Dalton CRA Hall of Fame Welcomes Class of 2023
DALTON, Mass. -- Included in the Dalton CRA Hall of Fame's Class of 2023 was a two-time inductee who was one of two members of the same family recognized.
Gary Campbell Sr., who was inducted into the hall in 2019's inaugural class for his accomplishments as a coach, entered the hall on Sunday for his exploits as a student-athlete.
And this time around, he was joined by his son, current Wahconah Regional High School football coach Gary Campbell Jr.
The elder Campbell, in additon to being a great coach at Wahconah, was an all-Western Massachusetts player on the gridiron in 1966, '67 and '68 who went on to rush for more than 1,000 yards as a senior at American International College.
On Sunday at the Stationery Factor, Campbell Sr. joined six other athletes inducted into the Hall of Fame as individuals.
He also joined Campbell Jr., one of three coaches enshrined.
The younger Campbell is in his second stint at Wahconah and has more than 200 career wins and eight Western Mass titles on his resume.
He was joined by coaches Bob Boyd and Peter Cimini.
Boyd coached football, basketball and baseball at Wahconah from 1930 to 1942, was a founding member of the Berkshire County Baseball Umpires Association and served as the first president of the Berkshire County Football Officials Association.
Cimini coached baseball and football, helping lead Wahconah to five Class A titles in the fall and a 1973 Western Mass Championship on the diamond.
Speaking of Western Mass champions, the 1986 Wahconah baseball team was inducted on Sunday along with the 2009 girls soccer team.
Several of the individual athletes recognized on Sunday helped hang team banners on the wall at Wahconah:
♦ Liam West was part of two Western Mass Championship teams in soccer and one in baseball.
♦ Anna Renderer Lafata was on three Western Mass Championship teams and a State Championship squad (1996) in soccer).
♦ Gabby Lavinio helped lead Wahconah to three Western Mass titles in softball and the 2011 State Championship along with a 2011 Western Mass basketball crown.
♦ Jerry Lamb was on a Western Mass basketball team at Wahconah, and served as captain of the school's football, basketball and baseball teams.
♦ Fred Barschforf also lettered in those three sports and was a member of Wahconah's state finalist squad in basketball in 1975.
♦ Peter Bacon did not stand out at basketball for Wahconah. Instead, he was a pioneer in another winter sport, scoring the first goal in the Wahconah hockey team's history in 1973. He really made his name in the spring and summer, where won 16 club championships at Wahconah Country Club.
In addition to all those great athletes and coaches, the Dalton CRA Hall of Fame each year recognizes people who contributed to the community's athletic success behind the scenes.
This year, those inductees were Mark Galusha, Ken Whitestone and Crane and Company.
Galusha, who was known as the "Spirit of the Warriors" at Wahconah, was a manager on the school's football, basketball and baseball teams and is the namesake of the Dalton CRA's minor league baseball program.
Whitestone is a familiar face on the sidelines of all Wahconah athletic events, where he takes photos for the various teams. He also served on the CRA's Board of Governors for 10 years and is a longtime member and past president of Wahconah's booster club.
Crane and Company has provided financial support for youth sports and CRA programming for 100 years.
Sunday's festivities featured keynote remarks from State Sen. Paul Mark and the announcment of the Hall of Fame's 2023 Story of the Year, an honor that went to the Dalton CRA itself, which is celebrating its centennial.
