It was time to say goodbye.
After 43 years, hundreds of people took the time to celebrate, honor and most importantly, bid farewell to one of the most beloved and respected individuals in Columbus North athletics history.
June 25 marked the end of the Steve Souder Era at North, as he decided it was finally time to call it a career as an athletic trainer.
But before it came to an official end, there was one last surprise for him.
North athletic trainer Ashley Martin was one of the leaders who recently organized a special party for Souder, 66, in the school’s auxiliary gym. When Souder returned to the school at 4 p.m. on June 25, he was surprised to see decorations, a photo album and poster for guests to sign, and of course, his signature golf cart, all inside the gym.
During the celebration, Mayor Jim Lienhoop gave a speech thanking Souder for his commitment to the school and community and used his powers to proclaim the day as “Steve Souder Day” in Columbus.
Once it was Souder’s turn to speak, it was him giving the thanks.
“I want to thank my family, especially my wife, Ardis, for the hours that I wasn’t at home,” Souder said. “In hindsight, it’s the staff that’s here, the athletes and my family that made it all worthwhile being here. If (former athletics director) Bill Stearman, rest his soul, had told me that I’d be here for 43 years, I would have looked at him and said, ‘Bill, you’re crazy!'”
Busy beginnings
It all started when Souder was in high school in Bay Village, Ohio.
A friend asked if he wanted to be a manager of the football team, and he agreed.
A short time later, his friend decided to quit, and it left Souder as the lone manager of the team. He took an interest in it right away and remained as the manager the next three years.
Souder said managing slowly evolved into taking care of the players and learning how to tape from an old Johnson & Johnson taping book. From that moment, he decided that he wanted to pursue a career in the medical field.
For two years, Souder landed as a student trainer with the soccer and wrestling teams at a local community college. He then attended Bowling Green State University and majored in elementary physical education.
Since there weren’t many schools that offered a curriculum in athletic training, Souder spent long hours in the training rooms to gain experience.
Following college, Souder was ready for the National Board Test. With only a 30% passing rate at the time, the test consisted of multiple choice and assessments by three athletic trainers that would give situations that an applicant had to solve and then demonstrate problem solving skills.
Souder came to Columbus when he applied for an elementary physical education opening in 1978. At the end of the interview, he mentioned that he had taken the National Board Test for athletic training.
Souder recalled that the personnel director told him to turn around and pointed him to North High School, saying they were looking for an athletic trainer. He went over and had a two-hour interview and a tour of the school. He recalls that he was really impressed with how big Memorial Gymnasium was when seeing it for the first time.
In August 1978, Souder accepted the job. He walked into the old locker room at the time, where Stearman tossed him the keys and pointed to the training room.
Needless to say, it spawned only the beginning of an era.
“This is a job where there’s the professional part of knowing your job and knowing medicine, but then there’s the people part, and you don’t survive 43 years without having to deal with people, and people really love him — it’s his personality,” said Dr. Cary Guse of Southern Indiana Orthopedics, who is also the team doctor for North that has worked with Souder for 18 years. “He truly loves what he does, and you can tell that. It’s not just a job where he’s punching the clock, it’s a true passion and he has a true passion for people.”
On top of being an athletic trainer, Souder also taught for 30 years. During that span, his work day would start around 7 a.m. and last until about 6 p.m., but if there was a sporting event going on that night, his day usually wouldn’t end until just after 11 p.m. or even close to midnight in some cases.
“I look back on those years and wonder, ‘How was I able to do that?'” he said.
A year later after arriving in Columbus, Souder met Ardis, and the two have been married for almost 40 years.
Jeff Hester, who served as the school’s athletics director from 2008-20, really hit it off with Souder in the beginning and said Souder helped him navigate his first few years at the school.
“I’ve always had a strong affection for people who are good storytellers, and Steve is a great story teller,” said Hester, who now is an assistant athletics director at Carmel. “He was quick to fill me in on the history of Columbus North and a lot of the do’s and don’ts around here.”
Hester mentioned that he could always rely and trust on Souder whenever a medical situation arose.
“That was the biggest peace of mind I had,” Hester said. “Just knowing if something were to happen, an injury or something, it was going to be OK because Steve was here. I always knew I can count on Steve, and so could the athletes. He’s a very loyal guy and just a true professional.”
Souder retired from teaching but still worked as an athletic trainer on the side until being fully employed as an athletic trainer through Columbus Regional Hospital for the past seven years.
Martin has worked alongside Souder since the fall of 2016. She gives credit to Souder for helping her become the athletic trainer that she is today.
“I think it’s really cool, and I was very fortunate to come in when I did because with him having all the experience he has, it’s nice to get that,” Martin said. “He gets to pass on his legacy and knowledge because he was one of the original athletic trainers in the state. He did a lot for athletic training and the profession, so he definitely deserves the recognition for that, but it’s also really cool for me because I get to learn that history. I get to apply it to what I know and take it with me.
“What he’s been through and what he’s learned and all his stories has helped me become the athletic trainer I am today. I owe him a debt of gratitude for taking me under his wing and kind of showing me how things were done here at the school,” she added.
More than a job
Since his college days in early 1970s, one could always recognize Souder by one physical feature — his mustache.
However, in 2016, Souder made a promise to the gymnastics team that if they won the state championship, he would shave it.
Katrina May was a senior on the team at the time. She and her two closest teammates, Claire Thompson and Ashley Holliday, all had a great relationship with Souder during their high school careers.
Everyone that year had the feeling that if May, Thompson and Holliday hit all their routines, they’d have a chance to win it all. Souder’s proposition added an extra incentive to go to Ball State and bring home the trophy.
“I know in previous years, he’s done other deals with other teams, but not with the mustache, so that was a special one for us,” May said.
The team kept its end of the bargain and won the title. When it came time for Souder to cash in on the bet, he didn’t balk on the deal. During the annual postseason banquet that was held at Harrison Lake Country Club, members of the gymnastics team took turns shaving off the mustache.
“We all were pretty excited because it had been an awesome year, but the highlight of that banquet was definitely shaving off Steve’s mustache,” May said. “We set up a chair in front of the room, and put a little cape around him and somebody pulled (the razor) out and started shaving off the mustache.”
To this day, Souder has not made any attempt to grow the mustache back and for a good reason.
“My wife says I look better without it,” he explained.
IUPUI associate professor Zach Riley, a 1998 North graduate and now an assistant wrestling coach for the Bull Dogs, has known Souder for 35 years.
Riley had Souder as his athletic trainer when he played football, wrestling and competed in track and field and as a physical education teacher in elementary school. Riley said he was injured a lot during his high school career, which gave him more time to spend with Souder.
In some capacity, Riley has been involved with North athletics over the past decade and had gotten to know Souder more than being an athletic trainer.
“Steve was like a father figure when I was younger and always promoted physical activity and participation in sports,” Riley said. “Having Steve as my trainer was like having someone that I knew from my youth that I could go to and talk about my athletics. I think the most influential thing that Steve passed on to me is how to just be steady and present in kids’ lives. That has far more impact than any one thing a teacher or coach could say or do. I greatly respect the man and his dedication to Columbus North athletics and people in general.”
Final impressions
Souder had a little bit more time away from his regular activities last year due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
During that time, he said he did a lot of yard work and landscaping around his house. When he finished one day, Ardis came outside to look at what’s been done and told Steve that it was starting to look really nice out there.
That’s when it clicked for Steve to finally decide that this past year was going to be his last.
“It’s been great being here,” Souder said. “My wife is retired, basically, and I just wanted to have some time and enjoy retirement.”
In the span of 43 years, North has seen many teachers, administrators and coaches come and go, but Souder has remained the consistent staple at the school
“He’s been my partner in crime for quite a few years, and I don’t know what I’m going to do now,” said longtime North gymnastics coach Bob Arthur, who transitioned to an assistant role last year. “I’m going to miss him, there’s no doubt about it. It’s going to be different not having him around.”
While Souder said it could be tempting to make a return, he said this is it for him.
“If I had a nickel for every time I heard that, I would’ve retired 15 to 20 years ago,” Souder joked.”…There’s athletic trainers that have gone longer than me, not many, but I had a good time doing it. We’ll see what happens next.”
The atmosphere definitely will feel much different once high school practices resume — particularly in the athletic training room. Former athletes said Souder had the knack for lighting up the room, cracking jokes and interacting with each athlete that comes to visit.
Whether the athletes came to receive treatment or not, it also was known to be a socialization spot.
“Steve was good about gathering all the athletes together and being the meeting place,” May said. “We would all go there and socialize after school before our practice with different teams, and he was always there. “He would always converse with us, and I think that was probably the best part about Steve.”
It also will feel different at athletic events not seeing Souder drive his golf cart around the soccer, football, baseball and softball fields.
While Souder will no longer be working for the school, he said he still plans on coming back to the school. He mentioned that he will be making visits to North and still go out to games and cheer on the Bull Dogs, but there is one instinct that might be a problem.
“I’m going to have to keep reminding myself to not to run out onto the field when somebody goes down,” he joked.
Many people have asked Souder the age-old question of what he’ll being doing now that he’s retired. He hasn’t really thought in-depth about it, but has some ideas in mind.
“I’ve got a garage and a shed to clean, which will take me 100 years, I’ve got so much stuff in it,” Souder chuckled. “We’re thinking about going different places, just driving around and going places. We haven’t set anything in stone yet. I may get a little RV to drive around in and be able to drive around in that. I may do some fishing. I like bowling. There’s a bunch of stuff, and now I can just do it when I want to do it.”
One of the few that will miss Souder the most is the one that’s been his co-worker the past five years.
“I’ll miss his charisma and him joking around with all the athletes because when it gets down to it, he loves to interact and have a relationship with athletes,” Martin said. “I know they enjoy coming around him and he is always making people laugh and making their days better. That’s one aspect I’ll miss seeing the most out of everything.”
(Editor’s Note: Kate Ash was hired to become the school’s new athletic trainer. A story about Ash will be published in an upcoming edition later this month in The Republic.)
