As commentator, teacher, and leader of the speech team, Tim Clay not only cheers for the people in his class, but also on the field as the voice of the Norwalk Warriors athletics.
Clay said he went to the University of Iowa for college, where he found his love for announcing.
“The pep band was kind of the student section for basketball, because the band was so involved with keeping the energy up,” he said.
This is Clay’s 11th year teaching overall, with this year being his sixth at Norwalk High School. Clay said he feels a strong connection with Norwalk.
“I love the community, love the school spirit, and how supportive the community is of all [of] the athletics,” he said.
Norwalk sophomore Teegan Kralik participates in track and field at Norwalk. Kralik said Clay is great at his job and encouraging student athletes.
“I like the energy that he brings,” he said. “Like the walk-ups, he’s so energetic with it. He gets us all excited for the game, and gives us some energy to start the game.”
Kralik said he believes Clay could turn announcing into a career, but he feels Norwalk is his home.
“If he really wanted to, he could,” he said. “But, I feel he has a connection with Norwalk, so I’m not sure if he would want to.”
Josh Tobey, the Activities Director at the High School, said he decides the commentator for Norwalk games. Tobey said fans in the stands enjoy when Clay announces.
“They love it,” he said. “All I hear is nothing but compliments. Announcing is not an easy job, and he seems to make it sound easy, which is impressive.”
Tobey said something about Clay that many people don’t know is that he has also been the disk jockey (D.J.) at events like Formals and Homecoming.
“At a lot of our events, he’s also the D.J., playing music,” Tobey said. “Which I have come to learn over the years is not easy as well.”
Tobey said Clay is a valuable addition to Norwalk Schools.
“One thing is that he deeply cares about students and wants to see them succeed,” he said. “He does a tremendous job of doing all of that with such a positive energy.”
