Typical Saturday morning changes at a moment's notice

Something was terribly wrong.

You would have never thought so by looking at most of the teenagers gathered at Allen East High School for a cross-country invitational Saturday.

Many of them wore those proud smiles that are so common after finishing a three-mile run. They chatted with their teammates about all the things teenagers like to snicker about, just as they do on countless other Saturday mornings in the fall.

Nor could you tell by the army of parents standing around, sipping coffee to fight off the chill in the air. They too were glad to see each other, freely exchanging small talk about the past week, what they had going on the rest of the day, and whatever else crossed their minds.

As the final groups of runners headed toward the starting line, the sun tried to peek its way through the clouds. Yes, it was a typical Saturday morning.

But how painfully quick that changed for one school.

Under the tent housing the Ottawa-Glandorf team, stunned teens began talking with each other in disbelief. Off to the side, a group of Ottawa-Glandorf girls huddled around an adult, hugging each other and crying. Soon they began to pray.

Nearby, the boys on the team walked around aimlessly, trying to find the right words to speak with each other. They clutched their cell phones, anxiously awaiting a text message or phone call.

Those of us nearby learned that one of their classmates was involved in an automobile accident while driving to work that morning. At first, we were told the classmate was in critical condition. Later, we heard he died.

At some point in the middle of that, you could see parents looking at the many other teenagers milling about. They were such free-willed kids; such good kids. Only a few of those teens had noticed what was happening in the corner of the school grounds where the O-G team had pitched its tent.

We parents talked about the worries we had for our own children. We thought about an unknown family in Ottawa who was experiencing the worst of pains. In our silence, we said our own prayers. We were reminded again how a typical Saturday, or any day, can change on a moment's notice.

The newspaper arrived Sunday with details about the accident. Jordan Schimmoeller sounded like a wonderful, fun-loving young man. His photograph was that of a smiling, blond-haired boy. No doubt, he was special to those who knew him.

Our thoughts and prayers are with his family.

ROSES AND THORNS: There's plenty going on in the rose garden.

Rose: To Gary Bricker, of Bluffton. He is donating his time to paint fire hydrants in Bluffton.

Rose: To Kellie Keck, of Wapakoneta. She was hired by Newsweek magazine to do the makeup for a photo shoot of John McCain and Sarah Palin during their visit to Dayton.

Rose: To Dr. Christopher Lucchese, of Lima. He is sponsoring a candy buyback program after Halloween in an effort to encourage children not to consume too much sugar.

Rose: To Lewis Metzger, of Spencerville. He recently hosted the remaining members of Company D, 717th Army Tank Battalion. The reunion of the seven World War II soldiers included a tour of the Joint Systems Manufacturing Center in Lima.

Rose: To Joanne Pasion, who received the Mercy Award from St. Rita's Medical Center for her volunteer work.

Rose: To Tracey Curl, 36. The Bath kindergarten teacher was named the local teacher of the year by the Lima Wal-Mart stores.

Rose: To Dr. Howard Koch, 84, of Lima. The dentist was named Ohio's Outstanding Older Worker by the organization, Experience Works.

Rose: To U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan. His voting record in Congress supporting small businesses has earned him the Guardian of Small Business Award from the National Federation of Independent Business.

Rose: To the 2007 Lima Central Catholic varsity soccer team. It was recently learned the team's 3.89 grade-point average put them ninth in the nation in the High School Team Academic Award.

Thorn: A mixed-breed puppy died last week in Lima after someone duct-taped its mouth and set it on fire.

PARTING SHOT: Some of us get enough exercise by pushing our luck.

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