If you’re lucky, at least once in your life you get a coach or teacher like Ray Convery. All you need is one to change everything for the better.

Convery’s contribution to girls sports in Maine cannot be overstated. Over a pair of stints, Convery coached girls basketball at Winthrop High for 26 years, winning the Class C state championship in 1990. Convery died on July 17. He was 76.

Sandy Steele graduated from Winthrop High in 1991, and was a member of that state championship team in 1990. Throughout her adult life, Steele has leaned on the lessons she learned playing basketball for Convery. When her son was fighting for his life in a Boston hospital. When she rejoined the work force after years away raising her children.

Stay calm under pressure. Know you can do whatever is necessary to get through this tough moment.

“In hard moments, I think of Ray,” Steele said. “He never gave up on any of us. He pushed us, but he pushed us like a father figure. You felt like part of a family… A lot of girls in this community have a lot of great memories, and they’re falling back on them now.”

When Steele played for Convery, he approached her and asked, “Do you want to play?” ‘Of course,” she said. Then learn to shoot left-handed.

So she did. Steele practiced as much as she could, so she could shoot layups left-handed. When she was able to do it without thinking, Convery was there with praise.

“He said ‘See? I knew you had it in you. I believed in you.’ I didn’t quite believe in myself,” she said.

Even students who didn’t play basketball for Convery learned from him. Tyler Arsenault, now a firefighter in Auburn and the deputy fire chief in Winthrop, remembers Convery as a dedicated physical education teacher in Winthrop Grade School. One day at school, Convery asked another student how he did in his baseball game the night before. The kid told him he won. Convery said, “That’s great but that’s not my question. How did YOU do? How did you help your team? How did you make your team better?”

“I’m 9 years old, but that stuck with me,” said Arsenault, now an assistant football coach at Winthrop. “Even in my job now, what did I do? Did I make things better?”

Running into Convery around town, it was always a good conversation, Arsenault said.

“When he asked how you’re doing, how your family’s doing, it was engaging. It wasn’t just small talk,” he said.

Convery was a coach who simply asked for effort, Steele said. The outcome was secondary if you gave your best effort. As a child playing youth basketball, Steele was a little intimidated by Convery, but also knew she couldn’t wait to play for him. When they played co-ed basketball at the youth level, Convery would tell all the girls, don’t be nervous. This will make you better. And he was right.

“You wanted to be part of that. You respected that,” Steele said. “The pride is powerful. Even if you lost, he’d say ‘I saw you all give 100%. If you didn’t, you’ll know when you look in the mirror.'”

In the week leading up to the 1990 state championship game against Limestone, Steele wasn’t a starter. Her job was to play the most tenacious defense she could in practice against the starters so they’d be ready for anything on game night. When the Ramblers had the Gold Ball, Convery told her, “You did exactly what I wanted you to do. You did exactly what the team needed.”

In 2022, Winthrop named the high school’s basketball court after Convery. Since then and forevermore, the Ramblers play on Raymond A. Convery Court. On the night the court was officially dedicated to Convery, testimonials to him from former players hung on the walls behind the baselines, proof that what he meant to the community goes beyond wins and losses and Gold Balls.

“I always felt valued as an athlete, not just a female athlete but an athlete, and have always appreciated how much you pushed myself and the team.” That was from Kelsey Ouellette, class of 2010.

“Your constant motivation and encouragement pushed me to heights I’ll never forget.” That’s from Nadia Sanchez, Class of 1997.

“Mr. Convery taught me far more than the game of basketball, even though I was taught plenty of that too. He taught me about life, and how to work through adversity.” That’s Jess Folsom, Class of 1995.

Arsenault saw Convery recently, and they were able to talk for 15 minutes, mostly about life and golf, one of Convery’s retirement passions. It reminded Arsenault of another one of Convery’s sayings. “If you hit a really nice, long drive, don’t hit it out here if you don’t know what to do with it.” In other word, plan for success, and be prepared when it comes.

Steele thought again about how much she looked forward to being a Rambler when she was a kid. That was because of Convery, she said.

“If you can make a kid love something so much they carry it with them all the way through high school,” Steele said, “then you’ve done your job.”

Perhaps the nicest thing anyone can say to remember Ray Convery. He did the job.