It’s Miller Time! Another Morrie Miller weekend is upon us, and, thanks to continued community support, the upcoming weekend event promises to be another resounding success, benefiting Winona area youth athletics. A banquet and golf tournament highlight the weekend’s festivities and provide many opportunities to get involved in a great community event.

The success of the Morrie Miller weekend is a real tribute to Morrie the man. A standout athlete at Winona Senior High School, Morrie participated in football, basketball and track and field. Morrie’s gracious sportsmanship was matched by his tenacity on the field and his fierce competitive spirit. Teammates still fondly recall Morrie pushing them during practice to run more and more sprints, shouting “Keep Going! Keep Going!,” until he was the only one left standing, allowing him to breeze across the finish line in first place. It’s humbling to watch the community embrace

Morrie’s competitive spirit and legacy and “keep going” by supporting Winona youth athletics. Morrie was not only a phenomenal athlete who went on to play football at the University of Minnesota, but also a true scholar who earned his Doctorate in Education. Morrie doggedly pursued his passions in life, and he would be proud of how fervently the community has come together to help Winona’s youth

While truly a gifted athlete and scholar, Morrie’s true passion in life was his family, especially his wife Cindy and his beloved children, Sarah and Jacob. Family always came first for Morrie, and when times were tough and his mother needed him to help run the family business, Morrie gave up his life as an academic and returned home to Winona without a second thought.

Sadly, the only obstacle Morrie could not overcome was his battle with a rare form of cancer that took him from us far too soon.

The Morrie Miller Athletic Foundation, though, carries on Morrie’s great legacy by providing area youth athletic opportunities in over 20 different programs. The Foundation embraces Morrie’s life philosophy of helping children and leaving the world a better place. The Foundation provides state-of-the-art strength and conditioning training to youth of all ages, and, more importantly, gives them a chance to belong to a team. Morrie believed extracurricular activities could provide opportunities to learn life’s lessons that could not be taught in classrooms, and the Foundation embraces this idea. Through the Foundation and the help of Winona Area Public Schools, Cotter Schools, Winona State University and other private contributions, the Winona community has given students the ultimate outdoor classroom — the Winona Community Athletic Complex at Paul Giel Field. This project was dedicated on April 13, 2010 and serves as a great example of what can be accomplished when a community truly works together to make the world a better place.

Through our participation in the activities in the Morrie Miller Athletic Foundation weekend, we all become part of a very important team striving to uphold Morrie’s legacy. Your contributions make it easier for local schools and athletic organizations to provide unparalleled opportunities for Winona youth. As we go forward thinking of how we can leave Winona better off than we found it, we too must embrace Morrie’s mantra and “Keep Going, Keep Going,” and continue providing great opportunities for Winona’s students.

So, on behalf of the Morrie Miller Athletic Foundation, we sincerely thank the many contributors and participants in the Foundation’s activities. You make Winona a wonderful community and help young students achieve goals and dreams they may never have before deemed possible.