John and Margaret Faulkner celebrate 62 years of marriage today

LAFOLLETTE, TN (SPECIAL TO WLAF)- It’s been a good week of celebrating Coach John Faulkner, and we thought it would be fitting in this last story from former Cougar Mike Gibson, to share another thought about Coach and his wife Margaret.

The couple married at Margaret’s parent’s home outside London, Kentucky, on this date in 1963. Their honeymoon was cut short, because after a wedding night at Cumberland Falls, the next day John and Margaret ventured over to Barbourville, Kentucky, where Cumberland had a track meet with Union College. “Oh, he won,” said Margaret when asked how the track meet went.

Campbell County native and marathon runner Mike Gibson remembers fondly his experiences of former Basketball Coach Jack Faulkner and his brother Track Coach John Faulkner. Gibson shared his memories with the Faulkner family recently and also shared that in a few weeks he will be running the Boston Marathon.

According to Gibson, both brothers had an influence in his life and in helping him discover a passion for competitive running, as well as teaching him “life lessons.”

Gibson has even written a book, The Hill, as well as a song. The name of the song, performed by Gibson, is “The Hill Is Where You Win”.

“In the old La Follette Jr. High building on West Central Avenue, as a 7th or 8th grader, I had Jack Faulkner as a math teacher. As a freshman at La Follette High School, he was also my basketball coach. While I don’t remember much from those early days, I do recall his passion for teaching and his encouragement for us to always do and be our best in whatever we chose to do,” Gibson recalled.

It was during his freshman year of high school that he met Jack’s brother, John, who was starting a track team at La Follette High School.

“I asked if I could join. Jack, my basketball coach, upon hearing that I was going to run the mile, borrowed a pair of actual running shoes from another teacher and convinced me they would be better than the Converse All-Star basketball shoes I had planned to wear. I had no idea running shoes, or “flats” as he called them, even existed. He was right; they did make a difference, and I never went back to basketball shoes for running,” Gibson said.

The day he met Coach John Faulkner is “vivid” in his memory and marked the start of his high school running career.

“I vividly remember the first time I met Coach John Faulkner. He was sitting in the stands of the high school gym. I introduced myself and expressed my interest in joining the new track team. When I mentioned wanting to run the mile, he said, “You look more like a sprinter” and told me to meet him at the football field after school,” Gibson said.

Without an official track at the time, the track athletes practiced by running around the football field.

“Coach timed me in a sprint, and after I finished, he looked at the stopwatch, then at me, and, with a smile that I became familiar with, said, “Maybe we’ll stick with the mile.” Thus began my four-year high school running career as a “distance” runner,” Gibson said.

He shared fond memories of how Coach John Faulkner encouraged athletes and how he taught them to believe in themselves.

“John was the eternal optimist. If anyone on the team complained about running conditions before a workout or race, he would always say, “It’s days like this that you run your best time!” If it was too hot, he’d say, “The heat opens the pores of your skin, and you can run faster.” If it was too cold, he’d add, “It’s so cold you can run as fast as you want and never get too hot.”

Gibson said he was always amazed during races how he (Coach John) seemed to be everywhere along the cross-country course, calling out encouragement: “You can do it… that guy in front of you is getting tired… just a little further and then you get a downhill… don’t look back… finish strong!”

“The phrase that has lingered with me the most over the nearly 50 years since high school is what he would call out as we approached a major hill on the course. He had told me in earlier practices, “Mike, when you learn to love the hills, that’s when you will learn to win.” On race day, he would shorten it to an encouraging and convincing, “The hill is where you win.”

Gibson said he is not the only one who has been influenced by the legacy that has been left behind by Jack and John Faulkner, and that he is “grateful” to have known both men.

“I am forever grateful for the life lessons I learned from both Coach Jack and Coach John Faulkner. These lessons continue to bless me as I face the figurative hills and real challenges in life. Jack is no longer with us, but I trust and have faith that he is aware of the great good he did for so many during his time on earth. And as for John, I am grateful he is with us, still calling out words of encouragement as he fires the starting gun. May he know he is remembered, honored, and loved by me and so many others for his years of service and sacrifices. The lessons and blessings continue to countless others in the rising generation, those circling the track and setting new records, thanks to the legacy of two brothers who gave of themselves to leave the world better than they found it.” (WLAF NEWS PUBLISHED-04/11/2025-6AM)

Related