Danbury coach Boucher to retire
Danbury girls golf coach and history teacher Kathy Boucher announced her retirement on Monday, signaling the end of a 23year Hall of Fame coaching career.
Boucher founded the girl golf program under former Danbury Athletic Director Joe Noto, and turned it into a CIAC varsity sport by 2003.
“I have been the only golf coach at Danbury high school ever,” Boucher said. “When I first started teaching at Danbury 27 years ago, I couldn’t believe we didn’t have a golf program. So, I started the program volunteering for many years until we were ready to be a competitive varsity team.”
In her 23 seasons of coaching varsity golf, she amassed a 130-123-4 record with two FCIAC titles and state titles in 2004 and 2005.
“She brought girls golf to be a varsity sport at Danbury high school,” said Chip Salvestrini, who has been Athletic Director at
Danbury High since 2001. “She started the varsity program in 2003 and by 2005 she had won two state titles in back-to-back years.”
“The timing was just really good,” Boucher said. “We ended up winning the state tournament and the FCIAC in 2004 and 2005
with an amazing group of young lady golfers that really took off with the sport.”
In 2016 Danbury finished as the runner up for the state title behind FCIAC rival Greenwich.
Durin her career, Boucher has been named FCIAC coach of the year, CIAC state coach of the year, was a finalist for National Coach of the Year in 2018 and has been inducted
into the Danbury High School Hall of Fame.
“She is an excellent coach who is going to be awfully difficult to replace,” Salvestrini said. “She was an old school coach who did everything the right way. She was a really talented coach and we are definitely going to miss her.”
Boucher’s last day will be Jan. 3, 2022, leaving behind quite a legacy after 27 years of teaching at Danbury.
“I want to thank Norm Winnerman for hiring me years ago, Joe Noto for supporting me and the program, and Chip Salvestrini, who is the best AD in the state of Connecticut,” Boucher said. “I am proud of the program and more proud of the girls that are successful individuals now. Now it is time for me to start working on my golf game again, and I am looking forward to it.”