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knocking over vases and lamps as he gestured to make a point. But Tip didn’t really need to gesture
because every other word coming out of his mouth was an expletive.

“I hate all these rules!” Tip screamed more than once. But there was one fate Tip would have
hated worse - being confined in a juvenile jail. Because Tip had heard what it was like and
concluded he wanted to stay out at all costs. So he began trying to follow the Farm’s rules.

Yet persuading Tip to sit in a classroom took days. Encouraging him to study required weeks. Re
placing his profanity with more appropriate language took months and months. Perhaps the biggest
challenge, though, was removing the chip from Tip’s shoulder. Large doses of unconditional love and

consistent discipline were required to instill in Tip trust for authority figures and society.

And I watched Tip slowly change. Over the years as coach of the Cowboys, I saw a lot of

impressive changes, as players became more disciplined, more skilled and more motivated. But the
changes I saw in Tip and other bruised and suffering kids were far more dra -matic than anything I had
seen on the football field.

Tip finally graduated from the Farm’s high school. He was the first person in his large family ever
to stay in school long enough to graduate. Tip was also the first male in his family not to serve time in
a Texas prison. Tip’s accomplishments were among the greatest points I have ever seen scored. But
more championship feats in Tip’s turbulent life were yet to come.

After graduating from high school, Tip went to work in the oil-fields of West Texas. He saved his
money and had plumbing installed in his family’s house. He bought his mother a car. He helped his
sisters go to school. He returned to his small hometown to work as a mechanic. Tip is now married
and has four children.

The dehumanizing cycle of poverty, brutality and imprisonment has been broken by Tip. His
overcoming almost insurmountable obstacles is an incredible victory I feel privileged to have shared

even a small part in. I love football -always have, always will - but mending the lives and hearts of
boys and girls like John, Frieda, Jack, Amy and Tip gives me a sense of satis faction like no other
thrill. Giving them a fair chance at liv ing their dreams is a victory far greater than a Super Bowl.

- Tom Landry

There is a loftier ambition than merely to stand high in the world. It is to stoop

down and lift man kinda little higher.

- Henry Van Dyke