Roberto Gonzales of Bayard suffered a hemorrhagic stroke on the day of the Nebraska High School State Cross Country Meet in 2011. Fortunately, the 64-year-old Gonzales, who was Bayard’s head cross country coach at the time, was able to recover from that scary situation. He said he feels more blessed than ever to be alive and to spend time with his family. Gonzales, who is in his 47th year as a custodian at Bayard Public Schools, said he’s also grateful that he gets to continue doing what he truly enjoys, which is helping to make a positive difference in the lives of young people in Bayard.
JEFF FIELDER Editor
BAYARD – Roberto Gonzales of Bayard has always tried to stay in pretty good shape, so it seemed a little odd to him that he felt so fatigued during the week leading up to the Nebraska High School State Cross Country Meet in Kearney in 2011.
“I felt really tired, and I wasn’t used to feeling that tired,” he said. “I thought I was getting enough sleep, but no matter how long I slept, I still felt very fatigued.”
Gonzales, who was Bayard High School’s head cross country coach at the time, figured it might be a good idea to see a doctor. But since he was busier than usual that week, preparing to coach one of his athletes in the state meet, he decided to hold off on going to the doctor’s office until the week after the state meet.
On the Thursday before the state meet, Gonzales and his assistant coach, Deb Cadwallader, and their athlete who had qualified for state left Bayard to drive to Kearney. They spent the night in a hotel, but Gonzales didn’t get much sleep.
The next morning, which was the day of the state meet, Gonzales woke up early to put gas in the school van, and then he returned to his hotel room to rest. He didn’t feel good.
“Something just wasn’t right,” he said.
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