Meet Mike Nordholz! Mike was born in New York, has two children and five grandchildren. He currently holds the record for the most points scored in a basketball game at the University of Alabama. After college, he coached basketball at several high schools and colleges. In 1982, he went into the sporting goods business and has been living in Gainesville ever since.
Question: Please tell us a little bit about you and your family.
Answer: “I was born in a little town in upstate New York. My mother and father were born and raised in Chicago. Then my dad went to work in New York, and we moved to Marietta in 1952. I went to Osborne High School in Marietta and graduated there. After that, I attended the University of Alabama. In 1977, I came to Gainesville to coach basketball at what was then Gainesville Junior College, which is now North Georgia. I coached basketball for five years, and then I got into the sporting goods business, where I’ve been ever since. I have two boys, Kris, who lives here in Gainesville and has his own internet marketing company called Full Media, and Kari, who lives in Buford and runs his own investment company specializing in commercial real estate.”
Q: You were recently inducted to the Osborne High School Hall of Fame. Can you tell us about that?
A: “Osborne High School just had their inaugural class Hall of Fame. They elected three of us for the first class. It was pretty special. They had a nice ceremony, and a brunch. It was pretty unusual to be recognized by your high school 60 years after graduation.”
Q: We heard that you had the most points scored in a basketball game at Alabama, right?
A: “I scored 50 points at the University of Alabama, and the record still holds. It was in 1966 and the record to stand that long is kind of unusual. It’s been fun.”
Q: Do you have a favorite pro or college basketball team right now?
A: “Well, college Alabama, of course. Growing up, I was a big Boston Sonics fan and Dodgers fan in baseball. But I’m not a big pro sports fan now, more of a college guy. Those were the two, I guess, when I was growing up, that I enjoyed. Of course, we didn’t have the exposure that they have now. They’re on television every game if you want to find them.”
Q: What is your favorite restaurant in Hall County? And what do you love there?
A: “There are so many good ones in Hall County. Long Street, of course, and Taco Mac. I’m pretty much a basic guy: wings, chicken, potatoes, and fries. Growing up, my mother, being from Chicago, it was all pretty much meat and potatoes so that’s kind of the way I am.”
Q: How long have you lived or worked in Hall County?
A: “We moved here in 1977, I worked in the Junior College for five years. And then I was in the sporting goods business for 38 years. Before I came to Gainesville Junior College, I coached at Rockville County High School.”
Q: Who is the most interesting person you’ve met in Hall County and why?
A: “There have been some interesting people for sure. Cris Carpenter, I know you may know him, he teaches at Gainesville High School and played pro baseball and basketball. A good friend of mine, David McConnell, teaches at Gainesville High School. We go to some ball games together and I enjoy being around him, listening to his insight into all things. I really appreciate all the support he gives to Gainesville High School. He’s at all events, doesn’t matter if it’s football, basketball, baseball, tennis. He does everything, so I really appreciate that he does that. And there were some other friends that have passed away but I’d say those two I’ve enjoyed.”
Q: What is your favorite childhood memory?
A: “Probably just growing up, I had a great family. My mother, my father and my brother were really good. I had a lot of wonderful experiences and it was because of them.”
Q: If you could travel anywhere in the world right now, where would it be?
A: “I’ve been to Europe, Spain, and France, and I did a Mediterranean cruise. I guess Japan, I just like to see their culture. But 10 or 15 years ago, I might have said China. I don’t know if that’s a good place to go, not now. I probably would’ve liked somewhere in the Far East, so I think Asia would probably be a good spot.”
Q: What is the first movie you remember seeing in a theater?
A: “It was an Elvis Presley movie. I’m going to say ‘Don’t Be Cruel,’ I think it was, or something like that was the first one I remember. We used to go to the theater every Saturday morning for a double feature. My mother would always give me a dollar, and I would go buy a ticket and popcorn and coke with just a dollar.”
Q: What advice would you give a crowd of people?
A: “Behave. When you get a crowd of people, it seems like they all want to argue and push and shove and everything like that, but just behave, I guess would be the thing I would say.”
Q: What is something on your bucket list?
A: “I was thinking about that the other day, and I’ve been fortunate, I don’t know of anything that really stands out that I would want to do.”
Q: What’s your favorite music or three bands you would like to see dead or alive?
A: “I guess Elvis, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and Taylor Swift. Her whole story is amazing. It is absolutely amazing that she can write all those songs. I think Olivia went to a show in Atlanta and she said that she sang 38 songs for over three hours or so.”
Q: What local business makes you the most nostalgic about Hall County and why?
A: “Long Street, probably because of Tim Bunch. I remember when he worked at a restaurant and now it’s one of the most successful restaurants in Gainesville.”
Q: Choosing anyone with whom would you love to have lunch? And where locally would y’all have this lunch?
A: “Sandy Koufax. He was a major league pitcher. And I would take him anywhere he wants to go.”
Q: What’s your favorite thing about Hall County?
A: “The people. It is a friendly place, and everybody mostly seems to get along and have the same goals.”
Q: Where do you see yourself in five to 10 years?
A: “Hope I’m still here. When you get to be my age, you just kind of take it one day at a time but fortunately, knock on wood, my health’s very good.I was talking to a friend of mine who’s really struggling with some heart issues, and I was telling him that I’ve been so lucky with health, but of course, next week everything might fall apart. I’d just probably be doing the same things I’m doing now… you go to their ball games, plays, and band recitals and all that so it keeps you busy.”
Q: What three words mean home to you?
A: “My kids and grandkids, I guess that’s about it, really. They mean everything to me.”
