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With the passing of our longtime columnist and sports editor, Scott Novak, there is an emptiness in locker rooms, media booths and along the sidelines in southwest Michigan this week. On Wednesday, Scott succumbed to the complications of suffering a heart attack in August and just like the many athletes he so often wrote about in the Niles Daily Star and Dowagiac Daily News over a span of 42 years, he played through the pain and gave it his all to the end.

Scott’s professional passion was high school athletics, and he made it his mantra with Leader Publications llc., parent company of the Star and Daily News, to make sure every student athlete had his/her photo or name referenced in the newspaper, in our high school magazine previews and or online at least once during their playing career.  Scott knew the many sacrifices made by the student athletes, as well as the parents, during the training periods and competition seasons and he wanted to make sure everyone knew “our newspaper and its readers appreciate their commitment, and they deserve to be recognized for it” Scott told me in our first meeting in 2022 when I began as publisher.

There has been an outpouring of condolences and memories of Scott on the Leader Publications Facebook pages along with phone calls from the media, readers and fans of his daily writings:

• “Scott WAS Leader Publications Sports,” said Amelio Rodriguez. “He not only enjoyed high school sports, it was his passion.  As someone who spent countless hours with him covering sports, it was amazing to see just how much he lived for it.”
• “I remember Scott…being on the sidelines back in the late 90s when I played football,” wrote Terry Groth. I was happy to see him still covering area athletics when my son started high school a few years ago.”
• “To all our Brandywine Community, if you’ve ever been to a game in Bobcat Nation or picked up a Niles Daily Star in the past 40+ years you’ve no doubt read a byline or story covered by Scott Novak” wrote Sandy Neldon.
• “When Scott was on the sideline, whether it be Brandywine, Niles, Dowagiac, or Buchanan, you knew it was a big deal,” wrote Michael Morrison. “It was like John Madden calling a football game or Dicky V at a hoops game, you knew it was a big deal.”

Former Publisher Jan Griffey worked with Scott for 20 years.

“In my career I have not found a more dedicated, talented or responsible sports editor,” she said. “He absolutely loved Southwest Michigan, and his work proved that.  He also loved Leader Publications to his very core.  Above all, Scott was a kind, caring and loving husband, father and friend.”

Ambrosia Neldon worked closely with Scott as a Publisher of Leader Publications and shared her heartfelt feelings for him and his kindness.  

“The embodiment of the team player he portrayed in countless stories that will live on in scrapbooks of high school athletes for years to come” she said. 

Among her last visits with Scott, she quotes him as saying, “we worked so hard to make that paper something they could be proud of.”  

She assured him that his hard work paid off.

In rhythm with Neldon’s comments, Scott’s stories will continue to have a very long shelf life as players, parents, grandparents and coaches have safely preserved them in shoe boxes, cedar chests and frames across southwest Michigan and beyond. Scott helped make local sports a “big deal” for southwest Michigan players, parents, coaches and fans and with him not being on hand for kick offs, tip offs and lead offs, he will be missed.

Scott lost his wife a few years ago and is survived by his daughter, Kirsten. We ask that you keep her in your thoughts during this time.

As an expression of sympathy, Scott’s family asks that donations may be sent to the local sports organization of the donor’s choice.