Dedication: Debbie Hughes

It all started innocently in 1983 when John Crawford asked Debbie for assistance in the officials’ trailer at the Pasco Invite. Being the serving person she is, Debbie happily stepped in and has been helping Pasco schools ever since. Her fi rst volunteer assignment was at the Invite, helping input results as events finished, printing the results, and then running up the dreaded Edger Brown stairs to tape them to the windows so that coaches, athletes, and fans had up to the minute results.

That job phased out and Debbie found herself drawn to helping at the high jump, much to the joy of her daughter Krista who competed in the event. This initial draw turned into a permanent assignment as the high jump official. She could be found there with a bag of gummy bears, red licorice, tissue, chap stick, and other tangible items athletes may need, but most importantly a friendly smile and knack for seamlessly running the event.

Debbie is proud of her position in the high jump event and strives to make it a positive experience for the athletes, coaches, and fans. As the mother of four her days were busy, but she still made time to support Pasco schools and sports outside of her children’s activities. Chanda,

Krista, Kayla and Daniel were happy to have their mom around and enjoyed the positive energy she brought with her and her support for all athletes.

As the wife of a Pasco School District employee, she knew the importance of supporting the district and their families and found many opportunities to volunteer through the years. Even with her children long graduated, you can still fi nd her at the Chiawana or Pasco High School scoring table, keeping books for both the volleyball and basketball seasons. Aside from in the gym, you’ll see her around helping whenever she is asked, doing whatever she can, all in an effort to create good experiences and lasting memories for everyone.

She really does believe that “it’s about what’s best for the kids,” as is clearly seen over her decades of work with Pasco kids.