Forty-nine years at one job is a long time. For Denver Christian's Dick Katte forty- nine years has meant over 1000 opportunities to coach a basketball game. But even more remarkable is that over that time he has won nearly 80% of those games. Last week, in a 77-60 win over Peak to Peak Charter High School, Katte became the first basketball coach in Colorado to win 800 games. He joins just 41 other coaches in the nation who have won over 800 games in a career and one of only 10 who are still active.

Katte's teaching and coaching career at Denver Christian began in 1959. Since that time he has influenced hundreds of athletes and math students. He has always considered himself a math teacher first and a coach second and has turned down offers to coach at larger high schools, and even colleges, because teaching math was not part of the offer. During his tenure at DC, he has seen generations of students. In fact, his 2007-08 basketball squad includes several players whose fathers either played for Katte or sat in his math classes. And for two players, even a grandparent was a former student.

Setting records and receiving awards, however, is nothing new to Katte. Besides being the winningest basketball coach in Colorado he has also been inducted into both the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame and the National High School Hall of Fame. In 2000, he was the first Dave Sanders Award recipient in honor of the teacher-coach killed at Columbine in 1999. In 2005, his college alma mater, Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan, awarded him its "Distinguished Alumni Award." Subsequently, at the college's graduation ceremony he, along with President Bush, spoke to nearly 1000 seniors. Yet, for anyone who knows him well, humility is the characteristic that best describes him, for he has never sought any of the recognition he has received. Instead, he patiently reminds both players and students alike to "bloom where you are planted." He points out that victories and defeats, as well as homework and tests are life lessons to prepare people for hardships and challenges in the future.

In DC's classic gymnasium, named after Katte, hang seven state basketball championship banners and numerous league championship banners, dating back to the seventies. And while Katte is justifiably proud of those accomplishments, he will always direct a visitor's gaze to the banner hanging in the center of the gym, which in just a few words captures the essence of Dick Katte - "To God be the Glory."