Kathy Steinbach Haack, Linfield Athletics Hall of Fame
Oct
31, 2002 McMinnville N-R/News-Register
Editor's Note: All nine
individuals and the one team being inducted into the Linfield Athletics Hall of
Fame will be highlighted prior to the Nov. 16 ceremony.
Athletics have always been a major part of Nancy
Steinbach Haack's life. Whether competing, coaching or encouraging, her love of
sport has never wavered.
A 1969 Linfield graduate, Haack's athletic
career began when she was 6 years old. Her father, Tye Steinbach, was Nancy's
first coach and inspiration. His life was dedicated to coaching young swimmers
at the Aero Club of Portland and the McMinnville Swim Club. Swimming for her
father was one of Nancy's greatest joys. She loved his spirit, enthusiasm and
his love for his athletes.
Nancy, and her older sister, Kathy Steinbach
Washburn, swam AAU age-group competitions for Wilson High School in Portland,
maintaining a four-year state-title winning streak. At Linfield, they competed
in swimming for Coach Ken Holmes, Linfield history professor, who praised the
Steinbach sisters for their recruiting and encouragement of others. At
Linfield, the sisters broke several collegiate national records. Nancy
established records in the 40-yard freestyle (1966,1967), 40 butterfly (1967),
100 freestyle (1966), and 160 individual medley (1966).
Reluctantly, Haack turned out for the Wildcat
field hockey team. But reluctance soon gave way to excitement when the first
game started. During the first match, she was moved from defender to halfback
to center forward and then stayed there for four seasons. For three seasons she
was selected all-conference and led the team in scoring.
"I just had to be where you could score and
win the game," she said.
In track and field, Haack placed in the district
meet for all four seasons in the 100-meter, 220, long jump and shot put.
Ken Williams, college registrar emeritus and
Linfield Hall of Fame member, said Haack's "excellence in academics,
athletics and leadership at the college earned her a place in the Hall."
Her involvement included: Dean's List, Cap and Gown, Spurs, Associated Women
Students' Vice President, Intersorority Council Vice President, Judicial Board
Chairman, Senior Class Secretary, and Rally. She received recognition as Who's
Who in American Colleges and Universities and Outstanding College Athletes in
America, 1969.
"My years at Linfield were such a positive
stage in my life, as the opportunities for personal growth were limitless. It
was the time when education and sense of purpose became intertwined with
personal values. It was a time when lasting friendships were established and
memories were made," said Haack.
After Linfield, Haack's athletic spark was
rekindled when she competed in triathlons for seven years during the 1980s,
winning many honors: Northwest Master's Champion, age-group winner in the
United States Triathlon for two years, undefeated in age-group competition and
consistently placing in the top five overall. "Triathlons exposed me to
the mental aspect of competition. All of my events, up until triathlons, had
been sprints where you hardly had time to think; with triathlons, which last
over two hours, you need to be able to use your mind to control your race. I
found that my strongest athletic asset was my mental toughness," she said.
Haack has coached various sports over the years
including swimming, diving, gymnastics, cross country and track and field.
During the past five years, she has taught physical education, health and
aerobics at Century High School in Hillsboro. Named to the 2002 Who's Who Among
American Teachers, she retired from teaching in June 2002.
Nancy has other Wildcat sport connections. Her
husband, Bob, (1965-69), and son, Ryan (1992-95), both received all-conference
honors in football and competed in the national finals. Daughter, Shannon,
competed in track at Occidental College in Los Angeles and ran on a national
championship relay team.
Nancy and Bob moved to Beaverton to be closer to
their three granddaughters. Bob, a retired Oregon National Guard colonel,
teaches at Forest Grove High School. Nancy will be instructing and encouraging
the next generation of athletes as a "nanny" for her 1-year-old
granddaughter.
