CALGARY – The University of Calgary Dinos are pleased to announce the creation of the Gary Deman – St. Francis High School Athletic Award.

Named in honour of longtime St. Francis football and men's basketball coach Gary Deman, the endowed award was funded by several alumni of the legendary Browns program and will be presented annually to a football or men's basketball player who attended St. Francis.

“Coach Deman influenced the lives of many young individuals,” said St. Francis and Dinos alumnus Tony Spoletini, who was instrumental in establishing the award alongside local businessman Frank Mafrica. “By having this award in his name not only perpetuates his contribution for future generations, but assists student-athletes from St. Francis High School to combine their athletic and academic dreams at the University of Calgary.”

Born in Trochu, Alta., Gary moved to Calgary in 1939 and graduated from what is now St. Mary's High School. He received his BEd from the University of Alberta and his BA in Honors from the University of Calgary before beginning his teaching career. After various teaching assignments in Calgary, Gary moved to St. Mary's High School in 1961, and in the fall of 1962 was part of the initial staff at St. Francis High School. He would go on to coach at St. Francis for 32 consecutive years before retiring in 1993.

During his tenure as coach, he led his teams 14 Calgary city championships in football in his last 22 seasons, along with one provincial title, and his basketball teams were six-time city champs. A total of 16 of his former players went on to play professional football.

The list of athletes that played for Deman is impressive. Some of the graduates from the Browns in addition to Tony Spoletini include Tom Spoletini, Rod Monden, Mark Naylor, Dan Geremia, Marcello Rapini, Chester Krala, Steve Pozzi, Chris Lewis, and Remo Cardone, all of whom are former University of Calgary basketball or football players. Calgary Chief of Police Rick Hanson, local CTV sportscaster Heath Brown, businessman Joe Ferraro, and lawyer Dominic Venturo, QC, also played for Coach Deman. Former All-Canadian tailback J.P. Izquierdo played at St. Francis and now teaches at the school, as do former University of Calgary fullback Joe Stambene and defensive back Rob Schrauth.

Coach Deman was also instrumental in starting the highly successful St. Francis Invitational boys basketball tournament that has now been running for 39 years. However, his most important legacy has been his profound influence in affecting the lives of numerous young men as a coach, teacher, and mentor.

Gary has earned numerous honors such as the Alberta Achievement Award for Excellence in   Community Service in 1981, Alberta Amateur Football Coach of the Year in 1971, 1981, and 1986, and 3M Coach of the Year for Alberta in 1992. He was given a life membership by Football Alberta in 1993.

Throughout his coaching and teaching career Gary believed in a complete education for his student-athletes. This was illustrated by the successful exchange of having teams come to the SFI tournament from Laredo, Texas, with the Browns reciprocated the experience by traveling to Laredo.

“It's really an honour for us to name this scholarship after one of the legends in Calgary high school sports,” said Kevin Boyles, director of athletics at the University of Calgary. “Awards like this help us keep the best local athletes in Calgary while we pay tribute to individuals who have left such a permanent mark on sport in our city.”

The inaugural recipient of the Gary Deman – St. Francis High School Athletic Award will be running back Steven Lumbala, who committed to the Dinos football program for the 2009 season.

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