Ceremony honors 2019 GASD hall inductees – The Recorder

By JOHN PURCELL

Recorder News Staff

PERTH Ten exemplary individuals and two standout athletic teams were enshrined Friday in the Greater Amsterdam School District Hall of Fame.

Around 150 people filled The Bridge Walk at Perthshire banquet facility Friday evening for the fifth annual GASD Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. Five academic inductees and five individuals and two entire teams for the athletic wing were honored that night.

John Purcell/Recorder staffGASD Hall of Fame Committee Chairman Richard Allen delivers remarks during the opening of this years induction ceremony Friday night.

This years academic honorees included the late Gerald Barnell, Dr. Alison Bertuch, the late Art Cotugno, the late Chet Curtis, and the late Jack Saroff. Atheltic inductees included Megan (Gaugler) Sumigray, Brian Benton, Sara (Puglisi) Hisert, Vinnie Nicosia, along with the 1995 state championship-winning football team and the 2007-08 girls basketball team.

The Class of 2019 inductees will also be honored Sunday afternoon during the school districts homecoming parade and football game.

Interim Superintendent Raymond Colucciello said what he has learned since taking over the reins at GASD six months is the quality of the people in the district, which is exemplified by the inductees.

When read through the bios of these individuals you read word likes distinguished, work ethic, mentor, international researcher people who really made a difference in the lives of all of us, Colucciello said. Hall of Fame people are picked because theyve been game-changers. I want to congratulate each and every member of the Hall of Fame.

Amsterdam High School Principal Tyrone OMeally, who stepped into the position almost a year ago, said he had learned the importance of community to GASD.

To all the inductees, my goal is that Im currently in the process of grooming kids so that they can come back to this one, OMeally said drawing applause from attendees. In order to be selected for this, you have to have made a major mark on Amsterdam.

GASD Hall of Fame Committee Chairman Richard Allen presented past chairman Robert Noto with a plaque honoring his efforts to establish the HOF. Noto, a retired athletic director for GASD, spearheaded the HOF and led the committee for four years.

Barnell, a member of the Class of 1929, was a longtime music teacher in the district and is considered the godfather of GASDs instrumental program.

Over four decades in the district, Barnell started or directed every instrumental performance group playing on a stage in the school district. He was also a vital force in the Montgomery County Music Teachers Association, helping organize the first county music festival.

Barnell also shaped the Amsterdam High School marching band into what has become a prized aspect of the community. He developed the idea to form a majorettes squad and to have its members perform their well-known Rockettes kick line to the tune of Lullaby of Birdland.

Cotugno, a member of the Class of 1954, began his long career in GASD as a Spanish teacher at the high school in 1961. From 1965-69, he worked as the district coordinator of foreign languages. He then transitioned into administration and served as the assistant principal at Theodore Roosevelt Jr. High School. He ascended to become the principal of the junior high and oversaw the schools transition to Lynch Middle School.

Cotugno became director of staff personnel in 1983 and went on to serve as superintendent of schools in 1991. He continued leading the district until his retirement in June 1995. Throughout Cotugnos career, he was involved in several local and statewide organizations.

Bertuch, of the Class of 1981, is known internationally for her research on telomeres and as an expert on bone marrow failure. She serves as the director of the bone marrow failure program at Texas Childrens Hospital. She also is an associate professor of pediatrics and molecular and human genetics at Baylor College of Medicine.

Bertuch is an expert in the diagnosis and treatment of bone marrow failure, a condition where bone marrow is replaced with fat cells and no longer produces blood cells. She has published more than 75 research articles and medical textbook chapters, along with giving lectures across the nation and abroad.

Curtis, his given name Chester Kukiewicz, was a member of the Class of 1957 who went on to become one of Bostons leading television news anchors. His career in broadcasting started with stints in Rochester, Washington D.C. and New York City.

Curtis moved to Channel 5 in Boston in 1968, which started his more than 40 years connection to New England events, history and residents. Curtis and his then-wife, Natalie Jacobson, were the top-rated anchor team in Boston for decades. WCVB was named the best news station in the country during Curtis tenure. He received many awards and distinctions throughout his career, including several regional Emmy awards.

For much of his adult life, Curtis dedicated his free time to emceeing numerous charitable events and fundraising for several causes. He hosted the Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Annual Labor Day Telethon for more than 25 years.

Saroff immigrated to the United States as a young boy during the Russian Revolution. He would go on to become an innovator and champion of science education at Amsterdam High School.

Saroffs four-decade effort to improve the teaching of science at AHS earned him a National Science Foundation Scholarship from Union College and a Shell Merit Scholarship at Cornell University. He also regularly provided science instruction training to elementary school teachers in GASD.

Saroff was a driving force in efforts to make teaching a more attractive career choice. His testimony in 1946 to the governors Education Commission in the state Assembly helped convince the panel to recommend increasing salaries of the states teachers. He was also instrumental in establishing the teachers union in GASD.

Sumigray was honored not only for her individual basketball accomplishments but as a member of the 2007-08 Lady Rams team. The basketball team inducted Friday marked the first female team to earn the Legacy Team honor from the HOF.

Sumigray is the most decorated 3-point shooter in Lady Rams history. As a junior, she broke the programs single-season record for 3-pointers with 57, then broke it again with 59 as a senior. For her career, she sank a school-record 154 shots from beyond the arc.

Nicosia was a four-year football standout for the Rugged Rams at both wide receiver and safety. He went on to attend Colgate, where he played four years as a safety while totaling 124 tackles, three sacks and two interceptions.

As a sophomore, Nicosia played a crucial role in leading Amsterdam to a NYSPHSAA Class A state championship. As a senior, Nicosia was a first-team all-state selection at safety and the Section II Division I most valuable player while also being named to the NYS Golden 50 team as one of the 50 top players in the state.

Benton was a six-year starter for the AHS varsity wrestling team, wrapping up his career with what was, at the time, both a program and Section II record 253 wins. A six-time first-team Big 10 all-star, Benton won five Section II Class B championships, three Section II Division 1 championships and was a three-time place finisher at the state tournament. That was capped off in 2008 when he won the NYSPHSAA state championship and finished second in the Federation tournament.

Hisert is one of the most decorated softball players in Amsterdam history. She also went on to play four years at Division II American International College, where she was a three-year team captain.

Hisert had a spectacular 2005 season at AHS, racking up 204 strikeouts in 103 innings. She was the first-ever unanimous Big 10 softball MVP, finishing the 2005 season with a 0.91 earned run average and leading the Lady Rams to their first sectional playoff win in 23 years en route to a Section II Class AA semifinal appearance.

Cudmore, this years coaching inductee, was a 1968 AHS graduate who played football, basketball and baseball in high school before moving on to a standout four-year football career at the University of Bridgeport. Cudmore then returned home to Amsterdam as a teacher and coach and established a legacy for more than 30 years.

In football, Cudmore was a vital assistant coach during the tenures of Brian Mee, Frank Derrico and Pat Liverio. As a line coach, Cudmore mentored GASD Hall of Fame inductees like Tom Catena, Rich Altieri and Josh Beekman, consistently producing offensive and defensive lines that were among the best in Section II.

In the early 1980s, Cudmore became the head track and field coach at AHS, leading to an explosion in the programs success. Under his leadership, Amsterdam consistently had top finishes at Section II championships in both individual and relay events.

Cudmore was an assistant on the 1995 football team that joined be the 2007-08 girls basketball team as a Legacy Team honoree. In the Rugged Rams final season under Hall of Fame coach Frank Derrico, the Rams became the first Section II football team to win a NYSPHSAA state championship. The Rams defeated Lake Shore 11-8 to capture the Class B title in 1995.

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Ceremony honors 2019 GASD hall inductees - The Recorder