Everyone knew that Dave Clapham was a talented athlete when he
was a boy, but no one, perhaps, could have guessed that his true
talent would be working with kids, even those on whom society had
all but given up.
Hollister – Everyone knew that Dave Clapham was a talented athlete when he was a boy, but no one, perhaps, could have guessed that his true talent would be working with kids, even those on whom society had all but given up.
“I really respected the teachers and coaches I had in high school,” he said. “They always seemed to enjoy what they did, and I felt it was important work.”
Clapham attended the University of Nevada in Reno on a football scholarship, where he earned his teaching credential. Upon graduating, he worked as a substitute teacher for six months, but didn’t find the work as fulfilling as he had hoped. When a position opened up for a probation counselor at Reno’s juvenile hall, he decided to go for a change of pace and applied.
“I hadn’t even considered working in the criminal justice system,” he said. “But as it turns out, the work is really interesting, and satisfying personally.”
Clapham worked in Reno for two years before returning to his native San Jose and taking a job with the Santa Clara juvenile hall, where he still works today part time.
Clapham married his wife Lauren in 1982 and the couple moved to Hollister in 1986 to start a family, when Clapham took on a coaching job at San Benito High School in addition to his work with Santa Clara County. He coached freshman and varsity football until 2003, and while he entertained the idea of teaching at SBHS full time, he decided to stay in the field of juvenile corrections.
“Teaching high school students, or being a coach, and working with kids in the justice system, isn’t as different as you’d think,” he said. “You’re still working with kids and families, and you still want to help them grow up into the best adults they can possibly be. They just need some help getting back on the right track.”
Clapham worked very closely with many children at the Santa Clara juvenile hall, some of whom impacted him deeply. One of his students went on to hold a prominent position with the city of Hollister, and the two were reunited when Clapham moved to town.
“It was great to see how well he had done for himself,” he said. “He thanked me for the work I had done with him. It was really kind of cool.”
Today, Clapham enjoys hunting and fishing with his friends as well as his two sons, J.D., 20 and Adam, 17. Sometimes, he enjoys fishing a little too much, such as the time he dove in after a fish that came free of his hook, and wrestled it onto the shore.
“That was a twelve pound cutthroat trout,” he said. “We had it for dinner, and believe me, that was a delightful piece of fish.”
Clapham would like to take up travel to exotic locales, like New Zealand or England, but for now, he’s content exploring California.
“There’s so much to see and do in this state, it’s really amazing,” he said. “You can go up to the Sierras or the ocean, but at the end of the day I really like coming back to Hollister. It’s home.”
