Homecoming weekend is always special for Penn's dedicated alumni. For a small group of former athletes and their friends and families, this Saturday will be particularly special.
The Penn Athletics Hall of Fame will induct its fifth class this weekend at a ceremony that will be held at the Inn at Penn. Eight of the 12 inductees are still alive, while the others will be represented by members of their families.
Among those being honored are former All-Americans, record setters and Olympic gold medallists. The group is diverse, representing seven different sports. The group ranges in age from the Class of 1908 to the Class of 1992.
Many of the honorees broke more than records; some broke barriers as well. John Taylor, a 1908 Wharton graduate, was the national quarter-mile champion. Perhaps more importantly, Taylor was the first black person selected to represent the United States internationally in any sport. On top of that, he was the first African-American to win an Olympic gold medal.
Robert Evans, who graduated in 1953, was Penn's first ever black football captain. The Chicago Bears drafted Evans after he graduated.
Several Penn record holders will be inducted in the class. Barton Leach, named to the first ever All-Ivy basketball team, still holds the all time single game rebounding mark, with 32 against Harvard.
Christine Lundy, the youngest inductee in the fifth class, was a three-time All-American in track -- still a women's track record. She holds the Penn record in the 5,000 meters. She ranks in the top three all time in four other track events.
Each of the twelve honorees will have a plaque with their likeness hung in the Hall of Fame, which is located in the Donaldson Room of Weightman Hall.
For Steven Galetta, a 1979 graduate and a track and sprint football star, the honor is special, humbling and surprising. Galetta is now a professor of Neurology at Penn and Director of Neuro-Ophthalmology as well as Director of Neurology Training at the University of Pennsylvania Medical Center.
"When I got called I first thought that I had hallucinated and decided not to tell anyone," Galetta said. "It is never good to hallucinate as a neurologist."
Howard Coonley, who will celebrate his 40th reunion this season, has maintained his connections to the University and to the squash program over the years. As a student he won a national championship, and he currently mentors players, participates in fund raising and helps the coaches.
"I went up to the Donaldson Room one day, I was just humbled," Coonley said. "Some of them were legends when I was at Penn and even greater legends today."
Both Galetta and Coonley emphasized that the honor has revived a flood of memories from their undergraduate days. Both realize that the honor in an indirect way goes to their coaches and teammates as well.
"I share it with all my friends and teammates and coaches, sharing all the good times that we had at Penn," Galetta said.
Coonley's name has lived on in the form of the Coonley Bowl. The bowl is awarded to one outstanding squash player every year. Coonley is honored to be joining two of his classmates in the hall as well as his coach.
"I am joining my coach, Al Molloy," Coonley said. "He remains an extraordinary figure in my life."
