'Paul just had a way of making people, and especially his athletes, feel very special'

Hopewell-Loudon honored one of its own at last Friday's annual Dick Schultz Invitational, renaming its all-weather track for the late-Paul Jones, who coached the school's girls cross country and track teams for more than two decades.And while the 1975 H-L graduate would've appreciated the thought, especially after being a driving force behind the track's construction, he probably would've been more proud of how his team fared at the meet: runner-up with some personal bests and season bests along the way."He just really loved coaching. And not just as a coach. He was super organized, that's why we can continue to practice as well as we did," said his wife, Teresa Jones, who coached alongside him for years and now guides the girls team."He just loved being a mentor, someone they could come to. We had problems along the way, but he took them under his wing," she said. "There were kids that just needed a little extra and he was there for that group of kids."Jones died this past Dec. 18, when a recurrence of bladder cancer halted a coaching career that stretched back decades."This was the only way he was going to quit," said daughter Staci Brickner.The coaching began in 1993, when his friend Denny Depinet asked him to help with the junior high track program because it was starting to grow.Jones guided the junior high boys and girls track teams from 1993-97, then became the high school girls cross country coach in fall 1997 and began a stint as the girls high school track assistant coach in spring 1998.He served as the cross country coach through the 2024 season, and as the high school girls track head coach from 2002-06 and 2014-25; he served as the girls track assistant coach from 2007-13.Two generations of many families competed for him, including his own daughters and grandchildren. It led to several hundred girls competing for Jones and the Chieftains."Kids ran track because they wanted to run for Paul," Teresa said. "Some of the kids didn't really like track or cross country, but they ran it because they wanted to run for Paul."Lots and lots of girls along the way," she said.Daughter Nikki Hintze ran both cross country and track, going to state four times in the fall and three times in the spring. Brickner only competed for him in track, running sprints and high jumping. Her falls ended with trips to that state volleyball tournament for H-L.But family and talent brought no special treatment. Effort and attitude mattered, no matter the athlete."I just feel that he treated everyone the same, no matter what," Brickner said. "And it did not matter if you were the best runner or the worst runner, it mattered what your attitude was and that you were willing to come and put in the work."That was something Helen Coleman noticed.The 1995 H-L graduate never competed for Jones, but got her start as a volunteer coach in his program before eventually taking over the boys cross country and track programs at the school."Paul just had a way of making people, and especially his athletes, feel very special. I think he just had high expectations and he treated them (athletes) like his own kids, really," she said."Didn't matter to him if you were the star or a back-of-the-packer, he worked with you all the same," Coleman said. "He definitely loved to see anybody improve and become a better athlete."He got those results and respect from his athletes while rarely using a harsh word, Teresa said."If he got quiet, they'd come up and go 'What's wrong with Paul? He's not talking tonight.' He never hollered at the kids," she said."I remember one (track) practice, he came up to me and he said, 'I'm going home.' He was really mad at the distance girls, and they went out for a run and when they got back he was gone," she said. "Half of them were bawling …. Didn't have to say a word. And that only happened once, ever, in all the years he coached."Hintze added: "I think the only time someone would have got in trouble was if they were treating each other poorly."He also kept things light at times.During the cross country season, Coleman said Jones organized alumni runs, cookouts, overnight trips and team breakfasts before postseason meets.For track, he helped organize the mixed-gender 4x1,600 relay at the Dick Schultz Invitational. There were times he also hosted "Ridiculous Relays" during the season when the team didn't have a Saturday track meet."I feel like Paul always had new ideas of things to do," Coleman said.His approach meant the Chieftains seldom lacked for numbers in either season."The one thing that was always cool about Paul with Hopewell, especially in the cross country aspect, was how they were able to consistently get kids out," Mohawk boys and girls cross country coach Brock Cleveland said."Being at a school like Mohawk, I found it challenging (to recruit athletes), so just the way he's able to relate to the kids and get people interested in running and get them to come in, year in and year out, that was something that I always kind of really admired about the way they did things there," he said.And there were successes.His cross country teams went to state five times, won two regional titles and seven district titles, ended second at the regional once and the district five times, and earned eight league championships. Another 14 runners advanced to state as individuals.His Chieftains earned eight All-Ohio athlete honors and 17 Academic All-Ohio honors in cross country."I haven't been running here for over 20 years and people still talk about the cross country teams from when I was here," Hintze said.His track teams never won a conference title, but they did claim two district runner-up trophies. Three relay teams and 14 individuals advanced to the state track meet under his tutelage, ending with five All-Ohio honors and 17 Academic All-Ohio honors.But Jones never focused just on the athletes who would or might excel. Instead, according to Matt Schock, a friend who coaches girls cross country and track at Seneca East, Jones saw the big picture of coaching."He would coach a kid that was a state qualifier just as much as a kid who maybe would be working to break seven minutes in the girls mile or something like that," Schock said."I watched him talk to some of my kids throughout the years and just give them a little vote of confidence or a positive word when they needed it," he said. "He was respected not only by me, but by our entire coaching community."And he was rewarded several times for that.Jones earned top cross country coaching honors in the Midland Athletic League eight times and Blanchard Valley Conference twice while also gaining the 2000 district coach of the year award.He was also named the 2001 MAL girls track coach of the year.Other awards include the 2004 Ohio High School Athletic Association Sportsmanship, Ethics & Integrity award, the 2022 OHSAA Fred Dafler Career State Coach of the Year award, and being inducted into the Hopewell-Loudon High School Hall of Fame in 2019.Jones will also receive this year's OHSAA Northwest District Mac Morrison Lifetime Achievement Service Award.But for Jones, the real reward was the coaching itself."He just enjoyed doing it. It was something that he looked forward to, couldn't wait 'til it started," Teresa said."He even put it on his headstone: Coach to many. He put 'Father, Coach.' He wanted it that way," she said.