Naugatuck Hall of Fame to induct new class

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NAUGATUCK — The Naugatuck Hall of Fame will induct its 48th class this month.

This year’s inductees are Paul Fitzpatrick, Sharyn Harrison, Bridget Squires Benner, Stanley “Chuck” Rek Jr. and Alan “Al” Terry. They will be honored on Oct. 19 during a banquet at the Our Lady of Fatima Church hall on Baldwin Street in Waterbury.

The banquet starts at 6 p.m. with cocktail hour, followed by dinner at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $45 per person. For tickets, contact any of the inductees or call Ray Rossi Jr. at 203-525-7193.

Paul Fitzpatrick, a 1976 Naugatuck High School graduate, played basketball for three years, golf for two seasons and football his senior year.

Fitzpatrick, who lives in Cheshire with his wife, Lisa, won the Naugatuck Valley League individual golf championship in 1975, after leading the team in scoring average for two seasons.

On the gridiron, Fitzpatrick earned All-NVL honors as a wide receiver and punter for the co-NVL football champions in 1975. He was also named to the All-State second team as a defensive back. He had four interceptions and scored the game-winning touchdown in a 28-20 win over Kennedy.

Fitzpatrick led the basketball team in scoring his senior year and earned second team All-NVL honors in the sport.

Sharyn Harrison, a 1997 Naugatuck High graduate, played three sports for the Greyhounds — swimming, track and basketball.

Harrison, who lives in Jersey City, N.J., helped the Greyhounds to their first NVL swim championship in 1996. She set school records in the 50, 100, 200 and 500 freestyle and the 100 butterfly. She was also part of the medley relay, 400 freestyle relay and 200 freestyle relay teams that set school records.

Harrison earned All-NVL track honors all four years in high school. She won the NVL championship in the javelin three years and set the school record in 1997. In 1997, she won the Class L and State Open championships in javelin. Harrison was the first female athlete in school history to be a State Open meet champion. She was selected All-State in track three times.

Harrison lettered four years in basketball and was a member of the 1995 NVL championship team.

Bridget Squires Benner, a 2000 graduate of Naugatuck High, was a three sport athlete, playing volleyball, basketball and softball.

Benner, who was named the Naugatuck High School Female Athlete of the Year in 2000, earned All-NVL honors for three years in volleyball and softball, and made the All-NVL basketball team in 1999.

Benner, who lives in Walpole, Mass., with her husband, Michael, and their three children, became the first Naugatuck High player selected to the All-State volleyball team in 1999 — the same year Naugatuck won the NVL championship.

Benner was voted team MVP in volleyball and softball in 2000. After high school, Benner played softball at Assumption College for two years.

Stanley “Chuck” Rek Jr., a 1981 Naugatuck High graduate, played four years of football for the Greyhounds, earning All-NVL honors his junior and senior years, and an All-State honorable mention his senior year.

Rek was also a four-year member of the baseball team, helping the Greyhounds win the NVL championship in his junior year. He also played two years of basketball, earning a varsity letter in his senior year.

After graduation, Rek became a volunteer assistant football coach. He coached for over 25 years, working with former coaches Craig Peters, Bob Harrison and Rob Plasky, and was on the staff when the Greyhounds won state championships in 1981 and 1993.

Alan “Al” Terry, a 1969 Naugatuck High graduate and lifelong borough resident, has dedicated his entire adult life to youth sports, most notably in Little League.

In 1979, Terry, who lives in Naugatuck with his wife, Lorene, became a volunteer coach for Union City Little League. In 1984, he started volunteer umpiring at Union City for baseball and softball.

Over the years, Terry umpired numerous district championships, state tournament games and state championship games. He umpired on a national scale, as well, including the Little League Junior Softball Regional in Syracuse, N.Y., in 1999, the Little League Junior Baseball East Regional in Tinton Falls, N.Y., in 2002, the Little League Baseball East Regional in Bristol in 2007, and the Little League Big League World Series in Easley, S.C., in 2009.

Terry has served as league president for the Naugatuck Junior Football League, and coached for NJFL, Little Pal basketball and Babe Ruth League. He was also a coach for the St. Francis girls basketball team that won the Waterbury Parochial League championship.

Terry is a member of the Union City Little League Board of Directors and umpire-in-chief.