As you are reading this, I’m at my mom’s in DeLand, probably trying to get some rest on a sleeper sofa.
Christmas has always been a special time for my family. I grew up a Southern Baptist, and my parents always made sure my sisters and I understood first that Christmas is when we celebrate the birth of Jesus.
They also made sure we had our Santa Claus fantasy, which is a wonderful part of being a child.
My Santa fantasy was short-lived, as my older sister told me the truth about him when I was still in the first grade. I would have found out the truth the next year anyway, as I walked in on my parents setting out gifts.
Yes, Christmas has always been a time of giving and receiving. With that in mind, I offer a few gifts that, if it were up to me, I would give local teams, coaches and athletes in the new year.
My first gift goes to Crestview High School’s football team, and Coach Tim Hatten. My gift for the Bulldogs would be a winning season and a trip to the playoffs for the first time since 2010.
I would give Baker School’s football team and its coach, Matt Brunson, a fifth state football championship. The Gators lose a lot of seniors, but Brunson has the team to a point where Baker no longer rebuilds; it simply reloads.
I would give Baker’s volleyball team a 14th-straight district championship and a run through the playoffs without Sneads standing in the way. I think a state championship would follow.
If I could, I’d give Laurel Hill School’s boys basketball team a win over Paxton on Jan. 22, when the rivals meet in Laurel Hill.
I would give first-year Hobo baseball coach Andrew Wirth some experienced players the team has been missing the past few years. I would also give him patience to build the Hobo baseball program because it will take time.
My next gift is for former Crestview baseball great Blake Dean as he starts his career as the head coach at the University of New Orleans as the country's youngest Division I coach. My gift for Dean would be a long, successful career coaching the game he loves and played so well.
Finally, I would give each of us the gift promised by the angels to the shepherds on the hill outside Bethlehem some 2,000 years ago. That gift is “Peace on earth, good will to all men.”
Merry Christmas and God bless.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: DICKSON: My Christmas gift list for Crestview, Baker, Laurel Hill teams