Paul Busch, Roseville coach and then some

The longtime cross-country coach and gym teacher also inspired many students about life.

By TIM HARLOW, Star Tribune

Last update: November 7, 2009 - 11:52 PM

When Paul Busch was hired in 1953 to teach physical education and health at the new Alexander Ramsey High School in Roseville, administrators asked him to coach the boys' cross-country running teams.

Busch's reply: "What is cross-country?"

He read books to learn about the sport, said his daughter Sue Leaf, of Center City, Minn. And over the course of 38 years, the charismatic coach imparted the lessons of life to hundreds of runners as he directed the Rams to two state championships, 19 regional titles and 20 conference championships.

"He was one of two or three people who shaped me the most," said Paul Nelsen, who ran at Ramsey in the early 1970s. "He was the kind of guy who made you want to set goals, things beyond running. Even with all the hard work, he was teaching us so much more than to be good runners. He was teaching us how to live life."

Busch died of cancer last Sunday at his home in Roseville. He was 83.

The track at Roseville Area High School -- the former Ramsey High School building -- was recently renamed in honor of the coach known for his smile and strong work ethic who also reached out to students and invited them to join his teams.

"You did not have to be a star athlete, and he loved helping the underdog," said his nephew Brad Buetow, former head hockey coach at the University of Minnesota and Colorado College. "He inspired people and got the most out of them. He was the main reason I got into coaching."

When he arrived in Roseville, Busch developed the physical education curriculum for the district's elementary schools and wrote curriculum for kindergarten through grade 12. He also started a summer program that included athletic and arts and crafts activities, including an elementary track meet, his daughter said.

Busch was a finalist for the 1980 Minnesota State Teacher of the Year and has been inducted into to the halls of fame for the Minnesota State Coaches Association, the Minnesota State High School League, the Minnesota Cross Country Coaches and St. Cloud State University

He graduated from Arlington (Minn.) High School and served in the Navy on the USS Suffolk in World War II. He drove an LCPV landing craft used to deliver soldiers at the battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa, Leaf said.

Busch returned to study at St. Cloud State University and earned a master's degree in physical education and health from Indiana University. He taught at schools in Oregon and in Mound, Minn., before he was hired at Ramsey.

Busch was an usher and council member at the Lutheran Church of the Resurrection in the 1960s and was active as a longtime member at Emmaus Lutheran Church in St. Paul. In his spare time, Busch was an avid gardener who grew apple trees on a lot next to his Roseville home. He also grew fruits and vegetables that he often gave away to neighbors and church members. He also enjoyed spending time with his family and fishing at his cabin in Morrison County, Leaf said.

In addition to his daughter Sue, Busch is survived by his wife of 59 years, Dorothy, of Roseville; a son, Kevin, of Falcon Heights; another daughter, Barbara Busch of Roseville; three sisters, Cordula Jensen and Elsie Grunewald of Bonduel, Wis., and Esther Gartland of Stevens Point, Wis.

Services were held Thursday.

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