A native of the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, George Ralston has spent nearly his whole adult life in the Wyoming Valley—at Wilkes University. In 1986, after 40 years of service, Wilkes recognized him as Dean Emeritus and he currently serves in his forty-sixth year at...
Emil Wandishin went from starring in basketball at Hazleton High School and St. Francis College of Loretto to an impressive coaching career at Ewing High School, near Trenton, N.J. During his 27 years as head coach at Ewing High, his teams won 491 games, had...
Ed Donohue, a native of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., carved his niche in Luzerne County sports as head basketball coach at King's College (1968-83), where he recorded 201 victories in his 15-year tenure. Following graduation from high school in 1947, he played semi-pro football in the Eastern...
Charles "Coach" Shaw, 1951 graduate of Tunkhannock High School, lettered in five sports. He played tailback on the school's first unbeaten and untied football team, as he scored fifty-eight points and threw six touchdowns from the single wing formation. He was the leading scorer on...
Charles "Chi-Chi" Maira played football at Pittston High School during the years of 1944, 1945, and 1946. During those three years, Chi-Chi set a number of conference records. One of the most outstanding was the number of points scored in one season. This occurred in...
Hanover Township High School product, Al Kopacz, excelled locally both on the football field, as a record-setting quarterback, and along the sidelines, as a highly successful, winning coach at his alma mater. While he was also a three-time winner on the basketball court, it was...
Allabaugh, one of the most recognized basketball officials in Wyoming Valley, is one of 123 men in the United States to be elected to lifetime membership in the International Association of Approved Basketball Officials. He lettered for two years in track and basketball and four...
Chanecka played high school basketball at Binghamton High, then came to Wilkes-Barre in 1946 to play for the Barons. In 1947, he was named team captain and held that post for five years. He played his last season with the Barons in 1953. In 1957,...
Patton was a graduate of Coughlin High School Class of '35. He attended Wilkes College, then began his newspaper career with the Wilkes-Barre Record. His column "Patton's Patter" became a staple for area sports fans during the sixties and seventies. There, Bob reported and opined...
Stenko was named MVP in both football and basketball at Berwick High in 1936. He excelled at football, golf and basketball at Villanova. Stenko played with the New York Giants, Washington Redskins, Pittsburgh Stealers, and Chicago Bears. Stenko became a P.I.A.A football official in 1955...
Miller was a Diamond Belt boxing champion in 1939, and after reaching the Golden Gloves finals turned professional. During his distinguished 15 year career, Miller boxed in the lightweight, welterweight and middleweight divisions. A hand injury suffered outside the ring cost him a shot at...
Rudolph began his career as a professional basketball official in the late 1940's and went on to referee 2,113 games in a 23-year period. He was hired by the NBA in 1953. In 1973, he became the first official in NBA history to work 1,500...