Rick Patrick: Greene Publishing, Inc.
Even before I began working here at Greene Publishing, Inc., I have had an affinity for Madison. Much of this stems from my early college days at North Florida Junior College. My love for Madison has continued through my days of participating in many theatre productions here and a brief stint at the old WIMV-FM radio station.
For the last two years, I have had the good fortune to meet the many wonderful people here in Madison and the surrounding area. It has filled me with more pride than I can adequately tell you to see and write about the success and struggles of our local sports teams. I know that Madison isn't just all about sports, but a large part of what I cover is sports, so that's a large part of what I can speak about.
Even with all the success of the local sports teams, I can honestly say that I have never been more proud of Madison than I have been during the past month of the "Touchdowns Against Cancer" campaign. During the month of September, we managed to raise an estimated $1,167 for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. When I decided to take the lead for this campaign, I had never done anything like that before. It was a learning experience for me, but an enjoyable experience. I feel confident that next year's campaign will be even better. This will be a campaign that I will continue to work on until it is no longer needed, which I hope is very soon; or I am no longer able, which I hope is far, far away.
There are many people who stepped up to help make this campaign a success. Coach Mike Coe, who was on board with the idea from the moment I first presented it to him; those Cowboys, who scored a lot of touchdowns; Madison County High School (MCHS) Principal Geraldine Wildgoose, who graciously gave me the "green light" to move ahead with the campaign; MCHS Cheerleading Coach Ruth Ann Latner, who generously donated unclaimed 50/50 money to the campaign; Phil and Ross Jones, along with Rod Irvine, helped spread the word about the campaign; Margaret Throckmorton and the rest of the nice people at the 55 Plus Club; the Adult Sunday School Class at Madison First United Methodist Church; the wonderful fans at Boot Hill Stadium and everyone else who made donations both large and small. To all of you, on behalf of the families of the children you have helped to save, I humbly say, "thank you."