DALLAS COWBOY LEGEND GEORGE TEAGUE TO VISIT LOCAL AUGUSTA SCHOOL

Note: We're including this for two reasons... One, it's a well-written, great release and we thought it might inspire some of our readers to write and send us some local news. Second, we thought some of our local schools might want to consider doing something similar to inspire their students (not that you're not already doing monumentally well, just this is something that might not have hit your radar screen yet!). - FFP

Excitement is building this week at Curtis Baptist School in Augusta. Students there are about to get a personal training session from a real NFL star. But Dallas Cowboy legend George Teague isn’t coming to talk about building strong muscles; instead, he’ll coach students and parents about the value of building strong character. You might say he plays by a different playbook.

“I was able to work side by side with George in Texas,” says new Curtis Headmaster Bill Pevey. “He inspired me by his humility and earnest desire to be a positive role model for kids by living a solid, Christ-filled life. That’s why we invited him to come share his passion with our school family.”

His words of encouragement come just as parents are making decisions about where to enroll their children for next year’s classes. As more and more families feel the pinch of a weakening economy, schools like Curtis understand that parents make tough sacrifices when they choose a Christian education over public school. “For us, there really is no other choice,” says parent Brenda McKinnon. “We’ll eat peanut butter sandwiches if we have to, to keep our kids in this environment, because we see the results of it every day.”

Teague, who was a star at the University of Alabama before becoming a first-round NFL draft pick, now serves as an athletic director and is an outspoken advocate of Christian education. “George understands that parents need to be cheered on, too – to be reminded that what they’re doing is worth it,” says Pevey. That’s the message Teague is expected to give an eager crowd of parents Thursday night at the school’s First Annual Parent Teacher Banquet.

But first, he will visit with students and athletes on campus. For a small high school football team, it’s a rare opportunity: straight talk from someone who has lived the dream of winning a college national championship and playing 9 NFL seasons. “Our coaches teach us that choosing a relationship with God is the key to success in every area of life,” says Curtis football captain Deion Jones, who says he made that important decision himself this year. “If anyone is going to be a role model for me or my teammates, he would have to be more than a great athlete. He would have to have a serious commitment to Christ.”

These athletes know a little something about commitment. As part of small team, they play both offense and defense for all four quarters each game, and they do it without complaining. Some say that shows strength of character not found in today’s spoiled superstars. For that, George Teague is likely to be just as impressed with these kids as they are with him.