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Former Lilly Raider football teams are set to celebrate three consecutive undefeated seasons from the 1960s this weekend.
These men eventually became successful in life outside of the realm of football and athletics, with three earning doctorates and a number earning engineering and advanced degrees.
They include an Ivy League graduate and player and some who worked for Fortune 500 companies.
In addition, some were successful in the blue-collar trades, working for the railroad, steel companies and in the coal mines.
The players from that melange of backgrounds will recall some of the most joyous times in their lives as they will celebrate three special football seasons when their Lilly Raider team went undefeated for three consecutive seasons and captured three championships of the Cambria County Grade School Football League from 1967-69.
They will be joined by some of their coaches from that era at a small reunion in their hometown of Lilly.
The celebration will take place at the recently-opened Boxcar Restaurant on Railroad Street on Saturday, July 24, at 6 p.m.
David McLucas, who earned a doctorate in pharmacy and recently retired from the George Washington University Hospital, savors his experience.
"I truly believe that being part of the Lilly Raiders -- and Lilly youth athletics -- made a big impact on life for a lot of us," he said. "We had good coaches, good role models and a positive, safe environment to grow up in. You don't realize this until years or decades later.
"We were taught respect, and that hard work is needed to succeed in life. None of us came from money that I know of. Those who came out of the hills of Cambria County succeeded and worked hard."
I was fortunate to be a mentor and a coach to these teams and later spent 25 years in coaching, education and journalism.
This was a special group of athletes.
How often do you have eighth graders calling audibles, especially back in the 1960s?
The 1968 team did that with a quarterback who became a medical doctor.
These young men were not just outstanding athletes. They were quality young people who worked hard and used the lessons they learned in football to go on and succeed in life.
That is what makes me so proud of them.
Not all of the players who were instrumental in those wins will be joining us.
Some, like Dr. Chet Beres and John Conrad, passed away at young ages.
Beres was a physician in Johnstown for many years who passed away at the age of 52, while John Conrad, a Penn State engineering graduate from Tyrone, fell victim to ALS a few years ago.
He will be celebrated with a family's virtual ALS walk at his father's home in Lilly on Saturday morning.