The first strides in formally recognizing the great athletes in Clinton’s past have been taken with the establishment of the Clinton Athletics Hall of Fame (CAHOF). Now, the organization needs community help to get up and running before it elects its first class this fall.

Earlier this month the CAHOF had its first official meeting, establishing bylaws and electing an executive board that consists of Paul Gebauer as president, Willie Fritz as vice president, Mary Catherine Viera as secretary, and Mike Spotts as treasurer. Chris Aniskovich, Chris Passante, Jeff Farmer, and Jane Scully Welch are also members of the board.

Gebauer said that the group has no official connection to either the town or The Morgan School and is a registered 501c3 non-profit. Gebauer said the group will meet twice a month for the next few months as the members work to get the new organization off and running.

Now that the group is officially formed, Gebauer said that the group will need help from the public.

“We’re really going to need fundraising. We have an account set up where people can donate,” said Gebauer.

Those interesting in donating can send a check made out to Clinton Athletic Hall of Fame to P.O. Box 112, Clinton CT 06413.

“We also really need someone who can do Facebook and set a good website up for us. We all do it a little bit, but we need someone who really knows what they’re doing with Facebook and a website,” said Gebauer.

It’s especially important to have the website and donations set up soon, because Gebauer said the group is hoping to move ahead fairly quickly with honoring some of Clinton’s past athletes.

“We’re looking to have the first class elected in October, so we need to have a nominations committee and mechanism set up soon,” said Gebauer.

Getting Started

Gebauer attended an induction ceremony at the Madison Athletic Hall of Fame last October and recalls saying to the person next to him, “I’m going to start one of these in Clinton.” So he did.

“I fired off a ton of emails one Sunday morning and tried to get a group together. It’s a fun, positive, civic thing and I think it’ll be a pretty big deal to some people,” said Gebauer.

Gebauer said that the idea was met with enthusiasm by those whom he contacted and that people jumped in quickly to help get the ball rolling.

“Willie [Fritz] was really was great about getting the 501c3 set up and I’m really happy to have him involved in town again. We also had some people from the Madison Hall of Fame come by and give us some tips that really got us going,” said Gebauer.

Gebauer said that an athletic hall of fame is not a novel concept as several towns in the area have one and that it provides a way for the community to celebrate people that contributed to the town in more ways than one.

“Sports are a big parts of peoples’ lives, whether it was playing, coaching, helping out in some way, and we want to recognize those people,” said Gebauer.

Gebauer said that though the Clinton organization isn’t associated with the town or school system, both have been supportive after he reached out to tell them that Clinton was interested in starting a hall of fame.

“There’s been an amazing amount of support all over. This thing has been a long time coming,” said Gebauer.

The Future

Gebauer said that while the goal of getting the first class inducted this year remains set, the details are still being ironed out. Gebauer said he’s thinking about having an induction dinner on a Thursday night honoring the inductees and then the next night the members would be recognized at halftime of either a football game or basketball game.

Additionally, Gebauer said that some hall of fames are able to make enough money that they award scholarships to student athletes who are going to college.

“That could potentially be something we could look into,” said Gebauer.

Gebauer said donations are welcome.

Eligibility

“This is not The Morgan Hall of Fame, it’s the Clinton Hall of Fame,” said Gebauer. “So that opens it up to coaches, contributors, anyone who has done a lot overall.”

The loose criteria for nominations are as follows:

Athletes must have graduated at least 10 years ago and have made significant achievements in their sports as demonstrated by stats, awards, or press clippings. Post-graduate success can also be considered.

Coaches and administrators must have long-term contributions to athletics.

Under the bylaws, outstanding teams will be eligible for induction, as well as deceased contributors.

“This won’t just be for things like being all state or a state championship, but those will certainly help a case as well as stats and newspaper articles highlighting achievements,” said Gebauer.

Those interested in helping with the website can email Gebauer at paulgebauer5@yahoo.com.