Odie O'Donnell Passes Saturday Morning

[Blue_Steel]

A long time Blue Devil supporter passed this morning. I had the pleasure of going to many ballgames over past few years with him and got to hear many great stories of the past of both Gallia Academy and of Logan where he grew up.
Odie was the score keeper for our boys basketball team for what I think was 50 years. Someone can correct me if thats wrong. Anyway I am sure someone else will be able to give better details.

[BubbleGumTiger]

Sorry to hear this, the Gallia folks lost a good man............RIP

[BBallin fool]

Sorry to hear this!!! He was a good man!!! Voice of the Blue for many years.

[trojandave]

Very sad to hear of this. He was truly a good man and loved Gallia Academy and the Blue Devils.

[coachperWHS]

Odie was truly a good person, a good family man, and a great sports enthusiast!

He had so many wonderful stories of his many experiences around southeastern Ohio.
He was always so excited to talk sports with anyone he would meet.

I express my heartfelt sympathy to his wonderful bride (of just a few years!) and his equally interesting two sons.

How many baskets would he have placed in the scorebooks for GAHS for all these years?
(and he probably had a story to tell about each one of them!)

Odie, you have been loved and will be missed!

[Focused]

Thoughts and prayers go up for family and friends of Odie.

From the Focused household.

[boy of summer]

A wonderful person and role model . He will be missed. Everyone who met him is much better off for the experience. A giant among men. God bless.

[MTSWNGRVSG]

Thoughts and prayes to his family.

[radioman]

so sorry to hear, spent 15 yrs in the booth with this man,and i can tell you that his

passing will truly be a huge loss for this town and this league, my heart felt sympathy

to his family, i am a better person for having spent so many fridays with odie.

gods speed my friend .
tom young

[GAHS7462]

A hugh loss for GAHS sports.

Our prayers go out to the family.

[RiverRatRay]

What a tremendous loss for Gallia Academy and all of Southeastern Ohio. Odie was one of those folks that everyone liked. Prayers and condolences to Odies family from everyone here on SEOPS.

[Raiderball]

Thoughts and prayers.

[91blue14]

i would think this man lived life to the fullest with friendshhip and brotherly love. he is in a better place and at peace with the good lord. much love to the family

[jottings]

Odie...A jack-of-all-trades...

Odie came to Gallipolis from Logan in 1954 as a radio broadcaster and DJ for WJEH, 990 following a two-year stint in the U. S. Army. However, I believe his first love was writing.

He served as a newsman and sportswriter on the Gallipolis Tribune from 1957-58 to 1962-63. He also worked for the Gallipolis City Loan, and then for G & J Auto Parts from the mid-1960s until his retirement in the mid-1990s.

After retirement, he was a stringer on the Tribune editorial staff in sports, and also did senior citizens news pages for more than 10 years. He was a greeter at Foodland Super Markets for a number of years.

Odie was active in the Gallipolis Lions Club where he was the club’s tail twister for 40 years, believed to be a national record, served, as secretary of the SEOAL Sportswriters and Radio Broadcasters Association for several years, was secretary of the Knights of Columbus, St. Louis Catholic Church in Gallipolis.

He attended Gallia County’s gun club and conservation club meetings, city and county commission meetings, merchants meetings and was a Melvin Jones Award honoree in the Gallipolis Lions Club, highest honor for a member of Lions International

Odie was a member of the GAHS Athletic Hall of Fame (only non-GAHS graduate to hold that honor) as a result of being a past president of the athletic boosters (twice), a basketball scorekeeper for more than 40 years, and PA announcer for Gallipolis’ home football games for more than 30 years.

He also served as master of ceremonies of numerous events during the past half-century.

He said he was going to write a book about some of the incidents that occurred in his travels to ball games and tournaments around southern Ohio, Columbus and Dayton.

Being a buddy with sometimes after more than a half century it’s hard to realize that he’s no longer with us. It’s like splitting up Abbott and Costello, Martin & Lewis, etc. During the past seven or eight years, he traveled to ball games with Steve Ebert, and me. Friends around the SEOAL called us the three amigos.

In his early years in Gallipolis, Odie attended state basketball tournament games with the late Clarence Thompson, ex-GAHS grid coach, Kyger Creek, Meigs and Buckeye Hills Career Center administrator, Bob McCollins, ex-GAHS grid assistant, successful Kyger Creek grid coach, and later a guidance counselor at Worthington High School and finally Ed Stewart, ex-GAHS grid coach, former GAHS Athletic Director and assistant principal.

Calling hours will be Tuesday from 2 until 8 p.m., at Willis Home for Funerals, located just south of town on the Rt. 7 and Rt. 141 junction.

Funeral services will be held Wednesday at St. Louis Catholic Church at Fourth and State Street, across the street from Gallia Academy High School. Time of the services will be announced.

[Gobigblacks]

Everyone over here has a tremendous amount of respect for Odie and what he has done for GAHS sports. To say he will be missed will be a huge understatement.

Thoughts and prayers from across the river.

[JHS4EVER]

He was a Legend and will have his own chapter in the Record Books of Southeastern Ohio. RIP my friend and my prayers are with his families and friends!

[sportfolio]

Thoughts and prayers from Athens to Odie's family .... I have been fortunate to have worked closely with Odie throughout my 42 years at The Messenger and covering Athens and SEOAL sports .. Although his loss is a sad event, he battled the cancer and underwent many treatments and it looked like it had cleared up but then was discovered in his liver about two weeks ago, so it is fortunate that he did not have to suffer a long time in the last couple of weeks.

[alabama mike]

Mr. O'Donnell was a very well resepected man, not only at Gallia Academy but throughout southern Ohio. I have had the honor of talking to the "three amigos" several different times through the years. All three are class men. I remember well our last visit to Gallipolis this winter and chatting with Mr. Wilson, Mr. Ebert and Mr. O'Donnell...the stories they can tell about ballgames.

My thoughts and prayers go out to the O'Donnell family during this most difficult time. May the grace of God sustain and uphold all of you.

[pfloyd]

... it was with great sadness that I read the obit today in the Logan paper for Odie O'Donnell ... very ironic that on the day that Odie passed away the Cavs from Chillicothe took home the big prize of a State Championship in DII at the big show in C'bus - Odie I'm sure was telling the "big boyz" about the hoops in Southeastern Ohio Saturday ... adding a few of the many stories from championship games past as well I would think LOL ... I only had the opportunity to count Odie as a friend in the last 7 or 8 years ... he a member of the French City's "3 Amigos" - Odie, Jottings and GAHS - the trio of gentlemen, Gallia Academy supporters that I came to know via posting on the "huddle" ... from the gridiron to the hardwood - the trio made the rounds in Southern/Southeast Ohio in support of the Blue ............... my wife spent an entire quarter of a jv basketball game at GAHS chatting with Odie - mainly talking about MY posts on the huddle but enough of a conversation that Odie always said hi to my wife whenever their paths crossed at any number of hs events in the years after ...... took me 5 minutes to read Odie's obituary in the LDN ... he WAS a gentlemen, a person ANY community would love to have called their own ... when I heard or read of Odie's passing my first thought went to the late Jim Myer of Logan then back to Odie O'Donnell - how Southern/Southeast Ohio had lost not only wonderful ambassadors of sport but how Southern/Southeastern Ohio had lost "keepers" of sports history Below the Lancaster-Dixon Line - the high school sports' knowledge, the high school sports' lore, the high school sports' stories that will never be told again ...................... I know that the people who pass live on through the memories of those who stay behind ... somehow Jim Myer and now Odie O'Donnell's passing has taken more than memories will ever be able to conjure up ....

... got to the end of the piece in the paper, read the names of those who will be Pallbearers ... those who will be Honary Pallbearers ....... I smiled - knowing those who are showing their respects for Odie in this way .... Odie would take his hat off to all of you ................ Mr. Eberts maybe a "napkin" for all the "napkin stats" that Odie took in HIS lifetime is appropriate LOL .........

Odie O'Donnell - true gentlemen, husband, Blue fan , supporter of kids ......... huddler ....... friend ....... your passing will be relived every year as summer turns to 2 a days .... opening game kickoffs; every winter as the sounds of whistles, basketball shoes on the hardwood signal yet another season of hoops .... sorry Odie I'm wrong about that - Odie your LIVING will be what is remembered ........... thanks Odie - glad that I met up with you ....... you will be missed ...

[jottings]

My wife and I just returned from the funeral home after paying last respects to Odie. It took us more than an hour to get through a huge line of mourners.

Ran into several SEOAL newsmen while there--Craig Dunn, sports editor of the Logan Daily News, Tom Metters, retired sports editor of the Athens Messenger, Randy Heath, mayor of Jackson and PA announcer and writer/broadcaster for the Jackson Ironmen, Bob Willis, Wellston, last remaining charter member of the SEOAL Sportswriters and Radio Broadcasters Association and a correspondent or the Wellston Telegram and radio sports show host on WKOV at age 80 and his friend Gary from Jackson and Gary Swinehart, former head coach of the Logan Chieftains.