As a coach in the Shepherd Cross Country and Track program, I have had the honor of

coaching Haley Hegenauer for four years. Haley has been an amazing teammate, leader,

friend, and family member. Haley’s legacy will not be forgotten, and we will all miss her attitude

and willingness to do whatever it takes for the team.

As a coaching staff, we sometimes discuss “all-timers”. These are the kids who you will

never forget, who were always doing the right things, who you have stories upon stories about.

Haley is near the top of this list. Among her accomplishments are: All State 3 times in Cross

Country, and one time (as of this writing) All State in track and field. More importantly, Haley’s

attitude and infectious demeanor have left a lasting impression on all of us.

Haley’s attitude is one of a kind. As a coaching staff, we try to provide as many

opportunities for athletes to get better as we can. Haley’s response to this was to show up to

literally everything. Her reasoning- “Why not?” So many others have excuses upon excuses for

why they haven’t done the right things. At no point in four years can I think of a time Haley

wasn’t doing what she needed to do to get better and be a great teammate. This attitude carried

on to our younger runners. They see Haley showing up, and in turn, performing at a high level,

and they realize this can work for them as well.

Haley not only is Haley a great teammate, but she is awesome to coach as well. Not a

day goes by where we don’t have an interesting conversation. She is the first person I go to to

ask about how any of her teammates are doing, because she usually knows what’s going on,

and knows what kind of information I’m looking for. Her maturity and ability to read situations

are second to none. I put a lot of trust in Haley to deal with things I wouldn’t normally have high

school students handle. She has handled everything we have thrown in front of her with ease.

I am fortunate that Haley has chosen to continue her running career at Central Michigan

University, because I will be able to continue watching her, and she won’t ever be too far away.
I will miss Haley and our conversations greatly. Throughout the last few years, if I was ever

discouraged about how kids were acting or performing, I would always think well, at least there’s

Haley- I can’t be mad at her! I greatly recommend Haley Hegenauer for any honor or position.

Wyatt LeClear

Shepherd Cross Country and Track & Field