Bob Lang, in an early 1980s contributed photo.
SEYMOUR — Whether in the classroom, from the dugout or on the pitcher’s mound, longtime Seymour teacher, softball coach and Christmas Parade organizer Bob Lang imparted life lessons on nearly everyone fortunate enough to have known him.
Lang, 80, who founded Seymour Little League Softball in 1973 and taught in the Seymour schools for more than three decades, passed away Oct. 1 after a brief illness. Click this link to read his obituary.
Fellow longtime Seymour coach and educator Paul “Spoony” Sponheimer said Lang was one of a kind.
“Seymour softball would not be what it is today without Bob Lang,” Sponheimer said. “I remember listening (on the radio) to one of his first all-star teams playing in Kalamazoo. I was glued to WADS and Brad Harris was announcing it from Kalamazoo and I’m saying to myself where the heck is Kalamazoo? He was as loyal to Seymour as you can get. He will certainly be sadly missed. We grew up in good times, and Bob Lang only made those times so much better.”
Sponheimer, a member of Seymour High School’s Athletic Hall of Fame Committee, was thrilled when Lang was inducted into the Hall’s Class of 2019, where he was recognized for establishing Little League Softball in 1973, creating an intramural softball program, teaching Seymour students for 36 years and starting Seymour Tradition, Inc., a girl’s softball travel league, in 2008.
One of the Tradition’s former standout players, who also played for Lang’s Red Devils, Sierra Cripps, a 2019 graduate of SHS and now a junior enjoying a successful swimming career at Seton Hall University, recalled playing for Lang in her formative years.
“Mr. Lang was the most influential man that Seymour softball has ever had,” Cripps said via text message to the Valley Indy. “Whether he was your coach directly, or critiquing you as an opposing team member, he was always quick to spread his knowledge undying love of softball. Mr. Lang devoted his life to the game and all of the girls lucky enough to play for Seymour softball, and I will be forever grateful for all the opportunities he created for me. The legacy that he has created will continue on, as he has set the precedent for generations of hard-working girls who he taught to love the game. It was an honor to know him and to play for him.”
Cripps’ mom, Laura (Konnik) Cripps, an SHS Class of ’86 graduate and a member of Lang’s 1980 All-Star team that made it all the way to the World Series, holds nothing but fond memories of Lang, as well. She spent much of her pre-teen and teen summers playing for Lang.
“Tough when he needed to be but so incredibly knowledgeable of the game,” Cripps said of Lang via an email to the Valley Indy. “He taught so many girls (myself included) to not only understand, but to love the game of softball. He literally put Seymour on the map as ‘a powerhouse softball program.’ He gave so much of himself and did so much for the Town of Seymour. Mr. Lang was the definition of what legends are made of.”
Lang, a 1959 SHS graduate, won numerous accolades over the years, including The Legacy Award for 45 years of service to George J. Hummel Little League.
As well known as Lang was for his outstanding coaching skills, he was also known as the Mr. Christmas of Seymour, having been the organizer of the annual Seymour Christmas Parade, which has been a tradition in town for more than 50 years. He stepped down in 2018 as president of the Christmas Parade Association, saying he believed the parade needed “a fresh, new approach and infusion of younger ideas.”
A favorite parade memory for Lang was when the event drew one of the largest crowds ever in 1990 when Hollywood came to town to film “Other People’s Money,” starring Danny DeVito. Actor Dean Jones served as parade Grand Marshal that year.
First Selectwoman Annmarie Drugonis said Lang epitomized what community is about.
“Bob loved his community and always gave back,” Drugonis said. “He was a wonderful educator, softball coach and a fixture at all our town parades. Mr. Lang, ‘thank you’ for everything you have done for the student athletes of Seymour from teaching to coaching softball. May his memory be eternal.”
Hundreds of people took to the town’s Facebook page and George J. Hummel Little League Facebook page to express their condolences this week.
Longtime Board of Education member Fred Stanek, gripped by emotion, spoke of Lang during Monday night’s school board meeting. Stanek was a student in Lang’s first fourth grade class at the former Center School back in 1963.
“Bob Lang was an icon in our community, especially with regard to education, Girls’ Softball and the Annual Christmas Parade,” Stanek said. “Mr. Lang left a legacy with regard to Seymour Girls’ Softball. This is a sad time for Seymour. We have lost a kind, generous and humble man who gave so much for so many people. God bless you, Mr. Lang. We will miss you and love you forever.”
