1996 Miracle Yearbook

The pace oflife hasn't necessar- ily sloweddownforDr.Don Callan. It hasjust taken on a differentfocus. Callan has served for 36 years at Cedarville College. The first 35 years he labored as the head men's basketballcoach and held down the position ofathletic director. While he maintainsthe A.D.spotand all of his other duties atthe college,itwas when he stepped down as the hard- wood mentor ofthe Yellow Jackets thathetrulyfaced a transitionin his life. "Ireally wasn'tsurehowlwould feel about getting out ofcoaching, butIknewIwasready,"said Callan, who gave up the coaching reins in April of 1995. "I'll assure you that I am still confident I made the right decision. It has given me time to concentrate on a number of other thingsincluding giving more ofmy time to our athletic teams." Basketball opponents probably don't miss Callan on the sideline either. He finished his career with eight straight 20-win seasons and 579 career victories in all. He was the NAIA's third active winningest men'sbasketballcoachand the 19th on the NAIA's all-time victory list. Callan's accomplishments in the athletic arena are endless and they haven't gone unnoticed. His ex- ploits on the football field and bas- ketballcourtat hisalma mater,Tay- lor University, earned him induc- tion into the school's Hall ofFame. One of the highest honors to A Solid Example ever be bestowed upon Callan oc- curred last February when he was presented a Lifetime Achievement Awardfrom the Dayton AgonisClub. He was one ofseven people honored for his longtime commitment and contribution to athletics in the state ofOhio. WhileCallanhasdemonstrated the ability to produce winning basketball teams, it is his involvement apart from the competitive athletic arena that is just as legendary. In 1971,he founded Cedarville's Missionary In- ternship Service (MIS). Each year, particularlyinthesummer,morethan 200 students, faculty and stafftake partintheMISbysharing the gospel around the globe through team and individual ministries. Callan initiated the MIS program by taking a men's basketball team, known as the Athletes for Christ, to the Philippines. The ten-member unit generally tours the islands for five weeks sharing the gospel of Christ through basketball evange- lism. Callan has also coached and lectured in Australia,Japan, Korea, HongKong,Poland, Portugal,New Guinea, Spain, Taiwan, and Thai- land. TheNCCAApresented Cedarville with its first-ever Sports Ministries Award in 1990 and, according to Callan, remains as one of his most satisfying honors. The award rec- ognized two decades ofresourceful spiritual outreach through Cedarville's athleticteamsunderthe leadership ofDr. Callan. Familylife alsokeepsCallan busy. He and his wife of40 years, Nedra, have two married children andfour grandchildren. They also remain active in the local church and in the community. "I have never looked back at my decision to come to Cedarville Col- lege," Callan explained. "I made a commitment to work with Chris- tian young people and the Lord has been in it every step ofthe way." Mark Womack,Sports Information Director Jeff Reep '78 returned to Cedarville College this fall to take over the head coachingpositionfortheYellowJack- ets'men'sbasketballprogram. When Dr.Don Callan announced his retire- ment from coaching in April of last year, following a legendary 35-year career, the first thing he did as ath- leticdirctor wasannounceReepas his personal choice to take his position. "It's a great opportunity," Reep said and it's important to keep the pro- gram on the same track that it's been going." Reep had been a collegiate coach for the past 17 years(prior tocoming to Cedarville). Since 1984, he had been an assistant atNew Mexico State Universityand mostrecently held the title ofassociate head coach. Prior to his tenure at New Mexico State,Reep spent the 1983-84season as an assis- tant at Stetson University in Florida. He was a graduate assistant at Delta State in Mississippi 1979-81 and served as an assistant coach at the school 1881-83. He was the junior varsity coach at Cedarville Collegefor the 1978-79 season. Reep played for four years at Cedarville from 1974-1978, and his 1,279 career points presently rank A Solid Choice him 17th on the Yellow Jackets' all- time scoring list. He was a two-year captain, two-time Cedarville MVP, and was twice named to the All-Mid- Ohio Conference and All-NAIA Dis- trict 22 teams. Concerning the move from New Mexico State to Cedarville, Reep stated,"Cedarville is my alma mater. I'm excited about running my own program,andIlookforward to being here for a long time." Coach Reep was enthusiastically welcomed at Cedarville and had a fantastic first year at the 'Ville. Taken from Summer'95 Inspire sports