No Quit: Boys Town Alumnus John Schmit Still Competing at 79

At 79 years old, John Schmit has no plans to slow down. Whether he's battling for rebounds on the basketball court or representing his team in national competitions, the Boys Town alumnus continues to embrace the competitive spirit that has defined much of his life. More than six decades after arriving at Boys Town, Schmit remains one of the oldest active players in the National Wheelchair Basketball Association (NWBA), competing in both military and NWBA leagues while helping his Colorado Silverbacks team earn a bronze medal at the recent national championships.

"I love to compete," Schmit said. "It's part of my identity. I started competing in my 50s. It's the camaraderie that goes along with it that keeps me doing it."

That determination was forged long before he ever sat in a wheelchair. Schmit and his younger brother, Bob, who would later play football for the Nebraska Cornhuskers before becoming a linebacker for the NFL New York Giants, spent their early years in Catholic orphanages in New York. Seeking opportunity and stability, both eventually found their way to Boys Town.

John arrived first, spending four years at Boys Town beginning in the early 1960s. Both he and his brother were guided by longtime Family-Teacher Henry Grenier, affectionately known to generations of Boys Town youth as "Pops." John graduated in 1966 after immersing himself in nearly every aspect of Boys Town life. He played three sports each year and was part of an era when Boys Town captured state championships in both football and basketball. But the lessons he remembers most didn't come on the athletic field.

"Boys Town gave us structure for playing a role in society at large," Schmit said.

Residents learned responsibility through a unique system that mirrored the real world. Boys Town youth learned to manage bank accounts, wrote checks and earned and spent Boys Town currency. They paid for laundry, purchased clothing and visited the canteen with money they earned.

"We were taught to be self-sufficient in the essentials," Schmit recalled.

For Schmit, Boys Town was a place where young people quickly learned their responsibilities to themselves and others. "You learned early to establish your place in the overall scheme of things," he said. Growing up alongside his brother also shaped his outlook on life. "Fighting for myself and my brother was a building block forming a no-quit attitude," Schmit said.

That mindset would prove invaluable throughout his life. After Boys Town, Schmit served in the U.S. Army Medical Corps. His military service ultimately resulted in a service-connected disability, and he was medically discharged. Years later, in 2010, he lost a leg and began adapting to life in a wheelchair. Rather than stepping away from competition, he embraced new challenges.

At age 55, Schmit launched a remarkable second chapter as an adaptive athlete, competing nationally in track and field, swimming and rowing. He participated in the National Veterans Wheelchair Games and the Valor Games, earning respect for both his athletic ability and his perseverance. Eventually, wheelchair basketball became his passion.

"It's a very different game," Schmit said, noting that he was originally trained by a women's team that helped him learn the sport's unique strategies and skills.

Today, he competes in two leagues, the military league and the NWBA, where he plays with the Rolling Nuggets. He also remains active with the Colorado Silverbacks, whose ninth-ranked team recently captured a bronze medal at the national championships. For many athletes, reaching their late 70s would signal the end of competition. For Schmit, it is simply another season. He plans to continue playing wheelchair basketball for at least one more year, motivated by the same determination that carried him from orphanages in New York to Boys Town, through military service, and onto courts across the country.

The lessons he learned as a young man at Boys Town, self-reliance, perseverance and responsibility, remain with him today. And, as long as there is another game to play, John Schmit intends to keep competing.