Malcolm GauldTom Bragg just wrapped up a weekend he’s not likely to ever forget. On Saturday (8/10/24) the festivities began with a 60th birthday party on the Hyde campus at the Family Renewal Center.
Look closely, and you will see that even the incredible cake did double duty as a celebration of both Tom’s birthday…
And his induction into the Maine Basketball Hall of Fame.
On Sunday, several car loads of Bragg family and Hyde colleagues/friends made the drive up Route 95…
to take in the ceremony at Bangor’s Cross Insurance Center.
Kudos to the whole team at Maine Basketball HOF for truly living up to its motto and putting on such a first-class event.
It was also a Who’s Who of Maine Basketball event! I had a blast meeting and talking with so many legends of the game.
I was both honored and humbled to serve as Tom’s presenter. Each presenter was given a strict mandate to “keep it under 3 minutes.” That was hard for two reasons: 1) Tom’s history with basketball (as both player and coach) involves so many accolades, attributes, and stories that it’s hard to be brief. 2) I’ve been accused of never settling for a sentence when a paragraph will do! Somehow, I managed to finish by remarks before they started playing the a la Academy Awards “we’re about to shut your microphone off” music. (Not a joke. They really do that!) Here’s what I said:
While the honorees did not speak during the ceremony, each submitted a personal statement that was posted on the walls of the Cross Center for all to see. Here’s Tom’s statement:
If you’ve been around Hyde at all during the past 3 or 4 decades, you’ve probably seen numerous photos of a highly enthusiastic Coach Tom Bragg cheering or challenging his teams to do their absolute best on the basketball court. However, you may not have seen any pics of Tom’s performance as a first-string, all-star mama’s boy. Pretty special.
Yeah, pretty special indeed, for him, his family, his players, his colleagues, and his friends. Hats off to Tom Bragg – Hall of Famer!
Onward, Malcolm Gauld
