Ricky Hooker: To God be the Glory
By: Ethan Orwig
It’s A Wonderful Life, a Frank Capra film, follows a man named George Bailey who walks his entire life pursuing his dreams and aspirations to travel the world. But after countless closed doors, George leads a quiet life in Bedford Falls, and constantly looks back at the “what if’s” in life. When legal tragedy strikes, George spirals in a sudden breakdown of despair and regret and even considers ending his own life. It isn’t until he gets to see what the world would look like without him when he fully grasps the beauty and sacredness of life.
It’s A Wonderful Life teaches us that we often don’t realize how much our lives affect the people around us. For Trenton resident Ricky Hooker, forty-one years of work in West Tennessee school systems has made him appreciate that fact.
Ricky Hooker was born and raised by his loving mother in Trenton, TN alongside his two younger siblings. When he attended Peabody High School here in Trenton, he decided to branch out and try out for the football team. There, he met one of the most formative figures in Walter Kilzer. Kilzer was the Peabody High School football coach as well as the assistant principal. Coach Kilzer acted as a critical father figure for Ricky during those uncertain years.
“He influenced me greatly,” Mr. Hooker said. “He had a tight range on his players. I learned a lot from just talking to him about how to conduct your life and the things you need to do to be successful.”
A WONDERFUL LIFE: Ricky Hooker, a leading figure in Trenton and the Trenton Special School District, doesn’t have to wonder if his life has made a difference. His reassurances are walking the halls of Peabody High School. Photo by Ethan Orwig
During his junior and senior years in high school, Ricky worked in a factory in Dyer and witnessed conditions so harsh that he promised himself that he would never return. He was the man who inspired Ricky to take a huge step toward seeking out a college education.
Ricky explained that the biggest issue wasn’t deciding whether to go to college. The hard part was simply finding a way to get there. Growing up in the projects, another vehicle would be hard to come by. But by the Lord’s grace, he acquired a car and went to college at Tennessee State University in Nashville where he graduated in 1980 with a degree in Physical Education. Right out of the gate, Ricky found himself back home in Trenton hired back at Peabody as a 6th grade teacher as well as a football and basketball coach where he and Coach Kilzer reunited, this time as fellow coaches.
Soon after, Ricky met his wife, Marilyn Hooker. They had two children: one a CPA in Jackson, and another who’s a resident nurse.
“There were many days, man, when I was in situations where I just wanted to give up. She (Marilyn) was very encouraging along the way,” Ricky said. He explained that the job, especially when working in football and basketball, caused him to be away from home more than he would have liked. “She raised our kids, man. Because when I left the house, it was dark. When I came back, it was dark. I really want to commend her for the job that she’s done throughout our marriage.”
After fourteen years of teaching and coaching at the middle school, Ricky moved up to the Peabody High School for another four years. Afterwards, He dabbled in a couple of other school systems in West Tennessee before quickly being called back to Peabody once again, this time as the high school’s assistant Principal and transportation director. Then in 2017, Tim Haney, a Gibson County superintendent and dear mentor to Ricky, offered him an even greater opportunity: a chance to be the first black principal in Peabody High School history.
5,200 LIVES TOUCHED- Ricky Hooker shows off the prize for all of his compassion and perseverance: an award given to him by the school; a plaque which reads “Coach Hooker- 5,200 Lives Touched.” Photo by: Ethan Orwig
Ricky Hooker attempted to retire a few years ago, but the fulfillment he got he found in his 40 years of schoolwork made it impossible for him to enjoy retirement. He returned to Peabody where he still works as the director of transportation.
Mr. Hooker rose from his office chair and walked over to a plaque resting on the wall surrounded by toy school buses. On it read Ricky Hooker: 5,200 lives touched.
“That’s what I got when I retired,” he said. “And, man, that touched my life right there. There have been many students who’ve come back, and they would hug me, and they would say ‘Coach, I understand now. I understand what you were trying to tell me.’ You know, that means a lot to me.”
The 5,200 are students, teachers, athletes, non-athletes, even parents. And after coming out of retirement, the number is only growing larger. Looking back on his life, Ricky began to well up.
“I wouldn’t have been able to do any of it without-“ Ricky went silent and pointed to the heavens. “God be the glory. Sometimes in this life journey, you go through storms. I couldn’t understand those storms at first and early on in my life. I’d say ‘Why God? Why God?’ But now I know. He just wants to get you to where He wants to get you to have a better relationship with Him.”
Ricky Hooker is a cornerstone in the Peabody Community. Although he wouldn’t have known it as a boy working in the Dyer factories during high school, without him, 5,200+ wouldn’t have been blessed by his kindness, compassion for others, and by the light of Christ shining within him. Just like George Bailey, Ricky Hooker has discovered that it’s a wonderful life.
Ricky is a faithful member of New Spring Hill Baptist Church here in Trenton, where Reverend Jeff Muriel, a dear mentor, leads the church. He also has two grandchildren, one attending Middle Tennessee to pursue being a nurse.
