In Search of More Home Town Heroes... Luray's Andy Caviness, Juno Carroll and Bill Meade

Juno taking the time to make a face for the camera

Andy Caviness (L) working the 50/50 behind Monte Layman

Ryan and Juno Carroll while helping us with our Sunday Post

Andy is a fine example of a Liberty University grad!

Bill Meade (far right) visiting with Luray fans during

a break in the action of the Lady Bulldogs VB game.

_______________________________________

LURAY - Our journey over, through and Around The Valley has led us to a number of very special people. Over the past 13 months I have taken the time to write about some of these folks and today I want to add three more to the list. All three of the gentleman have ties to Luray and I wanted to share a thought or two about each of them.

_____________________________

We will start out my talking about Mr. Bill Meade of the Page News & Courier. Bill is the Sports Editor for the PN&C and it is his job to cover both Page County High School and Luray High School as well as all other sporting events in Page County.

Bill attended R.E. Lee High School in Staunton, let's just say a few years ago and went on to graduate from William & Mary. A life long Sports fan, I have had the pleasure of visiting with Bill on a number of occasions and each time come away knowing a little more about how much pride he takes in his work.

_____________________________

The typical Weekly newspaper Sports Department is a 1 man band and the Page News & Courier is no different. Two High Schools separated by just a few miles in some ways but worlds apart in others, the most pressing thing for Bill is to make sure neither school feels slighted in their coverage. If the job doesn't sound difficult enough yet we have to factor in that the area daily newspapers coverage tends to stop at the County line. This means that the coverage that Bill brings to the table is the only coverage the student athletes get in some instances.

_____________________________

Bill not only finds a way to balance the task at hand he does it with a certain amount of flair. You can't go to a sporting event without seeing three or four kids from the schools walking by and giving Bill a fist pump. Despite being almost 40 years older than the athletes themselves, Bill finds a special way to close the gap with almost everyone he covers.

_____________________________

"You always know that he is always there for you," said recent LHS graduate Ryan Carroll. "He always does a good job with his coverage, especially the baseball team."

_____________________________

The Pigskin Picks that Bill Meade runs in his Sports section is a great deal of fun for those who follow it in the newspaper as well as though that participate in it. Most of the area newspapers have a Football picks section that involves the staff of that newspaper. Now with Bill having no staff, he is forced to include outsiders to have a panel but he doesn't just go grap the first five or six folks he could find.

_____________________________

Bill wants to have the entire County represented with his panel so in addition to Bill and Randy Arrington (Editor & Chief of PN&C), there are four more "Pickers". One from Luray, one from Stanley, one from Shenandoah and one wild card. To add a little more fun each week Bill searches the County for a "Guest Picker" each week. Just another way of trying to take a situation and make it more enjoyable for everyone.

_____________________________

To borrow a line from Huey Lewis and the News - It's Hip to be Square... No grandstanding, no- look at me now, just Bill Meade doing his best to shine a positive light on kids from both of the tracks/er, County Line. A Giant Tip of the Cap to one hard working Sports journalist...

__________________________________________

Andy Caviness -

To the naked eye Andy Caviness is the Farm Bureau Agent here in the town of Luray. But to those of us you know Andy, that is just a cover for him. I do have to mention that Andy captured the New Agent of the Year Award for both of the years he was eligible. I did have to ask Andy just how it was he managed to win the equal to Rookie of the Year award two years in a row.

Andy did take the time to inform me on the breakdown and that is where our conversation began. As the Valley Baseball League went on this past summer you could not go to a Wrangler work function without seeing Andy in the middle of the action. Whatever Bill Turner and Diane Buckley needed a hand with Andy and Juno (we will get to him in a minute) were two that would immediately ask when and where...

Andy graduated from Liberty University down in Lynchburg and that goes a long way in explanning his give first, take later outlook on life. Whether it was selling the 50/50 tickets at the actual ball games or building the shelves that line the press box or just being a really good listener to the Worlds problems...Andy is the Man for the Job.

___________________________________________________

Mr. Juno Carroll -

Don't know where to start with the man I call "The Nicest Man in Page County". Juno is a life long resident of Luray and if there something going on in the area there is a good chance you will find Juno near the action...

Juno and his son Ryan both serve on the Board of Directors for the Luray Wranglers and they team up again on Saturday night &/or Sunday morning when they come down and help us put out the Post. Mr. & Mrs. Carroll find the time to support ALL Things LHS and not just when the Bulldogs are playing at home.

Father & Son team up most Friday nights when LHS is playing at home. You can find them working the First Down Chains on the side lines or somewhere else where the school is short handed. I would be writing until tomorrow if I tried and list all the ways Juno helps out with the Wranglers as well. The smile on his face is just a bonus to all of the kind acts.

_______________________________________

Why write about these three men today ? Let's see - the Sports World is celebrating the 1ST anniversary of the death of Sean Taylor, Plexico just shot himself in the leg in a night club, Rich Rodregious just told the Michigan fans to get a life after he took the "Dream Job" and posted a 3-9 record. The man had the "perfect" job and friends that would take a bullet for him and he traded it all away for a night with a fashion model of a job.

Then after bolting town to take the new job, he actually has the nerve to complain the new fans are too demanding. Oh stop, we could talk about Mike Vick coming back to the NFL or Marbury and the New York Knicks $21 million...

On a day where there are so many things that are wrong (and we didn't even talk about the BCS), I would rather talk about some of the things that are right...Bill Meade, Andy Caviness & Juno Carroll are just a great place to start...

None of the trio will sign a six figure shoe contract but each one of them spend a great deal of energy trying to make Page County a better place to be!