Ernie gives a shout-out in new book

There are those who are born here, grow up in these parts and never leave.

Others come and go without staying long. They check in to attend college or drop by to start their careers. They’re only passing through, departing for brighter lights and greener pastures.

Some return, like boomerangs, perhaps with a greater appreciation. Some never come back. They rejoice at the sight of Macon in their rearview mirrors.

It could have been that way for Ernie Johnson Jr. He stayed in Macon barely long enough to find the Dairy Queen and learn how to pronounce Pio Nono Avenue.

I’ve known Ernie longer than I’ve known Macon. We both went to high school in Atlanta. We lived on the same hall in the dormitory our freshman year at the University of Georgia. We were classmates in journalism school.

We began our careers in the same town at about the same time. We met our future brides in the same ZIP code. We married the same year (1982) and over the next five years, each became fathers of two children.

I stayed in Macon to build a life and a career. I found happiness here. Grow where you’re planted.

Ernie went on to become one of the most recognizable names in sports television, following in the footsteps of his famous father, Ernie Johnson Sr., the late, great broadcaster for the Atlanta Braves.

He has won three Emmys. He hosts “Inside the NBA” with Kenny Smith, Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal. He anchored the studio broadcast for the NCAA college basketball’s Final Four. He has been part of almost every major event, from the Olympics to Major League Baseball, the British Open and Wimbledon.

We have stayed in touch — from a distance. I visited with Ernie and his family last spring when he received a lifetime achievement award from the Grady College of Journalism at UGA.

Our stories have not so much run parallel as they have intersected. We are kindred spirits whose families and faith are the most important things in our lives.

In one of our conversations, it was Ernie who first told me about John Wooden’s Seven-Point Creed. 1. Be true to yourself. 2. Make each day your masterpiece. 3. Help others. 4. Drink deeply from good books, especially the Bible. 5. Make friendship a fine art. 6. Build shelter against a rainy day. 7. Pray for guidance and give thanks for your blessings every day.

I asked for only one gift for my birthday last month — a copy of Ernie’s new autobiography, “Unscripted.” The subtitle is “the unpredictable moments that make life extraordinary.”

So much of his autobiography was familiar to me — his strong relationship with his father, his own battle with cancer and his four adopted children. (The first was an orphan from Romania with muscular dystrophy and other life-threatening health issues. The second child was from Paraguay. The Johnsons later adopted two girls from foster care in Atlanta.)

What delighted me more than anything was Ernie’s tribute to Macon. Early in the book, he writes about how this city impacted his life in the short time he was here, and he looks back with a grateful heart.

He credits WMAZ-TV with giving him opportunity and experience. As a news anchor, he reported on everything from house fires to city council meetings. He wore many caps … and re-caps, recalling his days doing commercials for Tommy’s Re-Caps. He also gives a well-deserved shout-out to former sports director George Jobin.

My favorite chapter is “The Girl at the Bank.” I read it out loud to my wife, Delinda. She knew Cheryl Deluca when they were students at Mercer. Later, Cheryl became involved with the Big Brothers/Big Sisters program, when Delinda worked there as a social worker.

Ernie tells the story about how he would take his check every Friday and head down the hill on Gray Highway to the C&S Bank (now Bank of America). He would pull up to Cheryl’s teller window at the drive-thru, and they would flirt through the 6-inch glass. She would put in a lollipop, along with his deposit slip. She would break it into pieces before sliding it in the drawer. It was her own creative way of letting him know she had a “crush” on him, and he soon got the message.

They dated until Ernie took a job in Spartanburg, South Carolina. For what they thought might be their final date, she offered to treat him to dinner at Leo’s, a popular upscale restaurant in the alley at Mulberry (now Downtown Grill).

Cheryl had worked two jobs to put herself through college, and Ernie’s entry-level paycheck wasn’t much, either. When he asked how she could afford their meal, she said she had sold her old clarinet at a local pawn shop. (Years later, he bought her a clarinet as an anniversary gift.)

From the beginning, I could tell this was going to be a special book … and not just because of my long friendship with Ernie.

He talks about “blackberry moments,” and he is not referring to smartphones.

It was a story his father often would tell at speaking engagements. It involved a Little League game when Ernie was an 8-year-old shortstop. After a player on the other team bounced a double over the chain-link fence in the outfield, Ernie’s coach met with the pitcher, catcher and infielders on the mound.

During the strategy session, two young outfielders scaled the fence and disappeared to hunt for the ball.

When play resumed, they were nowhere to be found. It seems they had discovered a blackberry patch and were content to stay there.

Game delayed … on account of blackberries.

Ernie calls these sweet moments “blackberries.”

Spontaneous, unpredictable and, as the title of the book suggests, unscripted.

We should learn to embrace them.

This story was originally published May 5, 2017 at 5:03 PM with the headline "Ernie gives a shout-out in new book."