The Trailblazing Track Trilogy at Trimble Tech High. How Three Young Women Changed Texas Track History—One Five-Mile Run at a Time.
The Trailblazing Track Trilogy at Trimble Tech High. How Three Young Women Changed Texas Track History—One Five-Mile Run at a Time.
The Extraordinary Story of Ellen Smith Robinson, Evelyn Smith Golden & Donna Thomas Wilson
Three Champions. Three Journeys. One Enduring Legacy.
By Pastor Kyev P. Tatum, Sr.
FORT WORTH, Texas — Every generation has its legendary teams.
Teams that redefine excellence.
Teams whose accomplishments become the standard by which everyone else is measured.
Yet some of the greatest stories in Texas sports history have never received the full recognition they deserve.
This is one of those stories.
Fifty years ago, on the south side of Fort Worth, a remarkable group of young women from Green B. Trimble Technical High School quietly built one of the most memorable chapters in Texas high school track and field.
They were not celebrities.
They were not household names.
They were simply teenagers with extraordinary determination, an exceptional coach, and a willingness to outwork everyone else.
Today, fifty years later, their story is finally stepping into the spotlight.
The Road That Built Champions
Most championship teams measure success in seconds.
This team measured it in miles.
Every weekday, members of the Trimble Tech girls’ track team left their campus and ran 2.5 miles to Farrington Field for practice.
When practice ended, they ran 2.5 miles back.
Five miles every day.
Not because someone forced them.
Because champions understand that greatness is earned long before the starting gun sounds.
Those daily runs became more than conditioning.
They became a philosophy.
Five miles taught discipline.
Five miles taught sacrifice.
Five miles taught accountability.
Five miles taught resilience.
Every step reminded them that there are no shortcuts to excellence.
Long before they stood atop victory stands, they had already conquered something much more important.
They had conquered themselves.
Three Women Who Helped Build a Legacy
Among those remarkable athletes emerged three women whose lives would forever become connected to the history of Texas track and field.
Ellen Smith Robinson.
Evelyn Smith Golden.
Donna Thomas Wilson.
Together, they helped lead Green B. Trimble Technical High School to four Texas state championships, creating a championship culture whose influence continues to be felt five decades later.
But championships alone do not explain their significance.
Character does.
Their commitment inspired teammates.
Their work ethic elevated expectations.
Their success demonstrated what becomes possible when talent meets discipline and opportunity meets preparation.
They became champions.
More importantly, they became trailblazers.
Beyond the Finish Line
Unlike many athletic stories, this one did not end with a state championship trophy.
It continued.
Ellen Smith Robinson and Evelyn Smith Golden carried their championship tradition to Texas A&M University, where each earned All-America honors becoming the first black women athletes for track and field.
Donna Thomas Wilson continued her distinguished collegiate career at North Texas State University before completing it at Texas Christian University, becoming the first athlete to earn All-America recognition in track at both institutions.
The same discipline that carried them through five miles each day carried them through college, careers, families, and lives of leadership.
Championships became part of who they were—not simply something they won.
More Than a Sports Story
At first glance, this appears to be a story about track.
It is not.
It is a story about believing in something bigger than yourself.
It is a story about teammates becoming sisters.
It is a story about coaches shaping lives.
It is a story about parents making sacrifices.
It is a story about a public school that became a proving ground for excellence.
It is a story about Black women whose accomplishments helped expand what young women believed they could achieve.
Most of all, it is a story about what happens when ordinary people commit themselves to extraordinary discipline.
Why This Story Matters Now
As America commemorates its 250th Anniversary in 2026, communities across the nation are rediscovering the local stories that helped shape the American experience.
Some stories were written in government buildings.
Some were written on battlefields.
Others were written on school tracks, where young people learned that perseverance could change the trajectory of a life.
The story of the Trimble Tech Trailblazers belongs among those stories.
It belongs to Fort Worth.
It belongs to Texas.
It belongs to America.
Because the American story is not only about famous people.
It is also about ordinary citizens who quietly achieved extraordinary things.
The Trailblazing Track Trilogy
To preserve this remarkable history, we have authored The Trailblazing Track Trilogy at Trimble Tech High, a three-volume historical work chronicling the lives, careers, and enduring legacy of Ellen Smith Robinson, Evelyn Smith Golden, and Donna Thomas Wilson.
More than a sports biography, the trilogy captures an era when determination overcame obstacles, when teamwork forged lifelong bonds, and when five miles a day became the foundation for championship excellence.
It is a story that has waited fifty years to be told.
It is a story that deserves to be remembered.
And it is a story that will inspire generations yet to come.
One practice.
Five miles.
One team.
Four state championships.
Three extraordinary women.
One enduring legacy.
The race ended years ago.
The legacy is still running.
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