Updated: Friday, Nov. 19, 1999 at 01:13 CST
For 2 area families, disaster hits home: Jerry Don Self
By
Jeff Prince
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
ARLINGTON -- There is irony in his name, because friends and former teachers recall Jerry Don Self as being genuinely selfless.
"He probably volunteered the most of any student we've ever had," said Gayle Nelson, who was a Lamar High School teacher and student council sponsor when Self attended the school from 1995 until he graduated in 1997.
"He was more of a worker than a student council officer or class officer," she said. "He just got in there and did things, which is probably what he was doing" yesterday.
Self, 20, was one of the students who died when a 40-foot stack of logs being erected for a traditional bonfire collapsed at Texas A&M University in College Station.
Many Lamar graduates attend Texas A&M each year, Principal Jimmy Jones said, and he worried when he heard news of the tragedy that some of them might be involved.
He was saddened but hardly surprised when he learned that Self was one of the students working on the bonfire tower, he said.
"He was a very dependable kid, very involved, always one of the first ones to step up and volunteer," Jones said. "If something was going on, he was there."
People who knew him agreed that Self took average talents and pushed himself to above- average levels. He was tall, well over 6 feet, but not considered an exceptional athlete. Still, he was disciplined and dependable and worked his way into a starting position on the football team's offensive line by the end of his senior year, Jones recalled.
Friends said he studied with zeal, pushing himself to reach his goal of attending Texas A&M, becoming a cadet and studying toward an engineering degree. He was the first in his family to attend college.
"He was a fairly decent student," Jones said. "Not too many kids who choose to go to A&M are weak in the classroom."
Self tutored elementary students. He served on the student council and was a member of the Spanish club. He was spiritual and attended church often.
Lamar assistant coach Bill Riley broke down when he learned of Self's death. Riley's son, Beau Riley, and Self were longtime friends and played on the high school football team together.
Bill Riley and his son drove to College Station when they heard the news.
Lamar head coach Eddy Peach described Self as "a model young man."
"You're not going to find a finer young man than what he was," Peach said. "It's been a tough day for all of us."
Self selected Texas A&M because of its respected engineering program, and he embraced "the whole Aggie culture," said Jeremy Erb, his former pastor, who was serving as a family spokesman yesterday.
Self's parents believe that their oldest son died doing something he cared about, Erb said, and they do not blame the university.
"I don't think there's any animosity," Erb said. "Jerry died doing what he loved. There's no anger toward the bonfire. He was proud and loved the A&M tradition, and I think the family stands with him on that."
Self's parents drove to College Station yesterday not knowing whether he was badly injured. They were told about the accident during an early- morning phone call from A&M officials.
Before driving to College Station, Michael Roy Self recorded a new message on his telephone answering machine, asking callers to phone him on his cellular phone if they had any news about his son.
Shortly after arriving in College Station, he learned that his son was dead.
Self's younger brother, Michael Self, 18, just completed basic training in the Army. Contacted by phone yesterday, he said he was too distraught to talk about his brother's death.
At Texas A&M, Self enjoyed playing volleyball and golf and liked dancing and listening to country music. A member of the Corps of Cadets Squadron 17, he had helped build the bonfire tower last year as well, Erb said.
Self was torn between working as an engineer or becoming a minister, Erb said.
"He was really involved in local church ministries and was considering going into the ministry," he said. "He loved God and that was a big part of his life."
Working late in the night to stack the logs for the bonfire typifies Self's life, Jones said. The young man worked in anonymity, more concerned with the results of his labors than with commendations.
"I remember Jerry Don as being one of those kids who didn't get a lot of recognition but was one of the ones doing most of the work," Jones said.
Staff writer Robert Tharp contributed to this report.
Jeff Prince, (817) 548-5487
Send comments to jprince@star-telegram.com
