Small, rural towns have often had an uphill battle in the past 50 years.  Agriculture became more mechanized and people moved off the farm.  There was seldom enough industry to bring new jobs to replace those that were lost.  The youth complained there was nothing to do.  The adults complained about having to go out of town for movies or a special dinner.

Occasionally the sun breaks out of the clouds and reminds us of why we love it here.  We love the people, the outdoors, and the friendly people.  There was no time in recent memory when it was better to be from Donalsonville or Seminole County than this past weekend.

The Elementary School had its annual play over the weekend.   It was fitting that on the 25th Anniversary of Dr. Seuss’s last book, the play was Seussical Jr., a children’s adaptation of the Broadway play.

Like most men my age, without children or grandchildren in the play, I imagined all the many other things I could be doing rather than heading to the school auditorium.   Once again, I was floored by the incredible talent of our young people.  It was stunningly good, summed up with one of the theme songs “Anything is Possible”.

Friday night’s performance was moved to Thursday night because the Seminole County Indians were playing in the finals of the Class AA basketball tournament in Macon.  That’s right, the finals.  Just one year removed from Class A, one of the smallest schools in AA was playing for the big prize.

It seemed like half the town was in Macon.  The students massed in the end of the court.  Green and White was everywhere and the team let no one down.   Down early in the game, the Indians kept their cool, pulled ahead and showed their poise and confidence when Crawford County tied it up near the end of the game.

The game had everything; dunks, fancy dribbling, blind passes and teamwork.  The Indians sank their free throws when there was more pressure on the players than they had ever had in their young lives.  They won and accepted the trophy to the thunderous applause of hundreds of their supporters.

Dan Jessop, the minister of the First Presbyterian Church, was also a champion this weekend.  He was named the Class A Champion of the Highland Games in Panama City, winning 5 of 7 events.  You may not know that much about these Scottish games, but trust me, you and I could never do it.

All three of these celebrations came about because of individual hard work and the dedication of so many people.  Success like this doesn’t just happen; it is earned.

Hopefully, it made the many hours of practice and effort worthwhile to all involved.

When it was time for our congregation to speak of the joys of the week in church this Sunday, the iconic song by Queen, “We are the Champions”, erupted over the loudspeakers.  The younger kids had made posters saying SCHS was #1.   Coach G, whose family attends the Presbyterian Church, received a spontaneous standing ovation as the music played.

Those two songs, “Anything is Possible” and “You are the Champions”, said more than I can about a special weekend in the life of this community.   You are indeed all champions and we are so proud of you!