Editor's Note:  This is the most recent piece in a series of stories shared by Gorillas to Gorillas as we all embark upon this new "season" in our lives. These certainly are unprecedented times, for young and old alike. Our hope is for Gorilla student-athletes, past and present, coaches and members of Gorilla Nation to read these pieces, awaken their Gorilla memories and then compose their own story to share with us. There is strength in numbers.
 
This is Conference Championship Week – the most special time every year for our women's and men's track & field team.
 
There are certainly other competitions during a season, but the conference championship has always been special. It's the one that every athlete on the team knows they can contribute to. It's the competition that, in this sport that is considered by some to be an individual sport, even the casual fan can feel the incredible team intensity and unity.  It is really magical.
 
All year long we work, sacrifice and prepare, sharing that one common goal – to win a team championship. It's something we strive to do for each other and for all the Gorillas who came before us. Sometimes we win, and sometimes we don't, but it's always very special.
 
For me, it's a nerve-wracking, exciting, emotional and mostly sleepless week. As a coach, I live for that week.
 
For the first time in 41 years, I won't be part of a conference outdoor championship week at Pittsburg State.
 
It's something that crossed my mind weeks ago, in the days following March 12.  Late that afternoon with our team in Birmingham, Alabama – the day before the competition was scheduled to start, we received the heart-crushing news from the NCAA leadership that the Indoor Track & Field Championships had been canceled.  That was a punch in the gut to all of us, and was accompanied by the devastating news that all spring sport NCAA championships had been canceled as well.
 
I cannot express the sadness I felt for our athletes – especially our seniors.  It seemed like so much had been lost, but our kids handled this adversity the champion human beings they are. They make their coaches proud and bring honor to Pittsburg State.
 
It crossed my mind weeks ago - but now that (what would have been) conference championship week is here, the realization has hit home emotionally.  It hurts to be denied the opportunity for our team to compete for a conference outdoor championship, and of course all other competitions this spring. Especially for our seniors.
 
So, no winning, no losing, no competing this season. No doubt about it, winning is more fun than not winning, but I long ago came to realize that what really makes the conference championship special is not the winning or the losing and really not even the competing.  It's the quest. Not so much the destination, but the journey. We love our trophies and medals, but we cherish the journey, because that's when the truly important things are achieved.  
 
Every year, during conference week, many special memories return to me of teams and athletes from past years.  With a little extra time on my hands this year, I've been inundated with memories from my earliest days as an athlete here in the fall of 1979 to the current year. Great memories of competing, coaching, winning, losing, persevering, learning, and growing.
 
The "quarantine" has taken an opportunity away, but it has also given me an opportunity – an opportunity to pause during what would usually be a chaotic, exciting week of competition to reflect on my experiences here and to consider all that I have to be thankful for as a Gorilla. 
 
What I'm most thankful for about Pitt State is what makes it such an amazing place – people.  I met my wife, Janice, at Pittsburg State, and there is nothing for which I am more thankful or that has made a greater impact on my life.
 
I'm also thankful for all of the amazing people I have had the pleasure and privilege of working with here in my years at Pitt State, both as an athlete and as a coach. There are, of course, far too many to name, and I don't feel right about singling any out at the expense of not mentioning all the others.  At the top of that list are the hundreds upon hundreds of student athletes who have allowed me to share in their experience here – those who were my teammates and those whom I had the privilege to coach. What could possibly be more special and fulfilling than to take that journey with so many young men and women in which they chase their dreams, grow in character, and develop life-long friendships, while giving a big part of themselves to something "bigger than themselves?"
 
Allow me one exception to my previous statement about not mentioning names - I have to say it was a little extra special to have shared that coach-athlete journey with my daughter, Sarah.
 
I've also been blessed to have worked with many amazing people on our coaching staff over the years. I share a special bond with and a debt of gratitude to these men and women, who have given so much of themselves to our program and its mission.
 
There are also many others here who have made a strong impact on me and our program and have their own role in sharing that same journey with our student-athletes - coaches of other teams, athletic trainers, administrators, professors and supporters, and I am grateful and blessed for having known and worked with them.
 
The pandemic situation has denied us opportunities, but we can see it as the gift of an opportunity to gain perspective on what is truly important in life, to help us chart and navigate our journey and to be mindful of and thankful for the people we share that journey with, because they are what make it worth taking.

Every day is a great day to be a Gorilla!

Russ Jewett
 
Russ Jewett began his tenure as a full-time member of the PSU Athletic Department in 1985. Jewett assumed the positions of PSU head men's and women's track & field coach in 1987, PSU's head women's cross country coach in 1986 and head men's cross country coach in 1989. He also has served as an assistant athletic director since 1989, assuming the role of Senior Associate Athletic Director in 2011. Jewett has led Pitt State teams to a combined total of 49 MIAA titles over the years as well as the 2016 NCAA Division II Women's Outdoor Track & Field and the 2018 NCAA Division II Men's Indoor Track & Field National Championships.
 
Please share your own personal stories/thoughts via email to dwilkes@pittstate.edu. We want to share them! (PSU Athletics reserves the right to edit content for space and appropriateness. We cannot promise to publish every submission, but we will do our best.) Thanks Gorilla Nation!
 
Through the Eyes of a Gorilla Archives
Vol. I - Dan Wilkes, Associate AD/Communications (Apr. 3)
Vol. II - Levi Wyrick, Football/Track & Field Athlete (Apr. 7)
Vol. III - Amanda Davied, Women's Basketball Coach (Apr. 10)
Vol. IV - Chris Hanna, PSU Alum/Football Athlete (Apr. 13)
Vol. V - Jeff Moreland, PSU Alum/Football Athlete (Apr. 15)
Vol. VI - Emily Hanenberg, Volleyball Athlete (Apr. 17)
Vol. VII - Ashley Balazs, Softball Coach (Apr. 20)
Vol. VIII - Peter Euler, PSU Alum/CC T&F Athlete (Apr. 22)
Vol. IX - Caitlin Demarest, PSU Alum/WBB Athlete (Apr. 24)
Vol. X - Tyson Cushman, Baseball Athlete (Apr. 27)
Vol. XI - Oscar Gonzalez, PSU Alum/Men's Basketball Athlete (Apr. 29)