Kermit Rowe
My opinion
The last picture the Coons family has of their late daughter, Anna, was taken at her three brothers’ karate brown belt testing session just two weeks before the horse riding accident that claimed her life in March 2010.
That was just the way Anna was with her younger brothers, always there to support them as they chased their shared passions.
So when they go through their black belt testing session at Springfield Athletic Club on Thursday, she understandably will not be too far from their minds — and their spirits. They have used her memory to gain a new focus that has all three — Sam, 18, Joel, 16, and Josh, 15 — on the edge of a special feat.
“Three brothers getting their black belt at the same time is pretty rare,” said Joe Coons, the proud father.
Indeed. And that’s what the Coons brothers will do at Cox Shotokan Karate SSKI in Urbana, to honor the memory of a sister ... and a best friend.
“Their motive wasn’t that in the first place, but it has kind of inspired Sam to push through and accomplish this,” said Joe. “And it has rubbed off on his brothers.
“But Sam seemed to have an extra special spark.”
That’s because of the special relationship he enjoyed with Anna.
“She was my sister, but more than that,” said Sam. “We’d do a lot together. When she’d go see her (fiance) Kenny (who lived about an hour away), I’d go with her and we’d have some nice talks.
“We’d make sacrifices for each other. She was my best friend. She was an all-around good person, a good leader and someone to look up to.”
Time does heal. But it was rough for the family of seven for many months, especially because Joe’s mom died not long after Anna.
“That was just a tough time for all of us,” said Joe. “But the boys were able to keep on going.
“It touches me when I think about this. It’s inspiring. They’ll take this with them the rest of their life. I was a cross country runner when I was in high school (a school-record holder at Tecumseh High School), and it has taught me endurance, in my regular life and my Christian life.
“I’m proud of them. They want to accomplish the goal together. They pushed even harder than I expected them to do.”
The boys started studying karate four years ago, in response to an unpleasant situation.
“The reason they went into this is the middle boy (Joel) had his head thrown into a stop sign by a bully,” said Joe. “But as we looked at it, we saw the principles of this karate are a lot like Christian principles.
“It’s not offense, and all about defense. And respect. And discipline. That’s what attracted me the most about it. Good, healthy, edifying principles. It parallels with the principles we teach our children.”
As the big sister, Anna helped teach them by example, so there was a big hole in the family when she died unexpectedly. Sam said he couldn’t have worked through the grief without the sport, and his club mates.
“After all of that happened, we were out for a week or two. And when we came back, it was like coming back to a family,” Sam remembered. “They were very supportive. It helps to have people who care about you, and it helps you get your mind off of it. To do something productive.”
Now, after working through the grief, Sam can move on because of the faith he shared with his sister ... and the perspective he has gained.
“It’s nice to know that she’s in a better place,” he said. “That’s what gets me by. Faith has been the number one thing that’s gotten me through this. It would be selfish for me to want her to come back, because the place she’s in, she wouldn’t want to come back. And I know someday I’ll see her again.”
Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0364.
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