* - Honorary Member
How many people can truly say they do what they love and love what they do? GERALD CLIFFORD ’80 is one person who can say that and really mean it. When contacted about his future induction to the Athletic Hall of Fame, Gerry responded with the following: “Where I came from in Eastern Maine, being a high school basketball coach was one of the most important jobs in town. I think that this was one of the reasons I coached for 28 years, plus I truly loved doing it. My coaching became a true family affair, with both my sons playing; both became high school and college coaches, with one advancing to the professional level. My daughter played, and in her senior year, became a basketball cheerleader. My wife, Teresa, played in high school and is a true basketball fan. I have always enjoyed being called ‘Coach Clifford,’ as I consider it a true honor having done what I did for as long as I did it.”
A 1964 graduate of the University of Maine at Machias, where he majored in business education, Gerry began his career at Mattanawcook Academy in Maine, teaching 8th grade social studies and coaching the freshman basketball team. In 1966, he accepted a position as head boys’ basketball coach, baseball coach and athletic director, as well as that of teacher of business education, social studies and driver education, at Mattawamkeag High School. The school’s overall basketball record was 45-17 over the next three years, with varsity baseball at 21-16. Gerry also played semi-pro basketball and baseball in Maine for about nine years, starting while he was in college, and found time to coach Babe Ruth baseball.
In 1970, however, Gerry’s career took on new meaning when he made the “big move” to Vermont to work at North Country Union High School in Newport. For next 31 years, Gerry would influence the lives of North Country’s young people in the classroom, on the playing fields and in his community.
Students who didn’t play on his teams had contact with him in his business education classes or “on the road” in driver’s education classes. In fact, Gerry was the first driver ed teacher in Vermont to do third party testing for driver’s licenses, a free service to students, and issued the first license to a student.
As North Country’s varsity basketball coach from 1970-1989, Gerry enjoyed many successful seasons. For 15 consecutive years (1975-89), the varsity team made the Vermont Division I State Tournament play-offs. A highlight of Gerry’s coaching career came in 1989 when he was named Vermont Division I Basketball Coach of the Year; he also served as head coach of the Vermont boys’ team in the Vermont-New Hampshire Alhambra game that year. Gerry started the first North-South game that is used to select Vermont players for the Alhambra game.
Aside from the North Country campus, Gerry has been co-director of the Lake Memphremagog Basketball Camp for boys and girls in grades 1-12 since 1972. In 1971, he started Biddy Basketball, which later became the Jr. Pro basketball program that today involves over 500 boys and girls in the Newport-Derby area. He also served as assistant men’s basketball coach at LSC under Tim Kelly from 1991-93.
In between games and classes, Gerry managed to work in time to pursue a Master’s of Education in Teaching and Counseling at LSC, a degree he was awarded in 1979. He also holds a Fifth Year Certificate of Advanced Study in Education from UVM.
And somewhere along the way, golf snuck its way into Gerry’s life. In 1972, he became the head golf coach at North Country. During his tenure, his golf teams won 16 Division I North District Championships and Division I State Championships for five consecutive years (1990-94). His teams’ overall golf record would be any coach’s dream: 815-140 (1972-2000). In 1993, Gerry was named Vermont High School Golf Coach of the Year.
Gerry’s involvement with golf extends beyond coaching to that of player, competitor and teacher. In 1997, he became a member of the U.S. Golf Teachers Federation, the largest organization of professional golf teachers in the world, with more members than the PGA. Gerry qualified for membership by passing the Teaching, Rules and Playing Ability Tests at Penn National Golf Course in Gettysburg, Penn. In recent years he has been head golf instructor at Green Valley Golf Course in Enfield, Maine, during the summer months, where he gives many adult lessons and conducts free clinics for youngsters in grades 1-12.
Gerry’s impressive coaching career over three sports, basketball, baseball and golf, culminated with a record of 1,122 wins and 352 losses, giving him a winning percentage of 76. He retired at the end of the past school year.
He and his wife, Teresa, have moved back to Maine, where they have had a summer home for a number of years. His sons, Dan and Steve, and his daughter, Cindy, are likely enjoying the fact that Gerry has more time to spend with them and their families.
