Son of a Preacher Man: The Terry Blissett Story
- Coach David Heeb
- Jan 23, 2017
- 4 min read
"He delivers the afflicted with their afflictions and opens their ear with adversity."
- Job 36:15
Good morning to all my JWT Peeps out there. I am so excited to share this story today. I really appreciate everybody who has shared so far, but I have to be honest, this one is a BIG DEAL to me personally. Why? Because today's stories is about one of my childhood heroes.
When I was a kid growing up at Scott County Central R-5 Schools, we had a great boys basketball team every year. We won the state championship when I was in 1st grade, 2nd grade, 3rd grade, 4th grade, 5th grade, 6th grade, and 7th grade. Let that sink in for a minute. We won the state championship EVERY YEAR I WAS IN SCHOOL from 1st to 7th grade. Our girls team also won state several times during this stretch.
This was the mid-to-late 80's, so at the same time, you had "Magic vs. Bird" in the NBA. It was Lakers and Celtics. And there was some guy named Michael Jordan who was tearing up the league. So it's no coincidence that I LOVE BASKETBALL as much as I do. I grew up on Michael, Magic, Larry, and the Scott Central Braves winning state every year.
And as much as I loved Michael Jordan, my favorite three players in the world were Terry Bell, Terry Blissett, and Jerry Porter. Terry Bell was my cousin and was one of the best players on the team. Terry Blissett was a 6'4 sky walker, a BEAST, and was just an awesome player. Jerry Porter was a do everything, maybe he will lead us in points, rebounds, or assists on any given night type of player.
My cousin Bell was a senior in 1987 when we won state. Blissett was a junior and Porter was a sohpomore. I swear this is true... in 1988, after we finished the season 34-0 and won the state championship, and I realized that was Blissett's last game, I cried myself to sleep that night.
So I said all that to say this: Terry Blissett was one of my heroes.
Terry and I are friends on Facebook. I read something positive he says almost every day. So I asked him to contribute something. Here is what he had to say:
On who was a major positive influence in his life: "This would have to be my mother, Frances Blissett. She has been my hero forever. She gave birth to 11 children and was also the step-mother of 12 additional more (they all called her mom). She continued to raise us 11 kids after my dad passed away when I was 5 years old. I don't ever recall her saying that I couldn't achieve something. She was always encouraging us to get our education and do our best. She always made me feel I could do whatever I put my mind to. There was no reason to not succeed."
Give an example of a time they gave you good advice, picked you up when you were down, etc... When I got injured in college, it completely ruined my basketball dreams. I began drinking heavily and living recklessly. Mom was very patient with me though. She would always tell me that God has more for you to do than this. This was a tough season in my life. But whenever I would see her she would encourage me to finish college and pursue my career. Sure glad I listened.
Any words of encouragement or advice for the JWT Community: One of the greatest setbacks in my life was my basketball injury. I still look back on occasion and wonder what would have happened if... I used to be bitter, angry at life, angry at God. But I now realize that God had another plan in place. Sometimes we don't know why bad things happen, especially when it's not our fault. I had to come to the conclusion that God had a different path for me. Perhaps the path that I was on would have lead to my destruction, and only an injury would deter me from that path? I'm sure He knew that. Ultimately, my advice is trust God. Trust the path that He has you on. If your path get changed, don't change your mind about God. He truly does have your best interest in mind.
I really appreciate Terry sharing his story. It is just a great example - a real life example - of how sometimes a setback is just setting you up for a comeback. When basketball was taken from Terry, he had two choices: continue down a destructive path, or find a new purpose.
Everybody that knows and loves Terry is not surprised at how his life has turned out. He is just a positive influence on everybody that knows him. Terry even managed to inspire me again (no surprise there) as he said to me in closing, "David, keep encouraging people with your site bro. I sure could have used it when I was dealing with my injury all those years ago. Be blessed."
I hope you enjoyed the story. It reminded me, "don't dwell on the past, you can't change it." Just focus on what is right in front you. Just Win Today. And help somebody if you can!
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