U.S. Rep. Glenn ‘G.T.’ Thompson, R-Howard, wants Joe Paterno to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, one of the nation’s highest civilian honors.
On Friday, Thompson sent to President Barack Obama a letter with 17 additional signatures — from both sides of the aisle — asking that Obama grant the award to Penn State’s head football coach.
In its 65-year history, the medal has ‘rarely … been made to someone who has personified sportsmanship on the field of play and academic achievement in the classroom,’ the letter reads. ‘It is our hope that this year the Medal of Freedom does just that by honoring Joe Paterno for his contribution to the coaching of football, his commitment to academic integrity of the young men under his charge, and his deep dedication to education in general.’
Paterno, 83, has been head football coach at Penn State for 44 seasons. He’s about to begin his 45th.
The letter to Obama suggests that Paterno ‘represents an ideal of what student and college athletics should be.
‘He has amassed nearly 400 wins, more than any other coach in Division I history,’ the letter reads. ‘His program has never been on probation. There has never been an accusation of corrupt recruiting and, in what is depressingly rare, his players stay in school and graduate. Rather than raising money for stadium skyboxes, as many of his colleagues do, Coach Paterno has personally donated millions and raised hundreds of millions more for libraries and need-based scholarships for Pennsylvanians. He is a strong supporter of the Pennsylvania Special Olympics and serves as a national spokesperson for the Charcot-Marie-Tooth Association.’
Co-signers of the letter are members of the Pennsylvania Congressional delegation. They are U.S. Reps. Joseph Pitts, Tim Holden, Mike Doyle, Robert Brady, Todd Platts, Bill Shuster, Jim Gerlach, Tim Murphy, Charles Dent, Allyson Schwartz, Jason Altmire, Chris Carney, Patrick Murphy, Joe Sestak, Kathleen Dahlkemper, Mark Critz and Frank Wolf.
The Presidential Medal of Freedom, bestowed only by the sitting president, has been awarded hundreds of times to people in a variety of fields. It recognizes recipients ‘for especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interests of the United States, or world peace, or cultural or other significant public or private endeavors.’
A partial list of recipients is available through the U.S. Senate website.
