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CFL legend delivers important message Video

CFL legend Michael ‘Pinball’ Clemons talks with teachers during his keynote address at St Joseph Scollard Hall Monday.

CFL legend Michael ‘Pinball’ Clemons talks with teachers during his keynote address at St Joseph Scollard Hall Monday.

Members of the Nipissing-Parry Sound Catholic District School Board spent their Monday morning learning a few lessons from CFL legend Michael ‘Pinball’ Clemons keynote speaker at "A Journey to Success, Meeting the Needs of All Learners", a professional development day for educators.

At only 5ft 6 inches tall and 170 lbs Clemons beat the odds and became a Toronto Argonauts running back, the CFL's all-time all purpose yardage leader, Canadian Football Hall of Fame, and now the Vice-Chairman of the Toronto Argonauts. Clemons acknowledges that the all he has were not achieved alone it took teamwork from his mother to his football teams to his family and he delivered that message on Monday – teamwork is what helps everyone reach their potential and be successful in their personal and professional lives.

Clemons grew up in a housing project in Florida and his mother, who is his hero, put education above sport and if Pinball had C-grade was not allowed to play. He too values education noting that teachers are the unsung heroes of the world and are the biggest influences in life outside of the home.

“Education I believe is the number one thing that takes kids from surviving to thriving.”

“The stronger the education you have regardless of what profession you choose to get in the more well equipped you’re going to be and so education is the thing they can’t strip from you.”

“If you have a car they can take that away from you, you have all these different other things education is something that cannot be taken away from you. And it is one of the things that balances socio-economic all of the different barriers you can talk about in life education is the great equalizer. And teachers are the number one facilitator of that and we want them to know that and to know that they are special, unique and wonderful.”