A champion

Friday, Oct. 18, 2019. I was assigned to report on the Buffalo Grove at Prospect football game. To some it was just another game. To me, it meant to see Bob Frisk on the sidelines. We would chat like we always would before the game or at halftime. Bob was not to be found.

Maybe he had a family commitment I thought.

I had seen him earlier in the season at the Prospect-St. Viator game. We spoke about what the summer at meant to us. It wasn't until a short time later that I learned that what would become a fatal illness struck Bob.

Bob, was so pleasant to speak to. I relished anytime I was assigned a Prospect football or basketball game.

Bob cared for others. I would run into Bob at the post office, grocery store etc. He always liked when I asked how his grandson was doing. He would beam. In turn, he would ask how Bailey, our cockapoo was. Bob liked him. Petting him, scratching his neck.

When Bailey passed two years ago, Bob sent me a column he had written about the passing of his dog Friskie. It put life into perspective for us in a time of mourning. That's who Bob was. Caring for people and the athletes of high school sports.

I will cherish the times I visited him at Lutheran Home and the talks we had. He was brave and comfortable in the environment he was subject to.

"When the time comes, the time will come," Bob told me. "I have no regrets, I lived a good life."

Such was the man.

There has been talk about a tribute of some sort for Bob. For me, I would like to see the Mid-Suburban boys and girls basketball championship games be called, the Bob Frisk MSL Championship Game.

It would be fitting for a man who was a champion.

Greg Swiderski

Rolling Meadows