Trojan Tribune
Track dedicationTuesday, May 22, 2012 By By Jasmin Ramirez
On Saturday April 28th before the Alisal invitational, a monument on the track was dedicated to William (Bill) Kearny, Alisal’s first Principal. The creation of the monument took up to a year to complete, and some of the very first Alisal graduates had a hand in helping to make it a reality. Mark Norris was the architect behind the monument; he worked on it for about three to four weeks. “I just formulized the committees ideas and tried to keep up with the changes,” Norris said, he also made a banner that is hanging on the press box, the drafting skills that Norris learned at Alisal helped him with the job. Many other graduates helped out with putting the whole thing together, from donating the money, to helping to make the monument a reality. The inscription from Kearny reads, - “Winners don’t have to win a race they just have to finish it.” Bill Kearny was Alisal’s very first principal, but in addition to that he was a track coach, teacher and an Assistant Superintendent of personnel. “He loved the track; there was nothing he loved better than being out on the track.” Helen Kearny, wife of Mr. Kearny said. According to previous students Mr. Kearny greeted everyone at the door, and he knew everyone’s name, it wasn’t just the trouble makers. He was a man who was a mentor to many not just a teacher or coach. Many thought it was a great tribute to a great man. English teacher Jane Albano said it was” a special tribute to a special man, he was the principal when I was here and he was also the principal that hired me.” Kearny may have been Alisal’s first principal, but he wasn’t just that he was dedicated to Track and even after he retired he would start the races at the Bill Kearny invitational at Hartnell. The monument is an important reminder of a man who had an impact in both the classroom and on the track. |