Celebration of Life: sports in the early years: Joseph N. Ermer

Joseph "Joe" N. Ermer came from a close family and like many young people at Charles O. Dewey Junior High School, 4th street, Brooklyn, New York, turned to sports as a way to bond, advance and stay out of trouble.

Some of Joe's friends and fellow competitors during this time were Ralph Shaw, Lenny Cooper (the local "star pitcher"), Kermit Robinson, and Willy Panerelli.

"When we played sandlot baseball, it really was a corner lot," Joe Ermer recalled in 2012. "It was not a good idea to slide because there was lots of broken glass and other sharp garbage. But then of course, if it was a close game, the kids would always push the envelope. Then we'd go home and have to explain to our folks why we were so scraped up.

We played a lot of sports, anything to pass the time. Football: whenever someone was was tackled, this was in the park where there wasn't any broken glass, someone would yell 'pile-on!' -- it almost

resembled rugby at that point."

Joe would later apply his love of sports, outdoors and athleticism to the Boy Scouts and eventually would evolve his learnings into survival skills during WWII.

Stay tuned for more on the life of Joe Ermer, a true friend; one of the true class acts and kind souls you could hope to know.


Joseph "Joe" N. Ermer Memoirs (click links below to view/hear):
Celebration of Life: Joseph N. Ermer
Celebration of life: early childhood: Joseph N. Ermer
Celebration of Life: sports in the early years: Joseph N. Ermer
Celebration of Life: early years: Boy Scouts: Joseph N. Ermer
Celebration of Life: WWII part one: Joseph N. Ermer
Celebration of Life: WWII part two: Joseph N. Ermer
Celebration of Life: WWII part three: Joseph N. Ermer
Celebration of Life: WWII part four: Joseph N. Ermer

Celebration of Life: Joseph N. Ermer

Joseph N. Ermer, World War II Veteran, United States Navy, family-man, artist, role model and friend, finished his life journey this week. He was 93. Click here for audio version.

Joe Ermer leaves a legacy of love, support, humor, encouragement, talent, positive thinking and humility.  In the era of true sacrifice for country and freedom, Joe Ermer represented the very best of the Greatest Generation and after his military career dedicated each following day to bring joy and

laughter to his family and many, many friends.

As recently as five days before his passing, Joe was practicing for the upcoming 2012 Father's Day Billiards Tournament held at his community center in Modesto, California. Joe was an avid competitor and in his career playing family and friends, Joe won many more times than he lost.

Joe was also a remarkable artist -- his work spanned more than five decades and includes wonderful wood work carvings, oil paintings, essays and drawings. He leaves an incredible wealth of original art pieces and writings that can and will be celebrated for many future generations.

While Joe's passing leaves shoes that simply can not be filled, he was insistent on being positive, looking to tomorrow and finding any and every reason to laugh and bring joy and compassion to others. Honoring Joe's wishes and legacy, we at Mike Lacche Boxing look forward to sharing more stories about this true American Hero.

Thanks Papa Joe.

Joseph "Joe" N. Ermer Memoirs (click links below to view/hear):
Celebration of Life: Joseph N. Ermer
Celebration of life: early childhood: Joseph N. Ermer
Celebration of Life: sports in the early years: Joseph N. Ermer
Celebration of Life: early years: Boy Scouts: Joseph N. Ermer
Celebration of Life: WWII part one: Joseph N. Ermer
Celebration of Life: WWII part two: Joseph N. Ermer
Celebration of Life: WWII part three: Joseph N. Ermer
Celebration of Life: WWII part four: Joseph N. Ermer

Military All-Stars start another successful season

Mike Lacche Boxing salutes the United States Military All-Stars baseball team which has started another successful season. The Military All-Stars is made up of premiere players from all branches of the Armed Forces and is considered the quality of a Short Season, Class A Minor League level of professional baseball.

The 19th Annual Military All-Star Classic will be at Tony Gwynn Stadium on May 6, 2012; click here to follow the team all season on their official web site.

Bert Sugar: 1937-2012

Mike Lacche Boxing sends our condolences to the family of Bert Sugar, the great, larger-than-life, boxing writer who passed away over the weekend at the age of 75.

Bert Sugar shared a passion for the sport of boxing and brought in countless new fans to the sport - while also preserving the feel of yesteryear boxing, when fans sat around the radio or television to follow their favorite boxers contend for a title.

In one of many examples of his generosity of time; Bert Sugar called into Oregon sports radio this last year to share memories of Ali - Frazier and other classics he covered.

Humble, focused and a true professional -- Bert Sugar was one of the good guys. At his family's request, donations may be made to the Boxing Hall of Fame.

Two Army Boxers win National Championships

Mike Lacche Boxing congratulates two Army boxers who won 2012 National Championships at the USA Boxing National Championships held earlier this month at Fort Carson.

Charles Williams (Army) of North Carolina defeated Edmundo Guzman of New Mexico, 16-6 to claim the 114 lbs/male title.

Fallon Farrar (Army) of Staten Island, NY defeated Dara Shen of Virginia, 22-15 to claim the 165 lbs/female title.

Click here to read the story on the Armed Forces Sports site.

Mike Lacche Boxing congratulates all our Service Men and Service Women / Athletes.

Road to the '42 Title: Fort Kamehameha History Part I

Much of the land of Fort Kamehameha was once that of the King of Hawai'i, Kamehameha I (click here to read on official Hawaiian site). Located in Honolulu, the land has both deep religious meaning and strategic significance. After ownership of the land was passed through the Hawaiian Monarchy, it eventually came under the stewardship of Queen Emma of Hawai'i.

Wikipedia.org

Eventually, Hawai'i was annexed by the United States and become acquired by the U.S. Federal Government in 1907. The Fort was officially dedicated as Fort Kamehameha in 1909; 32 years later, Mike Lacche won the base Welterweight Championship. (click here to read more about the history of the Fort on Wikipedia).

Road to the '42 Title: Staff Sergeant

Mike Lacche was proud of becoming  United States Army Welterweight Base Boxing Champion, Fort Kamehameha, Hawaii, 1942 and also earning the rank of Staff Sergeant during his military career. Like many Americans who grew up fast without much money, the Armed Forces gave a sense of honor and community.

wikipedia.org

A Staff Sergeant in the U.S. Army is an E6 ranking, non-commissioned officers who served as squad leaders. That meant that Mike had to lead a group of young men in a global war; Mike believed in leading by example.

Boxing became both a venue to lead by example, as well as, an escape for Mike to throw his full focus on a goal that only he could be responsible for. Mike took pride in the long history of Army Base athletics.

Road to the '42 Title: Creating Space

When Mike Lacche reflected on his boxing career, one of the most critical keys, he said, was "creating space." For an athlete, in the Army, during WWII, solitude was more a luxury than warm sock or a choice for dinner. Mike dug deep and used a method taught by his big brother, Nick, when times were tough -- the key was music.

When Mike was training and wanted to get lost to, in essence, find himself as an athlete, he thought or even quietly hum a song from his childhood. It helped on multiple fronts: controlled breathing through deliberate pace and focus on notes; improved concentration by focusing on each word; enabled a sense of control in that he picked the song and the good memories tied to it.

The line between being competitive and a champion is so thin -- for Mike Lacche, one key was letting go through music to find himself as a boxer.

Memories of Mike: Redmond Historical Society

Mike Lacche Boxing would like to thank the Redmond Historical Society which added Mike to its registry of community contributers (click here to see the RHS page).

Mike spent his last two decades in Redmond, was a small business owner (Mike's Kitchen) and brought his passion of boxing to Puget Sound.

Mike was a humble man, a dedicated athlete, and like many of his generation - a true role model who sacrificed to help the future generations achieve their dreams. To Mike, and all Veterans of Foreign Wars, we say, thank you for being a true people's champion. We'd all be better off with more of you around.