During Grace College’s Homecoming weekend, the school held a special banquet to honor the legacy of longtime men’s basketball coach Jim Kessler.
The banquet brought back Lancer alumni from every era of Kessler’s 42-year coaching career. The event was held at the Winona Heritage Room.
Many of Kessler’s former players had a chance to speak, sharing stories and memories from their time playing under Kessler.
Speakers included: Kent Denlinger, Trent Lehman, Matt Abernethy, Corey Smith and the Moore brothers (Marcus, Matt and Scott). A video message from Kessler’s college coach Chet Kammerer began the evening, and Kessler’s daughters also shared touching memories from their experiences.
The evening wrapped up with comments from Kessler, who retired from coaching in 2019 with 788 career victories leading the Lancers.
An invitation was also given at the end of the banquet to support the Kessler Endowed Scholarship fund. Anyone interested in giving to the fund can contact Grace’s athletic office at 574-372-5100 ext 6266.
To see a commemorative video of Kessler’s final game which was played during the banquet, click here. – from gclancers.com