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About The Clackamas print. (Oregon City, Oregon) 1989-2019 | View Entire Issue (May 8, 1996)
6 Sports The Clackamas Print Wednesday, May 8,1996 Athlete draws strength from her spiritual beliefs Laney Fouse Copy Editor If you asked Denise Haselwood what makes her laugh, the three-sport athlete just might surprise you with her an swer. “Being silly, I love to be silly. Sometimes it’s borderline imma ture because most of my life it’s been expected that I’m a respon sible person. I’m an athlete who’s a good student and all these seri ous things and some people don’t quite know what to do with me when I get really silly,” Haselwood said. Her favorite prank to pull on friends is when they return from a trip and want her to pick them up at the airport. She admits to dressing up in what she calls her makeshift clown outfit. During spring break an un suspecting friend returned from Florida. “I showed up in plaid pants, patent leather shoes, a white shirt, a brown shirt with checkers on it, a big, huge black coat, two baseball hats with the bills pointing off each temple of my head, sunglasses, a big red nose and gloves.” Another escapade included kidnaping a friend on her birth day and taking her to breakfast. “We let her put on shoes and a sweatshirt. . .her hair was stick ing out everywhere,” Haselwood said with a smile. “I love doing things like that/’"she says. ^NfosT peopledonTknow the softer side of me because they see me as an athlete.” Those who do know her well know the kindness she shows to others. Haselwood has a close friend who lives in California, “Since I don’t get do things for her like I do for people around here, I send her cards and stuff like that.”. Haselwood takes her role as a leader seriously. “I am a good leader, I am compassionate, I’m getting better at listening. I think I listen fairly well but I know I will often interrupt and talk too much at times. I like to have fun and make other people feel good about themselves.” Perhaps most important to her are the lives of the young people she has coached or will coach in the future. “I love to coach kids. I would do anything for a kid if they wanted to be a better athlete.” Haselwood can’t stand for re marks from people like, “I can’t do that or I’m not good at that. She says her pet peeve is when someone stands in front of a mir ror and says, “I’m ugly.” “That frustrates me to death. I have friends who will flinch whenever they say ‘I can’t do this’ because I will punch them.” She admits that she is very nitpickey at times. “I’ve gotten better about this but a lot of times it’s hard for me not to go back and fix something if it’s not exactly how I want it. This sometimes causes me to lose patience with people.” When it comes to material things, Haselwood’s needs are fairly simple. “I need music or sound of some kind. I’m good with silence but if (my roommate) is not home, then I like to turn on my Christian radio station and go to sleep to that and wake up to that.” Sound is important to her because it helps relax and to stop her from thinking. It helps tune out what may be bothering her. “It also helps me from trying to fix people’s lives. Like, if I knew you had a problem and you were really struggling with it, I would go home and find a way to fix it, whether or not you wanted me to, I would find a way.” Focusing on music helps her realize that the problems of her friends are not her problems to solve. Understanding this was one of life’s most difficult lessons she had to grasp last year. If her home ever caught on fire, the most important items she would save would be pictures and things that reminded her of people and the past. The memo ries are always in her heart and her mind. “I love to look at the picture of my friend from California. We met a t having a great time. “I would not trade the time I had on the vol leyball team this year or the bas ketball team and right now the softball team for anything,” she said. “It cannot be replaced. The people I have gotten to know and the way they have touched my life and changed me cannot be equaled.” Haselwood admits she played sports all her life arid ship rarely experienced sitting on the bench. In volleyball she got a chance to see what it was like. “I had more furi on that team Haadwaod is a t sittmgxfn’ the'benchfandribf fjlay?' • speech ing. I played in two matches all carp ■* season long, I think, in regular J 1S -Denise Haselwood « ~ maj or season. But, I. had more fun last _______________ ' ;____________________ 7 7 who’s strong cheering those people on because sim they would tell me that when they mer. There’s a picture of us that spiritual belief ismore important were down they would listen for than just going to church on Sun is totally spontaneous.. .pictures my voice. That was all I needed like that can’t be replaced. Those day. Although, she knows it takes to keep going and make sure I kind of pictures are what I would a lot of time and exposure to make could build them up and put them a living as a public speaker; she save and forget the rest. I back on their feet out there on the wouldn’t care about every certifi also knows this is what God has court,” said Haselwood. cate or trophy I ever had, I just called her to do. In basketball, she felt she was The best times of want my pictures,” said finally at the point where she al Haselwood ’ s life, besides the ones Haselwood. ways thought she could be. Sta So what does she read? Fore she spent growing up in Centralia, tistically, she had a good season. most, she reads her Bible. Her are also the last couple of years at “ More than that, my team trusted other favorites include historical ccc. “I’ve grown a lot, my faith me and they followed me. As a fiction written by Christian au point guard that’s what I have to thors. “In the books that I’ve been has gotten stronger, God has re be. My team has to believe in me, reading, the authors have in ally been working in my life. He’s trust in me and play for me. I been showing me things. Just the cluded a lot of historical facts in need to be a leader out there. This them. I’ll always remember what decision to come here itself was year, more than any other time in happened at the Battle of Midway,' amazing,” said Haselwood. my life that’s what it was. It was She had narrowed her offers the Battle of Guadalcanal because so amazing how God was able to I read about some fictional guy down to two colleges. One was work that for me.” in the armed forces. I’ll remem another community college and Softball has been a kind of ber those battles because I’ll re the other was George Fox College trial because the team has had so in McMinnville. Clackamas was member the characters from the many things going on. not “even in the picture.” book.” Haselwood accepts the fact she’s Haselwood’s tough decision Her heros include her sister, not playing the position of catcher Diahan and her high school bas came about after sitting down with even though this is what position Terpstra. They listed out the pros ketball coach, Brenda Terpstra. her scholarship offer is for. She During Haselwood’s fresh and cons. “We prayed about it for says, “it’s a little frustrating but man year in high school, Terpstra a week and at the end of that week at the same time l’m learning a it was like (God said) I want you discovered she had Hodgkin’s lot through it. God is really work Disease. Treatment for the dis to go to Clackamas. So I ended ing in other parts of my life so ease caused Terpstra to lose all her up here.” it ’ s okay. ” Last June C.W. Post College hair. “She wore wigs for the So much in fact, that in Long Island, New York called games and turbans for our prac Haselwood is amazed at the op tices. All the way through, she and wanted her to play softball for portunities the last two years have continued to coach basketball, them this year. Haselwood given her. “I’ve had so many continued to be real and she no thought it was great. In fact, they things happen to me that made ticed when something got to me. were offering her $3,000 more in me grow and the fact that I was She really pushed me and chal the original scholarship than they According to even in the situation for it to hap lenged me to get out of my shell. are now. Haselwood, “ it was like no, God pen shows that I’ve grown and She did this by the things she said dealt with it.” and by the things she did. It was wants me at Clackamas again.” Haselwood grew up in As a consequence, she’s been really where she had been, the Centralia, Wash. Her parents things she had come through and the way she looked to God for the answers.” Haselwood speaks just as highly of her sister whom she says is, “honest and bubbly. She goes after what she wants but does it in a way that doesn’t run over people. She’s very well-liked at school. She’s a very, v e r y , talented actor.” 4iMy ideal job would be to work with kids » and athletes and “talk to them about my faith. who have been married for 27 years still reside there with her 17 year old sister. Her mother coached basketball, softball and volleyball at Centralia Commu nity College when Haselwood was “really little.” “I barely remember my grandfather taking me to basket ball games. The team’s point guard would try and teach me to dribble the basketball between my legs. I’ve grown up around ath letes all my life. My mom and dad played on slow pitch teams »a udw Haselwood credits her par ents’ supportive nature and en couragement as keys to her suc cess not just as an athlete but as a student. “My dad wasn’t a real good student, so when my sister and I would bring home report cards with 4.0 averages, his face would always show his support and encouragement.” It turns out Haselwood’s father had a vision problem that wasn’t discovered until he joined the Air Force. Haselwood’s mother is a jun ior high teacher and has a Master’s Degree in counseling. “I don’t think my mom inissed one game of any sport the whole time I was in high school,” she said. Currently, her mom and grandparents see every softball game the Cougars play in Wash ington. They have also made it to almost every Saturday home game. “They’ve always been there as someone I can turn to for help.” As. a young, female athlete, it was never a matter of would she play one of the three sports at which she excels, but rather at which college. After much con templating, Haselwood has de cided on Long Island’s C.W. Post College. At Post her studies will be physical education in a non school setting with a business mi nor. This is so “I can get a job managing a sports facility,” said Haselwood. “Or maybe,” she says smil ing, “I can put on some of my own camps. I love kids and I love ath letics and I could not do anything that didn’t involve one or the other. My ideal job would be to work with kids and athletes and talk to them about my faith.”
