EFFINGHAM — Dave Woltman handed over the keys at the end of June.
His days as athletic director at his alma mater were officially over at the end of the month; Woltman retired after 32 years.
“It’s been a privilege,” the 1982 Effingham graduate said. “It’s been an honor to serve the district and I’ve tried to do a good job. Things don’t always go how you planned them to go, but I feel like we tried to do things that were right for kids.”
Prior to being an athletic director at EHS, Woltman was a teacher and coach at St. Anthony.
Former Athletic Director Dave Bartlett was retiring and approached Woltman about taking over the reins.
He accepted.
“(Bartlett) was asked to be the principal and he was the head varsity baseball and basketball coach and athletic director,” Woltman said. “He asked me if I would be interested in becoming the athletic director at St. Anthony, so that’s how it started.”
Woltman is one of three mainstays at EHS that are moving aside heading into the 2024-2025 school year.
Scott Mosher will no longer be the public address announcer at football games and Sid Kibler won’t do the same for boys basketball games. Both Mosher and Kibler decided to step away when Woltman was ready to do so.
“(Kibler) and Scott Mosher both pretty much told me that at the same time,” Woltman said. “Those two guys have been awesome and very reliable. Never had to worry about that part of football and basketball. But, there have been so many people who have been helpful to programs directly or me directly that have made a big impact on the programs that we offer.”
Woltman’s final stand as athletic director ended with a bang.
In the fall, the EHS football team earned a second straight berth in the Class 4A Playoffs. The volleyball team won its first regional championship since 2018. The girls cross-country team earned a spot in the state meet and the soccer team had a record-breaking season.
The winter continued with the girls basketball team winning its first regional since 2019 and the spring followed with the softball team winning its first regional since 2017 and individual moments from the boys and girls track and field teams.
The EHS baseball team also won 21 games, one year removed from placing fourth at the state tournament.
“Starting with that and moving forward into this past school year, we’ve had a really good run in athletics in general,” Woltman said.
Those were just some of the moments that Woltman looks back fondly on, though.
“It’s a combination of all kinds of different moments,” Woltman said. “Some of them are very simple things that happened and some of them are state tournament trips or successful seasons, but the biggest thing for me is watching kids accomplish their maximum ability. And, honestly, sometimes seeing them fail because that’s the only way they learn and get better.”
While there were great moments to highlight, Woltman compared the job to planning a wedding.
“I always liken it to planning a wedding. The mother of the bride and the bride are the only ones who really know what’s supposed to happen, so when things go wrong, people are still enjoying the wedding and that’s very similar to athletics,” Woltman said. “I have in mind what should happen, but there are things that occur that you have to change gears and try to fix it or solve it.”
That was the case for the Effingham/Teutopolis Christmas Classic, which Woltman helped start.
He and now superintendent Andy Johnson kicked around ideas of something to do. They eventually settled on the tournament.
“The idea of it started a long time ago when I was at St. Anthony and we were trying to put together a tournament like this,” Woltman said. “Andy Johnson and myself talked about trying to do something and finally, we threw our feet in the water. We started with five teams and it’s grown to something that’s one of the better Christmas tournaments anywhere around the state.
“It’s been a good thing to watch.”
As for life after retirement, Woltman said he plans on spending more time with family.
“We’re definitely planning on doing more with family. That’s my goal,” he said.
Additionally, he’d also like to improve his golf game.
“Hopefully, it won’t get any worse,” Woltman laughed. “That’s one of the prices you pay. I, at one time, was a decent golfer. Now, I’m not as good anymore because you don’t spend as much time doing it.”