By Stephen Coleman | Original Article Here
Courtesy PhotoAn early version of the cover of “Heart of A Champion,” a story of famed high school football coach Bill Freeman that is set to release next week.
It wasn’t a full year ago that Jennifer Freeman’s desire to recognize and display her late father’s life and successful coaching career led her down a path that seemed quite foreign to her.
After some lengthy thought and exploration, however, her project will officially reach it’s climax soon as “Heart of a Champion: The Life and Legacy of Coach Bill Freeman” will be available on Amazon by the end of the month.
“It was just something I wanted to see if I could make happen,” Freeman said. “I didn’t really know which route to go.”
Bill Freeman, after a playing career that saw him qualify as a four-year letterman at offensive guard for the Emporia State football program, began a journey that entailed 36 years of coaching. Freeman’s teams went 242-81-3, as he oversaw state championships in three different classifications, including 16 years at Lawrence High School, where he won five state titles.
He was inducted into the Emporia State Athletics Hall of Honor in 1996 and the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame in Wichita in 2014.
After stepping down from the coaching platform, Freeman battled through prostate cancer and worked his way back to health after a quadruple-bypass operation.
He died late in 2015 after a battle with Alzheimer’s disease.
A citation from a press release announcing the book’s release speaks to the synopsis.
“Jennifer Freeman always knew her father was a great man, but after his death, she desired to share her loving memoir about him with the world,” it reads. “She is passionate about raising awareness for Alzheimer’s in hopes of one day finding a cure. She also hopes that her story will provide hope and encouragement for others who are suffering from the loss of a loved one to Alzheimer’s.”
When pondering a book, Freeman discovered the stories were almost endless —and wanted them to be told. Sitting down and chatting was one thing, writing it all out, well that was another creature altogether.
So Freeman sought the help of a ‘ghost-writer,’ and found one, Tina Wendling, in the Kansas City area.
“I can tell the story, but to write it was a little different,” Freeman said. “I met with her, told her the story and she was on board.”
Freeman gave her information and left it to Wendling to interview several other parties, with some other historical research done through old newspapers and such.
The end result is the tale of a local icon, condensed into six chapters and more than 100 pages.
“It was what I wanted,” Freeman said. “We put it together ... (and) the response has just been amazing.
“It’s not just based on my story, it’s also players, it’s former coaches (and) friends.”
That list includes Lynn Dickey, who played for Coach Freeman at Osawatomie High School before playing at K-State and eventually serving as the quarterback for the Houston Oilers and Green Bay Packers over a 13-year career.
The support poured in to help the project gather its content and pick up steam in completion. Now that it’s hitting the presses, Freeman hopes there will be many who are drawn to the story of a man from Burlington whose legacy is spread throughout the game of football, even beyond the Kansas borders.
“It’s been an amazing journey,” she said. “Stories I’ve heard, a lot of them, I didn’t know existed.
“I appreciate all the friends and everybody that’s helped me with this journey. There have been highs and lows to it, for sure, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
The book will be available on Amazon.com starting next week.