I FIRST SAT DOWN with Coach Red in 2013 at Tim Horton’s. He had just been named the new head coach at Maine. I was retiring from playing pro hockey and was excited to discuss becoming one of his assistant coaches at my alma mater. I prepared for our meeting to talk hockey strategies, recruit-ing,…
IN MAY AND JUNE, the Alumni Association invited nearly 30 alumni of color to share their UMaine experiences through a series of conversations via Zoom. The conversations occurred in the context of President Joan Ferrini-Mundy’s public commitment to ensuring “inclusive excellence” at the university through diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). As students, nearly all of…
UMaine Athletics recently hosted its fifth annual Alfond Golf Classic fundraiser at Belgrade Lakes Golf Club in central Maine. The event benefits the Alfond Fund, which provides scholarships and other forms of support for UMaine athletics. This year’s event attracted 168 players, including Black Bear Award recipients Skip Chappelle ’62 and Phil Morse ’64, 2018…
Six outstanding individual athletes, a former coach, and members of a women’s basketball team will be inducted into the UMaine Sports Hall of Fame. The 2021 UMaine Sports Hall of Fame Induction Banquet will take place on Friday, Sept. 17, at Jeff’s Catering in Brewer, at 5:30-8:30 pm. Space is limited, and tickets are available…
The National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA) recently inducted Mark “Rookie” Letendre ’78 into the NATA Hall of Fame. The induction is the highest honor an athletic trainer can receive, and recognizes Letendre’s outstanding career, providing the best medical care, and being an advocate for the athletic training profession. Rookie spent 18 years as head athletic…
Liam Nee ‘14 didn’t travel to Tokyo to watch the Olympics, but the former track & field student-athlete had a prime view, and participated in another way. Working from Stamford, CT, Nee served as a digital editorial producer for NBC Sports. He provided breaking news and feature coverage leading up to and during the Olympics.
Naturalist and marathon runner Bernd Heinrich ’64, ’66G was featured on the PBS NewsHour in early July. Heinrich’s newest book, Racing the Clock: Running Across a Lifetime, combines two of his major interests, biology and running. In it, the retired biology professor turns his attention to the science behind running, the human body, metabolism, and…
The University of Maine was awarded the 2020-21 Walter Harrison Academic Cup in recognition of the school’s student-athletes, who earned a grade point average of 3.62, the highest grade point average recorded in league history. The Walter Harrison Academic Cup is awarded annually to the America East institution whose student-athletes post the highest GPA. This…
UMaine Athletics caught up with Viktoriya Rybalko ’03, who competed in the 2008 Olympics for her native Ukraine after earning her degree in biochemistry at UMaine. Rybalko had to interrupt her doctoral studies to focus on training. She was a long jumper in track and field events. She also competed in the 2012 Summer Olympics…
The UMaine and college hockey communities were shocked by the sudden death of men’s hockey coach Dennis “Red” Gendron on Friday, April 9. Red, 63, was playing golf in Orono when he suffered a heart attack. UMaine Athletics shared this post, which features a tribute to Red that was presented prior to Saturday’s NCAA men’s…
Black Bear alumni, faculty, staff, and students are among Maine’s most productive innovators and entrepreneurs. This month, Innovators of UMaine showcases Justin Hafner ’18, CEO and co-founder of KinoTek, Inc. a Portland-based tech startup. KinoTek—pronounced Keen-o-tek—recently raised $600,000 in investor funding to develop 3D technology to aid healthcare providers. Read more. A Queensbury, NY, native,…
BRENDAN WALSH ’00 has long held a reputation as an enforcer. Two decades ago, he patrolled the ice of Alfond Arena as a tough-as-nails member of UMaine men’s ice hockey team, the 1999 NCAA national champions. Today, Walsh polices a different territory as a detective with the Boston Police Department. The 46-year-old Massachusetts native is…