I will never forget the swell of pride I felt the moment President Obama placed the Medal of Honor around Pat’s neck in 2012. Since the award began in 1963, there have been 33 sports figures who’ve been awarded the MOH, and only two of those were women — Pat and tennis legend Billy Jean King. There are only five coaches out of the total 33 who hold Medals and, of course, Pat is only woman.
For decades I’d talked about Pat being not just a coach but a national treasure, and on that day the President of the United States of America, on behalf of the citizens of our republic, made what so many of us knew in our hearts a literal, official fact. I choke up thinking about it. 🎖