Coach Joe’s New Role

Zeigler-Royalton has a brand new golf coach, and he’s a familiar face at ZR. Joe Hargraves has made himself a permanent part of the Zeigler-Royalton school district. He went to high school here during his senior year and has been working here as a janitor for the past nineteen years. This year he became Coach Joe Hargraves and the newest Golf coach at ZRHS.

Coach Joe is a busy man at the school. Not only does he drive the bus in the morning and work around the district all school day, he now has taken on his duty as coach. He has never had time for extra jobs, such as coaching. This year when the job as the ZRC Golf coach came open, he decided to share his love for the game with the kids and applied for the job. Coach Joe has been golfing since 1997, which gives him fifteen years under his belt, and now he is “on the verge of excellence.” Coach Joe’s favorite golf course is Franklin County Country Club. He likes the course because it is well-kept and hard to play. The green is nice, the people are friendly, and the golf team plays there almost free. “It’s the nicest course in Southern Illinois.”

Coach Joe was an athlete while he was in high school. Although there wasn’t golf, he still participated in other school sports, basketball, track, and baseball. Coach Joe didn’t come to Z-R until his senior year because he went to Wayne City High School the other three years. During his freshman year at Wayne City, he played baseball, basketball, and track. He never got around to playing sports his sophomore through senior years because he found himself enjoying his favorite past time, fishing.

When Coach Joe was asked if he was a good student he said, “No, if I was I wouldn’t be a janitor.” Other than being a janitor, Coach Joe has held down other jobs too. He worked in construction and in the oil fields in Fairfield. He worked for Allen Industries and then came to Z-R. When Coach Joe is not working, he enjoys golfing, fishing, and carpenter work. His favorite part of his job is being around the kids at school. “There’s not a bad side to my job.”