impact of a life...

Tony Dungy statement to media (Courtesy of Colts media relations)

(Dec. 27, 2005) -- Indiana Colts head coach Tony Dungy briefly addressed the media following services in Lutz, Fla., honoring his son, James Dungy:

"I'll start out by saying, 'Thank You,' for the love, the prayers and the support that we've received from the people of Tampa, the people of Indianapolis and the people all over the country. They've been very, very great and gracious to us in a time of grief for our family.

"We loved our son very much. He loved us. And we miss him terribly. But we also understand that we have some tremendous promises from God. God promises to be with us. He's with us in the great times. He's with us in the tough times. Our family will stand strong. The strength that we have in the Lord will allow us to get through this just as we get through times of victory.

"Our grief is great, but from our family, we just say, 'Thank You.' We just say, 'Thank You,' to everyone. We appreciate everybody who has touched his life, everybody who has been part of him growing up. James -- he was a good young man with a compassionate heart and we were glad to have him for 18 years.

"We're also glad that he accepted Christ as his savior so that God has him now for the rest of eternity. Thank You."

* * * * * * * * * * * *(more words from Tony Dungy)
"Parents hug your kids every chance you get," he said. "Tell them you love them every chance you get because you don't know when it's going to be the last time."

"As he got a little older, like all teenagers, he was searching for who that person was inside of him. Who he was going to be. ... And like most of us, I think he went through a time as a teenager that he wasn't sure his parents always had the best advice. He wasn't sure that we always had his best interest at heart," the coach said.

"My daughter Tiara said it best the other day. She said: 'I just wish he could have made it until he was 20. Because when you're 17 or 18, sometimes the things you guys say to us don't always make sense. ... When I got to 20, they started making sense again."' (Tiara, the eldest of Dungy's five children, is 21)

He also cautioned parents against taking their children for granted. He recalled Thanksgiving, which was the last time he saw his son, as the teen rushed off to the airport.

"I said, 'I'll see you later.' I didn't get to hug him. I knew I'd see him again pretty soon, so it didn't really bother me very much," Dungy said.

"We talked on the phone a lot the last few days. We're always talking about what was going to happen. The last few days he was saying - as the guys on the team know he would - he was saying: 'Dad, we're going to the Super Bowl, and when we do, will I be on the field?"'

Dungy nearly broke down again, then finished his thought amid applause.

"And I said: 'Yeah, man. You know the hard part is getting there, but if we do, you know you're going to be on the field.' ... But I never got to hug him again. That's one thing I'll always think about and always remind people to do: Hug 'em every chance you get."

Never take your relationships for granted.