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March 19, 2007
Brunswick gets its first Travis Roy Award winner
LEWISTON, ME -- When he was younger, Kit Smith attended camps Lee Roy conducted for youth hockey players in southern Maine. In those times, Smith honed his hockey skills but also learned of the struggles Roy´s son, Travis, had faced and overcome. On Sunday, Smith earned the highest honor in Maine Class A hockey as he was named the 12th recipient of the Travis Roy Award, named after Lee Roy´s son, a former Yarmouth resident who was injured in 1995 only 11 seconds into his first collegiate shift at Boston University. Smith is the first Travis Roy Award winner from Brunswick High. The award is given annually to the state´s top senior high school Class A hockey player, based on academic achievement, community involvement and playing ability. "It´s not only a great honor as an individual, but I think it shows a lot about how far Brunswick has come," Smith said. "Without my teammates, their support and playing hockey, our team never would have been as good. I think the Brunswick program has come really far in the last four years, so I think the award represents that." Smith, a forward, was one of three finalists, joining Scarborough´s Brent Mayo and Falmouth´s James Tolan. "They´re amazing," Smith said of Mayo and Tolan. "I had the opportunity to play with them on the Maine state team. They´re great hockey players and they´re all such great guys. Brent does really well in school and James does, too, and it was an honor to even be put in the same group as those two players." Smith had 26 goals and 17 assists for the Dragons, who fell 2-1 to Lewiston in the Eastern Class A semifinals. Smith also plays soccer and lacrosse at Brunswick and has applied to Bates, Bowdoin and Colby. "It was always my dream to be a Travis Roy winner," Smith said. "To be up in the ranks with players like that, Peter Gustavson, Dan Bartlett (finalist), Kyle Smith it´s a great feeling." In their speeches Sunday at the Ramada Inn and Conference Center in Lewiston, Smith, Tolan and Mayo mentioned the impact Travis Roy made on their lives. Roy, who lives in Boston, is a motivational speaker and works with his charitable foundation, which provides grants for research and adaptive medical equipment for people with spinal cord injuries. Smith compared Roy´s life to the life of Hanley Denning, a Yarmouth resident who founded Safe Passage. Denning died in January in a car accident in Guatemala. Both saw suffering, Smith explained, but set goals for themselves and helped others achieve their goals. "The spirit that drives us to score goals in hockey drives us to score goals in life," Smith said. Tolan was the second Roy Award finalist in three years from Falmouth. Peter Gustavson won it 2005. "As a sophomore," Tolan said, "I could only dream of standing here (Sunday). My experiences with the game of hockey have strengthened my character, and I will always hold Travis up as a role model." Mayo spoke of Roy´s belief that one should "never take anything for granted." He also spoke of Roy´s character, not only as a hockey player but as an individual. "He was a strong, courageous leader," Mayo said. Paul Evans and Bob Boucher were presented lifetime achievement awards by the Maine Class A Hockey Coaches Association. Boucher coached at St. Dominic for 25 years, winning five state championships. Evans, an assistant coach at the University of Southern Maine, is a former Maine Mariner who coached at Portland High and South Portland. Appeared in the Portland Press Herald - MARCH 20, 2007 |
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