The 2014 induction ceremony for the Russellville Alumni Association Athletic Hall of Fame was as much a family reunion as it was a public presentation.
Before the annual induction each year, a reception is held in the school cafeteria for the honorees, their family, Alumni and school leaders, and invited guests.
Since the two inductees this year are cousins, Andre and Michael Morris, many of those gathered were kin to them. And most of them were wearing black and gold tee shirts proclaiming “Panther Strong, Morris Strong” on the front and “RHS Hall of Fame Induction 2015” on the back along with the honorees’ names and year of graduation. Jermaine Collier had come from Indianapolis to be a part of the night. He served as master of ceremonies.
Former Lady Panther Ashley ‘Cocoa’ Kees Collier, whose husband Reggie is part of the Morris bloodline, designed the shirt. Family member, Kia Morris Santiago, who is the RHS cheerleading sponsor, got with another former Lady Panther, Amy Chapa, of TKO in Bowling Green to print the shirts.
Often the induction ceremony is very solemn and formal, but when Michael and Andre arrived at midcourt, they were in a jovial mood and got the crowd involved. That crowd grew dramatically when the Morris family joined then on the Jim Young Gymnasium court. Some 75 people were standing behind them, most wearing those Morris Strong shirts.
Stacey Morris, who is Andre’s brother and a member of the RHS staff, presented the plaque to his brother, while Michael’s long-time friend and teammate, Maurice ‘Squeaky’ Hampton, made the presentation to Michael. Hampton was inducted into the Hall last year.
John Brett Reynolds told the huge assembly at the Clash of the Cats about the athletes’ accomplishments. They can read on The LoJo at http://www.theloganjournal.com/Stories.aspx?Article=sports596
Some young people who are kin to the Morrises were members of the Russellville and Logan County teams. Among them were Tre’mon Morris and M.J. Jones of RHS and Noah Whittinghill of LCHS.
After the games were over, the Morris family, classmates and friends went to the Logan County Extension Office for a reunion that involved watching video highlights of indcutees’ games plus music and dancing.
The Morrises know how to throw a party.