Coming to us from the Patterson Grade School where he started his passion for basketball is this year’s inductee, Dave Everhart. Born in Watford England (near London), he and his brother Bernie, also a Tiger basketball player, moved to the United States while they were still young.
Dave averaged 15 points per game as a freshman at Stivers and advanced to the varsity team during his sophomore year as a 5’10” forward. His senior season he went on to be named to the second team News-Coaches All-City League Team.
It was reported in a Journal Herald article written by Jim Zofkie, “Stivers coach Chuck Grigsby always has been a booster of Dave Everhart. It took special rating system, however, for Grigsby to realize the full value of Everhart, currently the Tigers point leader with his 12.7 average. ‘He’s played a lot of games for us when he has only one turnover and 13-15 rebounds’”
In Grigsby’s system it is possible to have a minus rating. It caught the coaches attention, when playing against Roth, Dave had a rating of plus 22. Coach Grigsby would go on to say that for many years Dave was one of the most coachable and fundamentally sound players he ever coached.
Dave also carried his hard work on the basketball court into the classroom. After his days at Stivers he went on to earn two college degrees in Business Management, one from Wright State and one from Central Michigan. He had a 44 year career with General Motors at Delco.
In 1962, Dave asked a very pretty classmate, Margie Merkert, to the prom. It was their very first date. She said “Yes” and the rest is history. They are still married and are the proud parents of three daughters, eight grandchildren and a great granddaughter. Currently they are enjoying retirement and living in Loveland, Ohio.
