Filippi, Louis

https://reflections.mndigital.org/catalog/stc:6831#/kaltura_audio

Biographical Information: Louis Filippi was born on March 1, 1920 in Keewatin, Minnesota. His parents came from Pravigula, Italy in 1910. They settled in Keewatin, Minnesota, in the Iron Range, where his father worked in the mines. Filippi graduated from Downing High School in 1939, and decided, as many of his friends in the Iron Range did, to attend St. Cloud State University to become a teacher. During his years there he excelled at sports, especially football and basketball. Filippi graduated from St. Cloud State in 1943. After college, Filippi entered the service, despite having a contract with the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles. His time in the military took him from New Guinea to the Phillipines. When he finally returned to the United States in 1946, he opted out of his contract with the Eagles and moved to Little Falls, Minnesota, to work as a coach and teacher. He also coached high school sports, and even worked as a professional referee in the NCAA for 11 years. He married his wife in 1962, with whom he had six children.

Transcript Summary: Filippi detailed his family background. He discussed that his parents came from Italy before World War I and settled in the Iron Range. He also talked about growing up in the Iron Range, and the camaraderie that he formed with the other kids, whose parents also came from Europe. Filippi discussed his motivations for attending St. Cloud State, including the fact that two of his favorite goalies, Frank Brimsek and Sam Lopresti, attended the university. He was also encouraged to attend by Coach Ed Colletti.

Filippi chronicled his time at St. Cloud State. He discussed those teachers he particularly admired, such as Roland Torgerson and George Lynch. Filippi mentioned that he lived with other Iron Range men throughout his college career, and that they tended to stick together because of that common bond. Filippi described his involvement with sports. Initially he was in football, baseball, basketball, and track, until he had to drop track and baseball because of the war. He also discussed the effects that events such as the Depression and World War II had on his college career, including the B-7 Program, which allowed students to stay in college during the war.

Filippi described his impressions of St. Cloud State and its students. For example, he discussed the socioeconomic backgrounds of most of the students, believing that most were of lower-income families. Filippi claimed that most of the students he knew were willing and eager to have jobs while going to school. He also discussed the "esprit de corps" among the students, claiming that they had an immense pride in the school and were very involved in supporting the school at most functions. Filippi explained his impressions of the relationship between the city of St. Cloud and the university, stating that the community was supportive of the college, but not strong and adamant supporters of its activities. Filippi described his post-college career, including his time as a professional referee in the NCAA, as well as his time as a teacher and coach in Little Falls, Minnesota.