The Annual Calumet Region Sportsmanship Dinner grew out of an incident at the 1954 boys’ sectional basketball competition at the Hammond Civic Center.  Some unruly fans-not players or students-exhibited decidedly unsportsmanlike behavior troubling some influential businessmen, foremost among them our founder D.N. “Mike” Nau.  Mr. Nau along with several others, decided to hold a dinner for all the teams prior to the next sectional with the goal to head-off a reoccurrence.

Through the participation of both the East Chicago and Hammond Manufacturers Associations, along with the leadership of Mr. Nau, the first dinner was established at East Chicago’s Katherine House Boys Club in 1955.  The concept was simple: get the players together to break bread before they faced each other on the court in the hopes of instilling a sense of sportsmanship and fair play during competition.

In 1956 the second annual dinner hosted 12 Northwest Indiana basketball teams with 27 patrons at Woodmar Country Club.  The guest speaker was the legendary Michigan State Football Coach, Duffy Daugherty.  This began a long line of outstanding speakers which included Hall of Fame Football and Basketball Coaches, Hall of Fame Baseball, NBA and NFL greats.  The 1957 and 1958 dinners were held at the St. John Panel Room in Whiting with the guest speakers being the Hall of Fame Quarterback Otto Graham and Hall of Fame Shortstop Lou Boudreau.  The 1959 banquet moved to Teibel’s restaurant, where it remained through 1999.

In the 1960’s, the dinner grew and additional sectionals and schools were added as the event’s message of sportsmanship grew.  The dinner was established as the kickoff of the Region’s participation in the Indiana High School Basketball Tournament.

In the 1970’s scholarships were introduced and were increased in 1978.  By 1979, the banquet hosted 18 schools from 3 sectionals with over 150 patrons, drawing legendary personalities such as Ernie Banks, Al McGuire and Lee Corso.

In the 1980′s the scholarships were again increased as the business community became more and more supportive of the effort to promote sportsmanship.

In the 1990’s brought Committee growth and a new chairman, Dick Blythe, in 1992.  The Committee began to recognize and honor private individuals whose achievements, leadership, and dedication to our youth exemplified the Committee’s mission statement.  This included the Stan Dubis Award, recognizing outstanding officials who have made a noteworthy contribution in both basketball and football.  In 1993 the Lifetime Achievement Award was introduced and given to an individual in the Region with outstanding character whose contributions and dedication to youth personifies our organization’s mission.  The advent of class basketball in 1998 created the opportunity for the Committee to once again add more schools and a larger number of sectionals.  Scholarships were increased to $2,000 per sectional, eventually covering 4 sectionals and hosting 26 teams.

In the 2000’s Bob Lahey assumed the chairman’s role and the increasing support for the banquet created the need to move the event to Villa Cesare in 2000.  The Committee added the Leadership and Scholarship Award, presented to the high school senior who exemplifies great leadership, strong academics, community involvement, positive character traits, and athletic ability.  The Committee selected David Ranich as its fourth chairman in 2004.

In the 2010’s, saw the continued community efforts of the Committee expand the dinner once again.  The number of participating schools increased in 2014 requiring the dinner to move to the Halls of St. George.  The Committee selected its 5th chairman, John Doherty in 2016.  The banquet is now a well-established Region tradition that hosts 32 teams from 6 sectionals, awarding scholarships and feeding over 800 people – all in the name of instilling a sense of sportsmanship and fair play during competition.

Through the continued leadership of our chairmen, starting with Mr. D.N. “Mike” Nau, numerous Committee members and our patrons, the Calumet Region Sportsmanship Committee has been able to highlight what is good about high school sports while encouraging the continuation of a unique tradition.  As you look through our list of speakers, please note a number of them also attended the banquet as players.  There are also countless members of the teams’ coaching staffs, players’ parents, and patrons who also attended past dinners as basketball players.

The Committee is very proud of what has been accomplished since our inception and thankful to our patrons and corporate sponsors for making it possible. The annual banquet has hosted tens of thousands of student athletes as well as providing hundreds of thousands of dollars in scholarships – all in the name of sportsmanship. A standing ovation to everyone involved with this event – both past and present!

Please be Region proud as we all support the legacy of fulfilling the Calumet Region Sportsmanship Committee’s charter:

TO INSTILL SPORTSMANSHIP AND RESPONSIBILITY IN THE YOUTH OF NORTHWEST INDIANA