Tears were in Jim Boeheim’s eyes that night. “How can we ever top this?” he asked his wife, Juli.
It was not the night in April 2003 when Boeheim coached Syracuse to a national championship. Of that occasion, Juli recalled this week: “I couldn’t wait to get my hands on him and hug him. I asked him, ‘How do you feel?’ He said, ‘Relieved. Let’s go home.’ “
The night Boeheim broke down was in April 2000, after Syracuse held its first “Basket Ball” gala to raise money for Coaches vs. Cancer. Juli had organized the event, Jim had put his name behind it, and they both had recruited nearly everyone they knew to buy seats and get involved. The Boeheims, novice party planners, were nervous about the turnout until about 650 people arrived and moved Jim to tears.
As No. 3 Syracuse faces No. 2 Oklahoma in the N.C.A.A. tournament on Friday night, Boeheim is on the verge of another major accomplishment: 800 career wins, a milestone that only seven Division I men’s basketball coaches have reached.
For all that he has achieved as a coach, Boeheim has earned as much respect for his work on behalf of cancer charities.
Syracuse, the first program to hold a Coaches vs. Cancer gala, will host its 10th “Basket Ball” this spring and has raised $2.8 million from the previous nine. In all, the Boeheims have helped raise $4.5 million for the central New York chapter of the American Cancer Society since the mid-1990s.
“It just tells you his heart and what kind of man he is,” Missouri Coach Mike Anderson said. “He makes a coach like me look up to him and try to do some things in the same capacity.”
Boeheim routinely responds to requests to talk with cancer patients, especially those with prostate cancer, which he had in 2001. He visits patients, speaks on behalf of the American Cancer Society and regularly invites children with cancer to his practices.
“We’ve all been involved with losing people with cancer, so it’s been something we’ve become dedicated to,” he said.
Jim Satalin, the national director of Coaches vs. Cancer for the American Cancer Society, said the contributions go beyond money.
“Not only have they been great with the gala here and raising millions of dollars,” he said. “But they’ve been instrumental in recruiting other coaches and coaches’ wives.”
The former Missouri coach Norm Stewart founded Coaches vs. Cancer, but Boeheim is credited with driving the organization to a new level, Satalin said. St. Joseph’s Coach Phil Martelli described Boeheim as a pioneer.
“He acknowledges the fact that we are very lucky,” Martelli said. “He would say to coaches, ‘With this job comes responsibilities of coaching and recruiting, but you also have a responsibility to give back.’ “
Martelli and five other college basketball programs in Philadelphia have combined to form an arm of Coaches vs. Cancer and to hold their own gala. Succumbing to their competitive natures, Boeheim and Martelli often trade barbs over who is raising the most money. And Boeheim cannot help but gripe that Martelli’s group now usually trumps Syracuse’s.
“He’s always whining about that, not that he doesn’t whine about everything,” Martelli said. “He’ll say it’s not fair because I have six schools.”
Boeheim’s 9-year-old daughter, Jamie, has been quietly tracking her father’s course to 800 wins this season, constantly asking her mother if they can throw a party when he reaches the milestone. “I’m thinking, oh my goodness, I don’t know if he’d like that,” Juli Boeheim said. “He doesn’t want to talk about it at all.”
But if you talk to him about the American Cancer Society, Boeheim will give his heartfelt advice. He reminds everyone to have regular cancer screenings. That, he said, is what helped him survive.
The night Boeheim broke down was in April 2000, after Syracuse held its first “Basket Ball” gala to raise money for Coaches vs. Cancer. Juli had organized the event, Jim had put his name behind it, and they both had recruited nearly everyone they knew to buy seats and get involved. The Boeheims, novice party planners, were nervous about the turnout until about 650 people arrived and moved Jim to tears.
As No. 3 Syracuse faces No. 2 Oklahoma in the N.C.A.A. tournament on Friday night, Boeheim is on the verge of another major accomplishment: 800 career wins, a milestone that only seven Division I men’s basketball coaches have reached.
For all that he has achieved as a coach, Boeheim has earned as much respect for his work on behalf of cancer charities.
Syracuse, the first program to hold a Coaches vs. Cancer gala, will host its 10th “Basket Ball” this spring and has raised $2.8 million from the previous nine. In all, the Boeheims have helped raise $4.5 million for the central New York chapter of the American Cancer Society since the mid-1990s.
“It just tells you his heart and what kind of man he is,” Missouri Coach Mike Anderson said. “He makes a coach like me look up to him and try to do some things in the same capacity.”
Boeheim routinely responds to requests to talk with cancer patients, especially those with prostate cancer, which he had in 2001. He visits patients, speaks on behalf of the American Cancer Society and regularly invites children with cancer to his practices.
“We’ve all been involved with losing people with cancer, so it’s been something we’ve become dedicated to,” he said.
Jim Satalin, the national director of Coaches vs. Cancer for the American Cancer Society, said the contributions go beyond money.
“Not only have they been great with the gala here and raising millions of dollars,” he said. “But they’ve been instrumental in recruiting other coaches and coaches’ wives.”
The former Missouri coach Norm Stewart founded Coaches vs. Cancer, but Boeheim is credited with driving the organization to a new level, Satalin said. St. Joseph’s Coach Phil Martelli described Boeheim as a pioneer.
“He acknowledges the fact that we are very lucky,” Martelli said. “He would say to coaches, ‘With this job comes responsibilities of coaching and recruiting, but you also have a responsibility to give back.’ “
Martelli and five other college basketball programs in Philadelphia have combined to form an arm of Coaches vs. Cancer and to hold their own gala. Succumbing to their competitive natures, Boeheim and Martelli often trade barbs over who is raising the most money. And Boeheim cannot help but gripe that Martelli’s group now usually trumps Syracuse’s.
“He’s always whining about that, not that he doesn’t whine about everything,” Martelli said. “He’ll say it’s not fair because I have six schools.”
Boeheim’s 9-year-old daughter, Jamie, has been quietly tracking her father’s course to 800 wins this season, constantly asking her mother if they can throw a party when he reaches the milestone. “I’m thinking, oh my goodness, I don’t know if he’d like that,” Juli Boeheim said. “He doesn’t want to talk about it at all.”
But if you talk to him about the American Cancer Society, Boeheim will give his heartfelt advice. He reminds everyone to have regular cancer screenings. That, he said, is what helped him survive.
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