RIESEL, Texas (KXXV) — After more than 14 years with Lady Indians softball, Don Johnson retires from coaching and calls it a career.
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"I've always looked forward to the idea of retiring. The thing about retiring is -- two weeks in, I get to wake up every day the most beautiful woman in the world, and I don't have to work," Johnson said.
It was a tough road to retirement for Johnson as everything changed on March 2 of last year.
"We'd just gotten back from the Franklin tournament. The next day, getting ready to go to church, I had a stroke and an aneurysm. It caused hydrocephalus. I had a brain bleed at the hospital, and it knocked my kidneys out," he said.
Don spent 58 days in the hospital. Showing resilience, he made a miraculous recovery — but there is still a long road ahead.
"It was a roller coaster. I mean, even still today, it's tough sometimes going to dialysis three days a week. It can be pretty rough on dialysis days," Don said.
"He's at stage 4. Actually stage 5 now kidney failure and we're waiting on the kidney. That is his only hope of survival other than being on dialysis," former Bremond ISD teacher and Don's wife, Linda Johnson said.
With Don's career with the Lady Indians coming to an end, he tells me that he is nothing but thankful towards Riesel ISD and all of his former players.
"The people here at Riesel ISD, our superintendent Brandon Cope, my AD coach Little — you can't ask for a better place to work," he said.
"I have never had a relationship with Coach Johnson like with any other coach before. I always say that he's my favorite coach that I've ever had. Him and all his family, they are family to us," former Riesel softball player Landri Pick said.
Coach Johnson and Linda now wait for a new kidney. But, they tell me that with retirement, they have dreams of traveling. I had to ask their dream destination.
"It doesn't matter where I go. I can go home as long as I'm with him," Linda said.
