"Family" - Reflections on Humanics - Dec 11, 1997

This column, titled “Family,” is part of a series of reflections written by Springfield College’s Distinguished Professor of Humanics Joel Dearing on December 11, 1997.Dearing was Springfield College’s Distinguished Professor of Humanics during the 1997-1998 academic year. During this time, he started a weekly column in the Springfield Student newspaper called, “Reflections on Humanics.” In his column from the week of December 11, 1997, Dearing starts off by describing a story based on a young boy named David, a “spirited” youth but always learning the hard way. He was the son of a preacher, and his father worked for several years with many health problems until he died when David was eight. David grew up to be a troubled, street kid and was always skipping school. In junior high he channeled some of his energy into team sports. He competed in national championships in cross country and track in both high school and college. David’s mom died when he was 17, and David was on his own. He found a way to get through college, served in the ROTC, and married a woman named Doris. Afterwards he made a career teaching and coaching, and later he shifted to public school administration. He grew up to be an amazing father. Dearing reveals at the end of his reflection that he learned a lot about the importance of family from David and Doris Dearing since they were there for him all those years. Dearing’s revelation that David was in fact his brother supports his statement about the truth that we all have different family experiences, and not all are pleasant. Despite this, Dearing concludes that the source for his optimism and enthusiasm started with his parents, as the family experience does help lay the foundation for the future. Dearing earned his BS from Springfield College in 1979 and taught as an associate professor of Physical Education at the college. Dearing also coached women’s volleyball for 22 seasons (1989-2010). He finished his career with a win-loss record of 595-196 and a .752 winning percentage. Dearing was the recipient of several different Coach of the Year honors throughout the years