---

There’s never an easy way to say goodbye to someone or to let go of someone. Especially when that person had a certain aura and presence about them.

Herb Jangor had that aura. He had that presence. The Chisago Lakes High School gym teacher and coach extraordinaire passed away earlier this week at his home at the age of 57.

I had known Herb since I started at the Chisago County Press in 2007. Back then, he was the boys basketball head coach and the softball head coach.

More recently, I had gotten some chances to chat with Herb through his affiliation with the Lion’s Club and as an assistant coach for the boys golf team.

In every walk that Herb took part in, there was one common theme from him. He cared, especially when it came to the kids that he taught and molded.

As most knew, he had a gruff delivery and a flair for making you think he was upset. It’s those qualities that made me terrified of Herb the first year I covered his teams up here.

Once I realized, though, that Herb was always just busting my chops and following his act up with a nice, hearty laugh, I started to realize how good of a guy Herb really was.

I remember calling him one Monday night during the basketball season to get some quotes on the week’s previous games. I let him know it was me calling and he instantly snapped back with, “Norton! I can’t believe you’re calling me during the Duke-Maryland basketball game! Make this fast.”

I asked Herb one question that night, a simple one about how the team did in the previous week and what kids stood out to him.

He proceeded to talk, uninterrupted, for nearly 45 minutes. When he got done, I asked him what the score was of the Duke-Maryland game. He said, “I don’t know. I stopped paying attention. This stuff was more important.”

Of course the kids were more important. As much as Herb liked to joke and to act gruff, at the center of his soul were the kids he coached and taught.

After Herb stepped down as the basketball coach, I didn’t get as many chances to talk to him. I spent some time across from his booth at the Home Show, where he was representing the Lion’s Club. There was some good-natured ribbing across the aisle there. I was also able to spend a little bit of time with him out on the golf course this spring, where he was energized by the weather and the kids’ play on the links.

Since Herb’s passing on Monday afternoon, there has been an outpouring of support, and it won’t stop even at his services on Saturday.

“Herb was a beloved member of our Chisago Lakes High School and district community and will be missed greatly,” the district said in a statement.

Golf head coach Bryon Rogers, who Jangor had assisted the last four years, said, “Working with Coach Jangor has been one of the best coaching experiences I’ve ever had. He deeply cared about the boys and girls on the golf team and was well known by other coaches. We always appreciated his humor and friendliness on the golf course.

“I learned a lot about coaching, the importance of relationships, and how to live a life of service dedicated to others through my past four years with Coach Jangor. We were fortunate to have him as part of our gold family, and I was blessed to have him as both a mentor and a friend.”

One of his former students and players summed it up best, “The four years I got to know him through high school and especially softball, he had taught me to be passionate and always fight hard until the end,” Lisa Schommer said. “To never give up and to respect the game of not only softball, but life as well.”

You taught many people many things, and I think we can all agree in saying that we’ll all miss you Herb.

---