Help Mark Coach Gold's Grave with Dignity

I am James Dolbeare, Maine East class of '76. East Main Jr. High had been renamed Gemini Jr. High in 1970. Many of the educators we had at Gemini were phenomenal educators in a difficult era for the nation. This was just before Title 19 was handed down. Many of us boys had Coach Larry Gold in Physical Education, but some of us lucky few made the basketball team and had Coach Gold as a team coach and mentor. His teams were fantastic and struck fear in other competitors. Coach Gold drove us to be our best and had our futures in mind for success. Something as students you might not have known, as his coworkers felt about him, he was brilliant, very quick-witted, and a biting humorist. I suppose a bit Socratic in teaching methods, but he so protected us he would get technicals called on himself when he felt one of us was wronged in a game. He had a very high vocabulary; he did The NY Times crossword puzzle daily in ink, INK! Who does that? Larry Gold did that.

Anyway, many of us were made better for knowing him and having him as a coach. When he was protecting his students, he defended us with everything he had.

Coach Larry Gold passed away in late December of 2006 at age 65, I believe. I had just learned he is buried in Shalom Cemetery in Arlington Heights. Last weekend, while there attending my wife with her parents' and grandparents' gravesites, I took the opportunity to pay respects to Coach Gold, being recently aware he was buried there.

I thought I just could not find his grave and misunderstood the excellent instructions by staff. Having given up looking while departing, I double-checked with staff if I had it wrong. I did not have it wrong. To my utter surprise, Coach Larry Gold is buried in an unmarked grave.

Coach Gold, I'm sure, was many things to many people—coworkers, family, students. Life's complicated and at times unforgiving. My 66+ years have taught me that.

That said, having Larry Gold in an unmarked grave is something I cannot abide and am seeking to gather funds to correct this awful situation. He was too bright and intelligent and had agency to have this done properly. I can only speculate and have a general opinion as to what happened, but that's pointless to the matter. I intend to get Coach Gold a nice marker and would like funding help to see it through. My teammates can toss in what we spend on a Saturday night dinner out with our wives for dinner and drinks and get this done. Coach Gold deserves better than to be buried in an unmarked grave.

Please help.