[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 40 (Wednesday, March 12, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E436]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E436]]
                          REGARDING TOM JARMAN

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. J. DENNIS HASTERT

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, March 12, 2003

  Mr. HASTERT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about a very close 
friend of mine who is one of the unsung heroes of America. Tom Jarman 
is a teacher, a coach, a man of great wisdom, a noted author, and the 
kind of friend you would want if you ever got in a jam. He was recently 
inducted into the National Wrestling Coaches Association Division III 
Coaches Hall of Fame, but that is just one of 6 Hall of Fames that he 
has been inducted into. He is also a member of the Taylor University 
Hall of Fame, Wheaton College Hall of Fame, the Oswego High School Hall 
of Fame, the Indiana Wrestling Coaches Hall of Fame, and the Illinois 
Wrestling Coaches Hall of Fame.
  Tom was the co-author of Beginning Wrestling, one of the all-time 
best selling books for young wrestlers in history. Apart from teaching 
young kids how to wrestle, he has also coached successfully at 
Manchester College, Northwestern University, and Taylor University. He 
has coached nineteen All-Americans, along with nineteen Academic All-
Americans. He has an outstanding overall record of 394-126.
  Throughout his career, Tom has emphasized to his wrestlers the 
importance of character, the value of hard work, the best virtues of 
competition, and the glory of fair play. He has done so with dogged 
determination and with the humility and humor of a first-class teacher. 
I don't know what all of Tom's former students are doing now, but I 
guarantee you that they are better citizens because of the time they 
spent with him.
  I first met Tom Jarman when I was in junior high, and I wrestled with 
him at that level, in high school and at Wheaton College. Even back 
then, I knew that he had the makings of a great coach and teacher. In 
fact, at Wheaton College, Tom was the 1963 NCAA Collegiate Division 
National Champion at 158 pounds, and he was twice named an NCAA All-
American. While 158 pounds is a long time ago, I still remember vividly 
Tom's will to succeed.
  All to often, in this day and age, many universities are dropping 
their wrestling programs for legal or financial reasons. I think that 
is a big mistake, because when I look at the career of someone like Tom 
Jarman, who has been in the trenches for so many years, molding the 
characters of so many young men, teaching them to succeed at wrestling 
and succeed at life--I think how much better off this country is 
because of his efforts.
  So, to my good friend, Tom Jarman, I salute you on your latest honor, 
and I salute you for being one of America's unsung heroes. Thank you 
for your great contributions to American society.

                          ____________________