris.
*Tornado Damage
As we all celebrate women’s basketball, please don’t forget that tornadoes/winds did significant damage in Johnson County last Friday. There were only two people who report being injured, but there is significant property damage throughout the County.
Coralville had many homes and businesses damaged near the mall. About 50 people were made homeless as a result of the storm. Hills suffered significant damage, and several folks were made homeless there. Solon had significant damage to a few homes and businesses. (Johnson County lost its sand/salt storage facility just north of Solon.) And rural residents near Joetown, Frytown, and Cosgrove all suffered damage. Power was out for a long time.
If you or someone you know suffered any damages, please contact Johnson County Emergency Management to start the FEMA disaster paperwork.
Thanks to all the public safety, city and county crews, and utility workers who responded to these disasters. Your work is appreciated!
*Passover
A Kosher and happy Passover to all my Jewish friends. I am still brushing up on my Hebrew calendar; please know that I wish you all the best!
*Happy 76th Birthday Gary!
Happy Birthday to local activist, Labor Leader, journalist, Scrabble Club President, and general man-about-town Gary Sanders, who turns 76 on April 14. If you know Gary, please drop him a line and wish him a Happy Birthday!
*MLK Reading
I had the opportunity last Tuesday to join members of Veterans for Peace at the Iowa City Public Library and read a passage from MLK’s speech, “Beyond Viet Nam – A Time to Break Silence.”
It was a moving tribute to MLK on the anniversary of his death, and an important message across the ages.
*Iowa Women’s Basketball
I have mentioned before in Salvos that despite my love of sports, I try not to write about it much here. But the Iowa Women’s Basketball Team has pretty much forced me to write about them!
What a season! Second in the nation, and captured the hearts of fans everywhere! I know some people are upset with the officiating, but LSU made 65% of their 3-point attempts. They scored 102 points. Sometimes you just need to tip your hat.
Congratulations, Iowa, on your best season ever!
My experience with the Iowa Women’s Basketball program is long and deep. I attended my first game in either ’78 or ’79. Iowa was coached by Lark Birdsong, the program’s inaugural coach. They were led by the great Cindy Haugejorde, a Minnesota prep who became a first team All-American and ended her career as Iowa’s all-time leading scorer and rebounder.
The game was played in the North Gym of the Field House. I’m not joking; there were about 5 small sets of portable metal bleachers on the home side, and two on the visitors. Had every seat been taken (and they were not) the place might have held 200 people. It cost exactly zero to get in, and there were no concessions.
Haugejorde had something like 28 points and 13 rebounds, which was a typical game for her, and led Iowa to victory over Mount Mercy. That is correct; Iowa was playing Mount Mercy. But, Mount Mercy was quite good then! And you have to understand, the NCAA did not even recognize women’s sports at this time!
I know it sounds like I’m talking about a game from 1928, but it was 1978. And the NCAA was still 4 years away from overseeing women’s sports. This game was played under the auspices of the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW). The AIAW was a very forward-thinking organization that simply got overwhelmed by the NCAA and their money. But in ’78, they were in charge.
A few years later, I arrived at the UI the same year as C. Vivian Stringer. Stringer immediately put Iowa Women’s Basketball on the map. And I had a great seat! You see, I did sports, news, and a little DJing at KRUI 89.7 FM, the student radio station. When Stringer and I started, KRUI had the broadcast rights to women’s basketball. So I did color and/or play by play for some of the best teams Iowa ever fielded.
In doing so, we got to know many of the players. Lisa Becker had been a local legend at CR Jefferson. The next year she was joined by Michelle “Ice” Edwards, who until Megan Gustafson and Caitlyn Clark came along, was without a doubt Iowa’s greatest player. Another group of stars were added the next year with Iowan Shanda Berry, Jolette Law, and Franthea Price.
Price was interesting to me. She was an incredible player – two-time First Team All American. Price could do it all, and much like Caitlyn Clark, did not lack confidence. She came to Iowa from Detroit, and was identified by some as having an “attitude.” In reality, Price was a social justice advocate before we used that phrase. She did not suffer fools, and she was the African American player most likely to call out the many aggressions a black female would face in Iowa City at that time. Even now, the UI is about 77% white. When I got here in the early 80s? Try 94% white. There were additional issues of gender and sexuality at play. It had to be difficult.
I got to know Price just a bit – she made it clear that she did not need me as a friend. She was tough, and pretty closed off to an immature white farm boy like me. It was not her job to educate me, and she didn’t try. As announcers, we had sometimes referred to her as “Fran” or “Frannie.” She made it clear that neither was acceptable. We played pick-up games together and against each other – yes, she was much better than me! But she did take note that I knew something about the game. When I graduated from high school, my whole school – kindergarten through 12 – had ZERO minorities. ZERO. I feel as though getting to know Franthea Price just a bit really opened my eyes to a larger world.
I never quit loving Iowa Women’s Basketball, always following closely over the years. Each of my daughters had a teammate at City High who went on to play for the Hawkeyes. Ever since my radio days, I have pretty much either A) been at Carver; B) watched on TV; or C) listened on the radio. I am always quick to go to the box score after every game. I have been hooked for a long, long time. And it has been a fun team to follow.
Then you have 2023. What can I say? Caitlyn Clark has had the single greatest year and career of any player in any team sport in University of Iowa history. Better than Nile Kinnick – the best, period. Only a few wrestlers might be able to claim a better career.
And the team? Not only the most successful, but the most fun to watch team in UI history! What else is there to say but Congratulations and Thanks! I have loved this team for a long, long time, and this is the cherry on top of a 45-year fandom for me!
*DID YOU KNOW? Iowa has won 24 NCAA championships in wrestling, five in rifle (all between 1911 and 1946), one in field hockey (1986), one in men’s gymnastics (1969), and one in women’s track and field (1924). Iowa claims a part of 5 NCAA football championships, but each of those were determined by sportswriters.
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---Rod
posted by Rod Sullivan @ 4:08 PM
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