Woodburn: Farewell to inspirational roll model
Woody Woodburn
Louie Zamperini, the American Olympic distance runner and indomitable POW during World War II, is without question one of the most courageous and inspiring people I met during my three decades as a sports columnist.
Alvin James Matthews is undeniably another. “Unbroken” is Laura Hillenbrand’s bestselling biography about Zamperini and that title equally described Alvin, who passed away in his sleep at age 50 on April 17.
Alvin was not famous, but his fortitude was measureless. The Ventura native ran two-dozen marathons around the globe in North America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, Antarctica and the North Pole, which had a race-day temperature of minus-27 degrees Fahrenheit that made even the polar bears shiver.