Canton’s Stan Krzanowski and his wife Diane meet with the catcher who caught the ceremonial first throw at the dedication of the field in his honor in May.
For more than 80 years, the Connecticut Sports Media Alliance has presented Gold Key awards to some of the legendary giants of Connecticut’s sports landscape for their significant contribution to the sport and/or for outstanding achievement as a player in the field of athletics. coach or administrator.
Considered the state’s highest athletic award, the Gold Key has been awarded to more than 200 men and women, including Hall of Famer baseball executive Connie Mack (1940), boxer Willie Pep (1961), Walt Dropo (1975), and President George HW Bush (1991), NHL legend Gordie Howe (1992), Hall of Fame basketball coaches Geno Auriemma (2001) and Jim Calhoun (2003), and US women’s soccer star Kristine Lilly (2012).
But the Alliance, a group of men and women working in the media industry, also honors other nationals at its annual Gold Key awards banquet scheduled for Sunday, October 22 at 2 p.m. at the AquaTurf Restaurant in Southington.
One of the awards is the John Wentworth Good Sports Award, given to individuals who donate their time and energy to promoting athletics in their communities.
Canton’s Stan Krzanowski will be one of four Good Sport Award winners at this year’s banquet. Also honored are Steve Callahan, a driving force behind South Windsor Challenger baseball; Charlie Flanagan, general manager of North Haven American Legion Post 76 Baseball; and Bob Norris, a youth baseball, basketball and football coach and Windsor Locks official for more than 60 years.
Krzanowski, 81, has volunteered his time and expertise in Canton for the past 46 years with the Canton Little League organization.
Krzanowski has done a bit of everything with the Canton Little League. From 2000 to 2013 he was a coach, manager, players’ agent, board member and league president. He started the local business billboard initiative in 1988 to support Little League.
For the past decade, he has overseen shelter construction and upgrades for baseball and softball fields across the city. He approached the city government to obtain the necessary permits. He hired top-notch contractors to build the shelters.
“He’s an unstoppable force of nature,” said Greg Brisco, former Little League coach and member of the Canton Little League Board. “He’s just for whatever good thing you want with baseball or softball. He is behind it and is able to raise the money. He was that force of nature forever.”
A new Little League softball field in the city was named in his honor last spring.
Tickets cost $75 and are available from CSMA President Tim Jensen of Patch Media Corp. available at 860-394-5091 [email protected].
Proceeds from the banquet will benefit the Bo Kolinsky Memorial Sports Media Scholarship, an annual $3,000 award named in memory of the noted high school sports editor of the Hartford Courant and former CSMA President, who died in 2003 in the Died aged 49.
2023 Gold Key recipients include Laurie LaRusso, volleyball coach at Darien High School, whose teams have won 24 state titles; Gary Makowicki, longtime coach and athletic director of Norwich Free Academy with 13 state championships; Jan Merrill-Morin, 1976 Olympian and former world record holder in three running events; Babby Nuhn, North Branford High School field hockey coach for 50 years with six state championships; and Terry Tata, a 27-year Major League Baseball umpire who has attended three World Series games.
Other award winners are:
- Presidential Award – dr Leslie Wrixon, Glastonbury, only high school runner to win the Manchester Road Race
- Hal Levy High School Achievement Award – Robert “Jiggs” Cecchini, retired coach and administrator of Suffield High School
- Bob Casey Courage Award – Ann and Paul Dagle from East Lyme are campaigning for suicide prevention among student athletes
- Bo Kolinsky Special Recognition Award – Rand Pecknold, Quinnipiac University men’s national ice hockey coach
- Art McGinley Media Awards – Vickie Fulkerson, sportswriter for New London Day for over 30 years
- Bo Kolinsky Memorial Sports Media Grant – Baylee Krulewitz, Hall High School
- Hank O’Donnell Female Athlete of the Year – Chloe Humphrey, Darien High, lacrosse
- Bill Lee Male Athlete of the Year – Joshua Mooney, Stonington High, decathlon
- Doc McInerney Coach of the Year – Loren Luddy, Woodland Regional Softball and Mark Brookes, Haddam-Killingworth Baseball
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