Jimmy Crum (center) received the OHSAA's Ethics and Integrity Award in 1999. Joining him were OHSAA assistant commissioner Duane Warns (left) and OHSAA commissioner Clair Muscaro (right).

January 8, 2009

OHSAA Says Goodbye to Jimmy Crum

Legendary Columbus sportscaster served on OHSAA’s Sportsmanship, Ethics and Integrity Committee

If anyone symbolized the ideals of sportsmanship, ethics and integrity, it was Jimmy Crum. The Ohio High School Athletic Association’s Sportsmanship, Ethics and Integrity Committee would not have been complete without him.

On Monday, Jan. 5, Central Ohio said goodbye to Crum, who passed away in Columbus. To many, he was known as the “Dean of Central Ohio sportscasters,” but far more important was the $30 million he helped raise during his career for Central Ohio charities.

In 1999, the OHSAA honored Crum with its Ethics and Integrity Award. Crum was the sixth person to receive the award, which now includes 15 members honored for outstanding ethical behavior and serving as role models for others.

While most adults around Central Ohio knew Crum for his plaid sport coats or being the voice of Ohio State basketball, perhaps those who loved him most were children. For many years, Crum served as president of Recreation Unlimited, a 165-acre wheelchair accessible site that provides programs for developmentally disabled kids. He was the founding chairman of Ohio Special Olympics and for 21 years was the host for the Easter Seals Telethon in Columbus.

He was a regular visitor to Children’s Hospital and for three years served as the chairman of the burn units fundraising campaign.

Crum’s professional awards are numerous. Among them, he received an Emmy from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences for Outstanding Contributions to Television and he was inducted into the Ohio Associated Press Broadcasters Hall of Fame.

### ohsaa.org ###  

By Tim Stried, contact: tstried@ohsaa.org