PRINEVILLE, Ore. — A void is left in Crook County Athletics after longtime Prineville Sports Editor for the Central Oregonian newspaper Lon Austin passed away from a heart attack over the weekend. He was 69.
“Still just hasn’t really set in and it probably won’t until we see the empty chair up on top of the first base dugout without Lon in it,” said Crook County head baseball coach Steele Bailey.
Austin was known to have a smile and a friendly approach to sports editing.
“I felt on top of the world, really,” said Crook County senior Gage Martinez. “It was after a great game. I think I went like three-for-four, but he just walked up to me, and I almost felt like a celebrity, you know?”
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“I was always looking forward to having an interview after the game, my match, or a football game,” said Crook County senior Ethan Lampier. “He would always be there, and it’ll be different.”
Austin always had his unique areas picked out for his prestige photography. For baseball, it was his chair on top of the dugout.
“He was a big part of our every sports program,” Martinez said. “I always look up on top of the dugout, and he’d be sitting there with his camera. He’d be taking pictures, cheering us on.”
Coaches and athletes describe Austin as someone with an unmatched work ethic and commitment to the game.
“During wrestling season, it didn’t matter how late the tournament got over. I was always expecting a call from Lon, whether it’s 10:30 or 11:30, to see how we did,” said head wrestling coach Jake Gonzales.
“He’s going to be missed a lot,” said head Cross Country Coach Orie Gonzales. “Big time. I don’t think I’ve ever been to a sporting event for Crook County that he wasn’t there.”
His dedication left a mark not just on popular programs but also on all sports and athletes.
“He spread it around throughout the sports, but he spread it around from kid to kid,” said head track and field coach Ernie Brooks. “That picture in the paper meant a lot to someone; that may be the only time they ever get recognized.”
Now, programs are adjusting to life without Austin behind the camera, cheering them on and finding ways to honor him.
“There will be a chair up there full on the season and will be definitely playing for him,” said Bailey.
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