Krause: Art McManus was truly a goodwill ambassador for North Shore soccer

Several years ago, Art McManus was getting ready to step down as the head coach of the Lynnfield girls soccer team (he’d already retired from teaching), and inquired as to whether we’d be interested in having him cover the sport.Sure, we were interested. Since football is the beast in the fall, taking all kinds of time and resources, we thought it would be great to have our very own soccer ambassador.And what an ambassador Art turned out to be. Whether he was covering a game for us, or coordinating the Agganis boys and girls soccer games every July, Art handled each chore with enthusiasm and gusto. And with eternal good nature.It is the good nature that remains with me today as I absorb the fact that Art died Friday evening after suffering a heart attack at his home.If you never knew Arthur, it was definitely your loss. He was unique. He was one of those eternally optimistic guys who loved life, loved whatever he was into, and loved his family most of all.He was the proudest of the proud fathers. Whenever I spent time with him (which was a lot in the fall), he would always fill me in on whichever son or daughter had accomplished something most recently. His eyes would light up, and I’d get every detail.That was one side of him. There were so many others. A few years ago, I had some health problems that made it necessary to enroll in a cardiac rehab program at Salem Hospital. Arthur had already done it. When the program ended, and I chose to take the hospital’s conditioning classes in the mornings, Art was already there. And he made sure I got there – to the point of picking me up and driving me there for the first few sessions.If anything like that can be fun, this was ? and one of the reasons was because of Art. He was just a funny guy, and he made all that grunting and exercising much more enjoyable than it had any right to be.Art was very patient with my lack of interest – and insight – into the so-called “beautiful game.” I grew up in an era where soccer was an afterthought (it wasn’t even a varsity sport at my school until my senior year), and I managed to get through life without developing a passion for it.Slowly, however (very slowly), I got the hang of it. And just last fall, after following St. Mary’s through its ride to the Division 3 North final, I got an email from him telling me I was coming along wonderfully in my quest to learn soccer.Art enjoyed doing things for people. Every year, before the soccer season began, he’d take me to breakfast (the last couple of years at Christopher’s on New Ocean Street) so we could talk about who was going to be good, and to whom we should pay attention.When he took his annual trip to Bermuda once the season ended, he always came back with a rum cake with my name on it.And every December, he considered it his mission to drive Father Joe Rossi to the Hilltop so he could give the blessing at the annual Item football dinner. He used to joke with me that he needed all the points he could get for when “the time” came.Well, Art, it’s here. And I have no doubt that all the good works, the good humor, and the rest, will result in a legacy that’ll be tough to top.Steve Krause is sports editor of The Item.