[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 124 (Tuesday, July 24, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5263-S5264]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        REMEMBERING JACK POWELL

 Mr. JONES. Mr. President, I rise today with deep sadness, but 
also with reverence to remember Jack Powell, who died on May 12, 2018. 
Jack Powell was a beloved coach and educator in Alabama. He was revered 
by his students and players and often regarded as a second father to 
many. Until his 95th birthday, regular reunions were held by former 
high school players to honor Coach Powell and reminisce with former 
teammates. His accomplishments on and off the course touched thousands 
of lives.
  Coach Powell was born on March 20, 1922, in Andalusia. He was one of 
10 children born to George Bennie and Lilla Lawson Powell. He played 
basketball in the State tournament for 3 years as a student at Pleasant 
Home High School. They went undefeated during the regular season of his 
senior year. Coach Powell went on to Auburn University to play for 
coaches Bob Evans, Ralph ``Shug'' Jordan, and V.J. Edney. While at 
Auburn, he was a letterman 2 years in a row and cocaptain of the team 
in 1946.
  After his college career, he served as an educator for approximately 
40 years. He worked at Lockhart and Eufaula high schools from 1947 to 
1966, then Livingston University, now the University of West Alabama, 
from 1966 to 1972, and finally at Sparks State Technical College in 
Eufaula until his retirement.
  During his time as a high school coach, he received several Coach of 
the Year Awards and won district, area, regional, and State 
championships. He coached three Alabama All-Star Games, including the 
inaugural game in 1963. He served as coach to 11 All-State players. 
While at Eufaula High School, his team went to the State tournament 
nine times, finishing in the top four positions. During his 20-year 
tenure, he amassed an impressive winning record of 406-193.

[[Page S5264]]

  When he entered the college coaching scene in 1966, he led Livingston 
University to its first Alabama Collegiate Conference championship and 
two consecutive ACC Tournament Championships. In 1969, he was named ACC 
Coach of the Year and in 1971 was again named ACC Coach of the Year, in 
addition to Alabama Small Colleges Coach of the Year and NAIA District 
27 Coach of the Year.
  In 1992, after decades of hard work and commitment to teams, he 
became one of the first inductees in the Alabama High School Sports 
Hall of Fame. One of his greatest honors was having a gymnasium named 
after him in Eufaula, where it served as the home to Eufaula's youth 
basketball leagues for many years. He also established a Tri-State 
basketball tryout clinic where players came from Alabama, Florida, 
Georgia, and Tennessee. As a result, more than 60 young athletes earned 
scholarships to play in college.
  Aside from teaching and coaching, Coach Powell was an avid 
outdoorsmen who loved to fish, hunt, and garden. He also served in his 
churches in both Eufaula and Livingston. He was a Sunday school teacher 
for more than 50 years in addition to serving as a deacon and chairman 
of the board for more than 12 years.
  My wife, Louise, and I extend our sincerest condolences to Coach 
Powell's two sons, five grandchildren, seven great-grandchildren, and 
the entire extended community of athletes and fans on whom he made a 
positive impact. His legacy lives on in each of us.

                          ____________________