— Effie Milam struggled as a crowd of Muskogee High School students chanted her name.

Milam, the mother of Army Maj. Ron D. Milam, who died in the 9/11 attacks on the Pentagon, was standing on the basketball court her son used to star on, in the gymnasium bearing his name.

Finally, after a few attempts, the ball she tossed dropped through the basket. Students too young to have seen Ron D. Milam play point guard for the Roughers in the 1980s  erupted.

And Effie Milam, smiling from ear to ear, waved to the crowd.

“That felt good,” she said. “It felt good to know they still remember my son.

“I was just thinking about Ron. I’d walk into this gym when he played, screaming and yelling and he’d be like ‘Oh, there goes my mom again.’”

Hundreds of MHS students walked to the Ron. D. Milam Memorial Gymnasium on Tuesday to honor the man who MHS’ track and cross country coach, Angie Hillmon, said gave the ultimate sacrifice.

The walk was Hillmon’s brainchild. She said she wanted MHS students to understand not just the events of 9/11, but who Ron D. Milam was and what he had done.

“These students are all too young to know who he was,” she said. “This is a way to introduce them to Ron.”

In a presentation, Effie Milam received 11 flowers from 11 MHS students in honor of the 11 years it’s been since her son was killed.

“I need a hug,” she told the students as each stopped and spoke to her. “Somebody better hug me.”

Milam said she thinks of MHS staff and students as her family.

“After teaching here eight years, and seeing the love they’ve showed me, it means a lot,” she said. “This is my extended family. They’ve given me so much encouragement over the years.”

David Beasley, MHS’ starting point guard, handed a basketball to Milam to honor the bridge between Ron Milam’s years as a Rougher and Beasley’s current team.

But not before Beasley made a few symbolic shots.

“It was a great feeling,” he said. “I never got to see him play, but a lot of the older players that played with Ron said he was a vocal leader. So that’s what I try to be on the court.

“I’m sure if he was still here, he could teach me a whole lot.”

Reach Dylan Goforth at (918) 684-2903 or dgoforth@muskogeephoenix.com.