Hall of Fame Inductees

Nancy Fitz was capped 21 times for the USA and was a star for Dartmouth and the DC Furies. A lock and captain for the Eagles she was a world-class player for many years. Fitz pulled a bit of a surprise in thanking the referees and the administrators in the game, the types of people who often get overlooked. 

Vix Folayan led Stanford to multiple national collegiate titles, and then the Berkeley All Blues. She was an Olympian and the top try-scorer for the USA 7s team when she retired. She is now the coach of the Washington Athletic Club 7s team. Her thank-yous went to he mother, and to all the medical people in rugby. They, Floayan said, are why players are able to keep taking the field.

She also shared some pieces of wisdom, including:
Live in the moment never take anything for granted
You can have a terrible injury and come back
Rugby unites inspires and brings out the best in all of us
She is not done with this game.amd never will be

Larry Gelwix won 20 national HS championships with Highland Rugby in Salt Lake City, Utah and logged an all-time record of 418-10. The record, Gelwix said, is nice, but "engraved in my heart are the over 3,000 names of the players in the Highland program."

He thanks his wife Kathy and he also shared some nuggets of wisdom—things, he said, he wished he had learned earlier.

It is we, not me
Attitude and effort is everything
WIN means What's Important Now—figure out what you have to take care today
Rugby Championships are not won in May, but in the summer preparation June and July, and in the winter months of December and January
Never let a problem be greater than a person who needs to be loved or needs a hand up
We all have defining moments that come unannounced, but it's our preparation that dictates how we react.

Jami Jordan was the driving force behind the 1991 Rugby World Cup-winning USA women's team and chaired the National Women's Committee. She was a massive voice for the women's game and fought for and won the fight for the women's national team to be called the Eagles. Interestingly, Jordan is married to Mike Luke, who is a member of the Canadian Rugby Hall of Fame. She thanked Luke for his support.

Alec Parker is the mountain rancher who became a world-class rugby player because his best friend told him he didn't have what it took to be a good football player. A humble man in a cowboy hat, Parker thanked God "for the blessins and the hardships" and thanked fellow Hall-of-Famers Luke Gross for being his fellow second row and roommate for 11 years and Tom Billups for his honesty and support.

"Rugby changed my life and how I perceived everything," said Parker, who played for the USA over 50 times and played in three Rugby World Cups.

Denis Shanagher rounded out the first father-son pairing to be in the USA Rugby Hall of Fame. A star for Stanford, San Francisco, the Bay Area Touring Side, and for the USA in 15s and 7s, Shanagher remembered when the USA boycotted the 1980 Olympics so the rugby team got to wear some unused Team USA track suits—red, white, and blue velour. The boycott, Shanagher joked, was probably less about the Soviet Union invading Afghanistan and move about the velour track suits. He also remembers playing his first game for Stanford, and it was refereed by his father, Denis Sr. Shanagher crossed for a try only to have his own father disallow it.

Being on USA Rugby's Board, Shanagher said he learned how complicated all of the issues are, but he urged everyone to come together to support the 2028 Olympics in LA as well as the World Cups in 2031 and 2033.

Lou Stanfill was a star for Jesuit HS in Sacramento, Cal, and the USA. He played more than 50 times for the USA as a flanker, No. 8, and lock. He won multiple Super League titles, and is now a firefighter in Sacramento. He credited that job, along with his wife and kids, for raising up him emotionally after he had to retire. He was another who thanked his parents, and thanked God.

"I have received blessings beyond comprehension, and I am richer than my wealthiest friends."

In attendance to support Lou Stanfill and also Mike Tolkin was longtime coach Bruce McLane (who cost-runs the RuggaMatrix America podcast with GRR's Alex Goff). He was singled out by both for his expertise, honesty, and support, and Stanfill was effusive in his gratitude.

Mike Tolkin has been battling liver cancer and his life has been in the balance. However, recently, Traci Young, wife of Scrumhalf Connection editor Wendy Young, and part of the rugby family, was found to be a donor match as a living donor of part of her liver. In the end, two-thirds of Traci's liver was take from her and transplanted into Tolkin. He is recovering well and his brother told GRR at the event that it is astonishing how good he looks. Tolkin recorded a message the night before his surgery. Had he not found a donor, he would have attended the awards event, but that would also have meant we might not have seen him for much longer.

(See the photo above left of Traci and Wendy Young, with Bruce McLane, and Kitty McNally, who helped facilitate the donor search website.)

Tolkin won three national high school titles as a coach for Xavier HS, and won one as a player, becoming, as far as we can tell, the first person to win a high school championship both as a player and as a head coach. He won four Super League titles as Head Coach of NYAC, coached the USA National Team, RUNY in MLR, and is now General Manager of PR7s.

He also helped found the USA U19 program with Tony Smeeth and Mark Bullock.

In his recorded message Tolkin said "here I am. And that's a great thing."

Tolkin gave "lots of love" to McLane, his teammate at Xavier and co-coach at Xavier and NYAC. And he gave thanks also to Traci Young, who was there to accept the award on his behalf.

Many, many former Xavier teammates were at the event to support Mike Tolkin.

It was a moving night ending on a very moving moment. 

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