A cherished teacher, mentor, coach, and friend is being widely remembered throughout the Foothills.

William Gordon Young, Jr. better known as Bill Young or B.Y. by his students, spent a majority of his lifetime teaching social studies and legal studies in High River and Cayley.  He was also the Coach of Highwood High Schools' wrestling, football, and girls rugby teams. 

Young passed away on Sunday, October 24 peacefully at the High River Hospital.

One former Student and Young's neighbour, Gino De Paoli says as a person he ranked with the best of them. 

"Bill was the salt of the earth, to be honest, he was kind of my neighbour being out in the Cayley area originally, so when you got your drivers license in High School, you'd always rip by B.Y's house and see if you could beat him to school and all that fun stuff, but as an educator, I think he was top notch." De Paoli says "I think he gave any kid that wanted an opportunity to better themselves and become somebody or be something in the real world, I think Bill offered that through his teaching." 

De Paoli says he even stayed on taking legal studies courses until the final possible level, in order to have a few more classes with one of his favourites. 

Young will also be remembered for his commitment to sports through the Highwood's Wrestling program and the Highwood's football program which he was said to have had a hand in starting. 

A former student and high school athlete Sierra Garner says she thinks she only graduated because of his belief in her. 

"I was one of those teenagers who thought I knew everything and I didn't, so B.Y. was one of the only reasons I actually graduated High School. My grades weren't the best so he would ask me to sit in his 'office' which was really just a classroom but he called it his office, and whether it was doing homework or him assisting me with English which wasn't even something he taught, he helped me through." 

Garner says she will fondly remember the type of coach he was as well. 

"He was the most emotional coach you'll ever see, and if someone messed up...you knew it." She adds "he would run up the field yelling but then walk back saying 'okay keep going, you got this!' He was the best coach I ever had." 

Garner says Young even went so far as to call her after her college graduation just to say "I told you so." 

When it came to football, Young is remembered as a trailblazer, after inviting two female students to join the school's football team. 

Jessica Mills says that all started as a joke, but Young made it happen. 

"He talked about how the boy's football team was not doing as well as he had hoped because he was 'retiring' that year. I joked about joining the team, and although he took it as a joke, I was awarded Senior Rookie MVP as a starting lineman(woman). I would have never joined the team with any other coach, as his passion for showing the boys that they were easily replaced by a girl outweighed any emotion that either of us had, and I also was never forced to run suicides with them."

Mills says she tries every day to be a person he would be proud of, and she feels most of his students are doing the same. 

"I was lucky to have someone like B.Y. in high school. He truly was someone everyone knew, loved, and could teach you about defying the odds against you and getting back up when you fall or dislocate your knee on the rugby pitch." Laughs Mills "Without him, I wouldn't know the importance of teamwork, a mental mind, and a strong body- nor will I be able to attend a buffet and not think about his plate of shrimp. I will dearly miss B.Y. and will fondly try to be the best me in remembrance of him."

Mr. Young was the recipient of numerous coaching awards including the Queen's Medal in 1988 and the ASAA Coach of the Year Award in 2016.

Many friends and neighbours are offering their condolences to his wife Karyle, daughters Natasha Habing, and Amanda Young, along with their children and the rest of his family. 

The family is holding a small private service, but there's no word yet on if the schools will be doing some sort of memorial in his name. 

Young's family asks that donations to the High River Community Cancer Centre be made in lieu of flowers. 

More information on Bill Young can be found here

 

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