By JOHN MCCORMICK

For The Daily News

 

PINETOWN — On Jan. 3, 2009, Bryan Keith Woolard passed away in a tragic car accident. Since then, every year on Senior Night, a Northside senior baseball player has received a $500 scholarship in his memory.

Tomorrow night, Northside will play its final regular season game at home against rival Southside. Prior to the 6 p.m. start, the scholarship will be awarded to a deserving senior. This year, Northside has four seniors on the roster: Dalton Etheridge, Adam Cahoon, Caleb Alligood and Zach Cosentino.

“This scholarship means a lot to us, Bryan always strived for excellence on and off the field and we like to reward kids in his memory that have the same characteristics,” said Keith Woolard Sr., Bryan’s father.

Woolard began playing baseball at the age of 5 and played for a total of 16 years, competing for nearly every league possible in the area. In his sophomore year at Northside High School (1994), he was called up to the varsity team to play catcher.

In that year, Northside made history, winning the state championship for the first and only time to date. To go along with the state championship, Woolard would win team MVP and Defensive Player of the Year.

After graduating from Northside, Woolard received a scholarship to play at Lenoir Community College. In his sophomore season, he was the only catcher on the roster. His parents remember a game that lasted 18 innings. “He caught every inning that game, didn’t even have any balls get by him,” Woolard Sr. said.

Continuing to play baseball after two years at Lenoir Community College, Woolard joined a Semi-Professional team, where he played for 5 years.

Woolard made his own life rules and stuck to them. His mother, Wendy Woolard, said, “Bryan was always family first, baseball second and deer hunting third.”

She remembers her son, coming home after work to his own son and playing baseball with him every day they could. Not only did Bryan love baseball, he also loved his family.

“He was truly the heart and soul of our family. His Smile lit-up any room he came in. If he started laughing, we would all start laughing,” Wendy Woolard said.

The true compassion Woolard brought to his everyday life lives on through his family and the Memorial Scholarship.

Woolard is survived by his parents, his wife Teresa and his 13-year old son Ryan. Ryan is following in his father’s footsteps, playing baseball at Bath Middle School, in the Cal Ripken League and travel baseball.