Brian
After graduation, Simpson got a job teaching and coaching at Harrisburg R-VIII School District in Harrisburg, 11 miles northwest of Columbia. The district has 512 students in it now, including 132 in middle school and 203 in high school.
Brian Simpson enjoyed reading, running, fishing, hiking, going to concerts, and watching sports, including Kansas City Royals baseball. He loved baseball. Simpson taught social studies to middle school and high schoolers at Harrisburg.
Simpson became the head baseball coach and later assisted Chris Ackman in coaching the softball team for a few years. In 2013, he helped start the middle and high school cross country program and became the Bulldogs' head coach. Besides his baseball and cross country head coaching positions, he also coached the middle school quiz bowl team.
Simpson was more than just an effective teacher and coach. Simpson was passionate, fun-spirited, with a remarkable smile, according to those who knew him. He was able to instill a passion in history to his students, using creative ways to connect them with the curriculum. With a smile, a joke, and a positive attitude, he built relationships and forged paths, setting students up to be successful.
Coach Simpson and the Harrisburg baseball team after clinching the Lewis and Clark Conference championship. Harrisburg photo
He was intentional as a teacher and coach, setting the stage for students' and athletes' growth and success. "... he made sure that his student-athletes would be competitive and play the game the right way. It didn't matter with any opponent, he made sure that he believed we were going to win and that his players would also believe they were going to win.", according to Ackman, who taught and coached with Simpson, and succeeded Brian as head baseball coach.
Simpson built a competitive baseball program that won the school's first baseball district championship in 2005. The program became a consistent contender and won two more district titles in 2013 and 2014. He and others also built a baseball field the community could be proud of. "He, along with Lynn Proctor and Steve Combs, worked hard on building a new baseball field for Harrisburg. That field to me embodies who Brian was as a person. Just like anything he did, he put 100% effort towards making that field one of the best.", Ackman said.
He was the selfless friend that always said "Yes" when he was asked to help, or simply helped when he saw the need. He would go out of his way for others. Simpson was passionate about history, baseball, and people. He fell in love with co-worker Jennie, and they married and had a daughter, Bradey.