Howard Schultz – Chisholm – Bemidji

Howard Schultz was born and raised in his early years by his mother in Chisholm, Minnesota, and spent his High School years with his Uncle Fred and Aunt Elsie Nesler. Fred was an outstanding blacksmith and welder who taught Howie the value of hard work, honesty, and attention to detail.

Howie went out for wrestling in Chisholm in 1956. He describes himself as a portly but willing participant. He was getting tired of being made fun of and decided to do something about it. He was extremely fortunate to have an outstanding coach to wrestle for in Henry Staffaroni.

Schultz was a Region 7 Wrestling Champion at Heavyweight as well as an All­ Conference Football Player at Chisholm High School. After graduating from Chisholm, Schultz enrolled at Bemidji State College, majoring in English and participating in Football and Wrestling at Bemidji State under Chet Anderson. Howie had the honor of playing on a NIC Conference Champion Football Team as a Freshman, although not as a starter. He wrestled from 1959 to 1962 at Bemidji but was unable to compete as a Senior due to a severe head injury. Howie is indebted to Henry Staffaroni at Chisholm as well as Chet Anderson and Dwayne Martin at Bemidji State for their guidance and mentorship. Howie also will be eternally grateful to his wife, Darlene, whom he calls “Mert.” Without the sacrifice, support, and devotion from Mert, Howie knows he would never have been able to accomplish all the great things he was able to do with his life. There’s an adage that states, “Behind every successful man is an exhausted woman.” Howie will be the first to attest to that.

Howie served as an assistant wrestling coach at Bemidji High School during his Senior Year at Bemidji State and, the following year was hired to teach English and serve as an assistant wrestling coach under Ken Schmoker. During that time, Howie also officiated wrestling matches at both the High School and College levels. Howie also served as a Section 7 Wrestling Rep and had the opportunity to work with some outstanding wrestling people over the years, including Ken Schmoker, Chet Anderson, Don Meyers, John Grygelko, and Jeff Swenson.

After 20 years of teaching English and coaching Wrestling, Schultz moved to an Assistant Principal position at Bemidji High School. Howie retired from that position and went on to serve as a Beltrami County Undersheriff.

This past December, Howie and Bro Olsen from Roseau had a pre-induction social at Bemidji High School. Spencer Yohe and Jerry Cleveland wanted to make sure that Howie and Bro were properly recognized, knowing that many of the people from the Bemidji and Roseau area who would like to honor these gentlemen may not be able to make it to Austin, Minnesota, in April. I asked Bro if he could give me any information on Howie, as all I had was a short chronology of his career. Bro gave me Tom Ritchie’s contact information, and Tom sent some excerpts from his speech that night in Bemidji. I condensed a bit, but this is what Hall of Fame Wrestling Coach Tom Ritchie had to say about Howie Schultz.

“One of the happiest days of my life occurred when I found out that Howie Schultz was going into the Minnesota Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. I wanted to be there to be there to stand up and tell everyone about Coach Schultz. I contacted a few people to let them know about Howie’s celebration and get some thoughts for my talk. Testimonials came flooding in from all over the country from former students, wrestlers, parents and co-workers. There were too many humorous and epic stories to select just one, but there was a common theme among those stories. Many recalled Howie’s kindheartedness, humor, and array of skills, as well as his firm, fair, and forgiving nature. In the classroom as well as the wrestling room, Howie made every young person feel accepted, wanted and needed and, in turn, empowered. I know I can speak for many of my teammates as well as the multitude of students and wrestlers who were fortunate enough to be coached and/or taught Howie Schultz. The brotherhood of wrestling is eternally grateful for Coach Schultz, and the world is a better place because of Howie. Student-athletes, parents, and co-workers found that the three R’s of Education – Reading, Riting, and Rithmetic – were actually missing a fourth R, one that Howie Schultz epitomized – Relationships.”

Bill Schmidt recalls the first time he met Howie Schultz. It was at the Division Ill National Wrestling Tournament. Howie was sitting next to John Grygelko, Bill’s college wrestling coach at Augsburg. Howie was there supporting a young man who had been through a tough home life in Bemidji and was virtually adopted by Howie and Darlene. He was wrestling in the National Finals at Heavyweight, locked in a 1-1 tie match going into the third period. The action started getting a little rough as both wrestlers were trying to establish their tie-up and head position. Howie knew this young man well and began to call out, “POISE, POISE.” As the action picked up, Howie was starting to slide back and forth on the bleachers and people started to move away before they got side-swiped and knocked off the bleachers. Coach Grygelko caught him every time he slid over, trying to keep him from injuring himself or others. When the match ended in a Fall in favor of Howie’s young man, the Auggie crowd erupted, and a few of the Augsburg Wrestlers were laughing a bit as they got such a kick out of Howie’s antics. Coach Grygelko turned to us with a dead serious look in his eyes and stated, “Just so you know – that guy is one Hell of a Man.”

Tom Ritchie’s daughter, Jenna, had this to say about Mr. Schultz, the teacher: “Mr. Schultz, I am so excited for your induction into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. My father has been anxiously awaiting this day for many years. I want you to know that you were my favorite teacher and a special person in my life. When I first came to your classroom, I was going through a difficult time. Your compassion was immense. You always wanted to make sure I was OK – and filled so many days with jokes and laughter. You made learning interesting and fun. Through it all, you made one thing perfectly clear – You care! I may have forgotten some of the things I learned from you, but I will never forget how you made me feel.”

Tom Ritchie went on to explain, “Coach Schultz had a way of weaving the fabric of our wrestling team into a tapestry of COLLECTIVE WILL, where everyone was valued and inclusiveness prevailed. Coach Schultz, thank you for always being in our corner; you will always be in our hearts.”

Howie explains that wrestling is a microcosm of life, with many ups and downs along the way. But in the end, the sport of wrestling fosters a positive, dedicated pathway enabling people to make sound choices and good decisions in dealing with people, problems, and pitfalls. The mental toughness and discipline required to succeed in the Sport of Wrestling prepares you for LIFE.