Dan McCrory is a CHS graduate and a former Criterion sports reporter. He graduated in 2012 and he was known for his participation in band, Hoops for Haiti, LaCrosse, CYO basketball, and golf. We interviewed him, by phone, to hear how he is doing now, and what advice he has for current Craig students. These days he’s working as a Lake Shore Varsity LaCrosse coach, working with kids in an additional joint program with Shorewood, another Milwaukee suburb. In whatever small amounts of free time he has, between coaching and taking classes, he like to talk with friends and golf. Despite no longer living on campus he’s highly involved in the UW Milwaukee community. “I could use a sand wedge from the outside of my house and hit one of the buildings I take classes in.” said Dan McCrory. Dan’s life since high school has been fulfilling, he frequently speaks about having found, “his passion” in coaching, but it has not been free of challenges. He describes the difference of college’s early days as, “Being on your own and you don’t understand the gravity of your decisions… being more responsible …. You have to be responsible and self aware. Getting time management is important… Once I found what I really wanted to do I absolutely turned it around.” There have been challenges of other kinds as well. “I moved in with my suitemate when I first got here... He lost his battle with depression a couple years ago.”
Dan's father also passed away around that time. These tragic events hurt, but with time they allowed him to pick himself up a bit more, and reconnect with his family. “One of the quotes I live by after my dad and roommate passed away is ‘adversity can do one of two things. It can take you do a dark place that you cannot come back from, or it can elevate you to new heights you never thought imaginable.’ Everyone is going to have to deal with adversity in their lives, it’s how you respond to it and move forward from it that defines you.” When asked if he had any big regrets about his time in high school, Dan said, “I bullied a couple kids in high school… It never got really bad but…” He reached out to both of them since then to, “put water under the bridge.” He’s got a lot of advice now for kids entering college. “You don’t realize how easy it is right now. Enjoy high school while you can, I know that’s kind of a cliche but… Take advantage of the time you have with the ones you love... Don’t burn the bridges that you built in high school.” For him, “The thought of going to college was terrifying, but I surprisingly had many connections here.” “I probably see about one Janesville kid a day.” Craig was a very formative place for Dan. Asked about his favorite memories of Craig he referenced the basketball games and replied, “I was Mr. Student Section.” His two all-time favorites were when, “Monte Philips pulled me out of a Basketball game.” And one occasion where, in seconds, he managed to transition from being on a basketball court to changing clothes and rushing into a concert elsewhere in the building. Ending here on a happy note, Dan would also like to give a shout-out to shout out to one of his most favorite part of Craig: Mr. Kane. “He’s my boy!” said Dan.