MEDFORD, NJ) - SHAWNEE HIGH SCHOOL: Serving the Communities of Medford, Medford Lakes
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MEDFORD, NJ) - SHAWNEE HIGH SCHOOL: Serving the Communities of Medford, Medford Lakes Shawnee High School would like to announce the Athletic Hall of Fame Inductees for 2007. The induction will be held on Friday, October 5th in the media center of Shawnee High School. Reception and Induction at 5pm in the Media Center. Presentation to the community will take place at the football stadium at 7pm. The Shawnee hall of fame inductees and their biographies follow: Athletes : PATTY ALLEN COATE Class of 1978 LORI BRUNEY-JOHNSTON Class of 1984 MICHELLE DI MURO AVÉ Class of 1985 DEANNA GERMANO SCHARF Class of 1986 KIM THORNE O’BRIEN Class of 1976 RANDY E. WORRELL Class of 1985 Coaches : MICHAEL YURCHO Retired Girls Cross Country and Boys and Girls Track Coach Contributors : RICHARD SOST Retired Teacher, Coach, Counselor, Assistant Principal, and Athletic Director JOHN L. FOX DEANNA GERMANO SCHARF Class of 1986 Deanna Germano Scharf, a member of the Shawnee Girls’ Cross Country, Winter Track, and Spring Track teams from 1982-1986, specialized in distance running, as well as the 1600 and 3200 meters. She won four New Jersey Group 4 State Championship Titles in Cross Country (1985), the Indoor 1600 meters (1986), the Indoor 3200 meters (1986), and the Outdoor 3200 meters in 1986. With a seemingly effortless determination on the track, Deanna went on to garner the 1985 South Jersey Runner of the Year Award by the S.J. Track Coaches Association, the 1985 Winner of the Group 4 Shore Invitational Cross Country Meet- Division A, the 1983, 1984, and 1985 All South Jersey Award in Cross Country, and 1984, 1985, and 1986 All South Jersey Award in Track. Deanna earned 12 Varsity letters while at Shawnee. She still holds the record in the Two Mile. Deanna then moved on to the University of Rhode Island where she won the All New England Cross Country Award in 1987, All New England Indoor Track Award, and All New England Outdoor Track Awards from 1986-1990, while majoring in Speech Communication. She earned her Varsity letters in Cross Country, Indoor Track, and Outdoor Track at Rhode Island, and was on the Dean’s List from 1986-1990. Deanna is currently employed as a Medical Records Specialist at the Riverbend Family Medical Center in Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina. She is married to John Scharf and has three daughters, Alyssa, Natalie, and Jillian, all accomplished athletes. She spends her spare time actively involved in her daughters’ volleyball and soccer games, and track and field meets. JOHN L. FOX Ultimate Fan and Contributor Mr. John Fox, simply known as “Jack” by the Shawnee faculty, staff, administration, students, and athletes, hasn’t missed an important Renegade athletic competition in decades. A true “Sports Nut,” Jack usually arrives 15 minutes before starting time, holds court with friends, coaches, and admirers, and then quickly takes his place in the stands, always the best seat in the house. It wouldn’t be a contest if Jack were not there, rooting on the home team. You can tell by the expression of excitement on his face that he can’t imagine being anywhere else. Mr. Fox graduated from North Catholic High School (now known as Northeast Catholic) in Philadelphia in 1942, and lettered in three sports. He has been married to his lovely wife, Margaret, for 62 years. She was “wind beneath his wings” for all those years, the “unsung hero” of the family. “Whatever time any of us came home from school, work, practice, or a game, Mom was always there with a meal on the table. I remember the washer and dryer running well into the night,” recalls daughter Margaret Nugent. “Mom still made time to volunteer, run her own direct mail and sewing business, and work as a court reporter in Medford Lakes”. A retired European Customer Service Manager at Rohm & Haas, Jack and Marge had seven children, three who attended Lenape High School (Jim, Joe, Maureen Nugent, and Robert) and four at Shawnee (Thomas, Shawn, and Patricia Crawford). They have 21 grandchildren and 7 great-grandchildren, four of whom attended Shawnee. He started the first Shawnee Athletic Booster Club with Bob Meyer, Sr. as President and himself as Vice-President under the guidance of Shawnee’s first principal, Gordon Galtere, and Athletic Director Tom Tofaute. During World War II, Mr. Fox served as a Staff Sergeant and Gunner on a B-17. He flew 20 missions before being shot down behind enemy lines and held as a Prisoner of War in Germany for 11 months. He chairs the Lenape District’s Veterans Group, an outstanding band of brothers who were instrumental in installing monuments at each of our district high schools honoring the sacrifices made by our war veterans. Jack and his group of war veterans come to our high school history classes on Veteran’s Day and throughout the school year to relay first hand accounts of their war experiences on the battlefields, on the sea, in the air, and in prisoner of war camps. Shawnee history teacher Michael Panarella reports a quote that summarizes Jack well: “ When you go home, tell them of us and say ‘For your tomorrow, we gave our today’.” Everyone at Shawnee and our surrounding communities would like to thank Jack for his undying dedication, loyalty, and generosity to the Lenape District. He is an outstanding citizen who deserves our special recognition. KIM THORNE O’BRIEN Class of 1976 Kim Thorne O’Brien was one of the first female athletes to win 10 Varsity letters during the early years of Shawnee history. She became the mainstay of the field hockey team, playing halfback under the legendary coach Bobbie Schultz, point guard in girls’ basketball, and left field in softball. She earned All South Jersey First Team in Field Hockey and Softball, Defensive Player of the Year in 1976, and was elected captain of all three sports during her senior year. She was chosen Class Athlete in 1976 and ranked 3rd in her graduating class. At Ursinus College, Kim chose a Health and Physical Education major with a minor in Biology, while earning 9 Varsity letters in field hockey, basketball, and softball. She captained all three sports and appeared in two AIAW Division I Championship Finals in field hockey and two MAC Women’s basketball finals. She was chosen as College Player of the Year in 1980 and a Distinguished Player in the Field Hockey Club of South Jersey. She went on to coach field hockey, lacrosse, and basketball at The College of New Jersey and Rider University. Her team won the NCAA Division III National Championship in 1981. She played for Philly 1 Club Hockey (‘80- ’81) and won the National Club Championship in 1981. Kim is in the TCNJ Hall of Fame as a member of the most Distinguished Team. They won the first NCAA National Championship. Kim continued her graduate studies at Temple University, earning a graduate assistantship in Exercise Physiology and a University Fellowship Ph.D. in Cardiovascular Physiology. Kim then went to work for Pfizer, Inc., KabiVitrum as a Regional Hematology Specialist, Genentech, Inc., and MedImmune, Inc., winning numerous awards in regional sales and marketing achievements. She is currently a consultant with a biotechnology company called Independence, Incorporated. She has served on the Ursinus College Board of Trustees from 2003 until the present. Kim still resides in Medford with her husband Richard and her dogs, Nikki and Dash. LORI BRUNEY-JOHNSTON Class of 1984 As one of our most outstanding Shawnee athletes of the early 1980’s, Lori Bruney-Johnston earned 10 Varsity letters in field hockey, basketball, and softball. While attending Shawnee High School, she was South Jersey Defensive Player of the Year and Newark Star-Ledger All-State in Field Hockey, All Burlington County in Girls Basketball, and All Burlington County and Newark Star-Ledger All State in Softball. After graduation from Shawnee, Lori went on to major in English and journalism at University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill and lead her college team in field hockey, garnering the distinctions of two-time All America, two-time Honda Broderick Award nominee, and three-time All ACC. At UNC, she earned four varsity letters. Her skill, talent, and dedication to field hockey did not end at Chapel Hill. Lori was a member of the United States National Field Hockey team from 1989-1991. It was an honor for Lori to be selected for the ACC 50th Anniversary Team as one of the top field hockey players in ACC history. Lori lives in Wheaton, IL with husband Victor and children Erick and Katie. She works at ESI International as a Senior Business Development Manager. Lori is still involved with the United States Field Hockey Association as Head Coach of the Futures Program in Chicago, Illinois. MICHELLE DI MURO AVÉ Class of 1985 When Michelle DiMuro (Avé) entered the hallways of Shawnee High School as a freshman, little did she know that she would changed the face of Girls Cross Country and Track and Field at Shawnee, and in South Jersey, as well. Michelle was a member of Shawnee’s Cross Country and Spring Track teams from 1981 to 1985, amassing numerous titles in 800 meters, 1000 meters, and various relay and cross country races. She was ranked #3 in the U.S. High School 1000 meters and indoor 1000 yd. by Track and Field News (1984), the 4th All Time Fastest U.S. High School Girls Indoor 1000 meters (1985), 2nd place in cross country, New Jersey State Champion in 800 meters, New Jersey Track and Field All Century Indoor team 1000 meters, named All South Jersey and all Burlington County in track for four years, and won the AAU National Sprint Medley(1984) and the East Coast Invitational 800 meters, just to name a few.