KINGDOM CITY -- Former North Callaway Thunderbirds coach Terry Metcalf was named in the school's 2023-24 Hall of Fame class; the ceremony occurred Friday at North Callaway High School.
Metcalf was a coach for North Callaway between the fall of 1983 and the spring of 2015. He started teaching kindergarten through eighth-grade physical education at Williamsburg and was the junior high school's football, girls and boys basketball and softball coach (1983-1992).
In 1988 and until 2000, Metcalf coached the Ladybirds high school basketball team while teaching physical education, muscle conditioning and lifetime sports classes between 1991 to sometime in the 2000s.
Additionally, Metcalf was North Callaway's Renaissance director (1992-94), boys basketball coach (1992-93), assistant football coach (no date provided), first baseball coach (1995-98), softball coach (2000-07) and athletics/activities director (2002-15).
Metcalf shared some of his highlights and memories at North Callaway.
"I have so many great memories from my time at North Callaway," Metcalf said. "I guess coaching-wise, a highlight would be reaching the Final Four in girls basketball in 1990. I really enjoyed coaching all sports. Pushing students to be their best was a lot of fun.
"I also enjoyed my class time. I tried to make all students feel comfortable in my classes, regardless of their athletic abilities. I was also blessed with many great supportive player's parents! Starting new programs in volleyball, baseball, wrestling and cross country were some of the highlights during my years as activities director. Also, working with the coaches to better their programs was also very enjoyable."
Accomplishing all those feats, Metcalf mentioned, led to his Hall of Fame induction. He explained what it meant to him.
"I'm not a big personal recognition guy," Metcalf said. "I'm more of a team-type guy. With that being said, being inducted to the Hall of Fame means I had a super team for 32 years -- players, students, parents, coaches, faculty, administration -- we did a pretty darn good job!"
The Thunderbirds having a Hall of Fame shows how much the school cherishes its history. Metcalf described what it meant to him to be Thunderbird proud.
"It means seeing a former student at a restaurant, wedding or at Walmart and getting to talk about all the great memories we share," Metcalf said. "It means I will bleed green for the rest of my life!"
Metcalf provided a message for his past players and co-workers.
"I cherish all the memories that I have of our time together," Metcalf said. "Thank you for all of your hard work, dedication and friendships!"
Focusing on the present, Metcalf advised current and future Thunderbirds.
"Don't be afraid to try new things," Metcalf said. "Participate in as many activities/sports as you can while you can. Give it all you got! And, don't forget -- IT'S A GREAT DAY TO BE A THUNDERBIRD!!!"
The content above came from North Callaway's Hall of Fame program. Metcalf had an interview with the Fulton Sun during the Hall of Fame ceremony. Here are some of his questions and answers.
Question: What does it mean to you to be inducted into the North Callaway Hall of Fame?
"I guess longevity is the first thing," Metcalf said. "I take a lot of pride in this school; I still do. My son coaches at Harrisburg, and every time I see him in a Harrisburg shirt, it drives me crazy. Just all the kids that I've got to coach, even the kids in my classes and stuff. It's just a lot of nice kids in this district. A lot of nice parents, administration. It's just been a good, good career."
Question: How did you get your start as a coach?
"I was hired by a boy who sang in my wedding on a Saturday," Metcalf said. "His dad was the principal at Williamsburg. And on Friday at the rehearsal, the son told me his dad had a PE job, junior high PE job. I interviewed the next day and got the job. At Williamsburg, I taught K through eight PE for, I think, nine years before I moved up here to the high school."
Question: What was your most memorable moment(s) as a coach at North Callaway?
"My most memorable was girls basketball," Metcalf said. "We made it to the Final Four, got third in the state in 1990. I found out the morning we left on the bus to go to Springfield that my wife was pregnant with our first child. So it was quite a weekend. A lot of Rolaids."
Question: Going into that (1990 girls basketball season), thoughts on that season as a whole? Any players that were standouts?
"We have five outstanding seniors in that group that have played together," Metcalf said. "Most of them all came from one school. We have three (middle) schools in the district. Most of them came from one school--just great, hard-working group.
"I started as head coach the year before, so I had them as juniors. We had a lot of success. Our junior year, their junior year, we had a good group in front of them, and we just worked really hard. Not great athletes, but man, they worked hard, and they were very smart. I can throw anything at them in practice, and they can do it in the game. They just overachievers for sure."
Question: What led to you starting the baseball program?
"Community, they were all into baseball," Metcalf said. "I had played baseball in high school, so that had to do with it too."
Metcalf joined Mike Emmons, a fellow coach he worked with, in North Callaway's 2023-24 Hall of Fame Class.
When Metcalf started the baseball team in 1995, Emmons was his assistant.
"A lot of the kids hadn't played baseball for three, four or five years," Metcalf said. "They hadn't played since they were little. At first, it was kind of a challenge. Kids worked hard; we worked on fundamentals. We got better as we went along; we got a lot more competitive."
Making Metcalf and Emmons induction special, they are the first two coaches to be inducted into North Callaway's Hall of Fame -- in its eighth ceremony. Metcalf was also part of the 1989-90 Ladybirds basketball team, inducted in 2019-20.