Cubick
SIDNEY — The Lehman Catholic High School Alumni Association has announced the school’s 15th annual Lehman Hall of Fame Induction will be held on Saturday, Aug. 5, at the school.
The Hall of Fame evening will begin with Mass at 5 p.m. in the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Chapel on campus. Cocktails will be served at 6 p.m. with dinner to follow at 6:30 p.m.
Since beginning this tradition, the Hall of Fame committee has sought to honor not only alumni but outstanding faculty, staff, and supporters of Lehman Catholic. This year’s inductees include a teacher/coach, an alumnus, and a parent/volunteer. The three distinguished individuals who will join the other 55 members of the Lehman Hall of Fame are the late Mark Wurm, Richard “Rock” Frantz and Ed Cubick.
The first inductee to the 2023 Hall of Fame is the late Mark Wurm, teacher and basketball coach at Lehman Catholic from 1973-1993. Wurm was nominated by Doug Slagel ’82, John Westerheide ’79, and Mike Barhorst, former Lehman faculty member, principal and president.
A graduate of Findlay University with a B.S. in Business Education in 1973, Wurm would spend his entire 20-year teaching career at Lehman where he was hired to teach business and coach junior varsity basketball and track. Classes he taught included personal typing, general business, economics, accounting, and business law.
When Jerry Delong retired in 1979, Wurm became the varsity basketball coach. His 1982 team finished the regular season undefeated and ranked first in the state. Wurm was named Coach of the Year in the state of Ohio.
When his oldest daughter Emily developed cancer and passed away in 1982, Wurm made the difficult decision to step away from coaching so that he could spend more time with family. Wurm and wife Jean had two more daughters – Carly and Claire.
Cancer would touch the family again and this time it was Mark who was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma. Wurm began treatments but after only a few months, he passed away in May 1993 at the age of 43. The school community was devastated by his death.
In his nomination letter, Slagel wrote, “In addition to taking business classes from Mr. Wurm, I was the boys basketball manager for four years. He became not only my teacher, but my mentor, friend, and life coach. We would ride together to games in his blue 1974 Chevy pickup. In addition to basketball, conversations would always turn to my family’s landscaping business and my hopes for the future.”
“When he became ill, I visited him at the Piqua Hospital,” Slagel continued. “He made the entire conversation about me and not him … Not long after he died, I learned that he had a passion for Civil War history, a passion that we unknowingly shared. I’ve spent 27 years as a Civil War reenactor … in so many ways, I feel he is still watching over me!”
“Mark Wurm instilled great values in me that still resonate today,” said co-nominator Westerheide. “He was a tough coach who demanded discipline and sought to bring out the best in each player. He preached being on time, being accountable to your teammates, being in top physical and mental shape, being confident but humble, and working hard to attain a common goal.”
“He taught me how to deal with adversity and put things into perspective,” Westerheide said. “He handled his adversity with strength and dignity. After losing his daughter, he also faced cancer head on and never gave up until his final days … He is so deserving of this honor due to his commitment to the students of Lehman that goes far beyond being one of the best basketball coaches in the school’s history.”
“Mark was an outstanding teacher,” said Barhorst, fellow teacher and later principal during Wurm’s tenure at Lehman. “He was subject-matter knowledgeable, faithful and faith-filled, patient with those who struggled, firm with those who did not achieve their full potential, and kind beyond words. He was also an excellent coach. His records tell the story, but beyond that, the same characteristics that made him a great teacher made him a great coach.”
The second inductee to the 2023 Hall of Fame is Richard “Rock” Frantz, Lehman Class of 1973. Frantz was nominated by his daughter, Rachel Frantz Bates ’03, and Sister Ginny Scherer, retired Lehman faculty member.
Frantz was raised in Sidney as one of 13 children of Richard and Harriet Frantz. Like all his brothers and sisters, he graduated from Holy Angels Elementary and Lehman Catholic High School. He continued his education at the University of Dayton, graduating with a degree in Civil Engineering. He returned to Sidney to join the family construction business and raise his three children – Kelly ’00, Rachel ’03, and Zack ’06.
Frantz served on the Lehman Catholic School Board from 2000-04. After he and his brother Tom founded Eagle Bridge, a heavy highway construction company, he continued to give back to Lehman through financial and volunteer support.
“My father has not only been a guiding light in our lives, but he has been a staple in the community,” said nominator Bates. “He has volunteered, supported, and truly loved the Lehman Catholic and Holy Angels Parish communities for decades.”
“Following in my grandparents’ footsteps, Dad always believed in giving back to his community and passing along a legacy of selflessness and service to others,” continued Bates. “He coached soccer and basketball, produced the Lehman sports program, and spent hours building sets for Sidney Dance Company while my sister and I danced. The Lehman Music Department also benefitted from his creativity and organizational skills and he shared his love of engineering as a Science Fair judge. To this day, he continues to be an advocate for children to be exposed to a wide variety of cultural, athletic, and educational activities.”
“During his four years as a student at Holy Angels High School which then became Lehman, Rock was known to be one of the first to volunteer when extra help was needed,” said co-nominator Scherer. “Besides playing in the band, he also played basketball and served as senior class president. With all his activities, he never shirked his studies, taking all the hard science courses he needed to major in engineering in college.”
“Rock has continued that volunteering in the community with Holy Angels and Lehman throughout his life,” continued Scherer. “I could always count on Rock whenever I needed anything when he was a student or today. Service is built into his DNA.”
Rock Frantz joins his father Richard and his brothers John and Tom in the Lehman Alumni Hall of Fame.
The third inductee to the 2023 Hall of Fame is Ed Cubick, former Lehman parent and volunteer. Cubick was nominated by Denise Stauffer, former Lehman principal, and Dick Roll, former Lehman athletic director.
Cubick is a graduate of Ohio Northern University with a degree in pharmacy and holds a doctorate in pharmacy from University of Cincinnati. He was employed as a clinical pharmacist at Good Samaritan Hospital in Dayton for 41½ years.
Ed and Mary Cubick are the parents of two Lehman graduates – Nick Cubick ’99 and Erin Cubick Gambetti ’03. The family also hosted an international student who attended Lehman – Jaime de Villota ’00. During the years that his children were at Lehman, Cubick spent countless hours volunteering and helping with their many activities, as well as the weekly bingo held at the school.
Although his children graduated and moved on, Cubick has never left.
He has helped with the Science Olympiad Team, judged and mentored Science Fair projects, and assisted the Music Boosters. But the majority of his volunteering has been as a bus driver, 27 years and still counting.
According to Stauffer, “Ed started driving the school bus for field trips and athletic contests, but what surprised me the most was his willingness to do this without any compensation. He said he understood the financial challenges of Catholic schools since he was a graduate of one, and this was his way of helping out and giving back for his Catholic school experiences.”
To this day, Cubick continues to not only drive the bus, but has taken on the roles of bus maintenance supervisor, transportation co-supervisor, and Certified On-Bus-Instructor. He also makes sure that the busses are clean and ready for the annual state inspection.
“Ed exemplifies the school’s mission through his service to others,” continued Stauffer. “He is a volunteer extraordinaire and good role model for all of us. He has tirelessly volunteered without need for recognition or accolades. I would estimate that he has dedicated over 7,000 hours and driven over 42,000 miles for Lehman students’ enjoyment, learning, and safety.”
The Hall of Fame is not Cubick’s first formal recognition. In 2019, he received the first St. Titus Award from the Lehman Foundation. St. Titus was a companion of St. Paul who labored behind the scenes to serve the poor and spread the message of Christ.
Tickets for the Hall of Fame Induction on Aug. 5 are $40 and can be purchased by contacting Anna Frantz Laughner ’07 at [email protected].
