For Liz Shimek Moeggenberg, it’s all about home and family. She had a stellar career in college, where she was twice named an All American in women’s basketball. She seamlessly moved on to the professional ranks, playing both in the WNBA and abroad. Yet the lure of home and family was always number one for her, and after concluding her professional career she returned to her hometown of Empire and the family farm on Coleman Road. (In this corner of the county and beyond, people look forward all summer to Shimek’s sweet corn, requesting it by name.)

The family farm is exactly where she was when she learned she will be inducted into the Michigan State University (MSU) Athletics Hall of Fame, along with seven other new members of its 2021 hall of fame class. In addition to an induction ceremony on Sept. 24, there will be a special recognition of the 2021 MSU Athletics Hall of Fame class during the Nebraska versus Michigan State football game at Spartan Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 25, and Moeggenberg’s name will join those on the plaques of 154 previous inductees.

“It’s surreal to think your name will be on a plaque,” Moeggenberg allows, saying she was “speechless” when informed of the honor.

Which is the opposite of everyone else’s reaction. Former teammates, coaches, friends and colleagues let her know how happy they were for her. “All the messages, calls, texts. You don’t realize the people you wouldn’t know on the street who reached out,” she says.

Yet upon reflection, she decided maybe she shouldn’t have been so surprised. She and the team were embraced during her time at MSU by other athletes, the university and local residents. “The community is so supportive. It’s hard to be aware of in the moment. I’m coming to learn as I get older … you have such an impact on the court and back in your community,” she says.

She found others looked up to her, whether the daughters or sisters of friends and acquaintances, young girls in Lansing, or those back home in northern Michigan. “It’s a humbling experience.”

As one of eight named to the Hall of Fame this year, Moeggenberg joins teammate Kristin Haynie along with Mary Kay Itnyre, Diane Spoelstra and Kisha (Kelley) Simpson as the only women’s basketball players to be so honored.

Moeggenberg was a star locally before she ever got to MSU. She was on the varsity team at Glen Lake as a freshman and earned the title of Miss Basketball in Michigan before moving on to MSU. She credits her home life with helping her learn to work hard and be a good teammate. “My work ethic stems from growing up on the farm,” she says proudly.

During Moeggenberg’s four years of college, MSU became a powerhouse, culminating in a trip to the Final Four and a spot in the championship game her junior year. To get there, the team survived a close game against USC in the second round before facing the legendary Pat Summit and Tennessee in the semi-finals. No worries – despite being 16 down at one point, the Spartans came back and won by four.

Even the loss to Baylor in the championship game didn’t diminish the joy of reaching a place MSU had never before been. “You feel like a kid on Christmas morning,” recalls Moeggenberg. “All the hard work from preseason, awful practices, the weight room, 4:30am practices, having it all come together. We felt the pressure but we stuck together.”

That’s not all she got from MSU. It was at college she met her best friend and the love of her life, Luke Moeggenberg. They married while she was playing professionally, and he accompanied her when she played overseas. She missed her family and friends – “I am such a homebody,” she admits – but having her husband with her made it much easier.

Today she and Luke and their four kids live just down the road from where she grew up. Luke runs his own construction company. “I’m so proud of him,” she enthuses.

And Liz is right at home, again. She’s working on the court as an assistant coach at her alma mater. And she’s still – or maybe again – working on the family farm, famed for miles around for its sweet corn. “I’m dad’s right hand person,” she says. “I knew I always wanted to come back home.”