Tulsa World: Playing with a smile

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Playing with a smile
Gene Hartman brings joy and inspiration to basketball team

Oklahoma Wesleyan senior forward Gene Hartman was diagnosed with diabetes during his senior year of high school. A few years later, a virus attacked his heart and caused it to function at significantly less than capacity. CORY YOUNG/Tulsa World

By JIMMIE TRAMEL World Sports Writer
Published: 1/19/2009 2:24 AM
Last Modified: 1/19/2009 3:31 AM

BARTLESVILLE — Why is Gene Hartman smiling?

Hartman, a senior forward at Oklahoma Wesleyan, didn't play a game his freshman season because he was struggling to cope with diabetes.

Following his sophomore season, a virus attacked his heart and caused it to function at significantly less than capacity.

Side effects? Hartman said he wheezed like he had asthma and bruises popped up in "weird, random" places all over his body.

After the virus, doctors told Hartman to avoid running or doing anything sweat-inducing for six months.

"They were scared that any time I exercised I could just fall over and basically pass out and die," Hartman said.

But life has never been better for Oklahoma Wesleyan and Hartman.

The Eagles, who won just 18 games Hartman's first two seasons, won a school-record 26 games under new coach Donnie Bostwick last season. Now they rank third in NAIA Division II and Hartman, who averages one point a game, is perhaps the team's MVP — Most Valuable Person.

"He is a pretty special kid," Bostwick said, adding that Hartman is a perfect example of a career walk-on or partial scholarship player whose job is pretty much over when games start.

"He is a coach's dream. He has been a big part of why we have turned our program around in such a short time. He works his tail off every day in practice and has a great attitude and a contagious smile and cares as much or more than anyone."

It's not much of a stretch to say Hartman plays the least and means the most.

"Every day we go to practice knowing the things he goes through just to be able to practice every day," senior guard Garrett Jones said.

"Some days you don't feel like practicing and you go out there and Gene is always smiling and you know he is always going to play hard, even though he is not in that first or second group. It just kind of brings everyone up if you are having a bad day."

Hartman was diagnosed with diabetes during his senior year at Sand Springs. He experienced ups and downs during the year and a half that he took insulin shots and now he's trying to help people overcome a fear of needles. He staged an award-winning Red Cross blood drive on campus.

Hartman uses an insulin pump now and considers his diabetes to be no more than an inconvenience.

Hartman could be a student instead of a student-athlete. He chose Wesleyan in part because of a Presidential Leadership Scholarship. He continued to play ball, never mind health issues and never mind lack of playing time, because he enjoys interacting with teammates and showing younger players the ropes.

"I take a lot of pride in practice, just to get our guys better throughout the week," Hartman said.

"If they go up against weak competition the whole preseason and throughout the season, they are really not going to get better.

"And I make sure a few of our other guys on the team really understand their role and understand they will get an opportunity further on down the road. But as of right now, we have a chance to win a championship — a conference championship and hopefully a national championship — and their role is just as important as our starters."

Is it any wonder Bostwick said he would like to have 100 Gene Hartmans on his team?

Hartman wants to someday be in the sports media. He interned at KTUL and said sports director Chris Lincoln let him put together the Brett Favre un-retirement story.

What if Hartman put together the Gene Hartman story? What would it be about?

"I just choose to have a good day every day," he said.

"You can either choose to have a good life or choose to have a bad life. You can kind of mope about your bad circumstances or you can choose to have a good life and I think I try to keep a lot of positive influences around me to try to help my spirits stay up. I have a good group of friends that help me out. My teammates are good. I just choose to have good stuff around me. God is with me a lot with my surroundings. Everything is about choices."

Jimmie Tramel 581-8389
jimmie.tramel@tulsaworld.com By JIMMIE TRAMEL World Sports Writer

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dcook, (1/20/2009 10:31:14 AM)

Watched Gene play ball in HS and know him to be a truly good young man of high character. His attitude and faith will take him far in this world. Great story!!!

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