To the Editor:

The Albany County Legislature honored the Guilderland High School girls’ track team at Monday’s meeting with a proclamation saluting their national championship race and the team’s Section Two championship.

Guilderland set a meet record at the Nationals in the sprint medley relay, a 1600-meter race that used four runners at four distances (200m, 200m, 400m, 800m) [“Guilderland Girls Bring Home a National Championship,” The Altamont Enterprise, June 21, 2023].

Guilderland is so proud of the entire team.

Having raised a daughter in Guilderland youth sports who now plays soccer in college, I have some sense of how many years of hard work and sacrifice went into these remarkable achievements. The athletes managed the ups and downs of competition and worked well as a team.

Coach Chris Scanlan and all the other coaches along the way put the athletes’ development first. Parents spent years of long weekends traveling all over to track events, cheering on their children, offering encouragement, or consolation when needed, and sharing the joy of time well spent with their kids that meant everything to them. You are all winners!

While the athletes and their families savor their wonderful achievement, this great lesson will provide the wind at their backs as they move forward: Nothing is impossible. Guilderland Track: National Champions. 

Mark Grimm

Guilderland

Editor’s note: Mark Grimm is an Albany County Legislator representing part of Guilderland.