This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Surnames: Sempf, VanRanst, Woll Classification: Obituary Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/rw/3FC.2ACI/2490 Message Board Post: Wednesday, August 27, 2003 Remembering SCC's Tom Sempf By Julie Shehane-Bannink Long-time SCC physical education teacher Tom Sempf passed away last Tuesday following a battle with Lou Gehrig's Disease. He was 61. Formally known as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), Sempf was diagnosed with the disease two years ago. And although he knew he would not be able to enjoy his golden years - doctors told him he would likely not live more than a few years - Sempf tried to remain positive. At his funeral, held Friday at St. Bridget's Church in River Falls, Sempf was remembered as a humbled man of great diversity who was a teacher, an athlete, a referee and a family man. The teacher A teacher with SCC for 32 years, Sempf was known for his devotion to both athletics and the students he taught. Fellow faculty members said he gave his all, each and every day. "Most of us are kind of egotistical. We all think we teach the most important subject, until you walked into the gym and saw him teaching floor hockey," said middle school history teacher Warren VanRanst. "He had a way of making you feel that it was the most important thing you could do in life at the time. Bowling, table tennis, whatever he was teaching, he could make you feel like it was the most important thing." Sempf began his teaching career in 1969. He taught at all three SCC campuses over the years, but finished his career at the high school, retiring at the end of the 2001-2002 school year. Although primarily a gym teacher, Sempf also served at various times as the district athletic director, varsity football and baseball coach and middle school basketball coach. School officials said Sempf served as a role model for both students and faculty members. "He taught us a lesson about dignity and strength by the manner in which he persevered in his support of family, friends and school even though he himself was fighting for his life this past year. Tom understood loyalty. He understood friendship. He understood that you support your school," said SCC district administrator Dan Woll. "In all of the years I knew him, I never once heard him complain about a coach or a team. He was a true SCC fan. He loved our kids. I am proud that our gym is named after him." The high school gymnasium was renamed last October, shortly after Sempf retired. The gym is now known as the Tom Sempf Gymnasium in honor of the long-time teacher. The dedication was meant to honor both his years of service to the district and the health battle he was to face from his disease. The referee In addition to teaching physical education, Sempf was also a well recognized basketball official who had a special way of spotting the efforts of the little guy who came off the bench. His philosophy was a simple one, 'if you gave 100 percent then you were a good athlete.' "If he was coaching a basketball game, he would always talk about the little guy the next day," VanRanst remembered. "I would ask him how a star player performed and he would say 'oh he was pretty good, but the game was really won by this kid who came off the bench.' He always noticed those kind of kids." The athlete His game was fastpitch softball and it was a game he played well. So well in fact, that he was one of the best-known third basemen in the area at a time when fastpitch softball was heavily covered by area media. His team was the River Falls-based Johnnie's Bar and Sempf was a star player. Everyone said it, that is except for Sempf. "He was such a great athlete, but he was very humble," said VanRanst. "The only person you never heard what a great athlete he was from was Tom." Sempf loved sports. The family man Perhaps his greatest love in life was his family. "That was his true passion," explained his wife Eileen. "We were the most important thing to him." Tom and Eileen were married in November, 1989. Eileen, along with Tom's son Ryan, stepdaughters Nicole and Andrea, and son-in-law John, were his true support throughout his two-year battle with Lou Gehrig's Disease. Tom lived in Hudson. In an interview late last year, Tom said the most frustrating part of his disease, was the knowledge that it would take him away from his family. © 2003 New Richmond News - Reposted by permission http://newrichmond-news.1upsites.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=7110&SectionID=3&SubSectionID=83&S=1