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Dungy Shares Message With Students

Tribune photo by JAY CONNER

Indianapolis Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy talks to students at Jefferson High School. The school bought Dungy's book "Quiet Strength" for the student body to read.

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By JOSÉ PATIÑO GIRONA

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 8, 2008

TAMPA - They invested 24 days and an estimated 98,000 words to complete Tony Dungy's memoir, "Quiet Strength."

Jefferson High School teachers read the book to their students from January to March as part of the One Book, One School project.

Today, the 1,800 students heard from the Super Bowl-winning coach himself.

A goal of Dungy's 2007 book is to motivate people to live productive lives even when facing adversity.

Based on the reaction at Jefferson High, it achieved its mission.

"It gives you strength to continue in life," said Laura Sanchez, 18, a junior from Town 'N Country. "It gives you strength to never give up and succeed in life."

Dungy, coach of the Indianapolis Colts and former Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach, said he and co-author Nathan Whitaker have had a lot of positive feedback.

People think athletes achieve success without facing obstacles, he said. The lesson of the book is to persevere.

Whitaker said that when he was growing up no one told him how many times he would fail and that that's OK.

"The key to life is to keep trying," he said.

Reporter José Patiño Girona can be reached at (813) 835-2110 or jpatino@tampatrib.com.

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