WESTFIELD – An area volleyball coach and local resident is about to spike the competition.
Agawam High School varsity boys’ and girls’ volleyball coach Patricia Demers has been selected to receive the 2012 Mintonette Medallion of Merit Award by the Volleyball Hall of Fame. Demers, 80, of Westfield has been involved in volleyball for more than 60 years. She is entering her 15th year with the Brownies.
“I’m a little surprised,” Demers said. “It’s something I never thought I would ever get. It was a pleasant surprise.”
The Mintonette Medallion of Merit Award, established by the Volleyball Hall of Fame’s Board of Directors in 1996, honors individuals who have made significant contributions to the sports of volleyball. It recalls the original name that volleyball’s inventor, William G. Morgan, assigned to the sport when he invented it in 1895, and is the most prestigious award presented by the Hall of Fame outside of induction.
“Pat Demers has been involved in volleyball as a player, official, and most recently as a coach making her an outstanding recipient of this year’s Mintonette Medallion of Merit Award,” said George Mulry, Executive Director of the Volleyball Hall of Fame. “For over sixty years, Pat has served in almost every capacity to help enhance the sport.”
Demers began her volleyball career in 1948 with the American Turners volleyball team in Springfield, Mass. She soon learned a lot more about the game of volleyball and participated in many New England Tournaments from 1948-1970. Attending the 1951 USVBA Open tournament in Springfield provided the inspiration to continue and expand her volleyball participation. She then became involved in volleyball officiating and scorekeeping and by 1960 was a national official and was scorekeeping for USVBA events.
Certified as a National Scorekeeper in 1973, Demers soon demonstrated her outstanding skills and was selected to serve as a national scorekeeper rater in 1976, a responsibility she continued through 1998.
Demers received her international scorekeeper certification at the 1983 NORCECA Championship in Indianapolis. She was also selected as a back-up scorekeeper for the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. She continued to keep score at several international matches in the United States, as assigned, until her retirement.
In 1998, Demers started the girls’ volleyball program at Agawam High. One year later, she formed the boys’ team. Since that time she has won four Western Massachusetts championships with the boys (2002, ‘03, ‘07, ‘11), completing an unbeaten 22-0 record in 2011. She won a WMass title with the girls in 2004.
“Over the last six decades, Pat has had a critical role in developing the game especially through her officiating and coaching,” said Ed Toole, president of the Volleyball Hall of Fame Board.
Demers, who was a national official and an international scorekeeper was selected to be a 2010 recipient of USA Volleyball’s Nancy Sharpless Scorekeeper Emeritus Award and, for her coaching prowess, was inducted into the Massachusetts Girls Volleyball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2006.
“Pat has dedicated her life to volleyball, especially trying to grow the sport in Massachusetts,” said Sean MacDonald, Frontier Regional High girls’ volleyball coach and volleyball official. “On behalf of all Massachusetts coaches and officials, I congratulate Pat on this truly deserved honor.”
When Demers isn’t coaching on the high school courts this year, she will get a chance to watch her granddaughters, 16-year-old Alison Johnstone and her sister Kelsey, 14, play for the Westfield High Bombers’ teams.
“The program has taken off like wildfire,” Demers said of girls’ volleyball in Western Mass. “Even for some watching the Olympics, it’s been an eye-opener.”
The Mintonette Medallion of Merit Award will be presented to Demers during the 2012 Volleyball Hall of Fame Gala Dinner & Induction Ceremony on Saturday, October 20. For more information on how to obtain tickets, contact the Volleyball Hall of Fame at (413) 536-0926, by e-mail at [email protected], or visit the Hall online at www.volleyballhalloffame.org.
