To the Editor,

For those Henning residents—both current and those living afar—who remember high school athletics from the late 1960s, Paul Winkler is a star not be forgotten. We lost Paul on Dec. 17. He was only 72 and passed too soon.

For the many newcomers to the Henning area, Paul might be remembered from his business ventures. He is most certainly remembered as the father of Shane Winkler, a star athlete in his own right while playing sports for Henning and Otter Tail Central from 2007-2009.

I grew up at the same time as Paul. We were a year apart in high school. He graduated in 1969 and I had the privilege of covering high school sports for the Henning Advocate. Paul filled many a sports story with touchdowns, interceptions, made baskets and timely hits in baseball. Paul was good copy and also a friend and a guy whose death I can’t let pass without these thoughts.

Today’s obits don’t often tell readers the full story of an individual who has passed on. I think it’s important to remember not only Paul’s contribution to sports but his roots to the beginning of organized football in Henning. He is the middle of three generations of Winklers who became Henning Hornets.

Paul’s father, Don Winkler, was on the roster of Henning’s first high school football team in 1939. An uncle, Ed Winkler, was another early athlete for Henning. Shane’s arrival in the early 2000s meant three generations of Winklers had been participating in Henning sports for more nearly 70 years.

How good was Paul? In the fall of 1966 as a sophomore, Paul cracked the starting lineup on defense during a decade when Henning football was second to none. By the time he was a junior, he was a starting halfback on offense and an interception ball hawk and tackling machine on defense. His senior season in the fall of 1968 was by far his best.

He rushed for 1,164 yards, caught passes for another 352 yards, scored 23 touchdowns and totaled 143 points that fall. His points scored and touchdown total remain school records for Hornet teams prior to the cooperative pacts with Deer Creek and now Battle Lake that have kept football alive for Henning athletes.

His rushing total for the 1968 season ranks sixth all time for Henning teams and his 75 tackles is tied for sixth place for a single season. His pass reception total that fall is 10th all-time in the Henning record books. Henning teams went 23-1 in Paul’s final three years of high school. Paul’s records have been surpassed by OTC athletes in the years since but Paul’s accomplishments came in eight-games; there were no playoffs in the 1960s and the opportunity to play sectional and state tournament games.

It’s true that we can’t live in the past but it is important to not forget the past and those individuals who made the days special. Paul Winkler is one of the many whose star shined brightly in high school and a guy who remained loyal to Henning for the many years to follow.

Cliff Buchan

Forest Lake, Minn.