Boucher’s life was short, but he inspired others to follow his lead

It is the ultimate testimony to the vagaries of timing. True, Dan Boucher's time with us, dying at 38, fell woefully short. But the wonderful irony in all this suggests Boucher's time with us isn't done at all. And we see him and think of him now every June, right around the time when two vocations he loved the most — fatherhood and golf — become so timely.

It was Father's Day on Sunday, the final round of the U.S. Open and the beginning of Travelers week here in Connecticut, when golf moves to the front page.

And it was a true father's day last Thursday at Norwich Golf Course, when the family and friends of Norwich GC's first professional, Dan Boucher, honored his memory with the 29th Daniel A. Boucher Memorial Golf Tournament, benefitting the scholarship fund in his name that is about to reach $250,000 given to kids from the region.

Boucher's notable resume — 11-year golf pro, Windham High grad, standout golfer at Eastern Connecticut — doesn't tell his story as much as this does: He's getting more done in death than most of us do in life.

"One of the things my dad really loved was supporting junior golf in the area," said Pat Boucher, an NFA grad who lives in New Jersey now and was 10 when his dad died. "He'd do Thursday clinics, charge everyone a dollar to play and then use that money for a cookout at the end. My mother (Barbara) wanted to do something each year to get everyone

together, but to give back to those kids he had supported for so long."

And so 120 players gathered under the God-sent azure sky last week, supporting the scholarships given to kids from Montville High, NFA, Norwich Tech and St. Bernard — the schools that use Norwich GC as their home course — in addition to Boucher's alma mater, Windham.

Applicants must have earned at least one varsity letter in any sport and have been accepted to a college or university. This is 29 years running now, a list of honorees that even includes a former Major League Baseball player, NFA great Andrew Carignan.

"My mother calls this a family reunion," Pat Boucher said.

Indeed, the initial Board of Trustees consisted of Dan Boucher's friends at the course. It has morphed into former recipients and family friends who managed to pick the perfect week to recall Dan's memory: Joan Bohara, Pat and Barbara Boucher, Jen DeLucia, Bill Howard, Chris Maynard and Pat McNally and Norwich pro Mike Svab.

"I've always been around golf," Pat Boucher said. "I went to Stanton school. We lived in Norwich. My dad and I would go to the club before school. He'd drop me off at school, come and get me and I'd be back here closing up every night.

"We were lucky enough that the second professional here was John Paesani who grew up in Willimantic while my uncle was the head pro there and my dad the assistant. John grew up under them. Now with Mike being here, Mike was my mentor. I worked at Pautipaug with him for 10 years. We all have history with each other."

Congrats to the Class of 2018: Chloe Guzman and Erin McBride (Norwich Tech); Noah Caskey, Madison Beaupre and Polina Boteva (Montville); Yeni Lopez (Windham), Haley Warzecha (NFA) and Nathan Lieske (NFA).

There is no explaining the death of a good man at 38. But then, maybe there's this: Dan Boucher's good life lived is responsible for $250,000 worth of scholarships, contributing to so many more good lives lived.

And that they honor him around Father's Day, the U.S. Open and the Travelers, where dads and golf become our narratives, hits every note.

It's easy to look around now and see the village green, where we should come together, suddenly replaced by soap-box spielers shouting damnation at one another.

Instead of actually doing something to help.

This tournament is only the best illustration of a community doing for others, inspired by a man who used his talent in golf to give back. Big lesson there. And somewhere Dan Boucher looks down and smiles. This is the opinion of Day sports columnist Mike DiMauro