The Lasting Legacy of Coach Emery

Our hearts were heavy as we learned the news that legendary Beaumont cross country and track & field coach Jim Emery passed away this past March.

Coach Emery came to Beaumont in 1990 and over the ensuing years has been the most accomplished coach in Beaumont Blue Streak history.

Of the 24 state championship team banners hanging in our gym, 18 were coached by Jim Emery, including seven cross country – the second most by a girls’ school in Ohio High School Athletic Association history – and 11 in track and field. Beaumont has won 16 state track and field titles, which is the most by a girls’ team in the state of Ohio.

Coach Emery presided over 11 of those titles.

He has coached many individual/relay state champions, an NCAA national champion, and an Olympian. He was inducted into the Ohio Association of Track and Cross Country Coaches Hall of Fame in 1997 and the Beaumont School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2019. He was given the Beaumont Award for leadership and service in 2016.

On any given day, Coach Emery could remember someone’s time down to the hundredth of a second. He maintained close friendships with many athletes long after their running careers were over, attending weddings and baptisms and other special events in the lives of his athletes. He and his dog, Oscar, were regulars throughout the halls of Beaumont. He presided over hallway practices, with his tattered navy ballcap and cup of coffee in hand. Coach Emery was always quick with a smile.

A legend at the annual Ohio State Track and Field Championship, Coach Emery could barely walk a few feet before someone would stop to chat with him. He produced state champions and knew what it would take over the course of the season to get his athletes ready to compete at the state level.

We know that he was watching from above as Beaumont finished their season strong heading back to the State Championship.