DENVER — The Selection Committee of the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame voted six individuals — including Ed McCaffrey, Carol Callan and Chuck Williams — to be inducted at the 57th annual banquet, set for May 4 at the Hilton Denver City Center (1701 California St.).

Joining three-time Super Bowl-winning receiver McCaffrey, longtime USA Basketball women’s national team director Callan, and former University of Colorado and Denver East standout basketball player Williams as May inductees were high school athlete extraordinaire Darnell McDonald, key Colorado sports facilitator Roger Kinney, and boxer DaVarryl Williamson when the Class of 2022 was selected today. The Selection Committee will pick the 2021 Athletes of the Year at a January 2022 meeting as the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame recognizes collegiate, high school and Olympic/Pro athletes at the Hilton Denver City Center banquet.

Ed McCaffrey has been a fixture on the Colorado sports scene for most of the last quarter-century, first helping the Broncos win two Super Bowls in the late 1990s, then as a head coach at Valor Christian and now at the University of Northern Colorado.

McCaffrey played nine seasons for the Broncos (1995-2003) and 13 overall in the NFL. After winning one Super Bowl ring with the San Francisco 49ers, he earned two in Denver, including Super Bowl XXXIII, when he caught five passes for 72 yards. Overall for his NFL career, he had 565 receptions for 7,422 yards and 55 touchdowns, with 462 receptions, 6,200 yards and 46 TDs coming with the Broncos. He was selected a Pro Bowler in 1998 and was named to the Broncos 50th anniversary team.

After his playing career, McCaffrey has long run a summer football camp, coached Valor Christian to the 5A state high school title in 2018, then was named head coach at UNC in December 2019. Ed and Lisa McCaffrey’s four sons have all been football standouts, including Christian McCaffrey, a mainstay of the Carolina Panthers’ offense since 2017.

Carol Callan recently concluded her stellar 25-year run as women’s national team director, fittingly as the Americans won the gold medal at the Olympics in Tokyo. It was the seventh Olympic gold medal — to go along with five world championships — with Callan steering the ship. The gold-clinching 90-75 victory over Japan marked the 55th consecutive win in Olympic competition for the Americans.

Though Callan has stepped down as team director, she remains president of FIBA Americas. “She’s been the heart and soul of the women’s national team,” USA Basketball CEO Jim Tooley said. “She’s a selfless person with no ego. She’s been a great mentor and leader and example for women’s basketball. She has a great passion for it. She makes it so that the players just have to play and the coaches just have to coach and that’s where the selflessness comes in. That’s why she’s been so successful.”

Callan is a former girls basketball coach and athletic director at Fairview High School, leading the Knights to a state title as a coach. She’s also long served as an analyst on radio for University of Colorado women’s basketball.

Callan recently was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame.

Chuck Williams was a standout athlete in basketball, football and track at Denver East and helped the Angels win state titles in basketball (1964) and football (1963). He stayed in state to play basketball at CU, earning three letters (1965-68). As a Buff, he averaged 11.8 points and 4.3 rebounds, upping his norm to 18 points per game as a senior, when he earned All-Big Eight honorable mention honors.

Williams has been inducted into the Halls of Fame for CU athletics, the Colorado High School Activities Association and Denver East.

After being selected in the sixth round of the 1968 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers — but beginning his pro career in the ABA — Williams played eight seasons in the ABA/NBA, being named an ABA All-Star twice. He played — in separate stints — for both the Denver Rockets and the Nuggets. Overall for his pro career, Williams averaged 10.8 points and 4.5 assists per game.

Darnell McDonald is considered one of the top all-around high school athletes Colorado has ever produced. Competing in football and baseball, he led Cherry Creek to three consecutive state titles in both sports in the late 1990s.

In just three football seasons, McDonald rushed for 6,121 yards and scored 83 touchdown. On the diamond, he started for four years and hit .581 with 15 home runs as a junior and .606 with 10 homers as a senior, earning national baseball player of the year honors from Baseball America. Twice he was named the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame’s High School Athlete of the Year.

Faced with a tough decision on which sport to pursue after high school, McDonald passed on a football/baseball offer from the University of Texas, choosing to sign with the Baltimore Orioles organization. He ended up playing parts of seven seasons in the major leagues, hitting .250 with 20 home runs and 83 runs batted in in 331 games.

Roger Kinney was a pivotal player in bringing the 1990 NCAA basketball men’s Final Four to Denver’s McNichols Arena and also helped behind the scenes in efforts to lure a Major League Baseball franchise to Colorado.

Kinney led the Denver Organizing Committee from 1986-90, which led to the 1990 NCAA Final Four, two NCAA Regionals and the Mile High Classic being played in Denver.

Kinney went on to work for the Colorado Rockies in their early years (1990-2002) in community affairs, serving as executive director of the Colorado Rockies Foundation. He also was a key player in the effort to have the University of Colorado and Colorado State University square off in football in Denver.

As an athlete himself, Kinney played baseball at Denver East and CU, winning the 1955 Denver prep batting title with a .429 average.

DaVarryl Williamson didn’t formally taking up boxing until age 25 after playing football at Wayne State in Nebraska, but once he did get in the ring, she shined.

Williamson ended up winning 10 national titles and posting a 120-17-1 record, with 103 knockouts, in the amateur ranks. Twice he claimed a championship in National Golden Gloves (1996 and ’99) and he was the United States national heavyweight champion from 1996-98. He earned a silver medal at the 1998 Goodwill Games and was the first alternate for the U.S. Olympic boxing team in 1996. With a powerful right hand, he earned the nickname “Touch of Sleep.”

Williamson turned pro at age 32 and racked up a 27-8 record, with 23 knockouts. Williamson grew up in Washington D.C., but now resides in Aurora. He was the first heavyweight contender from the Denver area since Ron Lyle in the 1970s.

Tickets for the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame Banquet are $200 each and Sponsor tables start at $2,500. For additional ticket and table information, please phone the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame (www.coloradosports or  720-258-3535). The Colorado Sports Hall of Fame & Museum is located at Gate 1 on the west side of Empower Field at Mile High at 1701 Bryant Street in Denver.

Since its inception in 1965, the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame has inducted 270 individuals prior to Tuesday’s selection meeting. The first class of inductees featured Earl “Dutch” Clark, Jack Dempsey and former Supreme Court Justice Byron “Whizzer” White. Alonzo Babers, Bob Gebhard, George Gwozdecky, Terry Miller, Erin Popovich and Lindsey Vonn were inducted into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame last month.

The International Sports Heritage Association’s long-time Executive Director, Karen Bednarski will be stepping down to pursue other opportunities after the 2021 Virtual Conference on October 31.

Bednarski became Executive Director in 2005 after an extensive career in the sport heritage industry.  Bednarski held the role as curator at the USGA Museum (1986-1996) and Director of the World Golf Hall of Fame (1996-2001).  During this time, she also served on the ISHA Board of Directors (1997-2001) and then became the Executive Director of the Golf Collectors Society (2003-2017).

During her tenure, Bednarski can be credited with assisting in growing the associations annual conference, doubling ISHA’s operating budget, adding grant programs, expanding awards, among other upgrades to member relations.

“Working with Karen during my service on the ISHA Board of Directors has been so fulfilling”, ISHA President, Dana Hart, from the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame notes. “Her dedication to the organization can easily be seen in every board meeting, all correspondence and her desire to see ISHA grow”.

ISHA would like to thank Bednarski for her time and commitment to growing and bettering our association.

Bednarski would like to share with all ISHA members, “It has been a sincere pleasure to serve ISHA since 2005 and I am grateful for the opportunity, as well as the many friends and acquaintances I’ve made over the last 16 years. I wish ISHA only the best as the Association moves forward.”

Hiring for Bednarski’s replacement will begin immediately.

The International Sports Heritage Association (ISHA) and its Conference Committee has decided to transition our in-person conference, which was scheduled to be held at the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island in October, to a virtual conference.

ISHA President Dana Hart said, “Although we were hoping to return to an in-person conference this year, due to the impact of the pandemic, it was determined a virtual conference would provide the best access to the greatest number of members.”

The International Tennis Hall of Fame will remain as the virtual host for “The Grand Slam”. The two-day virtual conference will be held on October 27 & 28 and offer a schedule of diverse sessions designed to engage all of our members.

The most important time on the International Sports Heritage Association’s calendar is the annual conference held in the fall. Delegates from around the world will come together, virtually this year, to learn/ share best practices, meet new vendors, network, and share in the joy of representing the preservation and celebration of the world’s sports history. We invite you to take part in this year’s virtual event and benefit from its business opportunities.

Click Here for More Information and to Register

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Longsjo Middle School’s (Fitchburg, Mass.) Becky Colo has been named the Patriots Hall of Fame presented by Raytheon Technologies Massachusetts STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) Teacher of the Year. Patriots Chairman and CEO Robert Kraft announced Colo as the STEM Teacher of the Year today, and her school will receive $5,000 to be used for STEM education. Colo will also serve for one year on the governor’s STEM Council.

“Congratulations to Becky Colo,” Kraft said in his announcement. “She is doing outstanding work to inspire our next generation of STEM professionals. Congratulations to all the nominees and the other four finalists.”

“It’s a tremendous honor to receive this prestigious award,” Colo said. “I want to thank the Kraft family and Raytheon Technologies for their support of STEM programs and for teachers overall. To be selected a finalist was an honor, but I am thrilled to be named the Massachusetts STEM Teacher of the Year.”

Colo uses blended book studies to provide students an opportunity to describe and question the world around them. “Reading and discussing the books helps students to understand the changes that are taking place in our biosphere and the related cause and effects,” she said. “It also connected them to real life STEM professionals to help them develop a picture of what a scientist is beyond the image of a man in a white lab coat. The hands-on lab work we do in relation to the books provides them with a deeper understanding of the specific scientific concepts that are mentioned.”

Outside of her classroom, Colo runs a STEM Club that encompasses spatial skill games, 3D design and printing, virtual reality tour creation, a STEM book club, and various hands-on STEM activities. She also has offered JV Inventeam, MathCounts, and a Road to College as well as an after-school math league team open to all students. Additionally, Colo plans and runs an ecology-based trip to the White Mountains for sixth graders where students learn about the geographical history of New England, local ecosystems, conservation, and mountaineering. She also facilitates common planning time with colleagues to show examples and strategies that inspire more interest and engagement within their own classes.

“My students’ interests are what motivate me; so my classes are constantly changing and evolving as different students come along with different passions, curiosities, and questions,” Colo said. “When students learn to 3D print, code, create virtual reality tours, build a hydroponic garden or create stop-motion animation videos to show their learning, I’ve learned new skills along with them. My reason for teaching is to help my students find their own reasons for learning so their education can never be limited by my current knowledge or experience.”

When the Covid-19 pandemic shut down in-classroom learning in the spring of 2020, Colo sought to maintain connections and sent each of her students a box of STEM-related books and launched a virtual book club. Students shared reflections and made recommendations to each other. She also presented students with at-home engineering challenges requiring minimal materials to continue promote screen-free hands-on learning.

Colo was a finalist for the Massachusetts STEM Teacher of the Year award in 2019.

Moriah Illsley, The Hall’s Education Coordinator, congratulated Colo for being named the Patriots Hall of Fame presented by Raytheon Technologies Massachusetts STEM Teacher of the Year.

“Becky is such an inspiring teacher who has developed her own styles to motivate and teach STEM to her middle school students,” Illsley said. “Her use of blended book studies is an innovative way to reach students and allow them the freedom to discover. It also allowed her to quickly pivot when the pandemic abruptly halted in-class learning. She maintained critical connections while creating a STEM-related book club that allowed students to explore individual interests and share reflections with her and their classmates. Selecting the STEM Teacher of the Year is never and easy decision, but there is no doubt that Becky is deserving. On behalf of the selection committee, I want to congratulate her for this award.”

Colo was chosen from a group of five finalists. The other four teachers’ schools will each receive $1,000 for STEM education courtesy of Raytheon Technologies.

Those teachers are:

  • Tammy Rumplik – Granger and James Clark Elementary School (Agawam)
  • Jim Gorman – Nipmuc Regional High School (Upton)
  • Ralph Saint Louis – Lowell High School
  • Asha Von Ruden – Mount Everett Regional Middle and High School (Sheffield)

Hall Executive Director Bryan Morry thanked fellow selection committee members Allison Little and Keith Connors from the Department of Higher Education, Alexis Lian from the Executive Office of Education, Meto Raha from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, and Illsley for their work in selecting this year’s STEM Teacher of the Year.

“Each of these individuals has shown a tremendous commitment to honoring excellence in STEM education and recognizing and supporting some of the best educators in the state,” Morry said. “They commit a great deal of time and energy to this process, and we could not complete it without their efforts.”

ABOUT THE STEM TEACHER OF THE YEAR PROGRAM

The Patriots Hall of Fame launched the STEM Teacher of the Year program in October of 2012 when Robert Kraft announced the initiative at the Massachusetts STEM Summit, held that year at Gillette Stadium. Colo is the ninth recipient of the award. Kelly Powers from the Advanced Math & Science Academy Charter School was the inaugural winner in 2013. Other past winners include Doug Scott from Natick High School in 2014, Kerry Murphy from Oliver Ames High School in 2015, David Mangus from Brockton High School in 2016, Kathleen Malone from Derby Academy in Hingham in 2017, Erin Cronin from Revere High School in 2018, Amanda Hough from Mashpee Middle-High School in 2019, and Tori Cameron from the Gordon W. Mitchell School in East Bridgewater in 2020. The STEM Teacher of the Year award is part of the Patriots Hall of Fame’s education program, which offers students in grades 4-12 standards-based educational modules in a fun, entertaining setting. The Hall typically hosts more than 20,000 school field trip visitors annually.

ABOUT THE PATRIOTS HALL OF FAME PRESENTED BY RAYTHEON TECHNOLOGIES

Through a dazzling array of interactive multimedia exhibits and artifacts, The Patriots Hall of Fame showcases the tradition of the New England Patriots, explores the history of football in New England and promotes math and science education for thousands of schoolchildren each year. The Hall’s signature exhibit is the Super Bowl Experience. Visitors to the interactive exhibit can re-live each of the team’s Super Bowl championships, and view the Vince Lombardi Trophies and Super Bowl championship rings. For more information or to purchase tickets, please visit www.PatriotsHallofFame.com, visit “The Patriots Hall of Fame” on Facebook or follow @TheHall on Twitter and Patriotshall on Instagram.

As historical storytellers, we believe that education leads to conversation, and conversation leads to change. Our new campaign, #WeWillDoBetter shares the stories of marginalized Hall of Famers to raise awareness about systemic racism in Canada. These stories highlight the Hall of Famer’s achievements while increasing awareness about the adversity they have and continue to face. We hope that by creating a platform to share BIPOC Hall of Famers’ stories, we will encourage all Canadians to do better.

The latest #WeWillDoBetter video brings you the story of Hall of Famer, CFL legend and former Lieutenant Governor of Alberta, Norm “Normie” Kwong. The other seven Hall of Famers highlighted in this campaign to-date include Damon Allen, Dr. Phil Edwards, Ferguson “Fergie” Jenkins, Harry Jerome, Herb Carnegie, Michael “Pinball” Clemons and Willie O’Ree. Click here to view all of our #WeWillDoBetter videos.

From May 1 to May 31, the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame (NSSHF) held its second annual Victory Lap virtual fun run. This year all proceeds raised supported the NSSHF’s Future Hall of Famers Education Program.

Victory Lap is a virtual event that offers participation by donation (pay-what-you-can). Participants can run or walk (or roll for wheelchair athlete participants) to complete kms, with the goal of collectively accumulating enough kms to go all the way around Nova Scotia as many times as possible– the ultimate victory lap! The event is open to all ages and fitness levels, and, as a virtual event, welcomes participants from anywhere in the world. Participants log their own progress and the NSSHF provides daily updates on maps shared through email and social media. Victory Lap is a virtual route of 2,485 kms around Nova Scotia that is based on an actual set of walking routes mapped on Google Maps.

This year the NSSHF was very pleased to raise over $1,000 for its education program. During a provincial lockdown due to COVID restrictions, participants moved together while apart, achieving two and a half laps of the province (and more than 6,000 kms) in only four weeks!

https://nsshf.com/victory-lap-virtual-fun-run/

The Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame (SSHF) announced its 2021 Induction Class on May 20. The class features five athletes, a builder and two teams. All six individual athletes were Olympians.

The2021 inductees are:

IN THE ATHLETE CATEGORY:

Justin Abdou (Moose Jaw) – Wrestling

Rod Boll (Fillmore) – Trapshooting

Colette Bourgonje (Porcupine Plain) – Track and Cross-Country Skiing

Kaylyn Kyle (Saskatoon) – Soccer

Lyndon Rush (Humboldt) – Bobsleigh

IN THE BUILDER CATEGORY:

Shannon Miller (Tisdale) – Hockey

IN THE TEAM CATEGORY:

2000-01 University of Regina Cougars Women’s Basketball Team

2013 Saskatchewan Roughriders Football Club

This class was selected in 2020, however, their induction was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They will be officially enshrined at such a time that is appropriate and allows for safe communal gathering while following all provincial health guidelines. The SSHF Board has determined that there will not be an induction in 2021. We look forward to announcing an induction date when the above parameters are met.

In the meantime, Colette Bourgonje has joined inductees Ted Jaleta and Lisa Franks to take part in our Never Give Up outreach program. Delivered virtually for 2021, Never Give Up sees our inductees share their inspiring personal story of overcoming adversity with Grades 4-8 students. This year’s edition of the program saw all of our available spots fill in less than two days.

The SSHF currently offers three virtual tours and our Virtual Field Trip program allows our Education Coordinator to present a tour of our current exhibits through online streaming which has allowed students from across the province to experience the SSHF.

Truly for them skiing is not just a sport but a way of life! The Canadian Ski Hall of Fame is proud to welcome our Class of 2019 in a virtual Induction Event.  Please join us for this celebration to be held on June 29, 2021.  Check our Events page LINK for related details.

Our 2019 inductees and soon to be Honored Members include:

Athletes

  • Chandra Crawford, Cross country
  • Ashleigh McIvor, Ski cross
  • Jennifer Heil, Freestyle
  • Lauren Woolstencroft, Para-alpine

Builder and Coach

  • Malcolm Hunter, Builder and Coach

Builder

  • Mike Irwin, Builder
  • Réal Boulanger, Builder (Deceased)
  • William B. Schreiber, Builder

Instructor

  • Lorne McFadgen, Alpine Ski Instructor (Deceased).

CLICK HERE to view their biographies.

On behalf of our Selection Committee and the entire Board of the Canadian Ski Hall of Fame, our sincere congratulations. Welcome to this rarified community of the Canadian Ski Hall of Fame.