On the local sports scene, we have lost another iconic coach who loved what he did.
Mike Beson was a leader of young people and a credit to the coaching profession. As most people know by now, Mike lost his battle with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, otherwise known as “Lou Gehrig’s Disease”.
Coach Beson was officially diagnosed on April 3. He was very aware of its consequences as a degenerative disease that had no cure.
But, Mike’s ulterior motive became his determination: to see his son get married on October 5. He did, and then he passed the very next morning.
Let me tell you about Mike Beson, the coach. Basketball was his first love and a game that is truly a coach’s game.
There is no influence bigger in sports than that of the coach, no matter the sport. I have seen basketball coaches win or lose games by living and dying with their philosophical approach, which can impact, positively or negatively, the result of the game.
Mike was a student of the game of basketball. He was very cerebral and always had his teams prepared.
What I know about his ability as a golf coach is that he lived the sport and passed his knowledge on to his players.
Here is the best example that I can use to describe him further. He had a passion for coaching, no matter what the game. The profession of teaching and coaching requires people with the indescribable trait of being intensely emotional, as well as giving up some of one’s own personal life to help others. Mike was that someone who had an influence on his students and athletes in such a positive way.
When talking to Mike, one could feel his love and compassion for what he was doing. In his involvement in the game, you could compare his emotions along with his drive to that of a young man who just met the girl of his dreams. When talking basketball with him you could see his love for the sport through his eyes—it was pure devotion.
What happened to Mike has no answers. Why does this stuff happen to anyone? Where does it come from? Who knows?
His family will now have a big void, one that can’t be filled—unthinkable, but there will always be their memories of dad and husband, and for those other than family there was the man Mike Beson and the coach.
He was born with a handicap, a deformed left hand, a little imperfection that had no bearing on who he was. His handicap was never an issue other than a physical presence that had no effect on his stature. He stood tall among his peers because he represented the true definition of a love to coach.
He became an administrator in the Shenendehowa school system. It put a kink in his coaching career until he retired and then looked to Ken Mantia, the boys’ basketball coach at Saratoga Catholic, to see if he could help out with Saints Basketball. He and Ken had a history that went back to Shenendehowa. Coach Mantia saw an opportunity to have Mike’s expertise become part of his program. Then came the opportunity to coach the golf team at Spa Catholic last year and that story developed into a coaching fairy tale: two league titles and a sectional championship.
I would like to extend my condolences to his wife, Elly, and son, Michael. They are as strong as Mike was because they also had to live with the horrors of ALS. The legacy of Mike Beson is etched into the minds and hearts of the many people who knew him. If there is a team to coach in heaven, you can count on him being there doing his thing, for his new Director of Athletics.
To Mike, thanks for being a part of my life. Even though it was a little bit, it was in a big way. You have left someone else with the impression of your gift and passion—rest in peace.
Coach Beson will be missed but not forgotten.
