MUENCH LEAVING NOTRE DAME IN EFFORT TO HELP HIS DEAF SON

While a couple of area prep coaches hang up their whistles for better-paying administrative positions, Notre Dame baseball coach Gregg Muench has a much more personal reason for his coaching departure.

Muench wants his 23-month-old son Braden, who was born profoundly deaf, to hear.

In an effort to gain Braden the ability to hear and communicate without the use of sign language, Muench plans to drive back-and-forth from Cape Girardeau to the Moog Oral School in St. Louis. That full-time responsibility will require Muench to leave Notre Dame after four years as the head baseball coach. Muench and his wife, Ann, who teaches at Clippard Elementary, plan to move to St. Louis next year.

"It will be very hard to leave," Muench said. "If it was anything but my son, there's no way I would leave. The kids are great at Notre Dame."

Braden, who will turn 2-years-old in July, will be receiving a cochlear implant in one of his ears which should allow him to hear and speak on a limited basis. After the surgery, intensive schooling is needed to improve the patient's communication skills. The earlier this procedure is done, the better the results.

"The surgery gives him some sounds, but its not even close to how we hear," Muench said. "He needs to be taught how to interpret those sounds.

"It's something you have to choose for your child. We're very excited about Braden being able to speak."

Under Muench's direction, the Bulldogs compiled a 66-30 record, winning one district title and two SEMO Conference championships. Notre Dame went 13-9 this season with its second consecutive district runner-up finish.

Chris Neff, in his first year as a full-time employee at Notre Dame, will be taking over the baseball program from Muench. In two years as a part-time assistant at Notre Dame, Neff helped out with the boys basketball team this past year and the girls basketball team the year before.

Neff's wife, former Southeast Otahkian basketball player, Jaime Neff, will be the new assistant girls basketball coach helping long-time head coach Jerry Grim.

* To help with the substantial cost of Braden Muench's surgery and education, a trust fund called "Braden's Voice" has been set up at Union Planters Bank in care of Steve Green.