If you mention to stranger that you are from Massillon, they often connect our town to football. The second question you receive is: “Isn’t that the place where they present a miniature football to newborns?”
The practice of presenting miniature footballs to baby boys started in 1958 at what was then Massillon Hospital. There is however a short cut from the film “Touchdown Town” that was released in 1953. It shows a newborn arriving home with his parents. Mom is proudly carrying the young Tiger and dad is following with a full sized football that was presented to the family by the Football Booster Club.
In recent years this practice has taken a different path. In a cost cutting move the Affinity Medical Center in Massillon was forced to close the local OB-GYN unit and local births now take place in other hospitals out of town. Because the hospital staff doesn’t have the Massillon loyalty the presentation has become somewhat hit and miss.
If you are a Tiger fan and have a newborn in your family and you did not receive a miniature football, the Booster Club would be glad to make sure your newborn gets an official Tiger Football.
Your newborn can receive a football from the Booster Club by contacting this year’s President, Ben Lieberman, at 330-564-6265. Or you can email him at benxrow2002@yahoo.com. He will see that you get a football from the Booster Club.
The first Touchdown Club meeting will be held on Tuesday August 22nd, 2017 at the Eagles F.O.E. 190 in downtown Massillon. Lunch will be served at 11:30 a.m. and the meeting will take place at 12:00 p.m.
Membership dues are $25.00 for the season and meals are $8.00 per week with exception to McKinley week which is $12.00.
Please contact Matt Keller for more information or an application letter.
This Saturday morning, July 15, your Massillon Tiger players will be canvassing the Massillon neighborhoods selling Booster Club memberships.
By supporting the Booster Club with your membership, you will be helping to provide the resources necessary to keep our football program among the best in the state of Ohio. The standard membership can be purchased for $10. Also available above the standard membership are the Bronze ($25 or more), the Silver ($50 or more) and the Gold ($100 or more). The Bronze, Silver and Gold members are recognized in the Massillon game program each week during the season. Each member will receive a Membership Card and a hand painted Obie Tiger lapel pin, a tradition started in 1952. Corporate memberships are also available and are also displayed in the game program.
Please welcome our Tiger Players and support our Booster Club, Team, School and Community with your membership. Your support is needed and greatly appreciated. Thank you!
Saturday, June 17, marks the 28th Annual Cruise-On-In & Dance Party, which is renowned for being the largest car show in Ohio. Covering the length of Lincoln Way in downtown Massillon, the event features hundreds of classic cars, trucks and motorcycles, food and entertainment, wrapping up with a 10:00 pm fireworks display.
While there, be sure to stop by the Massillon Tiger Football Booster Club booth to say hi. For sale will be Booster Club memberships with Obie pin, Community Discount Cards, Massillon Tiger apparel and Massillon Football Game videos. Pose for a photo with the Massillon Obiemobile.
Also, take some time to visit the Massillon Museum. Currently on display are the Paul Brown / Tiger Swing Band feature and the World War 1 exhibit.
The Car Show is presented by ESPN 990, The Boys & Girls Club of Massillon and the Massillon Area Car Club
Throughout the year the Massillon Tiger Football Booster Club raises money through various means to help fund the club and provide benefits to worthy students. One of those activities involves the purchase of vehicle license plates that display the Obie mascot on the left side and the words “Massillon Tigers” at the bottom. Approved by the governor in 2013, WHS was the first high school in Ohio to have its own commemorative plate. The extra cost is $35 per year, with $25 going to the club to fund an annual scholarship. Plates can be purchased through any DMV in Ohio.
Eligible students must be associated with the football program and demonstrate excellence in both academics and citizenship. This year’s award winners are Dillon Delong, Kordell Ford, Nathan Gregg, Seth Blankenship and Samantha Smith.
The Massillon Tiger Football team will be selling community Discount Cards on June 3, 2017 at 10:00 AM. Players will be in Massillon neighborhoods offering these great discount cards. If you see our Tigers out and about please consider buying one or more of the discount cards from them. These discount cards are a player fundraiser to help with camp and off-season preparation costs for the upcoming season. Below you can see the discounts and locations being offered. Thank you in advance for your support of the 2017 Massillon Tigers.
BOOSTER CLUB MEMBERS:
We need drivers to help escort the players around town. Please consider coming by Paul Brown Stadium at 9:00 AM to assist with transportation. Please contact Bruce Gallagher at 330.837.0579 or Steve Berecek at 330.704.7693.
With the goal of developing a new website header to help modernize the Massillon Tiger Football Booster Club Website, the members turned to the students of Washington High School. The task was presented as a contest and it fell immediately to the Media Arts & Communication Department, which eagerly accepted the challenge of solving this real-world problem. The students’ talents were readily applied, multiple entries were submitted and some auspicious Booster Club judges reviewed each one. But in the end, it was a combination of artistic design ideas from the various entries that was used to create the final website header shown above.
It was in 1967 that WHS made its first venture into world of audio-video broadcasting when a group of students recorded the Tiger football games for later airing on Massillon Cable TV. The undertaking was accomplished as a club project under the guidance of Dick Gessner, who trained the students over the summer and prepared them for the task at hand.
Later, at the request of Superintendent Al Paris, the club approach was converted into a classroom elective. Now, some fifty years later, it has evolved into a formal curriculum of instruction, called Media Arts & Communication. A part of Career Technical Education, it accepts around 24 junior students each year for the 2-year program.
Standing, Left to right: Matt Ferrell, Dave Scheetz
The current instructors are Dave Scheetz and newcomer Matt Ferrell, a 1993 WHS graduate of the Media Arts program. Mr. Scheetz has been with the program now for 28 years, after previous broadcast work for ESPN990. He couples his current employment with support work for both WHBC (pre-production and play-by-play for the Game of the Week) and Massillon Cable TV.
First-year teacher Mr. Ferrell worked as a DJ, nightclub owner and video store owner during high school, and then later as a show producer, technology trainer and theater designer. He has also delved into other media-related activities, such as software training, all while continuing his broadcast education.
“Both of us have had success in various aspects of the industry and we both feel like we have a lot of experience that we can share with the kids,” said Mr. Scheetz.
The coursework is titled Media Arts & Production and consists of four classes: Media Arts Primer, Audio Broadcast, Video Broadcast and Video Production. The first two courses are offered to juniors and the others are offered to seniors. However, juniors must demonstrate success before moving on.
“We have a situation where we have 24 reserved seats for juniors,” said Mr. Scheetz. “That number will vary from year to year. If we have 25 or more sophomores interested in the class then we go through an interview process. We want to find what the likes and dislikes of these candidates are, do they have a history of doing anything as a hobby prior to this class, TV-related, film- related, music recording-related, anything that ties into what we do. We also look at attendance. We also look at grades. And we also look at teacher recommendations.”
The coursework touches base on all aspects of what goes into making a video, with each course covering pre-production (setup), production (recording), post-production (software editing) and distribution (release to various media). All skill levels are addressed in each class, but are presented in more detail as the student progresses through the program, from simply operating a camera to developing a final edited format. “Those same stages of production have been there forever,” said Mr. Ferrell. “But the way we’re getting there, the tools we are using to get there, that’s what’s changing.”
The program covers:
Videography
Video for the Web
Computer-based Editing
Show Production
Digital Audio Recording
News/Sports Broadcaster
Script Writing/Storyboarding
Computer Animation
Naturally, there is a heavy emphasis on sports broadcasting. “Here in Massillon we are sports strong, whether it’s football or basketball or any of the internal stuff that we do from choir or band or drama club standpoint,” said Mr. Ferrell. “The town is sports-rich, so WHS-TV is sports-rich.”
Students that elect to pursue a career in broadcast are highly encouraged to take additional coursework after leaving the program. But Mr. Scheetz emphasized that students need the drive and passion to succeed in this business. “We’re constantly teaching them about life skills that have nothing to do with the nuts and bolts of video production, but have everything to do with life; separating yourself from the other individuals that want to do the same things that you do.” About 50-75% of the students go on to make a career in the field, but in different ways.
Steve Willing at the White House
Steve Willing was one of those students. A 1979 graduate of the Telecommunications Program (as it was called then), Steve has made a career of handling the video camera. “I took advantage of every opportunity available to me during the following three years,” he said. “I learned everything from running studio and portable television cameras, as well as editing, floor directing and running audio for a variety of projects. In addition to working behind the camera, I gained experience in front of the camera. I hosted the Mike Currence Show, as well as other talk and sports shows during my senior year. I spent every Friday night at Tiger Stadium rotating through a variety of positions including Announcer, Cameraman and Director. I also won a $200 scholarship from Massillon Cable TV for “Best Director” in 1979.”
Steve looks back on his education at WHS-TV with immense pride. “I used those skills in conjunction with a four-year degree in Mass Media Communications at the University of Akron to pursue my dreams in the television industry,” he said. “From public television to sports production to commercial production and news, my travels have taken me to many interesting places, both near and far. I hold Massillon close to my heart and I am forever grateful for the solid foundation the telecommunications program provided me at Washington High School.” Steve currently works for KDKA-Pittsburgh as a Television News Photojournalist.
Regarding the contest to develop the website header, the students readily took to this challenge. “Overall it was different enough and it was real,” said Mr. Scheetz. “Matt and I are constantly coming up with projects and looking for things that are real situations. That project is a real organization, it’s a real website. It’s a real opportunity. Here’s a situation where’s there is a need, here are your guidelines; you’re limited with your guidelines, but you can be as creative as you want. And we loved it. The kids enjoyed it.”
During the judging, the entries were eventually whittled down to the contributions of three students: Brandon Bennett, Nicole Maxhimer and Nate Soley. One designed the orange/striping background, one designed the sports font for the URL address and one designed the cropped version of the Obie. It’s clean and it’s modern.
The MTFBC thanks Dave and Matt for their time in helping to share WHS’s Media Arts & Production program with our readers and Steve Willing for also providing input. A special thank you to all of the students that participated in the website header contest. The MTFBC wishes you good luck with your future endeavors.
The Massillon Tiger Football Booster Club in conjunction with St. George’s Serbian Men’s Club is excited to host “A Night at the Races Fundraiser” on May 20, 2017, at St. George’s Serbian Hall, located at 4667 Applegrove St. NW, North Canton, OH.
Doors open at 5:00 pm. Food will be available 5:30 pm and racing with Monte Carlo Games begins at 6:30 pm. The cost is $15.00, with beer and soft drinks included.
Own a horse for $10.00 and collect $50.00 for each race won. Presold tickets will be entered into a drawing for an autographed football signed by the 2017 Tigers.
For tickets and other info, please contact Steve Berecek at (330) 704-7693 or inquire at Keller’s Office Furniture at (330) 832-7358.
Tickets are $40 and can be purchased at the Massillon Ticket Office and Keller’s Office Furniture.
DISCLAIMER We do have NCAA and UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA regulations to adhere to. There will be no autographs. Also, football players entering 7-12th grade this fall CAN NOT ATTEND.
