Get your own Free Home PageSometimes there are few explanations in life. Such was the case in August when Smith alumnus Marvin Webster Jr., a rising sophomore at Temple University, died after he suffered a massive heart attack.
Webster, 18, had a great impact on the Smith community. He had played on the best Golden Eagle basketball team in history, manning the pivot of the team that made the NCHSAA finals in 1995. He led Smith to another 20-win season as a senior. Temple then won a recruiting battle with Purdue, UNCC and Virginia Tech for the services of the 7-foot center.
Despite his massive frame, he will always be remembered by the Smith community for his gentle ways and diligence.
�He always worked hard for what he got and was very dedicated,� said Chris Spence, Smith�s current boys� varsity basketball coach and the JV coach when Webster played here.
�He had some rough times with his mother dying so young and having to work hard to stay on top of his academics, but he always had a smile on his face,� said Sheila Lea, one of his math teachers. �He was real people.�
�He was so polite,� said Edith Williams, another Smith teacher who had been close to Webster.
Smith�s auditorium was packed both at the wake on Aug. 17 and the funeral Aug. 18, filled with emotionally-drained young people.
�Each one of us have just one minute, the one minute before Marvin went to heaven the other morning,� said John Chaney, Webster�s basketball coach at Temple. �We will suffer if we lose that minute. We have just one minute left, but eternity is in it.�
Webster could not have made it to Temple without two people who played large roles in his life: his grandparents, Helburn �Bud� and Francis Meadows. Since Marvin's mother died of a heart attack when he was 14, and his father, Marvin Webster Sr., was only an occasional presence in his life, his grandparents raised him.
Forthcoming are the results of the autopsy. It is unclear why a tall, strong 18-year-old suddenly has a massive heart attack. One explanation could be genetics, since his mother died of coronary disease. But this is all that is known at this time. Marvin had told his grandmother he was a little frustrated. He said he was getting too tired while playing basketball this summer in the prestigious Sonny Hill League in Philadelphia. He also said that maybe he needed to see a doctor, but then again maybe he just wasn't in shape, stated The Philadelphia Inquirer.
�His grandmother will feel guilty, I'm afraid,� former BLS coach Reggie Peace told The Philadelphia Inquirer, �but this is God's will and we will have to help her get through it.�
The Smith community responded with a great show of support for the Meadows and Marvin Webster Sr. It was clearly seen at the funeral. The Smith auditorium included teammates from both the Smith and Temple teams that Marvin played on.
�Marvin embodied the notion that there is nobility in being a good person,� Chaney said.
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