Posted Date: June 25, 2008

New Biography Highlights Life of Surry's Famed Coach Ellis

SURRY, Va.—Meet Joe Ellis and read about his inspirational life in the touching new biography, Going Out a Champion: The Coach Joe Ellis Story (published by AuthorHouse).
  Written by his wife, Doris M. Ellis, Going Out a Champion chronicles Joe's life, from his rural Virginia upbringing to his death in 2005. Doris was Joe's high school sweetheart and the two began dating their senior year. Both played basketball, wore the number 24 on their jersey, and they both had the last name Ellis. Doris recounts their courtship and subsequent marriage along with detailing the rest of Joe's impressive life.
  Born and raised in Surry County, Va., Joe Ellis grew up with a love for playing basketball. He graduated high school as the district's leading scorer and his team's MVP. His college career was cut short because of high blood pressure problems, but he continued to play adult league basketball, softball and tennis during and after college and was a gifted athlete.
  In August 2003, at age 50, Joe was diagnosed with inoperable colon cancer. As the head coach of his hometown high school boy's basketball team, the Surry County High School Cougars, Joe constantly told his friends and family that the diagnosis was "just a temporary setback." Over the next 21 months, the cancer continued to weaken him, but he refused to give up on coaching his team, who all "loved him dearly," Doris writes.
  In March 2005, Joe Ellis coached his Cougar team to win the Virginia Group A State Boy's Basketball Championship, the first ever state basketball title won in the history of Surry County. After the game was over, Coach Ellis told the reporters surrounding him, "I hope the Lord will bless me and we can do this again next year. But if not, I'm happy. At least I can go out a state champion." 
Joe Ellis passed away two months after winning the state championship. His basketball team, wearing their championship jackets, served as his pallbearers. His funeral was held at the Joseph A. Ellis Gymnasium at the Surry County High School, which was officially named in his honor in April 2005, while he was alive to know it.
  Going Out a Champion is an inspiring celebration of Joe Ellis and the remarkable life he led. It is also, at its heart, a touching love story about the devotion Doris and Joe had to one another and their family.
  Doris M. Ellis was born in her grandfather's farmhouse in Surry County , Va. She received a Bachelor's of Science degree from Virginia State University and completed the School of Bank Management at the University of Virginia. She has three children: Kimberly, Keisha and Joseph, Jr. Going Out a Champion: The Coach Joe Ellis story is her first book.
  For more information, visit www.goingoutachampion.com.
 
AuthorHouse is the premier book publisher for emerging, self-published authors. For more information, please visit www.authorhouse.com.

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