It began with just a vision, a dream, in the mind of Loren Laverne Laws. A 1948 graduate of THS; his dream was to create a showcase for THS all-star athletes and coaches. In 1999, Vern’s dream came true when Kent Bilyeu, athletic director at THS at that time, Joe Brining and others helped start the THS All-Star Showcase. The primary purpose of the All-Star Showcase was to honor and preserve the histories of THS athletes and coaches who qualify and to honor THS military veterans who served in war. Vern dedicated the All-Star Showcase to the memory of Danny Blubaugh, a high school basketball teammate of Vern’s. Blubaugh, killed in action in Korea in 1952, served in the Marine Corps.
Laverne established the criteria required to qualify for the THS Danny Blubaugh Memorial All-Star Showcase. The criteria include-Oklahoma High School Coaches Hall of Fame inductees, Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame inductees, NCAA Div. 1 & 2 All-Americans, Oklahoma Coaches Association “All-State” Team selections, and Athletes that have won “Individual” State Championships. The original showcase displayed 8” X 10” photographs of the qualifiers in a display case in the cafeteria just outside the original gym at THS. Vern and his wife, Pauline, coordinated activities for the All-Star Showcase for fourteen years. The showcase became a passion for Vern. He loved getting to know the athletes and coaches and their histories. Vern and Pauline spent countless hours and drove many miles at their own expense to contact either the qualifiers for the showcase, their families, or friends. Lavern and Pauline wrote many articles and prepared files for each of the qualifiers. Some of the articles for qualifiers written by Vern were published in the Tonkawa News.
In 2013 Vern and Pauline decided it was time for Vern to begin phasing out of his lead role coordinating the activities for the showcase. In late 2013, Vern asked Donnie Noles, THS 1955, to take over for him. Laverne and Donnie had developed a strong friendship in a short period of time fueled by a common love for the community of Tonkawa and Tonkawa High School. Initially, Donnie said no, but Vern persisted, and in January 2014 Donnie agreed to assume the lead role. After discussions with Joe Brining, however, it was agreed to establish a sub-committee working under the THS Alumni Association to coordinate the activities for the All-Star showcase. The sub-committee includes Joe Brining,
