ANDERSON, Ind. (AP) - One of Anderson’s most well-known athletes was recognized for his contributions to the city and Indiana with a Sagamore of the Wabash award on Tuesday.
Johnny Wilson, who led Anderson High School to a state championship in 1946 and played for the Harlem Globetrotters, was given the governor’s certificate by state Rep. Terri Austin at the Anderson Rotary Club meeting.
“I have received some honors in my lifetime,” Wilson said. “But this is the greatest of them all.”
Wilson said he has had many opportunities to live and travel to many places, but Indiana is always home.
“I always long to get back to Anderson and to win this award is very special. I don’t know if I deserve it,” he said jokingly. “But I’m going to take it.”
Carl Erskine, who made his mark in professional baseball, was on hand to help present the award to his lifelong friend. Erskine and Wilson grew up together and played on the same fifth-grade basketball team.
Erskine went on to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers where he said his friendship with Wilson enabled him to be accepting of Jackie Robinson when he broke Major League Baseball’s color barrier.
“Johnny is well known for his stats,” Erskine told The Herald Bulletin (https://bit.ly/1jrXE7O ). “But he is also a major player in history as well. Johnny’s influence is well beyond the borders of Anderson.”
Primus Mootry, another one of Wilson’s friends and writes a weekly column in The Herald Bulletin, also spoke at the event. He called Wilson a true son of Anderson and a pioneer in many ways.
Mootry is also the driving force behind building a statue of Wilson for a memorial at the Impact Center at Nichol Avenue and John Street. Mootry said he wants to get the statue done by the end of the summer but so far has only been able to raise about half of the money needed.
He said an additional $50,000 is still needed to finish the statue, pay for the landscaping and enact a plaque detailing Wilson’s accomplishments.
“We want to get this done,” Mootry said. “But we need help.”
Wilson will be at Hoosier Park on Thursday with four other Anderson natives who have also won Indiana’s Mr. Basketball award. Wilson will join Roy Taylor, Ray Tolbert, Troy Lewis and Maurice “Kojak” Fuller as guests at the Anderson Black Expo’s annual corporate luncheon. Tickets are $35.
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Information from: The Herald Bulletin, https://www.theheraldbulletin.com
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