Legendary Girls'Basketball Coach Returns to Bloom

Legendary Girls Basketball Coach Returns to Bloom

Marilyn Anderson: Bobby Bell Recipient

By Donna McCoy

Coach Marilyn Anderson is making every effort possible to return to M’Cann Gym on Saturday September 15, 2018 to accept the Bobby Bell Award. After some surgeries on her hip and knee, she is working hard in rehab to recover. This is indicative of how she coached her basketball players all those years at bloom; working hard and never giving up.

Coach Anderson is one of the last of the legendary coaches that lived through our history and can regurgitate names, teams, dates, etc. of Bloom’s girls’ sports history. I called her one afternoon and it only took a few minutes for her to jump in with the start of girls’ sports. She talked about the Blue Fins she started and sponsored for 5 years. Blue Fins was one of the only things girls could do back then and she started with only 6 members and by the end she had 40. She rattled off names of girls she had on the team including the Bourque girls.

She said she wanted to start basketball, but they told her it was “too strenuous for girls”. She said, “They actually said that!” When she did get the opportunity she was making $75.00 as the coach when Wes Mason was making thousands. We all know that Marilyn was not doing it for the money, but for the love of the game. We also know she was worth way more than that, because 27 years later she produced a lot of successful teams and helped individuals to go on to successful college careers.

Marilyn said there were so many great teachers and coaches at Bloom. She said she was at Waukegan High School first, but her college roommate in graduate school, Judy Connelly, talked her into coming to Bloom. Judy worked at Bloom right out of college and Marilyn followed later. We talked about her colleagues we recently lost. I told her about Fred Jacobeit’s memorial at Bloom’s Workman Auditorium and the stories that were told. She laughed and said “Oh we all have our stories about Jake!” She talked about Lucy White making it to 101 years old and about Joan Gamble being her student teacher.

But as most of us teachers, her stories drifted back to the students. I told her how she has touched so many people and she said between her classes and teams, she had the best kids. I told her the next time I see her I want to see that basketball in her hands doing a jump shot. She laughed and went on to another story about her athletes. She said when she retired she could still do “what I call my baby free throws; they were 2 feet from the rim. I would always challenge the kids to try and beat me but they never could!” She giggled and said, “Lisa Wells, Thia Hudson, the Morgan twins …what a special group!” Then she started rattling off more, “Beth Carpenter, I think an Illinois grad,” and more about the calls and cards she would get from her students.

Despite all she gave to Bloom, Trojan Nation keeps her spirits up and gives back to her. Her dedication and efforts towards Bloom students and girls’ sports has earned her a Bobby Bell award to be given at the awards dinner on September 15 in the M’Cann gym at 5:15p.m. . She is looking forward to seeing all her basketball players and Blue Fin girls, along with her colleagues and students.

Tickets to the Bobby Bell Awards are going fast. This is the last week of ticket sales. Call the Bloom Archives for information (708) 755-1122 ext. 2301 or mail a check to Bloom Trojan Nation for $50.00 to the Bloom Archives 101 W. 10th Street Chicago heights, Illinois 60417. Other recipients are Tom Koenig, Tom Erikson, Walter Futrell, Ernest Turner, LeRoy Jackson and Terry Boers.