Montco Chapter names nine to Hall of Fame
Nine men and women will be welcomed to the Montgomery County chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame at its third annual induction banquet on Sept. 25 at the Valley Forge Radisson Hotel.
David Ritting, president of the Montgomery County chapter, has announced the following honorees for the Class of 2012. They were chosen for their accomplishments in baseball, football, WUDFN DnG fiHOG, fiHOG KRFNHy, swimming, sports media, wrestling, lacrosse, and basketball. Two of the honorees represented the r.S. in Olympic participation. Two former high school football stars advanced to the National Football League.
The nine new inductees are William (BillF Bartle, Bob Bloss, Kim Gallagher (deceasedF, Henry (HankF King, John King, Chad Levitt, Richard (DickF Ritting, Bonnie Smith Taylor and Wally Triplett.
Bonnie Smith Taylor and the late Kim Gallagher each have Olympic backgrounds on their resumes. Smith 7DyORU, D fiHOG KRFNHy DnG swimming standout at Norristown High and at Temple rniversity, went on to a OHnJWKy fiHOG KRFNHy FRDFKing career, then served as a ODFURVVH DnG fiHOG KRFNHy umpire for nearly three decades, and was president of the Abington chapter of umpires. An inductee of three Halls of Fame — Norristown High, Temple rniversity, r.S. Field Hockey — she was a member of the 19761984 Olympic Development Coaching staff, and held a key organizational post with the Houston, Oklahoma and Atlanta Olympic Festivals.
Gallagher, a stroke victim who passed away at age 39, was an rpper Dublin High School student-athlete who later earned international acclaim as a silver and bronze medal winner in the 800-meter run at the 1984 and 1988 Olympic Games, respectively. She was the only r.S. man or woman to have won an individual medal in any event longer than 400 meters at Seoul in 1988. Gallagher courageously battled FDnFHU-UHODWHG DIflLFWLRnV IRU 14 years before succumbing in 2002. As late as 1992, she competed in the Olympic trials. She has been inducted in Halls of Fame established by the Pennsylvania Track and Field Coaches, rpper Dublin High and the Penn Relays.
Chad Levitt and Wallace (WallyF Triplett are two 2012 inductees who attended Cheltenham High School and eventually played foot- ball in the NFL.
7ULSOHWW, WKH fiUVW AIULFDn American to start a football game at Penn State, was a member of the Nittany Lions’ 1948 Cotton Bowl team that played SMr to a 13-13 tie. After college, the Cheltenham High Hall of Famer SODyHG fiYH yHDUV IRU WKH DHtroit Lions and Chicago Cardinals. He remains Detroit’s holder of the single game record for kickoff return yardage — 294 yards.
Levitt, in addition to football, was also a Cheltenham wUHVWOLnJ DnG WUDFN DnG fiHOG (shot put and 4x100 relayF standout. He carried his football talent to Cornell where he was a three-time All-Ivy /HDJuH fiUVW WHDP. HH HVtablished Cornell records for most 100-yard games (24F, and for most rushing attempts (922F. A member of the Cornell rniversity and the Philadelphia Jewish League Halls of Fame, Levitt was a fourth round draft selection of the Oakland Raiders. He also played for the St. Louis Rams and Chicago Bears.
William (BillF Bartle, from the mid-1970s to 2000, was one of the most headlined competitive swimmers in Pennsylvania, then an outstanding high school swimming coach in Montgomery and neighboring Berks County. A four-time high school All American with eight PIAA championship medals to his credit, Bartle later piloted 17 scholastic swimming and 16 water polo All Americans during his head coaching tenures at Reading High School (1985-’94F and North Penn High, (1994-2000F. He is enshrined in the North Penn High, North Penn/Souderton and Berks County Halls of Fame, and is recipient of the David H. Robertson Excellence in Coaching accolade.
Bob Bloss enters the sports Hall not for prowHVV Rn WKH fiHOGV DnG FRuUWV of play, but for his media coverage of those athletes whose performances he’s described via typewriter and microphone. The Temple rniversity Communications major has covered the Phillies regularly since the early 1960s, and recently authored two nationally distributed baseball books. His MontJRPHUy CRunWy EyOLnHV fiUVW appeared for editor Charley Myers at The Reporter, then, through the 1960s, under legendary Times Herald sports editor Red McCarthy. Bloss’s sports coverage has included play-by-play of Bux-Mont League football (WNPV Radio, 1960s