Page 34 - Senior Link Magazine Summer 2021- Online Magazine

LOCAL LEGENDS
Blessed
All the Way Through
Patty Jones
by Jane Bromley
f you have read the mission of
Senior Link magazine, you know
Ihow much we value stories that
have the power to impact the lives
of young people. When the story is
about a person whose life’s work
directly influenced teenagers over
the course of decades, it’s already
ahead of the game. That’s why
teachers and coaches are some of
our favorite subjects.
Former Coronado High School
volleyball coach Patty Jones is
a prime example. Legendary
coach Ron Mayberry called her
a “pioneer” in his recent book
about West Texas coaches, Less
We Forget – High School Coaching:
Legends from the Texas Panhandle/ Elementary and Alderson Junior
Plains Region. “Patty was the first
female UIL coach hired by Lubbock
Independent School District and
coached the first UIL volleyball
team at CHS. She was a legend in
more ways than one because she
was an outstanding teacher for
29 years and coached 26 years at
Coronado.”
Coach Mayberry records some of
the highlights: 470 wins; six straight
district championships, four of
those undefeated in district play;
14 state playoff appearances; and
52 players advancing to collegiate
play. She was named “Coach of
the Year” in 1984, 1987, 1992, and
� Less We Forget - High School Coaching: Legends from the Texas Panhandle/Plains Region (Paperback) Ron Mayberry, 2019
34 Lubbock Senior Link
2000. Texas Tech
University named
her Outstanding
Teacher/Coach in LISD in 2000. She
also was recognized by Sen. Robert
Duncan and Mayor David Langston
for her accomplishments. She was
1
inducted into the LISD Hall of
Honor in 2013.
Patty was born in Oklahoma City,
but her parents and three brothers
landed in Lubbock in 1959, after
living in Oklahoma, California,
New Mexico, and Colorado. Her
dad was in the grocery business
and worked for the Furr’s grocery
store chain for many years. She
attended Overton and Bozeman
High, graduating from Lubbock
High School in 1967. She majored
in PE and Government at Texas
Tech. Soon after graduation, Joyce
Arterburn let her know about
an opening at CHS. There were
50 applicants, but LISD Athletic
Director and former LHS basketball
coach, Max O’Banion, remembered
her from high school. She got the
job.
In Fall 1972, Coronado did not
have a girls’ sports program, so
she taught PE. Two years later,
O’Banion asked her if she would
like to coach. He gave her the
choice of basketball, track, or
volleyball. To this day, she doesn’t
know why she chose volleyball. She
had never even played. She believes
it was one of those times in her life
when “God intervened”. And the
rest is history.
She describes that first season
as “memorable”. In their first
tournament, they got “killed”.
The rookie coach began to read
and study everything she could
find about the game. She attended
clinics everywhere. She went to
the coaches at Texas Tech for help.
Two Tech players, one of whom
was All American Lisa Love, helped
her develop her program. She had
“an incredible group of girls” that
first year, and they went on to win
district. At that time, Hereford
was a powerhouse. They had won
district every year for the past ten,
but the fledgling Mustang team
pulled off the upset.
Another time, they were up against
crosstown rival Monterey. “We
had each won a game, but we were
down 13-2 in the third game. I
called a timeout, and I gave them
a little pep talk. They went back
out, huddled up for a minute, then
went on to win that game 15-13! I
was so proud of them, but I wanted
to know what I had said that had