Mary H Rozell

My mother and me, 1976. I was seven years old and this was taken soon after my First Communion. I remember this because of the tee-shirt. Having two older brothers, I was exposed to rock music at an early age. Listening to their 8-tracks in the bedroom we shared, I was especially taken by the band KISS. More than anything, I wanted the tee-shirt above. It was light blue, one of those iron-on decal dealies that we got at the mall. I remember how thrilled I was when my mother bought it for me — it cost $7.

Looking back at this picture, I am so very thankful that my mother was cool enough to let me have my interest in this "demonic" band and supported whatever interests I had, even though she probably did not fully understand them. Through the years, it was her support of my interests and her belief in me that made me the person I am today.

Though she never had the chance to understand what it is that I do for a living as a coach, she was a tremendous coach in her own right, and I feel her influence every day.

And I still pull out the KISS records once in a while…