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Jan 02, 2024

Hall of Fame enshrines Bill Aaron

Bill Aaron poses for a photo with his grandson, Carson Aaron, beside his

Bill Aaron poses for a photo with his grandson, Carson Aaron, beside his memorabilia table during the 2023 Marshall County Sports Hall of Fame banquet.

Bill Aaron was one of 10 inductees in the Marshall County Sports Hall of Fame's class of 2023. The induction banquet took place Saturday, June 3 at Lake Guntersville State Park Lodge.

Aaron's MCSHOF bio as it reads on his plaque is:

Bill Aaron was born on November 22, 1947, to Margaret and J.W. Aaron in Covington, Georgia. He has two sisters, Patti Howard, who is deceased, and Kathy Borland, and a brother Tommy Aaron. Bill grew up in Covington. and his love for athletics started by playing Little League baseball for the Covington Mill Trojans. His team won the league championship five out of the six years he played. As a freshman, Bill played football and baseball at Newton County High School. After his freshman year, the family moved to Albertville.

At Albertville High, Bill played football and baseball and ran track. Bill played wide receiver on the football team for 2019 Marshall County Sports Hall of Fame inductee Coach G.B. Beasley. The 1965 Aggie team went 8-1-1 and won the Marshall County Championship. On the track team, Bill was a sprinter and threw the discus. In the spring of 1965, Bill and his quarterback Tommy Carr were privileged to travel to Tuscaloosa to work out with Alabama quarterback Joe Namath. Joe Willie tutored Carr, and Bill ran all the pass routes for the two qb's.

Bill was a star on the Albertville High baseball team where he played outfield and was a pitcher. As a senior, he tallied a .363 batting average and went 3-1 on the mound. He was selected to play in the East/West High School All-Star Game in Talladega in 1966. After high school, Bill continued to play on the diamond, but switched over to slow-pitch softball. His team won the ASA State Championship in 1967, and Bill was named Most Valuable Player. He was named to the All-State team in both ’67 and ’68.

In 1969, Bill was drafted into the United States Army. While stationed in the Demilitarized Zone in Korea, Bill tried out and was selected for the Division Baseball Team. Of the 100 who tried out, he was chosen as one of the fifteen who made the squad. The team's coach was Tim Van Galder, who played quarterback for the N.F.L.'s St. Louis Cardinals.

After being discharged from the Army in 1970, Bill enrolled at Snead State Junior College. He played baseball at Snead for MCSHoF Inaugural Class inductee John Kitchens. Bill was named All-Conference, while ranking in the top ten in batting average in the conference. He then continued his education, receiving a baseball scholarship to play at St. Bernard College in Cullman. He played pitcher for the Saints and was selected All-Conference as a junior.

After graduating from St. Bernard in May of 1973, Bill was hired as a math and science teacher at Douglas High School and was tabbed to coach junior high football and basketball and track. He also coached the D.H.S. varsity girls’ basketball team for the 1978-79 season. Bill left Douglas after six years to become the principal at Asbury Junior High School. His three years at Asbury led to a long career in school administration, which included stops at Boaz Elementary School (10 years), Boaz High School (3 years), Marshall County Alternative School (1 year), and Claysville Jr. High (5 years).

After his tenure at Claysville, Bill returned to Asbury to lead the school into its transition from a K-8 school to a high school. By his own admission, helping start a new high school was one of the proudest moments in his educational career. Bill retired from public education in 2006 with 33 years of service.

In addition to his career in education, Bill served as a member of the Alabama National Guard for 23 years. He volunteered and was called up for Operation Desert Storm in 1990 but was not called overseas as the war ended before he was deployed.

Bill's civic accomplishments are noteworthy. In 1989, he was named Boaz Civitans Man of the Year. He is a former president of the Boaz Chamber of Commerce and was the drive chairman for United Way of Marshall County in 1989 and 1992. In 2010 Bill was elected to the Marshall County Board of Education where he served as board president in 2015-16.

On June 6, 1996, Bill married the former Gayle Patterson of Hueytown. They have four children and 12 grandchildren.

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