A Tradition of Excellence since 1657

Big Crowd at Dinner Honoring Two Exceptional Coaches

The Huntington Booster Club paid tribute to the remarkable coaching careers of John Paci, Jr. and Mary Paar during a dinner gala that drew a crowd of 240 to the Huntington Crescent Club last Friday night.

The event raised tens of thousands of dollars that will ultimately be used to benefit Huntington’s student-athletes. Over the past seven years, the Booster Club has donated nearly $300,000 to the athletic department, mainly through its grant program.

Dozens of alumni joined a throng of parents, current and former teachers and Blue Devil coaches and many school officials at the dinner, including Superintendent James W. Polansky, Director of Athletics Georgia D. McCarthy, Huntington School Board President Emily Rogan and trustees Bill Dwyer, Bari Fehrs and Jennifer Hebert. Retired trustee and longtime Blue Devil supporter Richard McGrath was also in attendance.

Past Booster Club honorees Charlie Forte, Hutch VanderSchuyt, Steve Henry, Todd Jamison, Pete Sansiviero and Karen Fischer were all on hand, along with 1959 Huntington alum and current New York State Supreme Court Justice W. Gerard Asher. Huntington Highway Superintendent William Naughton and his wife also turned out for the festive affair.

Mr. Paci, who won the Bronze Star while serving with the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War, left a career as an electrical engineer in the defense industry to take up teaching. His 28-year career in the Huntington School District included more than two decades coaching Blue Devil football players.

While it was impossible to find a more competitive football coach, Mr. Paci cared more about the relationships he formed with his players than he did about winning. He told the crowd last Friday night that he often said to his players that while he wanted to win every game, what was even more important to him was that “10 years from now when they were walking down the street and saw me on the other side they would cross over and shake my hand.”

Mr. Paci, who was joined by his immediate and extended family at the dinner, said it has been a pleasure to see so many of his players go on to not only successful playing careers in college and even the NFL, but to become doctors, lawyers, teachers, school administrators, accountants, investment bankers, businessmen and skilled tradesmen.

More than a dozen current and former Blue Devil football coaches were at the dinner to salute their colleague, who was introduced by Wayne Ebanks, a former player who considers Mr. Paci to be a father-figure in his life. Mr. Ebanks is an assistant principal at Half Hollow Hills West High School. Todd Jamison, who quarterbacked several of Mr. Paci’s teams, also spoke movingly of his high school, including tales of some humorous episodes in their long relationship with each other.

Mr. Paci gave credit to his wife for everything from washing the team’s uniforms each week to hosting 60 players every Friday night for pizza and watching game films. “She did everything, including riding the team bus back to Huntington from a summer camp at Duke University while I took my son, John to visit colleges,” he said. Mrs. Paci would help Huntington football players with their homework, term papers and college application essays at her dining room table.

Mary Paar’s Career Celebrated

Mary Paar was joined at the dinner by her former J. Taylor Finley Middle School physical education department teaching colleagues Pete Sansiviero and Charlotte Coronato. Mr. Sansiviero, who was one of Finley’s founding faculty members in 1965, recounted how he met Mrs. Paar while she was a teenager student at Finley. “She was such a hard worker,” he said. “She trained and practiced to be in our gymnastics show and did a wonderful job. It has been such a joy to know her all these years.”

Mrs. Coronato, who was Mrs. Paar’s mentor, beamed throughout the evening, obviously proud of her former student. While Mrs. Paar had stints as a cheerleading, volleyball, field hockey and softball coach, she really left her mark in lacrosse, developing the Huntington girls’ program from scratch and establishing a standard of excellence that has stood the test of time.

Despite knowing next to nothing about the sport, Ray Deren, Huntington’s athletic director at the time, asked Mrs. Paar to coach the Toaz Junior High School boys’ lacrosse team. Shortly after being named the coach, she stumbled upon one of the Blue Devil’s former lacrosse stars, Mark Paar, who graduated from Huntington High School in 1972. He showed up at the team’s practice with two other former players and helped teach Mrs. Paar the sport over the next two years.

Mark and Mary Paar eventually married each other and had two children, Charlie and Sarah, who both enjoyed fine Huntington athletic careers. The Paar family joined its matriarch along with many of her teaching and coaching colleagues at last Friday night’s dinner.

Mrs. Paar became so proficient in the sport of lacrosse that Mr. Deren asked her to start a girls’ program in the district. It didn’t her long to guide the Blue Devil girls’ lacrosse team to the Suffolk championship and take it to the state finals. She sent a string of players to NCAA Division I programs and became one of the top girl’s lacrosse coaches in the country.

“I was blessed with very good players who were also very nice people,” Mrs. Paar said. “They enjoyed the game and worked hard to win. The support that I received through the years from my colleagues and from the community was amazing. I will always be grateful.”

“A Wonderful Evening”

“It was a wonderful evening that recognized two very deserving people in John Paci and Mary Paar,” Huntington Booster Club President Tim Pillion said. “They have devoted their professional careers to nurturing, encouraging and guiding the young people of our community and have done so exceedingly well. Their life’s work

Mr. Pillion’s fellow Huntington Booster Club officers include Denise Goldsmith (treasurer), Christina Plant (events coordinator), Christine Beck (scholarships/fundraising), Pam Reilly (merchandise coordinator), Jodi Biernacki (secretary), Karen Dwyer (grants coordinator), Nancy Forster (membership coordinator) and Judy Weigold (volunteer coordinator). Associate members of the executive board include Joe Mattio (technology coordinator), Brian McDonald (promotions) and Tim Madden (summer camp director). Denise Stieve designed the attractive dinner journal, which Christina Sorrentino helped coordinate.

While Mrs. Dwyer did an “exceptional job” of coordinating last Friday night’s dinner, Mr. Pillion said all of this year’s officers worked hard to make the evening a success. “This is a very dedicated group of volunteers,” he added.

Dozens of baskets stuffed with goods and gift certificates were raffled off. Following an extended cocktail hour, an extensive buffet dinner was enjoyed by the large crowd, which dined on an array of pastas, chicken and vegetable dishes, fish and salads. The dessert table proved to be a popular destination following dinner. It was jammed with a wide assortment of appealing treats. Huntington High School teacher and coach Anthony Troffa, a professional DJ, volunteer his services for the evening and had the dance floor filled until the final minutes of the gala.

Mr. Paci and Mrs. Paar both became emotional during their remarks and many in the crowd choked up, too. The two Blue Devil legends were sent off with standing ovations in tribute to their sensational careers.

 

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