07 LC 96
2527
House
Resolution 579
By:
Representative Hudson of the
124th
A
RESOLUTION
Commending
Head Coach Luther Welsh of the Thomson High School football team on the occasion
of his 300th win; and for other purposes.
WHEREAS,
Coach Welsh was born in Bishopville, South Carolina, in 1932, and graduated from
high school in Maysville, South Carolina, in 1951, where he played football and
baseball among other activities; and
WHEREAS,
Coach Welsh went on to attend and graduate from Presbyterian College in Clinton,
South Carolina, in 1955; and
WHEREAS,
Coach Welsh began his coaching career at Warrenton High School in Warrenton,
Georgia, in 1955 with a 7-4 season; and
WHEREAS,
in 1984, Coach Welsh became head coach of Thomson High School, where he coached
for the next seven years, and won the AAA state championship with a perfect 15-0
season in his first year; and
WHEREAS,
Coach Welsh was named Teacher of the Year and STAR Teacher in McDuffie County
after winning another AAA state championship in 1985 and maintaining a 29-0-1
record through two seasons at Thomson High School; and
WHEREAS,
Coach Welsh returned for his second tenure at Thomson in 1999 and led the
Bulldogs to another Region 3 Class AAA championship; and
WHEREAS,
in 2002, Coach Welsh was named the Class AAAA Coach of the Year by the
Atlanta
Journal-Constitution after the Bulldogs
took the Class AAAA State Championship with a 15-0 season;
and
WHEREAS, he was named the Atlanta Touchdown Club Coach of the Year and the NFL High School Coach of the Year and received the Bob Waters Award from Presbyterian College for distinguished athletic alumni; and
WHEREAS, he was named the Atlanta Touchdown Club Coach of the Year and the NFL High School Coach of the Year and received the Bob Waters Award from Presbyterian College for distinguished athletic alumni; and
WHEREAS,
in 2005, Coach Welsh's Bulldogs won their forth consecutive regional
championship, a feat that has only been accomplished once before in school
history; and
WHEREAS,
Coach Welsh holds the state record for coaching the most games, and with 300
career wins, he ranks as the third most winning active coach in Georgia and the
eighth most winning coach in the history of Georgia high school football;
and
WHEREAS,
Coach Welsh has been credited with helping to establish a sense of identity,
tradition, and community in Thomson and has contributed to the development of
countless student athletes, many of whom have gone on to play college football;
and
WHEREAS,
Coach Welsh is a devoted husband to his wife, Mrs. Anne Welsh, with whom he has
shared more than four wonderful decades of marriage; a father of two; and a
beloved grandfather to three.
NOW,
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that members of this
body join in commending Coach Luther Welsh for his many years of dedicated
service to the students of Thomson High School, congratulate him on the occasion
of his 300th win, and extend to him their sincerest best wishes for his future
health and success.
BE
IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk of the House of Representatives is authorized
and directed to transmit an appropriate copy of this resolution to Coach Luther
Welsh.