Noel Henderson wins HHS Elliott Award

Havre Daily News/Daniel Horton

Booster Club board member Brett Hickman, left, and Havre High School Activities Director Dennis Murphy, right, present Noel Henderson with the Dr. Jim Elliott award in the Havre High School gym Saturday afternoon.

Long-time volunteer Noel Henderson has won the Dr. Jim Elliott Award for volunteer service to Havre High School.

The Elliott Award has been around since 2001, and, since then, many Havre men and women have been honored.

The Havre High Booster Club chooses the recipient of the award, and the criteria for being a candidate is simple. Anybody considered for or given the Dr. Jim Elliott Award is somebody who shows great volunteerism toward HHS activities, including community, high school and middle school sports programs.

Dr. Jim Elliott was a team doctor and great volunteer himself, making this award the perfect way to honor him and all he did for Havre High and its programs.

Wells Lamey was the first recipient of the award in 2001, and since then Ron Holden in 2002, Pat Newell in 2004, Chuck Williams in 2005, Dave and Pam Wilson in 2006, Kathie Newell in 2007, Dr. Gerald Olson in 2008 and Mary Stevens in 2010 have all been honored with the prestigious award. The most recent honoree is Noel Henderson.

"This is very humbling, " Henderson said. "The recipients that have received this award before me, I have always admired and respected them. And this award is especially special to me because Dr. Elliot was my doctor when I was young. When I was born, he was my doctor, and he was our family doctor forever, so this is very, very humbling and a great honor. "

Henderson has been a volunteer for Havre High for many years now, and has spent countless hours helping out whenever, and however he can.

He was a long-time track and cross-country coach, retiring eight years ago, but still helps run home meets and races to this day. Henderson can also be seen pitching in at home wrestling events, and if all goes according to plan, he will be seen volunteering for years to come.

"As long as they will have me, " Henderson said, "I will volunteer. My arthritic hip is what got me out of coaching in the first place, but now I can come back and help out a few days a week and that works out. And I like all sports, but track has a special place amongst them because I have been involved with it for so many years. "