Columnists

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By Bill Herr

This is the second in a series of four columns about the four greatest Pirate men's basketball games I ever saw. In the first column, Ron Lora and Jim (Spike) Berry wrote about the game against State-Ranked Bellefontaine (Fourth in Class A) in which the Pirates prevailed in the old Bluffton High School gym. In this column Spike Berry writes about a second game in that same 1954-1955 year, the tournament game with Bluffton going against undefeated Willshire.

The Bluffion-Willshire Game

Spike Berry: Thirteen teams played in the Non County Tournament with three teams going to the District at the Celina Field House. The Bluffton Pirates made the trip as one of the three teams, the first trip for the Pirates since 1942. We played the game at the Celina Field House, and 69 years later the Celina team still plays there.

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PHOTO from 1955 Buccaneer Yearbook on Bluffton Schools online Wall of Fame

By Bill Herr

Two of the greatest Pirate basketball games I ever witnessed occurred in the year 1954-1955. Coach Joe Harris has passed, so I asked two of the starters on that team to share their memories of the games and the players involved. They are Ron Lora and Jim (Spike) Berry. Ron was the leading scorer on the team that year and Spike was the point guard and floor leader.

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By Robert McCool

What a delightful book! "Remarkably Bright Creatures" (HarperCollins, 2022) by a debut author, Shelby Van Pelt. This book has been on the New York Times bestseller list numerous times since its publication and the author won a Reader's Choice Award for Best Debut Writer. 

It remains one of the most read pop-fiction books and was the first unanimous selection by Ada Book Club members for 2025. I have to thank Jill Simmons for bringing this book to our attention.

First off, it has the most unique voice for a narrator and commentator on human behavior. Marcellus McSquid (inappropriately named on the plaque above his tank, as he is a Giant Pacific Octopus, not a squid.) opens the book with a commentary on his conditions and the visitors beyond his glass tank. He tells you of his intelligence (for example, his ability to read) and you need to be aware of this throughout the novel as his personal life is explained in too few commentaries.

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PHOTOS of the Ream display. Click the gallery to enlarge and view at your own pace.

By Bill Herr

Thousands have seen the Ream Christmas display that originated on the Ream farm in 1938 and now is displayed each year at Christmastime on the Bluffton Presbyterian Church lawn. This story is about its founder, Harry Ream.

I first met Harry on October 22, 2001, when he had just become a resident at Richland Manor Nursing Home near Beaverdam. I was a volunteer there, meeting with men who were residents for a weekly meeting.

My wife and I had traveled each year to the Ream farm to see their Christmas display. We knew that Harry made the cut outs of the figures and that his wife Dorothy was an artist and painted them.

When I heard that Harry was to become a new resident at the nursing home, I was excited to meet him. When he came to our meeting room, I extended my right hand to Harry and was stunned to see that he didn't have his right hand. He smiled and put out his left hand. We shook hands and that began a friendship I will never forget. 

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See parts 1 Rick Shaner and 2 Dennis Lee

By Bill Herr

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ABOVE) Dennis Lee in 2000 with the girls Varsity Basketball page spread from the Buccaneer yearbook.The yearbook is online at BHS Wall of Fame

By Bill Herr

In my opinion, one of the greatest ever coaches in any sport at Bluffton High School is Mr. Dennis Lee. Coach Lee's parents were Gene and Sue Lee. His father was a full time farmer and his mother worked at a hospital. Dennis and his wife Cindy have two children, Matthew and Andrew.

Dennis grew up helping with all the things that go on at a farm: baling hay and straw, milking a dairy herd, chores. I am a farmer and also taught at BHS. When we would eat together, we would talk farming. When we met for my interview with him for this column, it was a wet, cool summer morning. The first thing he said to me was, "Not a good day for corn to grow, is it?"

Coach Lee's siblings have been or are still involved in coaching. Mike was principal and basketball coach at Minster, and is now boys' basketball coach at Pandora High School. Greg coached boys' basketball at Value and has been an official. Now he runs the golf course at Arlington. Kathy was the women's basketball coach at Adrian College in Michigan. ▶︎

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