A Word or Two From Frank Overhue

Just like everyone else in the room, I fully expected Frank Overhue to have a last word or two before formally relinquishing his seat on the Glenwood Board of Education.

Frank didn’t disappoint.

Overhue said his good-byes before stepping down during the school board’s transitional meeting on Monday, Sept. 14. The 38-minute presentation made for one of the most unorthodox school board meetings you’ll ever see. But, then again, it was vintage Frank Overhue.

After presenting a cake to fellow outgoing board member Bill Agan, Overhue popped the cork on a couple bottles of non-alcoholic, sparkling grape juice. Everyone in the room was offered a piece of cake and a glass of juice while Overhue reflected on the accomplishments and challenges the school system has endured during his six-year tenure on the board.

No subject was off limits. Overhue talked about some of the heated discussions he’s had the over years with his colleagues on the school board. He had some good-natured fun with Agan, a retired aerospace engineer turned teacher, calling him the “smartest rocket scientist I’ve ever met.”

He addressed school district finances, the sometimes-controversial debate over the youth wrestling club building and construction delays at the site of the new high school.

Did I mention that Overhue was wearing a Construction Services, Inc., (CSI) hard hat during his address?

Overhue compared the school district’s relationship with CSI to a marriage gone bad, but said Glenwood’s new high school, when completely finished, will be a building the community will be proud of for years to come. He defended the school board and administration in regard to the criticism they’ve all taken during the delays in the construction process over the past several months.

Overhue even had some words of wisdom for new board members Henry Clark and Dave Blum, telling them that managing a school district is like trying to push around a big ball of sticky goop. He told them the greatest satisfaction they’ll get from being on the board is seeing the “final product” when GCHS graduates walk across the stage to receive their diploma.

When he was finished saying his piece, Overhue took off the hard hat and gave the new board and the school district his blessing. He was leaving the board on his own terms and getting in the last word in a way that only Frank Overhue could do. There wasn’t a person in the boardroom that was surprised or expecting anything less from Overhue at his last meeting. Indeed, it was Frank at his finest – stepping down from his seat with the same passion he had the night he was sworn into office six years ago.

Overhue and Agan both received standing ovations before closing the book on one of the most consequential chapters in the school district’s history and passing the torch to their successors.

Now, Frank, about that outdoor swimming pool situation in Glenwood . . .