ROBSTOWN, Tx — On Monday, Robstown ISD honored Richard Gillespie, after naming their school gym after him.
Robstown ISD leaders said he has been the heartbeat of the Cotton Pickers sports scene for over five decades.
“I don’t want to fail him, and our teammates never want to fail him; he just really means a lot to us," Robstown ISD student-athlete Dereck Sola said.
“Richard Gillespie embodies what it is to be a true Robstonian,” Robstown Early College High School student Maribel Treviño said.
Robstown ISD leaders said Gillespie is a true legend for the Robstown Cotton Pickers. Gillespie is not only the athlete’s statistician, but he is a role model for the entire Robstown community.
“Watching them do what they do, I know they don’t do it for records and everything, but they have been doing such and amazing job, just becoming better students and better athletes,” Gillespie said.
Robstown ISD board members decided to name their school gym after Gillespie for putting in over 50 years into the school.
“He does a lot of stuff and I feel like he thinks he goes unnoticed, but a lot of people are watching him, he is such a good role model and somebody I look up to because he has such a good heart,” Robstown ISD studetn athlete Analie Villarreal said.
“He has the values of tradition, community service, and the love of our students,” Treviño said.
Gillespie said when he found out the gym would be named after him, he couldn’t have been happier.
“I like history, and to be associated with that, my name in the gymnasium, is such an honor beyond comparison for me,” Gillespie said.
Gillespie said he is currently fighting a battle of his own.
“I am currently going through another stage of cancer, a metastatic malignant melanoma, that I have been going through since the fall of this year,” Gillespie said. “But it is has been a transition, luckily I am still able to drive myself to Houston.”
Gillespie said the community and the students have been a huge motivation in fighting cancer, and continues to enjoy each day spent within Robstown.
“I just like to see how every day turns out. I just like Robstown being my hometown, and I am so proud being associated with it,” Gillespie said.
Gillespie said he wants to leave everyone with one kind message.
“Just excel and enjoy it and learn as much as you can and just treasure those moments,” Gillespie said.
Robstown ISD leaders plan to hang the letters of Gillespie’s name within the next few weeks.
For the latest local news updates, click here, or download the KRIS 6 News App.
