When Central Catholic High School alumnus Ron Zak was told he was being honored for his service in the Marines at one of the school’s football games, he told the school, “I’m not going on that field by myself.”
The Oregon resident who graduated in 1957 decided that he’ll bring his friend, fellow Vietnam War veteran and former classmate Ron Glick onto the football field at Gallagher Stadium to be honored during Central Catholic’s football game against Whitmer on Friday.
“Being a veteran, I have a soft spot in my heart for recognition,” Mr. Glick said. “I have a daughter who’s been a teacher at Ottawa Hills [High School] for over 20 years. For many years, she handled the veterans assembly where they brought in veterans that were mostly associated with the school and since she was a teacher, I was included in that. We’ve had that quite a few times where we’ve been able to honor our veterans.”
The two alumni played basketball together for three years in high school, graduated the same year, and were drafted into the military right after graduating college, they said.
“He [Mr. Glick] didn’t make the varsity team, but he was a good person and an outstanding student,” said Mr. Zak, who’s in the Central Catholic High School Hall of Fame.
“I participated in the basketball program through the first three years and then it was such that those younger kids were just a hell of a lot better than me,” Mr. Glick said. “I didn’t play my last year the way that Ron Zak did.”
Mr. Zak graduated with a degree in economics from the University of Notre Dame in 1961 and joined the Marines soon after.
He then spent six months in infantry training and was in the reserves six years after.
He decided to enlist because he figured he was going to be drafted into the military because of the Vietnam War anyway, Mr. Zak said.
“I chose the Marine Corps,” he said. “I thought it would help me out because I was a little overweight after four years of college, so I joined the Marine Corps and had a wonderful time there. … I never had to go to battle.”
While he was in the reserves, he started teaching at Cardinal Stritch High School in 1962 and went on to teach there until 1989.
He then served as athletic director at Libbey High School from 1991 to 2006, he said.
Mr. Glick graduated with a degree in accounting from the University of Toledo in 1961 before being drafted into the Army, where he was assigned as a bodyguard for the commanding general in Heidelberg, Germany, while working as a military police officer.
While he was in Germany, his wife of 56 years, JoAnn, who he started dating when he was in high school in 1955, gave birth to their son, Douglas.
He worked at O-I Glass after he finished his two years of service and worked there until the company was sold in 1987.
Mr. Glick worked at a warehouse on the West Coast for 10 years and then moved around the United States, living in places like California, Washington, Florida, and Massachusetts.
The Central Catholic alumnus said he loved his time attending the high school.
“Those were wonderful formative years,” Mr. Glick said. “I have been a strong supporter of Central Catholic all through my life. … I was president of the school board in the early ‘80s … to give a little bit back because I felt that that school, the way that they formed character in their students ... it just enabled us to be successful in our life.”
Friday’s recognition will be between the third and fourth quarters of the game, which starts at 7 p.m.
Hank Wetzel, a social studies teacher at Central Catholic High School, said after a small announcement is made over the stadium’s public address system to recognize Mr. Zak and Mr. Glick for their service, he’s taking a group of students to the press box to meet and speak with the veterans.
“One of the things that I, as a social studies teacher, am focused on is the need to be able to tap into our historical resources and one of those resources are our veterans who, in some cases, especially like our two veterans we’re honoring tomorrow night, are Vietnam veterans that didn’t get the attention and praise for their efforts,” Mr. Wetzel said.
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