SLS 16RS-1804 ORIGINAL
2016 Regular Session
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOL UTION NO. 70
BY SENATORS GATTI, LONG AND PEACOCK AND REPRESENTATIVES BAGLEY,
HORTON AND MIKE JOHNSON
CONDOLENCES. Expresses condolences on the death of John McConathy.
1 A CONCURRENT RESOL UTION
2 To express the sincere condolences of the Legislature of Louisiana upon the death of John
3 McConathy.
4 WHEREAS, it is with deep regret and profound sorrow that the members of the
5 Louisiana Legislature have learned of the passing of John McConathy, on April 19, 2016,
6 at age eighty-six; and
7 WHEREAS, born on April 9, 1930, John McConathy was the second of three
8 brothers who became basketball stars at Northwestern State University (NSU) in
9 Natchitoches, Louisiana, including his older brother J.L., who preceded him in death, and
10 younger brother George; all three brothers being inducted in the N-Club Hall of Fame; and
11 WHEREAS, he came to what was then known as Louisiana Normal in 1947, leaving
12 the family farm near Bryceland in rural Bienville Parish to follow the path of his older
13 brother; hitchhiking to Natchitoches as he was told by coach H. Lee Prather that no
14 basketball scholarship was available; and
15 WHEREAS, the McConathy brothers teamed up on the 1948-49 squad that is
16 considered Prather's finest, going 23-5 and reaching the NAIA Tournament semifinals; and
17 WHEREAS, as a senior six foot five inch forward, McConathy set single-season
18 school records by scoring 562 points and averaging 21.6 per game, with a pair of career-best
Page 1 of 3 SCR NO. 70
SLS 16RS-1804 ORIGINAL
1 35-point games against Centenary and Southern Mississippi; in his college career (1947-
2 1951) played sixty-seven games and scored 1,092 points for an average of 16.3 points per
3 game; was named as an All-American; then was invited to play in the College All-Star Game
4 in Chicago and caught the attention of NBA scouts, being the fifth pick in the 1951 NBA
5 draft of the Syracuse Nationals and played one season for the Milwaukee Hawks; and
6 WHEREAS, his pro career was interrupted because he had to return home to
7 National Guard meetings during the Korean War period; and
8 WHEREAS, McConathy was a 2005 inductee in the Long Purple Line, the
9 university's Hall of Distinction for former students, and was enshrined in the N-Club Hall
10 of Fame, which honors the top athletes, coaches and staff members in NSU history, in 1972
11 and
12 WHEREAS, although his No. 14 Demon jersey was retired by the university, it was
13 brought out of retirement for four seasons when his son Michael played at the university; and
14 WHEREAS, among many other honors, he was a 1982 inductee in the Louisiana
15 Basketball Hall of Fame and a member of the Ark-La-Texas Museum of Champions in
16 Shreveport; and
17 WHEREAS, after his playing days, McConathy was an educator in the Bienville
18 Parish and Bossier Parish school systems for thirty-one years, first as a teacher and coach
19 and then as Bossier High School's assistant principal; and
20 WHEREAS, as basketball coach at Bossier High School, he led the Bearkats to the
21 school's first state boys basketball championship in 1960; and
22 WHEREAS, McConathy was the Business Manager for the Bossier Parish School
23 Board before becoming the Assistant Superintendent and was elected Superintendent of
24 Bossier Schools in 1971, retiring in 1983; and
25 WHEREAS, he was a driving force behind the design and acquisition of funding for
26 the $55 million Bossier Parish Community College campus and was a founding member of
27 Citizens National Bank and served as chairman of the board for twenty-five years; and
28 WHEREAS, McConathy served as President of the Louisiana Association of School
29 Business Officials, Louisiana Association of School Superintendents and the Fourth District
30 School Superintendents; and
Page 2 of 3 SCR NO. 70
SLS 16RS-1804 ORIGINAL
1 WHEREAS, his survivors include his wife of sixty-one years, Corene, along with a
2 daughter, Melinda Guest, and sons Pat, Bill, and Mike, who is the sixteen-year head men's
3 basketball coach at NSU; eleven grandchildren, including three who played as
4 third-generation Demons: Mike's sons Michael and Logan, and Melinda's son Paxton Guest;
5 and seven great-grandchildren; and
6 WHEREAS, a sixty-year resident of Bossier City, McConathy kept the family farm
7 in Bienville Parish and was a cattleman; and
8 WHEREAS, known as "Big John," "Mr. John" and "Hound" to many, and as "Pappy"
9 to his grandchildren and great-grandchildren, he remained very active until relatively
10 recently, and attended most of the Demons' home games and some road contests in the years
11 his son Mike has been head coach at NSU; and
12 WHEREAS, although the death of John McConathy has left a tremendous void in
13 the lives of his wife, his children, his grandchildren, his great-grandchildren, and all whose
14 lives he touched, John McConathy leaves a lasting impact on athletics, on education, on his
15 community, and on Northwestern State University and personified the best characteristics
16 and values of our greatest generation and his memory shall live forever in the minds and
17 hearts of all who knew and loved him.
18 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
19 express sincere and heartfelt condolences upon the death of John McConathy and does
20 hereby express gratitude for the indelible mark that his enduring legacy has left upon
21 Northwestern State University, Bossier Parish, and the state of Louisiana.
22 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to John
23 McConathy's wife, Corene McConathy.
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Jerry J. Guillot.
DIGEST
SCR 70 Original 2016 Regular Session Gatti
Expresses condolences upon the death of John McConathy.
Page 3 of 3