R.I.P. Coach Beam

The greater Oakland community is mourning the loss of John Beam (1959-2025), longtime football coach at Laney College and Skyline High School, who was murdered last week. There's an incredible tribute up at Oaklandside, written by the great Ray Ratto, and a growing memorial at Laney College. At the Main Library we have put up a humble tribute and a memory book to sign, which we will deliver to Beam's family. Please do stop by and sign it. In this post we wanted to share some of the newspaper articles from our archives that highlight Coach Beam, especially ones that show - either in pictures or words - the spirit of the man.

What was striking to us as we went through the microfilm and online databases was not just how often Coach Beam was in the paper (nearly 600 times in the Tribune alone! More often than many politicians!) but how consistent he was. In article after article Coach Beam would uplift his players and students and praise his colleagues and competition. Sure there were losses - though not very many in his remarkable Skyline career where he went 160-30-4 - but what shines through over and over again is his positivity, his love for the game and, especially, his dedication to his players and their families.                 

This was a man who saw the game as a means to an end, as a positive influence in the lives of the children of Oakland, rather than the end itself. As is noted in one article about him, he considered sports to be the greatest "dropout prevention." In another, his former player, Brandon Sanders, says of him "Coach Beam pushes you to take the hard way. Every day he says it. That stuck with me. It's easy to sit on the sideline and not say anything. It's easy not to be a leader. Now I'm taking the hard way." In yet another, the mother of one of his players refers to him as more than his coach, as a father figure, a family member. Coach Beam himself said, "our job is to believe in them so they can believe in themselves."

The quotes about his dedication to the Skyline and Laney communities go on and on. This was a man who didn't just teach or coach, he wrote letters of recommendation, made endless calls to college recruiters, bought meals, gave rides, gave counsel, a man who fought for his players every step of the way. And it did not end when they graduated high school or moved on from community college, there are stories in newspaper articles and all over social media about Coach Beam helping his players and students out throughout their lives. His positive presence was felt by many, for years and years. 

As anyone who has ever worked in OUSD knows, you don't last 20+ years at the same school without a major sense of commitment to community. Beam started at Frick, spent two decades at Skyline, and another two at Laney College. He dedicated his entire adult life to this community, his adopted hometown. We were lucky, and honored, to have him. He will be deeply missed.

(Oakland Tribune, November 25, 1989)

(Oakland Tribune, November 28, 1989)

(Oakland Tribune, February 6, 1992)

(Oakland Tribune, December 31, 1993)

(Oakland Tribune, February 18, 1996)

(Oakland Tribune, February 6, 1997)

(Oakland Tribune, December 16, 2002)

(Oakland Tribune, June 16, 2004)

(Oakland Tribune, June 17, 2004)

(Laney Tower, February 14, 2019)

(East Bay Times, August 9, 2019)

(East Bay Times, July 23, 2020)