Early Years of Youth Basketball In Portage

Bob Miller was raised in Portage and is a 1974 graduate of PHS.  He is an alumnus of Indiana University and a retired Navy officer living in Virginia.  He played on a number of Biddy basketball teams in the 60s, starting at the age of six as the mascot for his Dad’s championship team.  “I loved my Biddy Basketball days. So many memories, too many to recount here.  Definitely made an impact on me.  I’d like to end this with two clippings from a newsletter my Dad typed and reproduced for the two teams he coached at the end of the 1964/5 season (junior league head coach, senior league an assistant to Bob Arvidson).  In context, he’d type one up every week discussing the previous game, the upcoming and the stats for the team.  He always included life “advice” as well as basketball topics.  I’ve carried these thoughts and others he wrote with me  for over 55 years.  Biddy Basketball (youth sports overall) impacted me much greater than just the hoops.  Hopefully, the former Portage Community youth, now adults, feel the same way, regardless of sport or era.”