It was a cause that John Baggerly had championed for many years—the formation of a Los Gatos High School Athletic Hall of Fame. And he would discuss the possibilities with anyone who would listen, sharing his memories of the high school's great ones of the past—Dave Anderson, Bob Chambers, Hugh Campbell and more.
He certainly has his share of memories—memories that virtually spanned the history of the high school itself. He grew up in Los Gatos, participated in sports while a student at the high school in the 1930s, followed the school as a newspaper editor and sports writer in the decades to follow, and supported Los Gatos High School athletes for nearly three quarters of a century.
So if there was anyone qualified to select athletes deserving of Los Gatos High School Hall of Fame induction, it was John Baggerly.
Sadly, John died before his idea would reach fruition. But through the efforts of Joe Zanardi of the Los Gatos Athletic Association, Los Gatos High School athletic director Mark Magagna and football coach Butch Cattolico and other volunteers, the Hall of Fame became a reality in 2004 with the inaugural class of inductees.
We believe that John Baggerly would be proud to know that his wonderful dream had finally come true, and that hundreds of former Wildcats and high school supporters turned out to welcome the first athletes into the Hall.
And we trust that he would also take pride in being among those Los Gatos greats honored a year later among the 2005 cast of inductees. John Baggerly has earned special recognition in the Hall of Fame in acknowledgment of his years of support to Los Gatos athletics. He's certainly deserving of the honor—no one has been more devoted to sports in this town than he was.
Joining Baggerly (class of 1935) in the second group of Hall of Fame inductees will be such noteworthy athletes as the late Hal Sonntag (1940), Pete Denevi (1944), Camden Wall (1959), the late Ed Howell (1963), Mike Couchee (1976), Bob Steiner (1979), Kent Cooper (1980), Lezli Jensen (1987), Mike Fisher (1990) and Shelby Edwards (1993).
There will be a special dinner on April 30 at Villa Ragusa in downtown Campbell to honor the inductees. Special invitations have gone out to all of the honored athletes so they can attend with families and friends. Hall of Famers attend free; tickets are priced at $90 (call the Los Gatos Athletic Association at 408.395.2002 for information).
If the dinner is anything like it was last spring, it promises to be a very special event indeed—a regular "Who's Who" of Los Gatos sports history.
The induction of the 2005 class of Athletic Hall of Fame members promises to be a fitting tribute to those athletes who have helped create the tradition of excellence in sports at Los Gatos High School.
And to the man whose dream it was to create the Hall of Fame in the first place—John Baggerly.
