A Waldron treasure passes into history

Waldron High School boys basketball has a proud and storied tradition that is marked by numerous memorable players and teams.

The 1960 squad captured the Columbus Sectional title and lost a one-point decision to Greensburg in the opening game of the Columbus Regional. The 2013 Mohawks finished the regular season undefeated and compiled a 22-1 record.

And in 2004, Waldron reached the pinnacle of Indiana High School Basketball by winning 27 consecutive games and the Class A state championship.

Yet, an individual who will forever stand as one of the most profound representatives of Waldron basketball never wore the team’s uniform or took to the court. Ralph Lux was a lifetime Mohawks fan who served as the team’s manager for 34 years. His unwavering devotion to Waldron basketball and his genuine, demonstrative love and concern for others forever cemented his legacy in the hearts and minds of the Shelby County community.

Ralph passed away on Jan. 9 at the age of 67. Three days later, more than 1,000 people visited the Waldron High School gymnasium to pay final respects to one of the area’s most beloved figures.

Lux was born in 1957 as the youngest of 13 children of Omer and Helen Lux. He was eventually diagnosed with Down syndrome, a genetic disorder that is associated with physical and intellectual disabilities.

“They told mom and dad that Ralph would be lucky to reach 10 years old,” said his brother Max. “He had difficulty eating when he was first born and that was a big worry. The doctors later said age 18 might be his limit.”

Ralph had other ideas.

“We treated him as normally as possible,” continued Max. “He was expected to behave like everyone else.”

The social assimilation and caring environment fostered by the Lux family was vital to Ralph’s development and his ability to connect with others.

“I think having a big family and working so long at Shares (a Shelbyville company that employs individuals with disabilities) provided Ralph with a social aspect that really helped him to be outgoing and involved with people,” said nephew Jared Lux, Waldron’s all-time leading scorer and a current Mohawks assistant.

Ralph was among Shares’ first employees when the company opened in the old Borden’s building next to St. Joseph Catholic School. He worked at Shares for 39 years.

Ralph Lux was honored as a torchbearer during the State of Indiana's bicentennial celebration in 2016.

Following the deaths of his father in 1994 and his mother in 2011, Ralph went to live with his brother, Nick, and his wife, Pat.

Ralph grew up as a die-hard Waldron basketball fan. In 1990, Mohawks basketball coach Steve Cox suggested that he take on the role of team manager. That assignment set him on a 34-year journey filled with emotion and excitement that proved to be the ride of a lifetime.

“Ralph would take care of the uniforms and warm-ups and roll the basketballs out for team pre-game and halftime warmups,” said Cox, who later became principal at Beech Grove High School and currently works as a Ben Davis basketball assistant coach. “It was the perfect job for him. He took the time to do it right. He rode the team bus, sat on the team bench and led locker room and pep session cheers as well.”

Following Waldron games, he carefully folded the uniforms before handing them off to Martha Kolkmeier to be washed.

Ralph would also periodically offer Cox coaching advice, drawing up plays, for Jared initially, and later for other Mohawks.

“He would slip the plays in my pocket,” said Cox. “If we won, he would say, ‘See, it worked.’”

Ralph’s unbridled enthusiasm caused him to be occasionally overzealous.

“Morristown seemed to bring out the worst in Ralph,” said Nick. One year in the Shelby County Tournament and another time at the sectional at Edinburgh, Ralph flashed the ultimate classic gesture of disrespect, times two, to the Yellow Jackets’ student section. “He did it again at Brown County. I told him going into the next year that any more behavior like that would get him a two-game suspension.

“Not long after, he got mad on the bench and threw a chair, so he had to miss a couple of games.”

Ralph took great pride in the Waldron basketball program and hated to lose. He could even be somewhat unforgiving at times.

“He would sometimes not talk to us players or might even have a few tears on the bus after a tough loss,” said Jordan Barnard, a member of the Mohawks’ state championship team. “It meant that much to him.”

“You had to give him time to deal with it,” added Jared. “Then he would eventually come around. But he did hate to lose.”

The 2004 Waldron run to the state basketball title was the ultimate thrill for Ralph.

“That was very special,” said Nick. “He got to ride in the limousine to celebrate and the whole thing was a tremendous thrill for him. Just very special.”

Former Waldron player and nephew Don Lux remembered that the 2004 team always wanted Ralph to be the first in line to receive his award whenever the team won a tournament.

“He was the first to go up to get a plaque or piece of net that year,” recalls Don. “County tourney, sectional, regional, all the way to the state, they wanted Ralph to be first.”

In 2015, Ralph financed a family cruise that included all 11 siblings and most of their spouses. The family wore “Cruising with Ralph” shirts for the trip (photo) while the excursion sponsor sported one clarifying, “I’m Ralph.”

He won a cruise competition that designated him the “World’s Sexiest Man,” winning over the judges with a John Travolta inspired Saturday Night Fever dance performance. He also won the cruise limbo contest, albeit by employing a dubious strategy.

“He cheated,” commented Nick.

Ralph thoroughly enjoyed television. The Golden Girls, The Waltons and The Brady Bunch ranked as his favorites.

“He knew all the characters and had a deep understanding of their roles in the shows,” said Jared. “He could tell you the story backgrounds of all the episodes. It was impressive.”

He won The Shelbyville News’ high school basketball “picking contest” several times. Participants submitted predictions for weekly basketball contests to the newspaper with the winner highlighted as a featured prognosticator the following week.

“He could no doubt have won more of these, but he refused to ever pick Waldron to lose,” said Jared.

He loved watching professional wrestling. WWE champion John Cena was his favorite and Ralph spent considerable time and effort imitating Cena’s style and gestures.

Ralph had a remarkable talent for coloring. He utilized colored pencils to produce numerous notable works from his collection of adult coloring books (photo).

“He would spend four to six hours, nearly every day, coloring and he continually improved through the years,” said sister-in-law Pat. “He had a true special ability.”

He was a member of the Knights of Columbus and participated in Special Olympics for many years. He overcame the eating difficulties that were a concern during his infancy and developed a genuine appreciation for a variety of cuisine, eating “anything and everything except asparagus,” according to Max.

Nick related that Ralph looked forward to selecting the restaurant following Sunday Mass, customarily rotating between Grandma’s Pancake House, The Cow Palace and Cracker Barrel.

The Waldron community presented a plethora of awards to Ralph in recognition of his commitment and service, including an honorary Waldron High School diploma in 2007. He was honored with “Ralph Lux Night” at halftime of the Waldron game versus Shelbyville in 2016 and received the “2016 Waldron Mohawk Fan of the Year Award” that same night.

Former Waldron coach Steve Cox (photo with Ralph Lux), the man who hired Ralph, then working at Beech Grove High School, returned to make the presentation.

“That was truly special because it gave everyone a chance to show their gratitude to Ralph for all he had done,” said Cox. “The crowd and Ralph expressed a great deal of emotion that night. It was a wonderful evening.”

On Dec. 27, the long-time Mohawks team manager was in his room dressing to travel to a holiday tournament game at Crothersville when he was felled by a stroke.

“We found him upstairs with one sock on and unconscious,” said Nick.

The prognosis was not positive. He died at The Franciscan Hospice House in Indianapolis on Jan. 9.

Ralph Lux with Sophie Hudnall, left, and Madeline Hudnall, right, at a Waldron basketball game.

At Ralph’s funeral Mass at St Vincent Church, Father Michael Keucher noted that Ralph was blessed with a unique insight that enabled him to develop a special connection with people.

“He rejoiced in people and was able to see their holiness,” said Father Mike. He advised that “if we work to see others through Ralph’s eyes, our lives will be richer.”

Today, an attitude of expectation and entitlement is all too prevalent in our society. Ralph Lux represented the antithesis. He exuded a consistent sense of goodwill and gratitude that motivated his family and community to continually strive to provide him the best possible quality of life. The harder Ralph worked, the more Shelby County appreciated him.

Ralph’s story is a testament to a strong, loving, resilient family and a benevolent community. A sentiment reflected by Nick who declared: “Having Ralph, we were the fortunate ones.”

Ralph Lux was a once in a lifetime gift; a force representing the very best of the human condition. It would be virtually impossible to envision or imagine what life would have been like without Ralph, had he not survived his tenuous infancy and proceeded to enrich Shelby County beyond measure for 67 years.

Thankfully, through the grace of God, we don’t have to.

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