Richard Holmes, Beloved Danbury Football Coach & Teacher, Dies At 66

DANBURY, CT — Richard Holmes, a beloved teacher at Danbury High School (DHS) and a multi-sport coach in the city for years, died on June 4. He was 66.

Holmes was born on July 24, 1956, in Bourne, Mass., according to his obituary. He graduated from East Haven High School and attended the University of New Haven and Shephard College as a two-sport athlete and scholar.

Homes worked as a teacher in Virginia and then moved back to Connecticut to be a coach at Notre Dame-Fairfield, his obituary said. He first worked in the Danbury Public Schools District at Broadview Middle School in 1993 before going to DHS to work as a social studies teacher and coach.

The News-Times reported that Holmes was slated to retire next week.

Augie Tieri, a teacher at DHS and head coach of the Hatters football team, took to social media after news of Holmes' death.

"Danbury lost an iconic member of our coaching and teaching community today," Tieri tweeted on June 4. "Rich Holmes was a mentor and father figure to so many of his students, players and colleagues."

Holmes coached baseball and football at various levels over the years. News-Times said Holmes was the head football coach at Notre-Dame Fairfield from 1988-1991, and the baseball coach there from 1989 to 1992.

He served as an offensive line coach for the Hatters in the mid-1990s, and was the head football coach at Sacred Heart in Waterbury in 1998, News-Times said.

Holmes returned to Danbury High football as an offensive coordinator from 2001 to 2008, and was later the head coach at Abbott Tech/Immaculate from 2013 to 2020, according to News-Times.

A DHS alum and former student of Holmes' also paid tribute on social media.

"This one hurts - he was one of my favorite teachers through high school," a Facebook post read. "He believed in me when others didn’t! He guided me and showed me how to be my best self."

NEA Danbury, a labor organization that represents teachers within Danbury's public schools, simply posted a link to Holmes' obituary on Facebook with the words, "One of our best."

According to Homes' obituary, in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Danbury High School Athletics.

Additionally, family and friends can submit photos and memories for his celebration of life slideshow by emailing them to coachholmes6274@gmail.com.

A memorial with friends and family for Holmes will be held Saturday, June 17, from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Green Funeral Home in Danbury.

Read Holmes' full obituary.

Read more from News-Times.