From left = Cheryl Sue Craft (Truitt Weldon’s sister-in-law), Marla Weldon (Truitt’s daughter), DeWayne Weldon (Truitt’s older brother), Norm Weldon (Truitt’s son), Norm Fletcher (close friend of Weldon family), Elizabeth Kile (Truitt’s mother-in-law), Dinah Weldon (Truitt’s daughter), Delma Weldon (Truitt’s sister-in-law/wife of Truitt’s deceased brother, Dennis), and Becky Weldon (DeWayne’s wife/Truitt’s sister-in-law).
The feeling I had when leaving Prather Coliseum this past Saturday was hard to describe.
At the annual NSU Men's Basketball Reunion, the Graduate N-Club posthumously inducted Truitt Weldon into its Hall of Fame. Weldon played for the Demons from 1958-62, was twice an All-Gulf State Conference player, and after almost 50 years is still the fourth leading rebounder in the history of the progam. And, oh by the way, he scored an official 82 points in a game while at Mt. Carmel High in nearby Sabine Parish and another unofficial report cited a game in which he scored 105 points. No doubt, Truitt Weldon is deserving to be permanently honored among the best of the best to ever wear a Demon basketball uniform.
That, however, still does not fully explain why I felt the way I did. You see, Truitt Weldon died at the very young age of 31 - back in 1971 - and there has been minimal contact between his family and NSU since that time. The closest thing to contact with the Weldon family came through former NSU radio man Norm Fletcher, who was privileged to call games during Truitt's playing days and remained a close friend of the family. In fact, the oldest of three Weldon children - Norman Gene - was named after Mr. Fletcher and Truitt's college roomate, Gene Wright.
That level of "minimal contact," after close to 40 years, came to an end this past weekend when Truitt's three children - son, Norm, and daughters Marla and Dinah - traveled to Natchitoches for the N-Club induction ceremony. How much did this ceremony mean to them? Both Norm and Dinah traveled to Louisiana from their homes in Salt Lake City, UT, and Marla from Houston. Other family members in attendance included Truitt's older brother, DeWayne, and his wife Becky; Cheryl Sue Craft, sister to Truitt's wife; Elizabeth Kile, Truitt's mother-in-law; and Delma Weldon, wife of Truitt's late brother, Dennis.
Talking to members of the Weldon family and listening to Norm's moving acceptance speech reinforced how special this day was for them. Put yourselves in their shoes. Norm was 10 when his father died and his two sisters were younger than that. How touching it must have been for them to visit about their Dad with some of his former teammates such as Phillip Haley and Jim Adkins. How meaningful must it have been to be able to share a significant moment for him - even in his absence. How proud they must be to know that the father they did not get to know nearly as well as most people get to know their own fathers was an outstanding basketball player but, more importantly, was a solid, well-liked, and respected gentlemen.
Knowing that the Weldon family felt good about the day and about how Truitt was honored made me feel good in a way that is hard to explain. I guess one just had to be there to truly understand but mark my words, it was special.
At the annual NSU Men's Basketball Reunion, the Graduate N-Club posthumously inducted Truitt Weldon into its Hall of Fame. Weldon played for the Demons from 1958-62, was twice an All-Gulf State Conference player, and after almost 50 years is still the fourth leading rebounder in the history of the progam. And, oh by the way, he scored an official 82 points in a game while at Mt. Carmel High in nearby Sabine Parish and another unofficial report cited a game in which he scored 105 points. No doubt, Truitt Weldon is deserving to be permanently honored among the best of the best to ever wear a Demon basketball uniform.
That, however, still does not fully explain why I felt the way I did. You see, Truitt Weldon died at the very young age of 31 - back in 1971 - and there has been minimal contact between his family and NSU since that time. The closest thing to contact with the Weldon family came through former NSU radio man Norm Fletcher, who was privileged to call games during Truitt's playing days and remained a close friend of the family. In fact, the oldest of three Weldon children - Norman Gene - was named after Mr. Fletcher and Truitt's college roomate, Gene Wright.
That level of "minimal contact," after close to 40 years, came to an end this past weekend when Truitt's three children - son, Norm, and daughters Marla and Dinah - traveled to Natchitoches for the N-Club induction ceremony. How much did this ceremony mean to them? Both Norm and Dinah traveled to Louisiana from their homes in Salt Lake City, UT, and Marla from Houston. Other family members in attendance included Truitt's older brother, DeWayne, and his wife Becky; Cheryl Sue Craft, sister to Truitt's wife; Elizabeth Kile, Truitt's mother-in-law; and Delma Weldon, wife of Truitt's late brother, Dennis.
Talking to members of the Weldon family and listening to Norm's moving acceptance speech reinforced how special this day was for them. Put yourselves in their shoes. Norm was 10 when his father died and his two sisters were younger than that. How touching it must have been for them to visit about their Dad with some of his former teammates such as Phillip Haley and Jim Adkins. How meaningful must it have been to be able to share a significant moment for him - even in his absence. How proud they must be to know that the father they did not get to know nearly as well as most people get to know their own fathers was an outstanding basketball player but, more importantly, was a solid, well-liked, and respected gentlemen.
Knowing that the Weldon family felt good about the day and about how Truitt was honored made me feel good in a way that is hard to explain. I guess one just had to be there to truly understand but mark my words, it was special.
Greg Burke, Athletics Director
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