Joe Battista
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The Wisdom of Morrie: A Son’s Perspective
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One of the reasons we chose an active adult community for the next chapter of our lives was the myriad of opportunities to join clubs and experience events. We have just scratched the surface in our first 18 months in Sun City Hilton Head, but we are enjoying so many diverse and interesting activities including “Meet…
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‘I Have Fought the Good Fight… I Have Kept the Faith’
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“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”— 2 Timothy 4:7 Ben Franklin once wrote, “Our new Constitution is now established, everything seems to promise it will be durable; but, in this world, nothing is certain except death and taxes.” We’ll save the taxes part for another…
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‘Every Day Is Saturday, Except Sunday’
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I once asked my former Penn State athletics colleague and friend Bruce Ellis how he was enjoying retirement. His response has resonated with me every day since. He said, with a big grin on his face, “Every day is Saturday, except Sunday!” I doggedly researched both the financial nuances and the quality-of-life aspects of retirement…
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Déjà Vu All Over Again, Again
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On Feb. 1-4, I had the chance to relive a very important part of my youth and time as a young adult, when softball was an integral part of life in the Battista household. We traveled to all parts of Pittsburgh and throughout Western Pennsylvania and surrounding states playing “travel” baseball and softball. Tournament play…
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Column No. 300: Why I Write
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“A writer is someone who has taught his mind to misbehave” – Oscar Wilde Well, folks, today is a milestone of sorts. This column represents my 300th since I first began writing for StateCollege.com in the fall of 2009. I was in my third year as the executive director of the Nittany Lion Club at Penn…
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‘What in the Wide, Wide World of Sports Is A-Goin’ on Here?’
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What a week it was in college and professional sports. Three iconic coaches all complete their lengthy stays with their current teams. One left on his own while the other two were nudged to move on. Nick Saban of Alabama shocked everyone by retiring from coaching; Pete Carroll of the Seattle Seahawks was booted upstairs…
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Who Do You Worship?
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On Dec. 27, I visited the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C. with my wife and our youngest son Ryan. We had passed it numerous times on our way to see our son Jonathon, who lives in the Navy Yard area of D/C. So, after spending the Christmas holidays with our families in Pittsburgh and…
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Tales (and Tails) from the Dog Park
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During our years in State College, we made regular trips to Tudek Dog Park with our dogs Sportster and Barkley. It was especially fun when I met up with longtime friend Jamey Perry, an academic advisor extraordinaire at Penn State, and we would catch up on family, work and Penn State sports. We’d laugh out…
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Former Penn State Icer ‘Crushing It’
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I traveled to Alta, Iowa by way of Omaha, Nebraska last week to do a half-day training session on personal and professional development for Platinum Crush, LLC., a soybean processing company. During my three-day trip, I learned more about soybeans and the multi-billion-dollar industry than I ever thought possible. Let’s just say it impacts all of…
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Still Thankful and Counting the Blessings
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Happy Thanksgiving everyone — with an emphasis on “thanks.” I hope that today’s column will inspire you to take intentional quiet time to do an accounting of all the blessings in your life. I know some of you already do this on a daily basis, so keep up the good work. I also know that…