Farewell to a legend

We end up doing a lot of tribute pieces in this business - particularly for coaches with long and distinguished careers as they retire.
But none was more meaningful than the farewell to Bob Frisk that is running Friday (Dec. 5), the same day he writes his final column as he finishes 50 phenomenal years at the Daily Herald.
Hopefully it gave a little insight into how much Bob cared about high school sports from the day he started here and how much he will continue to care about it for years to come. As Bob's longtime friend and Elk Grove softball coach Ken Grams put it about the Daily Herald: "That's what keeps high school sports alive. I'm convinced of it and Bob's the face of it all."
Many of my record-seeking forays to the Herald's microfilm has probably done a little eye damage but has also been eye-opening to what Bob meant to this paper and community. It's certainly given me an appreciation for what he's done and the resources now available to all of us who work here.
The good news is Bob is hardly disappearing - go to any area football field, basketball court or baseball and softball field and there's a good chance you'll run into him there.
Finally, there would be no better way to pay tribute to the originator of the IHSA's "Pack the Place" than by doing just that Saturday night at Christian Liberty's Grace Gym, the old home of his beloved alma mater Arlington High, when Buffalo Grove and Palatine play their Mid-Suburban League crossover in the Bob Frisk Sleighbells Classic. It promises to be a memorable event.