CHS Unveils Plaque To Honor Athletes

Some people say that Philadelphia is the City of Brotherly Love, but it appears that Chatham made a bid to overtake that moniker.

On Tuesday morning, Chatham High School dedicated a plaque to student-athletes that earned a varsity letter in each athletic season during his or her CHS career. The "100 Percent Club" is the brainchild of Chatham alum Ray Wenzel, who spearheaded the idea in memory of his brother, Russell.

"A year ago my brother was killed by a drunk driver and to honor his memory I had to do something and I thought this would be a good thing to do," said Wenzel. "My brother was all-state in three sports and lettered every year when it was a three-year school.

"I approached (Athletic Director Harvey Cohen) and he supported it 100 percent. He got the boosters club behind it, and Mr. O'Neill and the Board of Education approved it. For the past year myself and Tim Cloidt have been digging through the athletes that should be honored and we found out there were actually 15 people."

The plaque, located in the hallway by the main entrance and funded by the Booster Club, celebrates those 15 student-athletes in Chatham High School history that competed at the highest level every fall, winter and spring season. Despite the many great Cougars that have gone on to athletic greatness, the 100 Percent Club is mighty exclusive.

"It's not a Hall of Fame by any stretch because we've had five or six professional athletes to come out of here," said Wenzel. "This award is to honor athletes that got a varsity letter either nine out of nine years when it was a three-year school or 12 out of 12 when it was a four-year school. It recognizes athletic greatness or versatility."

As simple as gathering up names and looking up athletic records sounds, the process was much more of a task than it sounds.

"It was one year of making a lot of phone calls trying to find guys," said Cloidt. "Luckily I had a connection with my father who was a coach here for years, so when I called someone up from 1955, they recognized the name. I had the reunion book with phone numbers available, so I just started calling people up that I knew could help me out with another name and I just followed up leads."

Playing sports year-round for four years seems may seem trivial, but it goes a long way to build character and develop a pension for hard work.

"It's given me a lot of self discipline," said 100 Percent Club member Katharine Grimes, who will continue her track career at Brown University in the fall. "Especially in my academics. I know how much I've done and how much I've accomplished."

Members of the 100 Percent Club include: Burt Abbazia, 1942-1945, soccer, basketball and baseball; Walter Schroth, 1952-1954, soccer, basketball and baseball; David Ford, 1952-1954, soccer, basketball and baseball; Charles Lindner, 1954-1956, soccer, basketball and baseball; Robert Jones, 1959-1961, football, basketball and baseball; Robert Gadkowski, 1962-1964, football, ice hockey and baseball; Russell Wenzel, 1967-1969, football, ice hockey and baseball; Steven Burton, 1968-1970, football, basketball and baseball; Jeffrey Conciatori, 1971-1973, soccer, basketball and tennis; Jeffrey Emery, 1971-1974, football, basketball and baseball; Peter Burton, 1972-1974, football, basketball and tennis; Melissa Montefusco, 1994-1998, soccer, basketball and lacrosse; Scott McCullough, 2004-2008, soccer, indoor track and track; Katherine Grimes, 2006-2010, cross country, indoor track and track; and Caroline Murphy, 2006-2010, soccer, basketball and softball.