Finding a new game: reporting

By OWEN PROTHRO

Staff writer

Let me be clear, I do not like writing about myself.

But one of the traditions of joining the Record staff is the new reporters must introduce themselves.

I would much rather tell you about an athlete, coach, or team you’ve never heard of. That’s just who I am — a sports guy who happens to write.

I grew up a Kansas Jayhawks fan after Mario Chalmers hit “The Shot” in 2008 against Derrick Rose and Memphis.

From there, the Kansas City Chiefs became a mainstay, even through thinner years.

My grandparents owned Shocker basketball season tickets, and the tune of sneaker squeaks and Joe Ragland 3-pointers soon filled my ears at Charles Koch Arena.

I played sports, too, all the way through high school. It was my love for watching, and a push from my parents, that got me started.

From soccer season to basketball season, I wanted to be involved. Now, I disc golf, which I can do year-round for the most part.

It wasn’t until I attended Wichita State University and joined The Sunflower that my love and passion for writing and sports finally met.

I covered everything from tennis and cross-country to conference championships, connecting readers to the sports they love and athletes they watch through my words while on staff at WSU’s student-led newspaper.

That notion — connecting readers through my words — has become the most satisfying part of my job. It’s not because I’ve been able to attend all these games and events, and have won a few awards here and there, but because the community I serve finds as much interest in these topics as I do.

I won’t write about sports as much as I did in college, which I am more than fine with. I’ll cover mainly general news at the Record. But, I still realize the immense value in serving community members and telling them what is interesting or what they need to know.

Aside from getting facts straight, that’s my most important responsibility.

Seeing change, building relationships and shining light onto otherwise unnoticed subjects will be the truest achievement of my work.