Always My Brother's Keeper

Several years ago, I was coaching basketball at a high school where I was also teaching physical education. One day while waiting for my next physical education class to dress and assemble in the gym, I sat in the upper bleachers watching the custodian sweep the gym floor. Billy had been a part time janitor but his reputation for 'hitting' the bottle was well documented. Suddenly, Billy dropped the push-mop, jerked the hearing aid from his ear and began yelling into the hearing device as if it was a microphone. I thought to myself, holy crap, Billy has gone over the edge!

I quickly walked down the gym steps to confront the disoriented custodian when he turned away from me and ran to a lower level storage room. Billy locked the door behind him and ignored my pleas to allow me inside. He was yelling back at me , "They're coming to get me, they're coming to get me; the accident was not my fault!" After much coaxing, Billy finally opened the door. He kept repeating to me, "They are going to come and kill me, they think the accident was my fault." He was a pitifully frightened man.

It was obvious that Billy was suffering from delirium tremens (DT"s). I took him around the corner from the gym to a local general physician's office.The good medicine man examined Billy quickly and confirmed that Billy was indeed in the throws of DT's. The doctor suggested that I take him across town to a hospital, which specialized in detox programs. Soon, I am driving a school custodian, whose last name I don't know, to a detox hospital. I recalled my University's; motto; 'Gladly would he learn and gladly teach.' Nowhere did that motto suggest this particular commitment!!

After much haggling, I eventually got Billy processed for admission and was instructed to take him to the third floor for 'intake.' As Billy and I entered the large elevator together, I turned my attention to press the 3rd floor number and turned around only to see Billy running out of the twin-back-doors of the elevator. I chased him down and tackled Billy in a nearby parking lot. Billy was laughing his drunken-ass off. Finally, Billy was placed in the hands of the medical caretakers...I returned to my paying-job's contractual duties.

Several folks told me later that Billy said to them: "I never did like that Coach Roustio."
Lesson: People who need help don't always want your help... help them anyway!