Terry Fawcett’s still living the dream — football, law, the Vikings and all the kids along the way

Terry Fawcett has built a life on two unwavering pillars: helping kids and chasing football dreams — his own and everyone else’s.

That mission’s taken him from the Duluth Heights streets where he grew up to NAIA football in South Dakota, a decades-long career in probation, and today into the bustling hallways of Vikings headquarters and the green diamond of Target Field.

“I’m the probation director in Pine County,” Fawcett said, leaning back in the sun for a chat before Vikings fullback and Duluth native C.J. Ham's annual youth football camp in West Duluth. “I’ve been doing probation work for 32 years. I’m entering my 36th season coaching football. Most recently, I’ve been at Cretin with Steve Walsh, and now I’m going to coach the defensive line at Woodbury, a 6A school.

“I have an opportunity to come back up here and obviously work for somebody that I admire greatly in C.J., and work with some old players of mine. It gives me a little bit of a break from some of the other stuff. I am a lead youth development coach for the Vikings part-time and do field security for the Minnesota Twins. So it's a busy time of the year, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”

Busy might be putting it lightly. Fawcett has been weaving two intense careers together — law enforcement and football coaching — in a way few could juggle. It all ties back to his Duluth roots.

“Yeah, that’s a great question,” he said of what first sparked his calling. “A Duluth Heights kid, graduated in ’87 from Duluth Central, played for coach Rollie Strand. He was the one that I told myself years ago, I said, I want to have an impact on kids the way that he has had on me. He passed a year ago, and I had the good pleasure of being able to speak at his funeral and be one of the pallbearers. It meant a lot. He always used to say, ‘Terry, remember football is supposed to be fun.’ And I became a better coach when he told me that. So I really do this out of respect for Coach Strand.”

Fawcett tried out a few different colleges before landing at Huron University in South Dakota. It wasn’t exactly a Big Ten destination, but it was perfect for him.

“I moved around a few different colleges and ultimately graduated from a small NAIA Division II college in South Dakota called Huron University, which is closed now, and played football there,” he said. “And then I had the opportunity, actually an old teammate of mine, Brett Vessel, was coaching at and asked me if I wanted to come coach with him. And so I had coached youth prior to that, and one year with my brother. But when Brett asked me to coach with him it really ignited a flame in me that said, you know what? This is really what I want to do. And I’ve had the bug ever since.”

That same drive to help kids led him into probation work, a career that’s become just as defining.

“I seemed to be drawn to wanting to help people,” Fawcett said. “When I came out of college, I went to work for the place I interned for, Woodland Hills. I had an opportunity to work with the youngest boys group at Woodland Hills. And then from there, I got in with the probation department. Five years later, I became a supervisor for Arrowhead Regional Corrections and did that for 23 years up here.

"And now the last 10 I’ve been down in Pine County as a director, but still find myself doing some restorative justice work with the kids too. And just kind of what drives me. All these things go hand in hand, whether you’re coaching, whether you’re mentoring or you’re doing probation work with kids, you’re all doing the same type of work.”

His home life these days is pretty slick too — literally right on top of the Vikings.

“I think my wife had it figured out,” Fawcett chuckled. “She works for Simon Properties and had an opportunity to work in the malls down in the Cities. For me, it didn’t really matter. I was going to drive to Pine County anyway, and so I said, let’s do it. We sold our house in Hermantown after the kids graduated and then we moved in. She said, ‘Oh, look at these apartments available on the Vikings campus.’ I think she knew that would be the hook, and it has been. It’s been great. We’re connected to everything. That was really one of the reasons I applied for that youth job with the Vikings — it was right across the street. And so it’s turned out to be a great thing.”

He’s especially proud of the work he does around Ham.

“Yeah, a hundred percent,” Fawcett said. “Like I said, utmost respect for him, obviously the story from being an undrafted Division II kid, being a tryout player, and then turning that into a four-year captain and 10-year vet and all the success that he has had. But beyond that, the most important thing is who he is as a person. And that’s why I’m here today. I get the opportunity to see him a couple of times a year and interact with him, and he’s just a terrific human being, and it makes me a better person hanging out with people like CJ. So anytime I get invited up here with the Denfeld staff, I love to come up.”

Ask Fawcett what kind of respect CJ earns in the Vikings locker room, and it’s all heart.

“Well, tremendous,” Fawcett said. “The people that I’ve talked to that know him intimately, it’s the person that draws them to him first and the football player second. But when people like him and Adam Thielen before him and others, they kind of surround themselves with people like that because they know when they speak, they know what they’re talking about. In fact, in some other camps I’ve worked with CJ, he talks about being mentored by Adam, where Thielen would tell him, ‘Don’t let not knowing the playbook be the reason that you’re not in the league.’ And he kind of took that to heart. And so I think he can share that message with the people now in their running back stable. CJ’s that senior guy.”

Fawcett thinks Ham’s future, football or otherwise, will be just fine.

“I think the camp I worked with him 11 days ago, he said, ‘Be where your feet are and be present where you’re at.’ And I think that’s kind of how he approaches it,” Fawcett said. “And I think if he walked away from the game after 10 years, I think he’d be proud of that and staying with one team.

“Do I think he could stay with the Vikings longer? Do I think he could go to another team? Absolutely. Does he want to? Does he need to? That’s the question. He’s a father first and a husband, and sometimes it’s just better to see your family grow too. So like I said, he’ll be where his feet’s at and whatever that brings will be successful.”

As for the Vikings this season?

“Yeah, I’m always wrong,” Fawcett laughed. “I was at the playoff game last year in Arizona, but I was telling you offline, I am a big believer in JJ McCarthy. He won a national championship at IMG Academy in high school and obviously in college and I think the kid’s just got ice water in his veins. The whole thing in the NFL though, it’s all about health. If those offensive linemen they got from Indianapolis can stay healthy, get those two big D-linemen they signed in the offseason, they’re going to be in the mix for sure. But that division is one of the toughest in football and they’ll find out right out of the gate. They got to go on the road and into Chicago, so you’re going to find out in a hurry how good you are.”

And five, ten years from now?

“I asked my wife that recently,” Fawcett said. “‘When do you think I’ll be done coaching — when my mind or my body goes?’ And she goes, ‘Probably both.’ And she’s right, because sometimes I get up after I do a camp and my knees hurt. Coaching a D-line’s hard on you, but I just keep getting drawn back to it. I tell people all the time, I say, who am I going to fool? This is what I know. I don’t hunt, I don’t fish. I like to be around people and kids and coach. So hopefully I plan on retiring in about four years when I’m 60, but hopefully I’m still coaching.”

As for that ever-elusive shot at coaching on an NFL sideline?

“I told you offline, a friend of mine coaches the receivers for the New England Patriots, and he’s been an offensive coordinator three times in the NFL, and we kind of had this deal where if he was a head coach, I’d be with him and that didn’t transpire,” Fawcett said. “So I think my time has passed and I’m okay with that. Everybody’s got a role and a reason for it, and I was kind of put here to mentor kids and that’s a blessing in itself.

"But I appreciate you, Howie. I want to just make sure I mentioned that you were always a big supporter when we started the Superior Shoreman up here, and I don’t forget things like that. You and Tom Hansen were phenomenal and it’s a great opportunity to be able to talk to you again.”

That’s Terry Fawcett in a nutshell — always moving forward, always lifting kids up, and forever grateful to the game and the people who make it special. Here’s betting he’ll be chasing a few more quarterbacks — and shaping a few more lives — for many seasons yet.

Park Point 5-Miler returns Thursday, promising lakeside views and midsummer fun

DULUTH — Runners and walkers will once again take over Park Point on Thursday evening for one of Duluth’s longest-running summer sports traditions. The annual Park Point 5-Miler and 2-Mile Walk gets underway at 6:30 p.m., offering participants a flat, scenic course sandwiched between the Duluth Harbor and the open waters of Lake Superior.

The race, which starts and finishes at the Park Point Beach House at 4750 Minnesota Avenue, is expected to draw up to 800 participants. Race-day registration will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis during packet pickup hours, with entry fees set at $39.28 for adults and $12.65 for youth 18 and under.

Ahead of the main events, the popular Park Point Seagull Chase kids’ races will kick off at 5:30 p.m. near the finish line, featuring multiple heats for runners 14 and under. All youth races are free.

The 5-mile run is slated for a 6:30 p.m. start, followed by the 2-mile walk at 6:35 p.m. Race organizers expect the top men’s finisher to cross around 6:55 p.m., with the leading woman likely close behind at 7 p.m. Age division awards will be handed out starting at 7:30 p.m.

Participants receive a commemorative short-sleeved shirt with their registration and a free drink ticket redeemable after the race. Fitsoks will also be available for purchase. A raffle, courtesy of Ski Hut, will award a $700 gift certificate to one lucky winner after the race.

Spectators and racers are advised to plan ahead. Minnesota Avenue will close to incoming vehicles from 22nd Street to the Beach House from 6 to roughly 8 p.m. Law enforcement and race officials will help manage traffic near the finish area, and a free bike valet will be available near the picnic pavilion for those pedaling to the event.

Beyond the race, Thursday’s festivities will include food trucks, yard games and a celebratory midsummer atmosphere along the lakeshore. All net proceeds from the event support the Young Athletes Foundation, which has contributed more than $1.8 million to youth and recreational athletic programs since 1990.