Many years ago, I had Mr. Hugentobler as a cross-country running coach and Algebra teacher. He inspired those of us on the team by unifying us and encouraging us to push ourselves further than we thought was possible. Through his coaching, we grew to be a strong group in practice as well as during the off-season.
Mark taught us to not only work hard for success, but also to play hard. This mantra helped us to earn two state championships.
One story that characterizes Coach Hugentobler is the year my little brother decided not to join the team. In my family, we had to buy our own athletic gear and he didn’t have enough money for good running shoes. Coach Hugentobler bought his shoes and then made me promise to take the credit so that he could remain anonymous.
Now I have completed 14 years of teaching. Looking back on my reasons for entering this profession, I credit Coach Hugentobler and his great example for inspiring us so many years ago.
-Daniel Francom