NHTI Athletic Hall of Fame
It is rare when our next inductee is speechless. I only wish I captured this on video to show everyone here a special moment in time when I informed Don of his selection as one of our inaugural Hall of Fame inductees. Several moments of silence and astonishments. His wife Karen finally had to interject and speak for him. He was showing real emotion and astonishment at his selection to our very first Hall of Fame induction ceremony.
Anyone who really knows Don Welford knows he is a man of deep emotion, devotion and high positive energy. That special energy reflected positively on all of his teams at both the high school and college level.
And to define success in “Welford’s World”, it was all about the effort, energy and preparation for one of his teams and all of his players to be judged on success. Coach Welford put a great deal of emphasis on team and the team’s reputation. Our men’s soccer program’s reputation of being a worthy opponent on the regional and national level was another achievement.
His efforts and abilities as a coach to “strategize” also proved to be a strength. Sometimes the best laid plans need to be blown up. What might that mean? A new formation and placement of key players in new or different positions in the middle of the season could spell disaster. But success would follow and the players would buy into the new approach. This is not an easy task for any coach but Don Welford is very adept at making this look easy.
Don and I met because of an article published in the Sunday NH sports section of the Boston Globe about my duties here at NHTI.
We met a week after the article on a Sunday morning in December and Don joined NHTI serving one year as Mark Dickson’s assistant coach. A year later, he took over as head coach and the rest is history.
We beefed up the soccer schedule to attract NH and regional athletes to the program. Don proved to be a quick learner on the recruiting trail attracting good players fulfilling his dream of building strong small college soccer power here.
Competition was important to Don Welford. Yes. He wanted to win every match. He would use symbolism to connect with the team such a chart or a wooden stick gadget to connect on the teams season long goals and accomplishments.
Coach Welford paid attention to details. How high was the grass on the field? This correlated directly to the type of team we would put on the field from year to year. Fast team, short grass. Slower team, longer grass.
A team road trip meant a great story coming back. Pumpkins! Yes! A good long story to be shared with the early teams he coached here coming back from Unity stopping the bus in October to buy a $1.00 pumpkin for every player, manager and even the bus driver. And yes …we always won at Unity.
Outgoing and friendly with a very competitive streak. Don’s teams were a great reflection of the competitiveness and high energy. The outstanding coaching record, conference championships, coach of the year awards speak for themselves.
But the bigger picture with Don Welford and the impact on NHTI men’s soccer was beyond the soccer pitch. The understanding that the student athlete experience with travel, building lifelong relationships and developing young men who will go on to be successful in life were the challenges that he enjoyed the most.
An NHTI Orientation meant that Don would meet his future players and parents in the Bistro for a coffee, snack at 7:30 AM before the busy day would begin. Then Don would shuffle off to work. Don understood that recruiting his team was important but he would also assist with every other NHTI team.
Relationships in sports can help bridge the gap in many ways with life. Don’s sense of humor, ability to build the relationships with his fellow coaches, athletes and fans has always made him a special NHTI representative. Please note the lack of mentioning with officials. This was certainly not Don’s favorite area of discussion.
Don recently moved to Gilmanton, NH with his wife Karen. Their two children Corey and Katie with their families and grandchildren are in attendance tonight.
On behalf of NHTI Athletics, let’s welcome coach Don Welford on stage for his induction to the NHTI Athletic Hall of Fame
