WINLOCK — For eighty years now, Winlock has celebrated their young men, awarding the most inspirational senior football player the Otis Roundtree award. More than 100 people came from all over to see the 80th award presented Saturday afternoon at the Hope Grange in Winlock.
It is among the oldest surviving high school awards in America and is older even than the Heisman Trophy, according to David Kellam, president of the Winlock Lions Club.
There are few American awards that are as old, Kellam said.
Each year, the Winlock High School football team gathers and votes for a player among them that is the most inspirational to the team. This year the team chose high school senior Nathan Booth.
It felt good receiving the award, Booth said. Im pretty tight with the whole team.
When asked why Booth thought his teammates voted for him, he said it was his watchdog attitude.
I was on everybody to be their best, Booth said.
The awards creator, Otis Roundtree, was born in the Boistfort Valley in 1875.
He walked 15 miles each day to go to high school, said Mike Porter, who won the Roundtree award in 1960.
He eventually played football for University of Washington in the 1890s, when you couldnt even throw a pass, Porter explained.
Roundtree went on to form the Lewis County Football League, Egg Day and even helped bring the first telephone to the area.
As the afternoon progressed, old rivalries were remembered and Porter recalled thieving the Toledo High School victory bell. After a large meal prepared by the Lionesses, Porter and other Lions recalled all 79 previous award winners and then announced this years winner.
The oldest living recipient, Lynn Pope, class of 1937, presented Booth with the award.
Paula Collucci is a freelance journalist living near Vader. She can be reached at paula.a.collucci@hotmail.com.
