COMMENTS MADE BY SUSAN HAHN ON THE OCCASION OF DEDICATING THE MULTIPURPOSE ROOM TO THE MEMORY OF DON BARTEL
JUNE 8, 1984
When I first met Don Bartel, he was doing one of the things he did very well, urging kids to be involved, to try, and to try to do their best. Don was coaching a basketball team and invited our son David to join it. Don worked with him and his teammates. He encouraged them and he praised them, he encouraged them and he taught them, and then he encouraged them some more. Being on the team was a wonderful experience for David, for us, his parents and I think, for all of the team members. Don's interest and energy for, and devotion to basketball extended throughout Palo Alto. His involvement was so extensive that the Palo Alto YMCA felt a need to honor Don. They have named their summer basketball league the Don Bartel Basketball League. It is a most fitting tribute.
However, Don's interests were not limited to sports. He was very concerned about the education of children. He showed this in many ways. One very tangible product of his interest are the many Apple computers which our children are learning on now. They have been loaned to us by the company which Don helped to found, Rent-A-Computer.
His efforts on behalf of children's education were most evident two and one half years ago, as Palo Alto battled through a school closure process. Don worked very hard representing Ohlone, yet was also able to involve himself for the good of the community. He always kept an even handed perspective, seeing both sides and managing to work hard for Ohlone without antagonizing the community at large. He reached out to everyone. Many evenings, I watched him work behind the scenes, smoothing ruffled feathers, stating our case, and giving Ann Cribbs support. He was an indispensable member of that closure team.
Because of all the many efforts Don expended on behalf of children and because Don touched us so deeply, many of the parents and children at Ohlone felt a need to remember him here at our school. He had so many interests and involvements that it was not an easy task to find the best way to honor him. His interest in sports was extensive. We will be using a good deal of the money that was donated by the Ohlone community in Don's memory to replenish our sports equipment. This is also a wish of his wife, Linda. We have also added a new volleyball court at Ohlone with some of those donated funds.
Now I have the great honor to present to Jim Mathiott, on behalf of the Ohlone PTA, a special plaque. It commemorates the fact that our Ohlone Multipurpose Room is now named in Don Bartel's memory. We chose the Multipurpose Room to name after Don because it is the main location for many of the wonderful and varied activities in which our children participate. What I will remember Don for most was his encouragement of children to participate, to try, to be involved, always to try to do their best, and to enjoy themselves while they are doing it. This room will now signify that deal as a remembrance of Don Bartel.
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