Gordon remembered as ‘a special man’
Dedicated sportsman helped many
You couldn’t really say no to Bill Gordon — not once you got to know him.
The Saskatoon sportsman, who died this week at age 65, is remembered as a man full of ideas and the knowledge to pull them off beautifully.
“He’d give a little fist pump, and he always had that twinkle in his eye,” recalls Saskatoon Hilltops’ football coach Tom Sargeant, who worked with Gordon both in football and basketball. “He got a lot out of people. No one would say no to Bill. You never wanted to turn Bill down, because you knew at the end of the day, he was giving more than you were.”
Gordon, inducted into the Saskatoon Sports Hall of Fame in 2008, founded the Wildwood Basketball Camp, which is entering its 29th year. He refereed high school and Canada West basketball, presided over the Saskatoon Senior Men’s Basketball League and engaged in a wide variety of sports.
He played football with the University of Saskatchewan Huskies and served as a running backs coach for Sargeant when both men taught at Evan Hardy.
He was also a well-known community volunteer recognized for his work with local youth.
“He believed in everybody,” said Sargeant, who coached at Gordon’s basketball camp. “Everything he structured was always about doing it right and giving your best. He believed every kid could do it.
“I learned greatly from him; he taught me a lot, and he did it in a special, positive way. What a man. He had a game plan, and his game plan was making everybody feel good — sport was an extension of life, and the more you put into it, the more you get out of it.”
Sargeant says he learned much about coaching from watching the way Gordon handled himself, even as he battled multiple sclerosis.
“He’s been dealing with MS as long as I’ve known him, and the tenacity and courage he’d bring every day — never once would he complain about his predicament,” Sargeant said. “There was a real normalcy to what was in front of him. He’d have a joke or two, get that laugh going ... he was a special man. Bill Gordon’s a winner to me.
“He’s done such a good job charting a course for others. It’s time now for people to pick up the slack and continue to do the great things he did for so many. I know how much he’s touched and impacted youth in Saskatoon, and we’re all better for it.”
Gordon’s family includes wife Marg, sons Scott and Kirk, and daughter Tracy. Funeral services are Monday, 10:30 a.m. at Holy Family Cathedral.