Great-grandchildren of Hall of Famer Mel Hein continue family sports tradition

Sports has been part of the Hein family tree seemingly forever.

Mel Hein is a New York Giants legend and member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. His son, Mel Jr., was a standout pole vaulter at USC, setting a world record, and later became track coach at Taft. He died in 2020. He and his wife, Judy, had three boys, Gary, Curtis and Cody, all of whom were sports stars at Taft.

Gary won a City title in the hurdles at Taft and was a cornerback at Cal. Curtis played football at USC after an All-City career at Taft. Cody was the City Section volleyball player of the year in 1990 and became the women’s volleyball coach at Chico State until his death at age 47 from a heart condition

It’s time for a Hein family update because sports remains a driving force, and Judy is one proud grandmother.

Gary has three children. One graduated from Indiana, another, Cade, is running cross country at Cal Poly, and Brandon is playing club rugby in college. Curtis has three children. Daughter Josephine won the Southern Section 100-meter butterfly at Calabasas and is headed to LSU. Dylan played quarterback for Chaminade’s freshman team and will be at Calabasas this fall. Audrey is 10 and running track.

The late Cody’s three sons live in Chico with their mother. Austin is a junior in high school running cross country and track. Jackson is a sophomore running track. Davis is 10 and playing baseball.

The Hein grandchildren are keeping grandmother Judy busy. She loves it.