Done properly, a memorial service can turn mourning a person’s death into a celebration of his life. The nearly 300 guests who gathered on Sunday, August 11 to pay final respects to Miles Hubbard ’57 experienced that transformative power. Over the course of several hours, a fitting tribute, held in All Saints’ Chapel, followed by a reception in Smith Field House and the Hubbard Gymnasium, lauded the legendary coach and athletic director’s 54 years at Trinity-Pawling. Prior to dismissal from the Chapel, two members of the U.S. Army bestowed formal military honors, presenting Hubbard’s wife Janet with a crisply folded American flag, while Taps played to honor his service in the Army Reserves.
On that bluebird August day, generations of alumni, faculty, trustees, staff, and community friends filled All Saints’ wooden pews to hear reflections of Bruce Birns ’70, Chris Kelly ’81, Headmaster Bill Taylor, and former Chaplain John Gedrick. John Paul Burlington ’95, Erik Olstein ’86, Brian Foster ’79, and David Coratti offered readings. The Reverend Daniel Lennox, Trinity-Pawling’s chaplain, served as officiant.
Birns recounted the evolution of his 53-year friendship with Hubbard. Alternating between choking back tears and self-deprecating laughter, Birns shared tales of playing basketball for Coach Hubbard in the late 1960’s, specifically from his viewpoint as a founding member of the “30-30” club, relegated to the far end of the bench and hoping to see 30 seconds of court time if the team were up or down by 30 points.
In his later post-coaching years, Hubbard’s favorite pastimes were sweeping the court floor and doing the uniform laundry. Birns continued, “The gym was his and he let people know it. He ran that gym as though guarding the Mona Lisa at the Louvre. God forbid he found T-P students playing on it after he closed it for the night or wearing non-sneakers.”
These amusing accounts elicited appreciative laughter from the congregation who understood that Hubbard’s signature gruff approach belied a deeply caring heart. Birns poignantly described Janet Hubbard, whom Miles married in 2005, as his “fearless and loyal first mate who steered him magnificently through both the sweet and sometimes choppy waters of later life, infusing him with the fountain of youth.” “Miles was a champion, not just because of the banners that adorn the walls of Hubbard Gymnasium but by the way he lived his life – with love, passion, dedication, humor, and humility. He set a high bar of excellence for all of us to aspire to. There is no doubt that God will choose Miles to coach the angels. Undoubtedly they will be in good shape after Miles has them jumping from the clouds and stars, and without question, with Miles in charge of the heavenly laundry, they will have the cleanest and shiniest wings around. When my day comes, if I’m lucky enough to be sitting with that team, I don’t care if he ever puts me in. To be sitting near him on that bench will be more than enough for me.”
Chris Kelly ’81 shared reflections as a player and then coaching with Hubbard from 1989 to 1999. Kelly proposed that “Great coaches are gifted with an ability to unlock the potential in others. They possess some magnetic force of personality. Great coaches are born, not made.” Kelly spoke of Hubbard’s mantra ‘Do the right thing’ as his philosophy of coaching and of life. “Coach Hubbard wanted us to do the right thing by being a good teammate – working together and being unselfish. By being consistent and being prepared – Coach was a stickler for details and the fundamentals. Do the right thing by being a competitor. He preached that in order to be great at anything, you had to work at it every day. He wanted his players to be passionate. We saw that in his own infectious enthusiasm.”
Kelly closed with an observation that rang true for anyone who knew Miles Hubbard. “As soon as you met him, he was coaching you – like it or not – peering into what made you tick, giving advice, teaching and challenging you as an athlete and a young man.” He concluded, “We lost a great man but his influence on helping so many young kids become better men will last for generations.”
Headmaster Bill Taylor described Hubbard as a ‘stalwart force of continuity’ within the institution, yet able to find plenty of humor in life and laugh at himself. Taylor quoted comments from Hubbard’s teachers and advisors in the mid 1950s, revealing the young man’s commitment to perseverance and to excellence. “In his 54 years of service to Trinity-Pawling, Miles Hubbard created excellence by how he lived his life and how he taught and modeled the fundamentals of hard work, honor, accountability, perseverance, and pride. It is impossible to overstate the impact Miles Hubbard has had on the School.”
In his homily, former Chaplain John Gedrick urged the congregation to “share the burden of grief by giving voice to stories.” And that is precisely what Miles and Janet Hubbard, and their extended family, would want us to do: to share stories and laugh, to take the underlying lessons to heart, and to take pride in a job well done. We should channel Miles who, after sweeping the gym floor, rolling the rack of basketballs into the storage closet, and folding the last uniform, would relax with friends, smile, and toast life… with an ice-cold can of Coors Light.
by Maria Buteux Reade