Rest in Peace
Today I learned I lost a dear friend - Ross Smith, my debate coach at Wake Forest, Instructor-Professor of Communication, and the school's newly christened Director of Debate, died suddenly from a heart attack on Sunday July 20, this 2009, at the age of 54. While I was never the crown-jewel of Wake's illustrious debate program - in my heyday I was at best a C+ college debater - I have so much to thank him for. He was a giant of a guy, and had the most intelligent, sharp, sarcastic wit accompanied by a caring overtone that demonstrated how truly much he cherished the educative process of debate and each individual's attempts - whether successful, persuasive, or not - to contribute to the activity.I remember my first interaction with Ross, as a freshman - I was sitting in his office in Carswell Hall, telling him about my experience debating in high school, when I quickly realized that my high school's model of debate was prehistoric and I was entering policy debate extremely underschooled even on the most basic aspects. Even so, Ross went the extra mile to make me feel included and emphasized at every debate meeting that winning is important, but that the central purpose of debate is the mutually beneficial, educative process, and the friends that you make from it. Since that day, I've adopted that idea of process over outcome in almost everything I do, as well as countless other sayings and ideas, from a teacher I was so lucky to know at Wake Forest, Ross K. Smith. To celebrate his life, I tried to parcel together some pictures of Ross and a few of his videos he posted on YouTube when he ran for District School Board in Winston-Salem last year, and I'd like to make a top-10 list of my fondest memories as one of innumerable persons who had the privilege to be a student of his and one of his many, many student friends:
1. When Ross, his great friends and former debate partners John and Sue Graham, my debate partner, and I, were staying at the Grahams' house in Bethesda, MD for a debate tournament - all watched Wake Forest play NC State live in the Grahams' guest basement and went crazy high-fiving each other watching Chris Paul win the game for the Deacs with his only college buzzer-beater.
------------------------------------------------------------------------2. You taught me that more often than not, process is more valuable than outcome.
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4. After my partner and I were eliminated at Georgetown in a qualifying round during the JV national debate tournament, Ross took us out to Georgia Brown's, one of the finest restaurants on D.C.'s famous K Street. I (and I'm pretty sure my debate partner too) was starving, tired, and wearing three 5 o'clock shadows on my face. Ross told us how proud he was of both of us for really giving it our best shot the whole year - high praise from someone as brilliant as Ross - and paid for both of our dinners.
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5. As my partner and I were nervously about to face a team (from Louisville) that used a very nontraditional debating style, introduced by their debate director Ede Warner (Warner was known principally for two reasons: 1) Professor Warner was a capable & fierce advocate of what he believed in, and 2) At that time, Professor Warner probably weighed more than my compact car), which had sunk many a good Wake Forest team, Ross was specially prepping us out himself. (as an addendum, I personally admire Dr. Warner's project and always found myself probably the most persuaded by his project on the team that year)
After explaining the 'Ville's argument to us, and telling us what strategies we could use to prevail, he emphatically told us in a hushed voice: "Look, Ede Warner and I have bet each other a full dinner that by year's end, our Wake teams will have beaten his teams more than they've beaten us. As it stands, we're either tied or one ahead of them. Now
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6. The wonderful memories you gave everyone who participated in debate at Wake Forest by preparing the most fun Christmas and end-of-the-year-parties possible.
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7. The games of "around-the-table" at each Christmas and end-of-the-year-party deserve their own place on this list. And you dominated almost every one of them.------------------------------------------------------------------------
8. You were my student-faculty adviser and you enabled me to graduate on time by signing your POI allowing me get the necessary 20.5 hours I needed to walk in May.
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9. Your passion for civic dialogue and the educative process. I didn't even know what blogging was until you showed us at one of those many squad meetings! Ross's belief in this was unrelenting:
and a link to his column of contributions on the Huffington Post.
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10.
You never played favorites when it came to your treatment of anyone - you cared about us all, and it showed in how much everyone learned from you - great debaters, and bad ones. Superior academic students, and sub par ones. One thing all of us had in common is we were all blessed enough to call you their teacher, coach, and friend.
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