Former Lenawee County educator, coach skydives into first day of school in Charlevoix

CHARLEVOIX — A former Lenawee County educator and longtime Onsted football coach made quite the entrance on the first day of school for the 2024-25 academic year.

Dan Terryberry, current Charlevoix Middle/High School principal , kicked off the new school year in dramatic fashion by skydiving onto the school’s soccer field Tuesday, Sept. 3.

With assistance from Luther Kurtz of Skydive Charlevoix , Terryberry made the daring jump and landed safely in front of the cheering crowd of students and staff.

After touching down, Terryberry declared, "We are going to have a great year!"

The first day of school for the Charlevoix schools after the Labor Day holiday was a half-day, and students were treated to food trucks and games to celebrate the beginning of the 2024-25 academic year. School officials said the festivities were intended to create a fun and welcoming atmosphere for students as they reconnected with friends and teachers.

All school districts in Lenawee County, meanwhile, got back into the classrooms during the weeks of Aug. 19 and Aug. 26.

At the time of his departure from the Onsted football program in 2022, Terryberry, a native of Charlevoix, was the longest current serving head football coach in Lenawee County. The 2021 fall season was his last after coaching the varsity Wildcats for 18 seasons.

From February 2022: Terryberry steps down as Onsted head football coach

Terryberry went 91-84 in his 18 seasons at Onsted. He played college football at Michigan State and got into coaching after his playing career ended. He taught at Tecumseh Public Schools and was the offensive coordinator for Tecumseh's football team for several seasons before landing the Onsted job.

His administrator role at Charlevoix Middle/High School is his first principal position. He was hired prior to the 2022-23 school year, and was one of 20 candidates for the principal position.

Subscribe: Check out our offers and read the local news that matters to you

— Contact reporter Annie Doyle at (231) 675-0099 and adoyle@charlevoixcourier.com . Daily Telegram staff writer Brad Heineman contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Former Lenawee County educator, coach skydives into first day of school in Charlevoix