Wrestlers are tough. The sport, through countless hours of training in the mat room, produces competitors that are mentally strong, physically imposing, and capable of handling themselves throughout difficult situations.

During a luncheon to honor Montoursville area wrestlers of the past and present, attendees got to see a softer side of wrestling. Longtime coach and passionate fan of the sport, Dave Fortin, who each and every wrestler, past and present, called coach, spent the day engaged with his former wrestlers. They told stories of accomplishments, inspirational moments, and everything in between. The luncheon was the culmination of years of work to get all the participants together.

“Everything went smoothly, and I’m not into doing this type of stuff very often,” Fortin said. “For me to organize the event it took a long time. I had help. Rodney Watson really helped.”
Watson not only helped, but he also provided each and every person there with a thermal tumbler with the reunion and the date stamped on the front. There were also cookies with yellow icing and a blue “M” for Montoursville.

Fortin coached at Montoursville and Lycoming, and the impact he had on his teams and competitors was obvious. Everybody still called him coach, and when each wrestler stood to reminisce, Fortin was there to fill in the blanks.

He remembered scores, backstories, grades, girlfriends, moms and dads, practices, and, most importantly, accomplishments. There wasn’t a story told he couldn’t finish and each and every wrestler was proud to have been coached by him.

There was also plenty of humor. For tough-edged competitors who competed and coached at the highest levels of their sport, they sure knew how to tell jokes and keep a room captivated. After an outstanding meal provided by Johnson’s Cafe, Fortin took to the center of the room to begin the program. Again, Fortin’s impact was on full display as every person in the room quickly focused on their former coach. The head table featured 28 guests with most getting a chance to speak.

“Everybody that was there was happy and they were glad to be involved,” Fortin said. “Even back in the old days, we had a tight-knit group. They all had fun and enjoyed themselves. They are already talking about doing it again in the future. It feels really good that they would want to get together and do it all again.”

Emotions ran high for a couple of people as tears began to form through the stories of the past. Charles Dawson, one of the first wrestlers Fortin helped coach, spoke first. He talked about what it was like in the past to wrestle and how much the experiences meant to him. Fortin knew all the matches and results and didn’t let anyone slip.

Fortin helped coach multiple district champs and state place winners. All in all, Fortin coached 17 district champions, 18 state qualifiers, ten wrestlers who placed at states, and four state champions.
Fortin also helped raise close to $280,000 for Lycoming College through the Bud Whitehall Memorial Fund. The intended goal was $280,000 and with a year still left to go, Fortin has nearly raised that amount. The money will go directly to the Lycoming Wrestling program.

Whitehall was the person who gave Fortin a chance to attend college and wrestle at the next level. Fortin didn’t think he would go to college out of high school, but when Whitehall called and asked him to attend Lycoming, Fortin’s parents quickly made him take up the offer.

“He called me at home my senior year, and he wanted me to come to school,” Fortin said. “He took a big chance on me, and if it weren’t for him, none of this would have happened. That’s how much I think of him and still do.”

The rest is history that will continue to be celebrated as the former and present wrestlers from Montoursville will look to keep the tradition going.