For professional athletes, aside from winning their respective sport’s championship, there is nothing more rewarding than being inducted into a Hall of Fame. It’s the pinnacle of athletic accomplishment, an eternal resting place for the greatest figures in sports history.

For the 99 percent of talented athletes who never make it to their sport’s biggest stage, joining the company of Babe Ruth, Jim Brown and Wayne Gretzky continues to be simply a dream. But there are still those worthy of recognition, having competed admirably at the high school level.

Like professional leagues and colleges, high schools have enshrinements of their own for the greatest competitors to represent their institution. It may not be the Naismith Hall of Fame, but for many, it’s equally as rewarding.

Next week, Washington High School will induct new members into its “Walk of Fame,” five golden markers along the “Long Blue Line” of Pam Pack history. Joining some of the greats, including NBA legend Dominique Wilkins, will be Wayne Woolard, Durwood Dixon, Oscar Smith and Fred and Lynda Watkins. Woolard, who graduated in 1953, was a three-sport athlete and former Washington Daily News Most Valuable Player for football. Under the tutelage of legendary coach J.G. Choppy Wager, he navigated a gritty defense to three conference championships (’50, ’51, ’52. Dixon graduated in 1958 and left a similar legacy — a three-sport athlete, four-year varsity football starter and Shrine Bowl selection who helped his team reach the state championship in 1956.

Smith, one of the greatest basketball players to wear a Pam Pack jersey, went on to become one of the nation’s leading rebounders at Elizabeth City State and was selected to the All-Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association Team in 1968. Then there are Fred and Lynda Watkins, two dedicated Pam Pack alumni who have been apart of the Washington Athletic Club for years.

High school is arguably the most important time in a person’s life. Life lessons are taught, information absorbed and personalities formed. And while certain sports may lose interest in the coming years, replaced by up-and-coming games like lacrosse and hockey, the names etched along the “Walk of Fame” are timeless.

The ceremony will take place on Friday, Oct. 23, at halftime of Washington’s football game against Beddingfield.