Submitted Photo Drexel Lawson posing for a photo during his time as an athlete for North Dakota School for the Deaf.

A star, in every sense of the word, and one of the greatest prep athletes in North Dakota history passed away last Sunday at the age of 66 in his California home.

Before becoming a track and basketball star for North Dakota School for the Deaf, Drexel Lawson came to Minot at an early age due to his father being stationed at the Minot Air Force Base.

One of the main reasons Lawson’s father had his eyes on Minot was because of the School for the Deaf, giving his son an opportunity both academically and athletically.

Sports were something that the siblings played together growing up, and according to his family, Lawson was always fast, so it’s no surprise that he went on to have a remarkable prep career.

Basketball, however, was one sport all the siblings played together frequently and one they often found themselves getting lost in. Over at the Air Force Base, they set up a basketball hoop and floodlights, where Lawson and his siblings would shoot around until midnight or 1 a.m. on the weekends.

During the years of 1971-1976, Lawson would begin competing in track and basketball for North Dakota School for the Deaf, where he put together one of the most remarkable prep careers in North Dakota history.

It wasn’t only on the court and on the track that Lawson was an impressive young man. He was widely regarded as friendly, fun to be around, and easy to work with during his time at the School for the Deaf.

“He was very outgoing, and he could make friends with anyone. He was very easy to coach,” Henry Brenner, the former athletic director and basketball coach at the school, tells The Minot Daily News.

According to Brenner, Lawson scored over 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds during his basketball career. As impressive as that was, he made an even bigger impact running track.

In 1974, Lawson competed in the State Indoor Meet where he scored all the team points for North Dakota School for the Deaf and helped them secure a co-championship title. Later that year in the outdoor meet, he earned a first-place finish in the 100, 220, and 440 and his performance led to a state title for the school.

The following year, Lawson secured a win in four events at state, placing himself in rare company by winning four individual events. The best part, was that the State Meet took place in Minot that year, giving Lawson a chance to display his incredible abilities in front of his family as they witnessed a historic day.

With the accomplishments and accolades that were piling up for Lawson, he was not only making an impact on an individual level, but he was also showing an entire community that anything is possible.

“He gave the school a lot of publicity and it went to show that kids who are deaf are no different than kids with hearing when it came to sports,” Brenner said.

On the track, Lawson would have to wait to see the person next to him take off, or he would have to wait to see the smoke come out of the gun before he knew he could begin his sprint. Every race he started out with a disadvantage, but he did not let that stop him being one of the best.

While Lawson’s track career with North Dakota School for the Deaf was incredible, there was a bump in the road near the end of it. A motorcycle accident roughly a week before the State Meet his senior year prevented him from competing in the meet, leaving not only himself but fans unhappy, too.

“Everyone knew about Drexel in the entire state. They were really disappointed when he couldn’t run during his senior year because he had a motorcycle accident before the state track meet. People were waiting to watch him run,” Brenner said.

After his time came to an end at the school, Lawson remains in the state record books for his time of 48.4 in the 440 and 22.0 in the 220. Both of those records will always remain, as both events are no longer ran.

Developing a career that gave himself world-wide recognition in the deaf community, Lawson would participate in in the Deaflympics in 1977 which took place in Bucharest, Romania. Running in four events, he won silver in the 200 and 400, and won gold in the 400m hurdles and the 4x400m relay where he served as the anchor.

Following his athletic career, Lawson would move to California where he spent time working on a golf course.