Longtime coach gets 'Spirit of Whitefish' award

Terry Nelson succinctly remembers a statement made by one of his Whitefish High School boys golf team standouts a few years ago: “Our coach never talks about winning.”

And Nelson quietly said to himself, “Yes.”

With 23 state golf championships to his credit, Nelson’s winning strategy ironically doesn’t include much talk about winning.

“I almost never talk about winning and losing,” the longtime coach and educator said. “We’ve had lots of success, but it’s never been a focus.”

Whether it was in the classroom, the principal’s office or on the golf course, Nelson has always taken the tack of teaching life lessons as an overriding goal of education.

“I see my greatest success when a student understands the importance of focused thinking, perseverance and discipline,” he said. “For the student, the most important part is the pride taken when one gives 100 percent.”

That philosophy is a key reason why the Whitefish Rotary Club is honoring Nelson on Saturday with the organization’s annual Spirit of Whitefish Award. He will receive the award during a fundraising banquet at The Lodge at Whitefish Lake.

Like so many people drawn to the Flathead Valley for its natural beauty, Nelson and his wife, Lynda, moved to Whitefish in 1969 without him having a job in hand, though he had alerted the Whitefish School District he was looking for work. Lynda’s grandparents lived in Essex and the Nelsons had visited the area shortly after they were married in 1964.

Nelson taught junior high science for four years in Dearborn Township, Mich., and completed his master’s degree in school administration at Eastern Michigan University before the move to Whitefish.

He hadn’t been in town long when Lloyd “Mully” Muldown called and offered him a job over the phone. Nelson taught junior high science for a year. Then Mully had another proposition for him: “How would you like to be principal at Muldown?”

Nelson jumped at the chance to get started in school administration, and began as principal of Muldown Elementary School in 1970.

The school was designed with “open” classrooms and no interior walls, though it was later expanded and remodeled to include separate classrooms.

“I loved the challenge and excitement of the open school,” he recalled. “That environment created some of the best teachers ever.”

In 1983 Nelson moved to Central School, where he was principal of grades 5 and 6 and the district’s kindergarten program. He retired from the school system in 1994 and two years later started working part time as executive secretary for Whitefish Lake Golf Club, a position he still holds.

Nelson began coaching golf in 1985 with the idea he’d get involved while his children — sons Matthew and Jeremy and daughter Paula — were in the golf program.

He’s still at it, and along the way has racked up a number of honors.

Nelson has been named Montana Coach of the Year 21 times and received the National High School Athletic Coaches Association’s National Coach of the Year title in 2006 and 2007. He was the Golf Digest individual award winner for 2007 and is a member of the Hall of Fame for the Montana Coaches Association, Montana State Golf Association, Whitefish Lake Golf Association and the national coaches association.

“Yeah, they’re nice to get, but you don’t earn them by yourself,” Nelson said, pointing to the support he gets from his assistant coaches.

Additionally, Nelson received the Distinguished Service Award from the Whitefish Jaycees and was the 2010 winner of the Whitefish Chamber of Commerce Youth Activities Award.

Nelson’s humble upbringing in an Appalachian coal-mining town in Kentucky and guidance from his parents helped set his course in life.

His father, determined not to become a career coal miner, tried his hand at baseball and made it to the St. Louis Browns minor league team. He tried out with the majors but had to return to work for the mining company for a time because he couldn’t make a living wage playing ball.

His mother was an elementary school teacher with a two-year degree. She went on to earn a master’s degree and graduated from Eastern Michigan the same day Nelson graduated from the same school. That was also the day in 1965 when Nelson’s brother graduated from the University of Michigan School of Medicine. It was “big day” for the Nelson family.

As Nelson recalls, there was no question whether or not he would go to college. His father insisted on his five children furthering their education.

The family moved to Dearborn, Mich., when Nelson was in the seventh grade because his father found work there as a carpenter.

In 1959 Nelson, then 15, got a job working for the Dearborn Heights Department of Recreation. It was his first experience working with kids. He liked it so much he kept the job even after he began teaching.

Along the way Nelson played basketball, tennis and baseball. His interest in golf began at an early age, too, when he spent a summer in Kansas City with an uncle who got him into the junior league.

Later, his father’s construction company built a clubhouse for a golf course. Serendipitously, Nelson was hanging around the course, cleaning up construction materials for his dad. The golf pro asked him if he’d ever played, then encouraged him to get involved in golfing.

Nelson coached golf in Michigan for four years until moving to Whitefish.

After being involved in the sport for so long, Nelson now is coaching the children of some of the first golfers he coached.

“Kids haven’t changed very much,” he observed. “These days, they’re caught up in a world that forces them to grow up too soon, but they’re essentially the same. They want to learn and they’re fun to be around. They still basically want to please you.”

Nelson consistently passes on the same kind of encouragement he had as a youth.

“You’ll be good at something,” he tells his young golfers. “It may not be golf, and it will take a lot of effort and a lot of time.”

Nelson likes the individual challenge that golf offers.

“It’s the hardest sport to get really good at,” he said. “It will tell you more about yourself than other sports. It’s just you.”

Nelson keeps his own golf skills honed, too, and modestly says he has a handicap of seven (the average is 18). While he admits that’s “pretty good,” he’s not one to boast.

Still, he added that “every once in awhile I can get a shot as good as Tiger Woods ...”

It’s those moments of personal accomplishment in the sport that keep Nelson and his students coming back for more.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.