Voices: The star who outshone Hiawatha

Hiawatha once was the leader of the Iroquois Confederacy in North America around the 12th or 14th century. He was a fierce fighter, but his heart longed for peace, which he accomplished to some extent by bringing together the Five Nations to work and trade in harmony.

I knew Hiawatha. Well, not that one, but another man named Hiawatha Scott.

Hiawatha was to semi-professional football what Ray Lewis of the Baltimore Ravens was to the National Football League. Hiawatha was a fierce middle linebacker. He was not a man of peace on the football field.

I was glad for two things. One, Hiawatha was on my team. So, I did not have to stare across the line of scrimmage at him during games.

Two, in practice, I did stare across at him, but as his quarterback, I wore a red jersey, which meant I was off-limits for his vicious hits. But just to be sure, I liked to wear red shirts around him, even in street clothes, to make sure he remembered his manners.

I played with Hiawatha from 1986 to 1990. We played in two Dixie League Conference football championship games, but we lost both. We played games in Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Florida and Illinois, traveling to each on our team bus. Those long rides gave us plenty of time to get to know each other and become friends.

I left semi-pro football in 1990 after a few too many hits to the head. So, 1990 was the last time I had the privilege to be with my friend Hiawatha Scott.

Hiawatha had three sons as I recall. He named them all “Hiawatha” with different middle names.

Life moves on

Roll forward 33 years, and I am a pastor and have been for some 26 years.

A church member who works for the Alief Independent School District visited with me after a church service. He had invited a new coworker to our church. His name was Hiawatha Scott.

When Hiawatha heard I was the pastor, he quickly told our church member we had played ball together, and he’d be in church the following Sunday. I was elated to hear he would be joining us.

Sure enough, the next Sunday there appeared this big ol’ ferocious Hiawatha Scott, trimmed down and with a sweet wife on his arm. What a blessing to be reunited.

Hiawatha and his wife Thelma Lynn Scott became frequent attenders.

The real star

I was at a celebration of their marriage several weeks ago. People stepped forward to tell what this man and woman had meant to their lives. I knew Hiawatha in the past, but I was so proud of the man he had become and how so many acknowledged the same.

The things were shared about Thelma Lynn Scott, however, are what blew me away.

You see Mrs. Scott—“Lynn,” they called her—had worked as a crossing guard for the school for more than 20 years. A crossing guard.

I have been touched in my life by many teachers like Mrs. Robertson and Dr. Cude, some principals like Mr. Gibbs and Mr. Staples, coaches like Coach Schuelke and Coach Fox, bus drivers like Mr. Tooth Akey, and even a few lunchroom ladies like Mrs. Cheek and Mrs. Harwell. But a crossing guard?

What can a crossing guard do to touch your life? They walk you across toward school in the morning. They walk you across the street toward home in the evening. All the while, they hold a stop sign directing traffic. Not much time for chit chat or exposure, I thought. But I was wrong.

She made a profound difference

The vast majority of people who spoke at this celebration were moms who thanked her for protecting their kids and students who grew up knowing of a woman who cared for them, each of them.

A young man said he finally graduated and made something of his life, thanks to the crossing guard named Mrs. Scott.

In her life, she spoke to teachers to help a few of them. She took a few kids into her home from time to time. A crossing guard made the difference in so many lives. And she was my friend Hiawatha Scott’s wife.

I was reminded at that celebration: We can make a difference in people’s lives no matter what our station of life. May we make that kind of difference this week where we live and work—all for the glory of the God who loves us.

Johnny Teague is the senior pastor of Church at the Cross in West Houston and the author of several books, including his newest The Lost Diary of Mary Magdalene. His website is johnnyteague.com. The views expressed in this opinion article are those of the author.