Congratulations are in order for Leslie Henderson.
Henderson announced her retirement in April from Watson Chapel High School, where she coached for 35 years and where she notched 10 state championships in basketball and track and field, five for each. This week it was announced that she will be inducted into the Arkansas High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame in July. In an article about her retirement announcement, Henderson put an exclamation point to the idea that if you love your job, it’s not really work.
“I feel very blessed because — you know it’s a cliche that you never worked a day in your life,” she said. “I really didn’t. I didn’t care when spring break was, when school was out, I never counted down the school year. I couldn’t wait for Mondays. I’d tell my husband it’s not just my job, it’s like my hobby, too, like he has and he has his job, too, but mine is both. I feel very blessed to have had that.” More than three decades at the same school district? It’s a bit unheard of. But after toying with the idea of moving on, Henderson quit thinking about it.,
“Everytime I thought I might get them, I got sad,” Henderson said of taking another job. “This is way before any state championship. And then, there was one big job. It came down to two people. Basically, I did not get it. After that, I felt relieved and I knew right then I would never even entertain a job again. People would call and say, ‘I know you’re not leaving Chapel, but …’ and I would tell them, ‘No, I’m not.'” So instead of chasing jobs, she created a dynasty, winning state basketball championships in 2008, 2010, 2011, 2016 and 2017. In the years before that — in 1996, 1998, 1999, 2001 and 2002 – her track and field teams won titles.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Even before it was announced that Henderson would be inducted into the coaches hall of fame, Becky Brown-Yarbrough, longtime basketball coach at Star City who is now coaching at Pulaski Academy, knew her friend and competitor was destined for that honor. “Leslie is a legend, Hall of Famer, and a sister to me that will be missed by many,” Brown-Yarbrough said. “The number of wins and championships she has won are amazing, but also the life lessons she has taught to so many young female athletes has been so special. Her work ethic and passion for the game is extraordinary.”
After the news broke, Henderson said she was floored.
“It’s one of the highest honors to me coaching, just an individual honor,” Henderson said. “It’s voted on by the other coaches. That’s what makes it so special. My players are the reason I’m there, so it embodies every part, your colleagues, the school you were at, the players that got you there. It’s a special award.” Yes, it’s very special — even for someone who has had the Watson Chapel gym named for her. Coach, consider yourself doused with a big cooler of ice water!