Albert "Al" Singleton ran like the wind, cooked up a storm and coached with his heart, all while straight-talking so softly that kids leaned in to catch every word.
The award-winning track star from Kankakee, Ill., didn't yell. Instead, he ran his Northeast Middle School football team in Minneapolis through drills, talked strategy, corrected sloppy running and made sure his boys were just plain ready.
"Some of the parents during the game would say, 'Why is he not saying anything?' I had to tell them that he is not a yeller," said Charity Singleton, his wife of three years. "He has coached them, and they know exactly what they need to do. It worked. He won championships."
He also won respect. His living room was often full of teens who welcomed his guidance and his unrestrained straight-shot humor.
Singleton, 45, died July 28, one month after heart transplant surgery. Family members and friends had hoped the surgery would solve an ailment that suddenly appeared five years ago. It wasn't to be. Singleton died on his third wedding anniversary, leaving behind his wife, parents, a brother, a sister, four daughters — Gabrielle, Arielle, Sharielle and Zharielle — and a stepson, Todd Johnson.
"He was humble and would do anything for anybody," Charity said.
When his parents' gutters became clogged, Singleton hopped in his car after work and drove 400 miles to Kankakee to clean and make sure his dad didn't fall off a ladder. When his stepson was not allowed to play football with the other junior high kids because he was small, Singleton paid the school a visit. Soon Todd was not only playing football, but Singleton was on the staff, coaching kids.
"He took me under his wing and taught me special things that other kids would not know," Todd said. "He basically made me a smarter player, taught me how to think more in-depth."
