Honoring Coach Jim Clayton: A Life of Faith, Service, and Unshakable Encouragement

This uh this is probably the hardest recording I've ever had to do.

Today, I want to honor and celebrate the life of a truly remarkable man.

My dear friend, my colleague, my co-host, Coach Jim Clayton.

While our hearts are heavy, we're reminded from Psalm 34, verse 18, that the Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart.

and save such as be of a contrite spirit.

Even in our sorrow, God's presence is near, offering comfort and strength to us.

I first met Jim when I was 15 years old.

I was a student at CK High School, and he came and spoke at the teen institutent event that was being held.

I don't remember the exact details of what it was he said that day, but I remember this man being the most positive person I'd ever heard speak in my life

That impression stuck with me.

And as I continued to grow and to navigate through life, it left a lasting mark on my own perspective.

Years later, while I was completing my student teaching at Huntington High School, I had the opportunity to eat lunch with Jim Clayton every day.

It's during that time that I began to know him as a colleague, as a man, and eventually as a friend

His insights and wisdom were incredibly inspiring to me as a young educator, shaping the way that I approach teaching and leadership.

Several years later, I accepted a position teaching at Cavill Midland High School, the same year that Jim was transferred there.

This is the place and the time where our friendship truly began to grow

Watching his interactions with students and staff taught me the right way to do things.

Not just as a teacher or as a coach, but as a person.

The highlights of that was helping him with technology, which was not his strong suit, but it was a pleasure.

Because he was always willing to learn and try new things

By this point, he had retired from teaching, and he was focused solely on his business at Sports City U.

It was here that I gained an even deeper understanding of his ideas and his philosophies

His ability to break things down for his students and his athletes was still present, still strong, and still deeply inspiring.

I stood with him at center court in the gym, arms around him, and prayed with him for healing from God.

Not long after that, he reached out and asked him or asked me to partner with him to start a podcast.

This podcast.

He wanted to share his insights on life, not just basketball, as many people might have thought he wanted to do

But the lessons that had guided his own life and the lives of everyone he had the chance to influence

We launched this podcast on July 1st of this year.

And over the course of recording 11 episodes with Jim.

I had some of the best conversations I've ever had in the decade I've been in podcasting.

It was in those moments that Jim became one of my closest friends.

And I'm so proud to be able to say that.

The last evening we recorded together.

Remains vivid in my heart and in my mind.

And it's the last memory I have of Jim in person before his passing.

After we finished and were preparing to leave that night, he had just gotten his best buddy Alfie, ever present Alfie, into the car, and he turned back to me.

As I did every week after we recorded, I told him, I love you, brother.

This time was different.

He always told me he loved me.

We always fist bumped or shook hands.

But this night, he grabbed me.

He embraced me as he told me he loved me

That was the last conversation I had with him.

And it is the memory

that I will hold on to forever of my friend, Jim Clayton

Jim was many things to many people.

He was a devoted classroom teacher, an inspiring coach, a mentor, a podcast co-host.

And above all, a friend whose heart, humor, and integrity touched everyone he met.

His life was marked by service, dedication, and an unwavering commitment to helping others grow

As a classroom teacher, Jim inspired countless students.

He didn't just teach lessons from textbooks.

He taught lessons for life.

He challenged his students to think critically, to act with integrity

And to develop both character and resilience.

Many of his students will carry this guidance and encouragement.

That he gave them forward for the rest of their lives.

As a coach, Jim brought out the best in those who were under his guidance

He believed deeply in teamwork, in perseverance, and in the value of encouragement, just as much as he did discipline.

On the court, in the locker room, in an everyday life, his approach was always the same.

Help others succeed.

And to do that with heart and with humility.

Jim's life remains a reminder to us of the power of dedication.

Kindness, and genuine human connection.

He leaves a legacy measured not only in accomplishments,

But in lives touched, lessons imparted, and hearts encouraged

Second Timothy chapter four, verses seven and eight says, I have fought a good fight.

I have finished my course.

I have kept the faith.

Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness.

Jim fought the good fight in his own way.

Leaving a life that inspires all of us.

At the center of Jim's life was his family

He and his beloved wife Anne shared forty two years together.

42 incredible years together.

It was a marriage built on love, on partnership, and on laughter

As a devoted father to his daughter Elizabeth and his son Wes and his wife Kayla.

He poured his heart into guiding, teaching, and supporting them

Above all, he adored his two granddaughters, Vera and Heidi, who affectionately called him Pop Pop.

And of course, by his side through it all, was his loyal companion and best buddy Alfie.

Who shared in the love and the joy of Jim's life

To Anne, Elizabeth, Wes, Kayla, Vera, Heidi, I know that no words can truly ease the loss you feel

Matthew chapter 5, verse 4, tells us: Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted.

I may not have the right words to comfort you, but I want you to know that I am here.

And we all are here to walk with you, to support you, and to carry some of the weight of this loss together.

Jim's love, guidance, and example will continue to live on in all of you, shaping your lives for years to come.

To the family, the friends, the students, and colleagues who remember him.

Let us be sure to honor him by carrying forward the values he lived by: integrity, compassion, and service to others.

Let us remember Jim not only in grief, but with gratitude.

Gratitude for the privilege of knowing him.

Coach Jim Clayton

Thank you for your life, your guidance, and your friendship

You will be deeply missed, but your spirit

Your lessons and your laughter that will live on in all of us

We all need to follow Jim's model with bam

We need to work to believe bigger, achieve louder, and motivate stronger

Just as he did every day of his life.

May you rest in peace, my friend