Redford Union Athletics Hosts 1st Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

On the evening of Saturday, October 19, 2019, Redford Union Athletics will host its inaugural Hall of Fame Induction with a dinner and ceremony held in the historical Redford Union HS gymnasium.

The event proudly honors Redford Union’s former student/athletes, coaches, and athletic department volunteers who excelled both on and off the field at Redford Union High School. Formally established in 2018, the seven-member hall of fame committee follows bylaws to fairly place inductees into the RU Athletics Hall of Fame through stakeholder feedback and transparency.

That evening the first completed phase of the RU Athletics Hall of Honor renovation will also be officially unveiled. An ongoing process, the Hall of Honor has already taken on a completely new look of Panther pride and is a great starting point for what is to come.

Redford Union Athletics plans to make this an annual event - with a new group being inducted each year. The Redford Union Athletics Hall of Fame recognizes that there are many former student/athletes, coaches and volunteers who are deserving and that they can only put so many inductees in each year. They state that this does not mean that some are more deserving than others - it will take time and patience to catch up. Nomination forms will be posted on the high school website, as well as our RU Athletics Hall of Fame Facebook page starting in January of each year for all to fill out.

“Most familiar with Redford Union know that our athletic department is rich with tradition and talent and that we have had countless student/athletes leave Redford Union accomplished in many ways. The idea of creating the athletics hall of fame has been around for decades, but we haven’t been able to get over the hump for a few reasons here and there. We are now fortunate to be able to make it a reality with the financial support of private donors, as well as participants in our annual golf outing. We believe that this is not only an important tool to honor our past, but we are already seeing it bridge the gap between our alumni base and our current student body in many ways. The Redford Union community has always been special, and we will continue to build up and improve this project each year,” stated Michael Taylor, Redford Union High School Assistant Principal.

Inaugural Class:

Ward Estes (posthumously) –Head coach of the 1937, 1938 & 1940 boy’s state championship golf teams. Ward also taught and served as the principal at Redford Union High School.

Howard Kraft (posthumously) - Retired RU teacher and long-time Athletic Director, laid the foundation for the Redford Union Athletic department

Bill Fahey ’68 – A three sport athlete at RU, Bill played baseball for the Washington Senators, Texas Rangers, San Diego Padres & Detroit Tigers. Bill was also assistant coach for the San Francisco Giants during their appearance in the 1989 World Series.

Tom Piette ‘78– A three sport athlete at RU, Tom went on to play football at Michigan State (1980-1982) where he earned 1st Team All-Big Ten honors in 1981. Tom played in the United State Football League for the Michigan Panthers, Chicago Blitz and Arizona Wranglers (played in 1984 USFL Championship game with Arizona). Tom also had the honor of carrying the Olympic torch through Chicago for the 2002 Winter Olympics.

Kelly McCausland ‘93 – An all-state volleyball player at Redford Union, Kelly went on to play at Madonna University where she earned All-WHAC Conference honors four consecutive years and also earned All-American honors in 1995 & 1996.

Angie Mogielski ’83 – An accomplished state champion, Angie ran cross country & track at Redford Union before running at the University of North Florida

Mike Petsch ’78 – A two-time state champion in track, Mike is considered to be the best all-around athlete to attend Redford Union High School. Mike was an accomplished three-sport athlete who went on to play football for Bo Schembechler at the University of Michigan (1978-1979), while also competing on U of M’s track team

John MacKenzie – Head coach of the 1969 state championship boy’s track & field team and founder of the Observerland Relays. Coach MacKenzie also taught at Redford Union High School

Bob Atkins – Retired long-time Athletic Director, football, basketball and baseball coach. Coach Atkins gave over 30 years of service to the Redford Union community

Bob Ouellette – Retired teacher, long-time cross country and track & field coach, and mentor to countless student-athletes. Coach Ouellette gave over 40 years of service to the Redford Union community

To attend the dinner and inauguration, please visit the Redford Union Athletics Hall of Fame Facebook page or contact Mike Taylor at 313-242-4212. Tickets are $20 per person. The event begins with a gathering at 4:30 p.m. and is followed by dinner at 5:30 and the Hall of Fame Inaugural Induction Ceremony.