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"I was a
little farm kid from Hollandale, and he was the
first teacher who made a real impression on me,"
Veldman said. Maas coached Veldman in football,
track and wrestling; Veldman went on to be a
state wrestling champion.
"What he
did for kids who were from broken homes, or one
of their parents was deceased, he was really a
father figure for many of those kids," he said.
Along with
other former Maas students, Veldman helped
create the scholarship fund in 1996. Since then,
the foundation has granted scholarships to 15
Albert Lea wrestling students.
Veldman
said the group wanted to do something special
for Maas this year, and decided to pursue the
proclamation from the governor. Manny Stiel did
most of the leg work, Veldman said.
"Those
things are not easy to get through," Veldman
said. "They normally don't do that for any
person. You have to know Manny Stiel to know how
persuasive he is."
It
probably didn't hurt that Pawlenty was Veldman's
student at South St. Paul High School, where
Veldman taught and coached for years. When Stiel
gave him the proclamation, Maas said he was
astounded. "It's amazing, these kids," he said.
Fitting his role as a father figure, Maas still
uses the word "kids" when talking about Veldman
and his other former students.
"I'm going
to be 70 in a couple of days," Veldman said with
a laugh.
(Contact
Dylan Belden at dylan.belden
@albertleatribune.com or 379-3433.)
Arlene Veldman, wife
of Pete Veldman, Coach Roy Maas with the
Governor's Proclamation, and DeAnna Steil, wife
of Manny Steil. September 26,
2003
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Roy
and Lillian Maas with Governor Pawlenty's
Proclamation September 26,
2003
