Whittington celebration of life is Saturday

MILAN — A celebration of life will be held for former longtime area football coach Jim Whittington at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Milan Town Hall in Milan. Jim Whittington died at the age of 83 on March 29 in Zanesville. The Ohio High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame selection was the head coach at Edison (1972-83) and also at Norwalk (1990-91) among his several stops throughout the state. His most successful tenure came as the head coach of the Chargers. Whittington's teams compiled a 94-22-3 record during his time at Edison, which included six Firelands Conference championships and three undefeated seasons. Whittington was also the athletic director at Edison for nine years, and worked closely with the athletic boosters to build the fieldhouse, which was named in his honor. In 2016, Whittington also attended a ceremony as the school's new scoreboard at the football stadium was also dedicated with his name on it. After Whittington retired from coaching after two years at Norwalk in 1991, his former college roommate and longtime friend Al Hedrick talked him back onto the sidelines. He coached two seasons with Hetrick, including winning the Division V state championship in 2003. Hetrick, who coached Versailles to nine state title game appearances and six state championships, died at the age of 84 on April 28. Overall, Whittington's teams finished 138-95-7. Other coaching and teaching stops included Van Wert, Rockford Parkway, Bellevue and Warsaw Riverview. He is in the halls of fame at Edison, River View, and his high school alma mater, Ansonia. In his later years, Whittington served on city council and was the volunteer fire chief in Cotter, Ark. during his years living in the state. Whittington is survived by his wife of nearly 40 years, Susan (Shunk) Whittington of Warsaw; a brother, Michael (Colleen) Whittington of Loveland; a sister, Marcia (Terry) Stammen of New Weston; sister-in-law, Sally Majoy of Huron; and numerous other relatives. Memorial donations are suggested to the Edison High School football program, 2603 State Route 113 E. Milan, OH 44826.