It was a special weekend at St. Catherine’s as the School celebrated the inaugural class of the Athletic Hall of Fame.
     The success of Saints athletics is hard to miss today, but the legacy before our present-day athletes is incredible and their successes were honored during the weekend’s festivities.
     “St. Catherine’s raises the bar once again by celebrating our rich history and our accomplished alumnae,” Director of Athletics Julie Dayton said.
     The members of the charter class of the St. Catherine’s Athletic Hall of Fame are:
     Fanny Graves Crenshaw, 1908
     Anne Blackmon Whitfield Kenny, 1951
     Peel Stapleton Hawthorne, 1975
     Mary Blair Farinholt Denious, 1982
     Kay Livick Milne, 1999
     Natalie Kerns Martirosian, 2001
     The 1999 Varsity Track & Field Team

     The festivities began Friday night in front of hundreds of fans in the Kenny Center for the Saints basketball game against Cape Henry Collegiate, one of the top teams in the state. The inductees were honored during a special pregame reception and then publicly during halftime.
     The weekend continued Saturday with a luncheon and the formal induction ceremony. Former coaches, alumnae athletes and special guests joined together as each inductee was presented and then gave an acceptance speech.
     Each inductee gave a moving speech about their experience in athletics at St. Catherine’s and beyond.
     Highlights of the speeches included:

• Kenny told stories about fellow inductee Fanny Crenshaw.
• Hawthorne talked about her career and the limited opportunities for girls at the time, before Title IX.
• Denious traveled down memory lane.
• Milne paid tribute to track coach Dave Bloor, who shared stories about the track team.
• Martarosian brought it full circle to where Saints athletics stand today.

     “We have the beautiful new gym and the Hall of Fame as physical manifestations of St. Catherine’s commitment to athletics,” Martirosian said.
     Bloor even took a break from the state indoor track meet to accept on behalf of the 1999 track team and to present Milne. He left quickly to return to the meet, which the Saints won.
     The names of the inductees hang in the main hallway outside the weight room in the Kenny Center. A display is set up in one of the cases as well.
     The second class will be inducted in 2014. Nominations are open. For more information go to: st.catherines.org/halloffame.
     See more photos from the weekend here.