Ansonia Alderman Daniel Evans was swept into office last year in a stunning Republican upset, but when he meets out-of-towners, they don’t want to talk politics.
“When I tell somebody that I’m from Ansonia, it’s not Mayor Cassetti that they know,” Evans told fellow Aldermen Tuesday. “They say ‘Oh, that’s where Jack Hunt coached football.”
Hunt, a 1965 Ansonia High School graduate, died in 2012 after a storied career with the school’s football program, serving as head coach from 1987 to 2005.
On Tuesday Aldermen honored Hunt’s successful tenure — he led the team to seven state titles and compiled a 193 – 26 record — by naming a practice field at the Nolan Field Athletic Complex in his honor.
But even if the Chargers teams he helmed hadn’t been so dominant, the honor would still be deserved, Third Ward Alderman Joseph Jeanette Jr. said Tuesday as Hunt’s wife, Denice, who also represents the Third Ward, sat next to him.
“He touched many lives throughout the community, not just athletes, but youth, adults,” Jeanette said. “The man was always there for anybody in the city of Ansonia. If anyone deserves this, it’s Jack Hunt.”
Jeanette and Mayor David Cassetti asked the city’s Recreation Commission to OK naming the field in Hunt’s honor.
The recreation board did so last month, and Aldermen made the move official Tuesday while singing Hunt’s praises.
Seventh Ward Alderman David Blackwell Jr., who himself played for four years under Hunt, said renaming the field to honor his former coach would be “very, very fitting.”
“He deserves this,” Blackwell said. “The man dedicated a lot of time to the youth of Ansonia, and not just the football players either. He was in school all the time. He made sure we were in school even when we didn’t want to be there. He was a true gentleman.”
Except for when circumstances called for a more confrontational posture, Blackwell said.
He recalled an away game at Wolcott when he was on the team during which the Chargers, not surprisingly, blew out the Eagles.
“While we were boarding the bus after the game, their parents surrounded the bus,” Blackwell said.
The parents then started yelling names at the Ansonia team.
Coach Hunt, who stood about six-foot-eight, wasn’t having it.
“Jack Hunt got off the bus,” Blackwell said. “Needless to say, a lot of the people dispersed. He was a protector.”
Sixth Ward Alderman Patrick Henri said naming the field in Hunt’s honor is “just a good thing to do to let people know that citizens are out there making a difference, making genuine contributions that are long-lasting.”
Jeanette said he only wished Hunt could be present to receive the honor in person.
“Unfortunately he’s not here to see this,” he said. “I wish he was.”
Evans said not to worry.
“He’ll be at the game Friday,” he said.
Denice Hunt said after Tuesday’s meeting the Aldermen’s gesture was “a wonderful honor.”
