Graduation speaker: 'Get in there and play hard'

Keith Blackledge, long-time editor of the North Platte Telegraph, opened his snappy remarks by noting that another North Platte resident, Danny Woodhead, the 2006 Harlon Hill Trophy winner, had brought much distinction to Chadron State during the past year through his football exploits.

“Danny Woodhead and I have quite a bit in common besides being from North Platte,” Blackledge said with a grin. “We both played football. He is small and quick. I am small and slow. A single word can change the message entirely. Remember that when filling out job applications.”

Blackledge said that while his high school football team wasn’t good and he wasn’t a star, he learned from the game. He found that when he quit worrying about what the coach would say if he made a mistake and played with energy and instinct good things happened. Even his teammates played better.

“Get in there and play hard,” said Blackledge, who was presented the college’s Distinguished Service Award.

Blackledge illustrated another point by quoting a sign he had seen: “Due to a shortage of devoted followers, the production of Great Leaders has been discontinued.”

“If my life has been one of distinguished service as the plaque says, it has been because I picked good leaders to follow in worthwhile causes,” he said. “By working as hard as I knew how in these endeavors, I sometimes found I could make a difference.”

One of his mentors, Blackledge said, was the late Jim Kirkman, who rose from being a sportswriter and advertising manager to become the publisher of the Telegraph.

The speaker said Kirkman taught him to neither bask in the glory when he was praised for doing something well nor to hang his head when he was criticized. Things have a way of balancing out, Blackledge noted.

The speaker also advised the more than 200 graduates to never apologize if they have a small town background. He said he had worked for both large and small newspapers and found that while the large ones pay better, it’s more fun to work for the small ones.

He added that in the long run, having friends is more important than having money.

Blackledge, who has been chairman of numerous statewide and regional organizations, told the graduates that the development of an honorable character will sustain them whether they are a leader or a follower, in good times and in bad.

“The character you develop is your responsibility. Your parents can’t give it to you. You can’t buy it at Wal-Mart. You have to earn it, one day at a time. No one can do it for your. No one can take it from you,” he said.