The author of a book about the 1985 season of the Stevens Point Area Senior High School (SPASH) cross country team will give a presentation at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point next month about his experiences as a student athlete, coach and writer.
Donn Behnke, a 1975 graduate of UW-Stevens Point and author of "The Animal Keepers," will give a talk at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 12, in the Dreyfus University Center Laird Room. Tickets are $5 for the public and free for UW-Stevens Point students and are available at the University Information and Tickets in the Dreyfus University Center concourse, http://tickets.uwsp.edu or 715-346-4100. The event is sponsored by the University Store and Text Rental.
"The Animal Keepers" is about a special needs student at SPASH who becomes a member of the cross country team that Behnke coaches. He surpasses all expectations to emerge as a key member of a squad chasing a state championship.
Behnke taught high school and junior high social studies in the Stevens Point school district for 31 years, retiring in 2010. He remains the head cross country coach at SPASH, where in 39 seasons his teams have appeared in 37 state meets and earned ten titles, the most for any in the state. He has been the Wisconsin Cross Country Coach of the Year nine times and the 2001 National Coach of the Year. He has also coached six individual Wisconsin state champion runners.
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