'He was a warrior'
Post Falls coach Hinz dies following long cancer battle
By MARK NELKE
Hagadone News Network
Jeff Hinz will be remembered not only as a football coach and a man who bravely fought cancer for nearly three years, but also as someone who touched countless lives as a teacher, mentor and friend.
Hinz, head football coach at Post Falls High for the past 11 seasons, died Wednesday night at Hospice of North Idaho in Coeur d’Alene following a long battle with non-smokers lung cancer.
He was 45.
“He was a warrior,” Post Falls athletic director Craig Christensen said. “He battled. To make it as long as he did shows how much strength and determination he had. He was a great coach, a great family man, father. He was a great friend. He’s going to be missed greatly by many.”
“After an almost 3 year battle with lung cancer, Jeff passed away last night peacefully with his family,” the family posted on Facebook on Thursday morning. “The family wishes to thank all of you who have supported through visits, meals, fundraisers, good conversations, prayers, and love over the past few years. He passed knowing how many people truly cared for him.”
Hinz taught social studies, and coached football at Post Falls High for 22 years.
“He was just one of those good guys, just a good man,” said Shawn Amos, the longtime Coeur d’Alene High football coach. “He was in it for the right reasons. It was about more than just winning football games with him. Society is in desperate need of guys like coach Hinz.”
Christensen, entering his 15th year as AD at Post Falls, was part of the hiring team when Hinz, a Coeur d’Alene High graduate, was promoted from assistant coach to head coach in 2005.
“When I hired him I thought, ‘Here’s a guy that’s going to be exactly what we want in our program, which is someone that’s got character, is going to be a student-centered coach ... he wasn’t necessarily just worried about preparing them for the next level of football, but the next level of life. That’s right in our philosophy; we want someone who’s going to put academics and character first, and he was always at the forefront of that. There was never a worry with me of him doing the right thing, and teaching kids the right way. And that’s huge to have as a coach. Obviously the wins were important, but he understood the importance of the other things, too.”
Hinz was diagosed with cancer after he suffered a broken leg when his left leg gave out on Thanksgiving Day 2013. Doctors found a tumor in his leg, and in his lung.
Hinz coached when he could the past two years. Last season, he missed a couple of games; other times, he coached from the press box, or from a wheelchair on the sideline.
Hinz’s record as Post Falls head coach was 50-51. In 2014, he guided the Trojans to the state playoffs for the first time in 10 seasons.
With Hinz ailing, Blaine Bennett, an assistant on last year’s staff, was named interim coach earlier this spring.
The family said details on a service will be announced later on the “Tackle Cancer with Coach Hinz” Facebook page.