Inspiration for the Movie Radio and Former
Football Coach of T. L. Hanna High School
Program Title - Radio: The True Meaning of
Leadership & Mentoring
Sometimes small choices--to be attentive instead of
indifferent, inclusive instead of exclusive--make all
the difference. For famed, Southern high school football
coach Harold Jones, choosing to embrace a
developmentally challenged African American boy named
James “Radio” Kennedy was truly a life-changing moment.
His selflessness at the time and ultimate role as
Radio's mentor has now been immortalized, first in a
classic Sports Illustrated story and later in
the acclaimed film starring Ed Harris as Coach Jones and
Cuba Gooding Jr. as Radio (Sony Pictures). At the
podium, Coach Jones inspires others to become leaders in
their community, urging understanding and tolerance as
he recounts his empowering life story.
James Robert Kennedy--nicknamed ‘Radio’ because of
his vintage radio collection and his love of music--was
an oddity in small town Anderson, South Carolina.
Clearly developmentally challenged, Radio pushed a
shopping cart around all day, was assumed mute and often
was cruelly teased by other kids. But he caught the
attention of popular T.L. Hanna High School football
coach Harold Jones, who decided to befriend Radio. What
began as an uneasy relationship blossomed as Coach Jones
earned Radio’s trust, whom he enlisted to help out at
football practice and during games and allowed to sit in
on his classes at school, despite the initial misgivings
of the school principal and many of the Coach's own
friends. Radio, in return, truly enriched the Coach's
life by teaching him the valuable lesson that friendship
and family ties are as important as any job. Ultimately
the Coach had to make hard decisions, as members of the
community attempted to have Radio barred from the
classroom and, after Radio’s mother’s untimely death,
remanded to a mental-health facility. His fight to keep
Radio safe and secure in Anderson and as a part of the
town’s high school football team led the Coach to become
a real life hero, champion of humanism, compassion, and
understanding. In Coach Jones and in Radio both, the
lessons learned include what courage it takes for a
person to follow their dream, defy expectations and
transcend boundaries.
Coach Jones and Radio both still reside in Anderson,
South Carolina, where Radio remains the honorary coach,
biggest fan, and cheerleader of the T.L. Hanna High
School football team.
Movie
Adaptation of Keynote Memoir
