Terry Brotherton, chairman of the Pasadena ISD Athletics Hall of Fame committee, displays the plaque replicas for the first five Hall of Fame inductees.
State Champ Coach Thompson, Reds Pitcher Henry, Eagles Rushing Great Coan, Multi-Sport Whiz McCarty, Olympian Williams Picked for Enshrinement
Five local sports legends whose fame extended across the state, the nation and around the world have been selected as the first group of inductees for the new Pasadena ISD Athletics Hall of Fame.
Bill Henry, who pitched 16 years in the major leagues; Bert Coan, the most acclaimed football player in Pasadena ISD history; Mickey McCarty, talented enough to be drafted by four professional leagues; and Christa Williams, a two-time gold medal winner in Olympic softball, are the first former Pasadena ISD athletes selected for the Hall of Fame's inaugural class.
Also named was E.W. "Ned" Thompson, who coached Pasadena High to the 1946 state basketball championship. The five selections were announced on Friday by Hall of Fame committee chairman Terry Brotherton at the monthly luncheon of the Pasadena Rotary Club.
"I can't think of a better group of five athletes to kick off our Athletics Hall of Fame," Brotherton said.
"From a state championship coach, to pro athletes - and even an Olympic champion - the Pasadena ISD is blessed to have these five represent our community in this first wave of inductees into our Hall of Fame."
Another dozen or so Pasadena ISD sports greats are expected to be selected for the Hall of Fame in January. They will be honored, along with the five announced on Friday, at a gala induction banquet set for April 14, 2012, at Phillips Field House. Phillips will be home to a wall display featuring all of the Hall of Fame inductee plaques.
Plans call for smaller Hall of Fame classes to be announced each year with an April induction banquet planned.
Four of the five inductees announced on Friday represent Pasadena High. Thompson served as the Eagles' head coach for only two years, but won five district titles in three sports over those two years. His crowning achievement was a lopsided conquest of the state tournament field in Austin in 1946.
The championship remains the only one for a Pasadena ISD team in football, basketball or baseball.
Henry earned all-state honors as forward for Thompson's 1946 basketball team. But Henry's greater fame came during a major-league pitching career that covered 16 seasons, the longest big-league career of any Pasadena ISD graduate. A left-handed bullpen staple, Henry made the National League All-Star team in 1960 and pitched in the 1961 World Series as a member of the Cincinnati Reds.
Coan, a towering halfback with blazing speed, gave Pasadena its first burst of statewide football fame. A talented basketball and track athlete for the Eagles, Coan was nearly unstoppable on the football field. An all-state selection, he went on to play for TCU and the University of Kansas before turning in six pro seasons, five of them with the Kansas City Chiefs. Coan played for the Chiefs in the first Super Bowl, a loss to the Green Bay Packers in January of 1967.
McCarty played football, basketball and baseball for the Eagles and excelled at them all. He led TCU to new heights in basketball and in baseball -- but then opted to play pro football after a long layoff from the sport. Drafted in football, baseball and by both pro basketball leagues (the NBA and the ABA), he signed to play football as a tight end with the Kansas City Chiefs. He is still regarded the best all-around athlete in TCU history.
Williams led Dobie High to state softball championships in 2003 and 2005 while establishing herself as one of softball's most dominate pitchers - at any level. She was the youngest member of the gold medal-winning 1996 USA Olympic softball. She earned another Olympic gold medal at the 2000 Sydney Games after achieving college stardom at UCLA and Texas.
All the inductees are living except for McCarty, who died of pancreatic cancer in 2010 after a prolonged battle with heart problems that required two heart transplant procedures.
Williams, now 101, lives with his son in Clear Lake. Henry lives in Deer Park and Coan in Nacogdoches. Both are retired. Williams is now the head softball coach at Manvel High School.
The Hall of Fame committee continues to accept nominations from the public for future inductees. Nomination forms can be accessed at www1.pasadenaisd.org/halloffame.
Eligible athletes are those who graduated from a Pasadena ISD high school at least 10 years prior to their proposed induction date.
The committee continues to solicit donations for "Founding Memberships" to create a permanent fund for Hall of Fame operations and to help endow scholarships for athletes at Pasadena ISD schools. The committee is hoping to present checks to its first scholarship recipients at the April banquet.
Founder Members may donate on one of four levels. Donors will be recognized with engraved plates on Founding Member plaques to be placed in the Hall of Fame. Each level brings an allotment of tickets for the inaugural banquet in April.
The opportunity to become a Founding Member will end on Feb. 29, 2012. Beyond that, corporations or individuals will the opportunity to make membership donations for recognition and prime seating at future events.
The Founding Member levels are:
*Corporate Level. Donation: $2,500.
A Corporate Level donor will receive top tier plaque recognition, program recognition, an eight-seat table to the inaugural banquet in a prime location and reservation privileges for the same table in future years. Corporate Level donors will also receive first consideration as banquet hosts for inductees.
*Gold Level. Donation: $1,000.
A Gold Level donor will receive plaque recognition, program recognition and six tickets to the inaugural banquet.
*Silver Level. Donation: $500.
A Silver Level donor will receive plaque recognition, program recognition and four tickets to the inaugural banquet.
*Bronze Level. Donation: $250.
A Bronze Level donor will receive plaque recognition, program recognition and two tickets to the inaugural banquet.
Donations can be made by contacting Herman Williams at 713-907-1190, or by email at [email protected]. The committee mailing address is 4222 Vista, Pasadena, TX, 77504.
