Gary's kids: Trainer battling cancer honored at Ike assembly

YAKIMA, Wash. -- When Gary Hirst was called to the principal's office Friday morning, he thought it was for a meeting about sick leave, scheduling and benefits.

He was unaware that the entire student body -- some 2,000 high schoolers -- was waiting for him in the gym or that he would be passing through a tunnel of cheerleaders' waving pompoms into a room decorated with posters, declaring: "You're the best, Gary," "Gary rocks," and "Best trainer ever."

But, about 20 minutes later, at the start of what's normally the Cadet Connections advisory period, he discovered the real reason Principal Stacey Locke summoned him to school.

Eisenhower High School was hosting an all-school assembly in his honor. The band played. Former coaches returned to campus. Students presented a skit and chanted his name.

And the longtime Ike athletic trainer was given a lifetime achievement award -- as well as a
free pass to all games, meets and matches -- from the Columbia Basin Big Nine Athletic Confer-
ence.

"If he knew, he wouldn't show up. He's just that kind of guy," Locke said. "He's touched the life of almost every kid in the school. This was a way for us to give back and inspire and motivate his spirit to get better and get back."

Ike's beloved first-aid, go-to guy is battling cancer. But he would like nothing more than to be back in the classroom teaching health and sports medicine or standing on the sidelines, tending to student athletes.

"He puts the kids way ahead of the game," said Chuck Bodeen, a retired Ike coach who returned to campus Friday to laud his best friend. "He belongs here."

Before Hirst's wife, Becky Robins, wheeled him into the gym through the tunnel of rustling pompoms, assistant principal Jim Wright prepared the students for a standing ovation: "We are going to let him know how much Eisenhower High School loves him."

And when Wright gave the signal -- "OK! Here he comes!" -- students got on their feet, applauding the man who taped their ankles, braced their knees and assessed their injuries.

"All the athletes at Eisenhower are Gary Hirst's kids," said Carol Finney, a retired Ike coach who was in attendance.

But his care extended beyond the players. "He takes care of all of us -- the teachers, the staff, the coaches," said leadership teacher Lauri Anderson. "He's missed."

Hirst, 58, has been on medical leave since last fall. He'd rather be at the school where he's worked for the last 16 years.

"He's always looking out for everybody else," said 18-year-old James Lopez, a quarterback and point guard who was among the many waiting to give Hirst a hug following Friday's assembly.

"No matter who you are, what you do, you're not going to play until he's ready," Lopez said. "He's going to follow the rules" -- on and off the field.

A student twists an ankle on the stairs or faints in class, "Go get Gary," said security monitor John Gilmore, who's among the first to respond to school emergencies.

"Gary's our go-to man," he said. "He did everything, not only for athletes but students that were in trouble."

Friday, it was their turn to take care of him -- whistling, cheering and uplifting the athletic trainer with the strong hands and solid work ethic.

Locke and Ike's administrators gave him a letterman's blanket -- blue and red, the Cadet colors -- embroidered with his name, the sports medicine crest and the saying: "Get better. Get back."

Locke wrapped the blanket over Hirst's knees and hugged him.

Back in her office, after the accolades and ovations, the Yakima School District's 2008 Educator of the Year said he had been surprised by the show of support.

"I got to laugh and cry," he said. "I'm just honored everybody did this for me."

* Adriana Janovich can be reached at 509-577-7653 or ajanovich@yakimaherald.com.