Brensley Bids Farewell

My four years at Saint Mary’s have been very special to me. I’ve always wanted my senior year to come but now I feel like a freshman all over again nervous about the next step in life and wishing I could hold on to my past and the time I have spent here at Saint Mary’s. The first time I heard about Saint Mary’s, I was a little nervous because I had never heard of a town named Winona and never saw myself living in Minnesota. But Bob Biebel assured me that everything would be OK and once I got here, I realized that. By recruiting me for basketball, Bob Biebel made my dream of playing college basketball come true and I really thank him for that. Even though he was my coach for only one year, he was very supportive through my whole collegiate career. There are so many people that I have to thank for the experiences I’ve had both on and off the court; many people have influenced me, but there have been no bigger influence in my life than my mother, Roaslyn Tucker, my grandparents, Leroy and Beverly Hill, my little brothers, Breshion, Breion, and Brequan, and my uncle Kirk. My mom has always inspired and encouraged me to reach my goals in life. I know raising four boys is a very difficult task, but you made it look easy. You have always been there for me and the boys no matter the circumstances. In sports, you traveled to nearly all our games, home or away, no matter what sport, and no matter how far away the game might be. Your love and support in everything I do and have done have made it possible for me to be where I am today. Thank you for being the mom you are each thing I do in life is a reflection of your up bringing and love. When most kids are growing up, they are looking to NBA players and movie stars as role models however I was lucky enough to have my own role model at home with me. My grandfather spent most of his life waking up a 5 a.m. to go to work as a welder. At his age, I can only imagine how easy it would have been to stop and how hard his job must have been. But not once did he ever complain, because he knew our family needed him. He sacrificed a lot to give us everything. To me he is better than any superstar and I hope that I have followed in his footsteps to this point and I will continue to strive to be the best at everything I do — because I know he would do the same. Grandmothers are special just by the titlem but my grandmother is special in so many ways. She made sure I stayed out of trouble and she made sure school was number in my life. Growing up, I always thought she was too hard on me, but now that I am a senior, I see how much she has helped me — all the things she has taught me are now coming full circle. To my grandfather, thank you for teaching me the value of dedication. There are so many things I need to thank my grandmother for but if she were watching me write this she would say “just graduate that will be enough” today I just want you to know how much I appreciate you and all that you have done for me. If there are two angels in this world they are you and my mother, how can I ever say enough. As an older brother, you never want to make mistakes in your life, because you have people who are looking up to you and following in your footsteps. Just like my grandfather set the example for me, I hope to have set a good example for them. Everyday, I went to practice and class because I know they are depending on me, watching me, and following me. Everything I do is for you guys, so that each of you can have a positive role model, a brother you can be proud of, and most of all, a friend you can trust. I love each of you more than you know and I cannot wait until they day I am reading your Senior Salutes. I hope one day you all will be in my shoes and do what I have done even better. Each of you has the potential to be anything you want, just stick together and keep focused on what really matters in life. Don’t let people who want to see you fail bring you down, let that motivate you and you will be fine. Basketball has been in my life since I was six years old, thanks to my Uncle Kirk. He was the first person to put the ball in my hands, at seven I won my first dunk contest — on a play school hoop — at his high school basketball game, on my 10th birthday he bought me a basketball rim and he made me shoot on it all the time. He introduced me to basketball and showed me how much there was to love about the game, if it weren’t for him who knows if this sport would have been such a big influence on my life. Thank you for teaching me how to play and how to love basketball. A team is when a group of people who work together to reach a common goal. I’ve been on many teams in my life and Saint Mary’s Men’s Basketball is the definition of team in my eyes as each person contributes greatly in helping us achieve our goals. I graduate with three other seniors this year and I know that the dedication and hard work Batterman brings, the intelligence of the game that John brings, and the positive attitude and love of the game Jack brings will be missed greatly next season. I would also like to mention one of my co-captains, Dan Cormier — he is one of the most positive, talented, and enthusiastic players on the court- not to mention he is a very funny guy. Your leadership will be needed next year and I have no doubt that you will do a good job. All my teammates are special to me, many in different ways, and I would like to thank all of them for letting be a leader. I will always remember this year as the year I left a group of brothers. Coach Mike Trewick and Nigel Jenkins have helped me grow as a player as well as a man. They put their hearts and souls into our team and as a player you can’t ask anything more. No matter what I do in life my coaches will always be involved because they took the time out of there lives to teach us something new everyday about basketball and life. Saint Mary’s is a place I will never forget. I made a lot of life-long friends here and I know this will always be my home away from home.