As the Eddie G. Robinson Museum rises across campus, a dedicated group of supporters worked furiously into the night on a banquet and grand opening slated to be held on the Grambling State campus next month.
“The ballgame,” said longtime former Grambling baseball coach and athletic administrator Wilbert Ellis, “is ready to start. It’s an exciting time, a celebration of a great man.”
Banquet guest speaker? Super Bowl-winning coach Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Tables at that Feb. 12 event?: Sold out. Plans were being made to offer additional individual tickets in the stands, since every available spot on the floor of the GSU Assembly Center had been quickly snatched up. A waiting list was being compiled.
Finishing touches on the exhibit space?: Streaking along at a remarkable pace. The project reached a symbolic plateau just days ago when the museum name was affixed to the north wall of the historic former women’s basketball gymnasium, facing the village of Grambling.
The grand opening will be held there at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 13 — on what would have been Robinson’s 91st birthday.
Talk of centerpiece arrangements and hanging celebratory banners around town had replaced the titanic years-old struggles over money and locale that so often slowed this museum project.
“It’s moving along,” said a relieved-sounding Douglas Porter — who, with governor-appointed Robinson Museum Commission chair John Belton, is the longest tenured member of the board. “One our last concerns is getting the gounds in passable shape for the dedication. The weather hasn’t been cooperating. The inside part is coming along fine. They are concerned on the outside appearance.”
The Friends group, helmed by Ellis for much of the last five years, talked into the evening about naming opportunities for elements of the museum, including a statue of Robinson. They talked about about a souvenir booklet, about tribute videos from those who might not be able to attend — a list of luminaries likely to include a dazzling array of presidents and sports stars.
They talked about contacting as many former players as possible for a procession to be held before the exhibit space’s long-awaited opening.
“That,” Ellis enthused, “is going to be the most beautiful thing you ever want to see.”
All that was left, finally, were the details.
This in itself, after a decade of fits and starts, was its own triumph, its own reward. Even if much still remained to be done for the Friends of the Eddie G. Robinson Museum group, meeting Monday at the GSU alumni house.
Ellis and this handful of locals — including Porter, the former Robinson assistant coach, and faithful boosters like Ray Higgins and Robert Clark — have worked tirelessly toward a goal of honoring Robinson, who died in 2007 at age 88 after setting a still-standing Division I record for college football victories.
But the project, first authorized by the Louisiana Legislature in 1999, had to steer around a series of historic roadblocks involving funding, arguments over location, then shifting political dynamics. They’ve done so thanks, in no small way, to the gritty determination of the Eddie G. Robinson Museum board helmed by Belton, a Ruston attorney.
A temporary exhibit of Robinson-related items opened in the lobby of the GSU Stadium Support Facility in June 2005. But Hurricane Katrina’s devastation drew away whatever resources might have come from the state to build on that momentum.
Then fate stepped in. Robinson’s passing, after years of battling complications related to Alzheimer’s, gave the efforts a final push.
In a matter of months, the University of Louisiana System, which oversees Grambling, worked out a deal to house the exhibits at the now-vacant gym. The Louisiana Legislature then funded the museum for the first time since its inception.
The university itself became more closely involved with the project, too. Ellis said the group held a successful recent meeting with interim GSU president Frank Pogue in an effort to iron out the final details of February’s celebration.
Pogue, he said, pledged any needed assistance to make sure the event goes smoothly.
“I never felt so good,” Ellis said. “A little more, and I would have cried like Coach used to.”
Throughout this long journey, the Secretary of State’s Office — through the administrations of Fox McKeithen, Al Ater and now Jay Dardenne — has remained a strong advocate. That office will oversee the operation of the museum.
Costs for the ongoing renovation of the gym — Robinson coached basketball there early in his career — have been estimated at $3 million to $4 million. The state put up some initial funds, but critically needed public donations flowed in to help complete the project.
Deadlines are expected to be released soon for payment on ordered tickets for the Feb. 12 banquet. Unpaid orders will then be released back to the waiting list.
GET IN THE GAME:
Previous editions of the Robinson Museum journey –
The Eddie G. Robinson Museum: A dream fulfilled
Temporary exhibit opens with emotional 2005 ceremony
The project found a home on Grambling’s campus in 2006
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