~ Submitted by the BBRBS Board of Directors
Bedford Babe Ruth is proud to announce this year’s winners of our annual awards for graduating seniors. These awards were presented on May 31 at the CSF Dollars For Scholars Awards Night.
This year, the board voted to confer not only the John Hart and Travis Desiato Memorial Awards, as is our usual practice, but also two additional memorial awards in honor of Jeff Hoyland and Armand Sabourin, due to an abundance of truly exceptional seniors who were worthy of honors.
The John Hart Memorial Award: Isabella Fernald
Private First Class John Hart was a BHS graduate who was killed in action on October 18, 2003, in Taza, Iraq, in an enemy ambush.
A two-time BHS softball captain, two-time DCL all-star, 2021 Boston Globe and Boston Herald All-Scholastic selection, and co-MVP of the Dual County League, Bella also played on BBRBS’s spring and summer softball teams for years. Bella not only played in our program, but she also umpired for multiple seasons, coached in clinics for younger players, coached a Farm and Minors softball team, and worked individually with our younger athletes. Bella is a two-year member of the BHS varsity rifle team and a three-year varsity volleyball player including the 2021 team that made the state semifinals. She is a National Honor Society member and an AP Scholar and is also a classically-trained pianist and violinist who played for the high school musicals. Bella will be attending the United States Naval Academy and will study Aerospace Engineering.
The Travis Desiato Memorial Award: Dylan DiGangi
Lance Corporal Travis Desiato was a BHS graduate who was killed in action on November 15, 2004, in Al Anbar Province, Iraq.
A 2022 co-captain of the baseball team, and a DCL all-star in baseball and soccer, Dylan played varsity soccer, basketball, and baseball throughout his career in Bedford. Additionally, Dylan has been playing baseball for BBRBS since 2009, including helping win two summer league championships in the past three years while playing for the senior Babe Ruth team. Dylan is a member of the MIAA Student Advisory Committee, a Peer Leader, a member of the National Honors Society, and a BHS Hall of Fame Academic Award recipient. He was also a state conference finalist for DECA, a National History Day state winner and national finalist, and a volunteer for the Massachusetts Coalition for Downs Syndrome. Dylan also served at the class Vice President his junior and senior years. Dylan will be attending Clemson University and will be studying Business and Financial Management.
The BBRBS Jeff Hoyland Memorial Award: Ellie Mitchell
As he fought cancer for 11 years, Jeff Hoyland made it a habit to attend every event in town that he could and take pictures. He would be at middle school games, high school musicals, adult softball games, varsity baseball games, town parades, and everything in between, taking photos in his colorful outfits and with a gigantic, warm personality. Jeff was the 2019 Bedford Citizen of the Year and passed away on July 19, 2020.
A two-time BHS softball captain, DCL all-star, and all-scholastic honor recipient in 2021, Ellie has participated every year in BBRBS’s spring and summer softball teams since she was in tee-ball. Ellie not only played in our program, but she also umpired, coached in clinics for the younger players, coached a Farm Softball team, and helped facilitate clinics for our younger players in the winter during the pandemic. Ellie was the lead in the musical The Drowsy Chaperone which won nine TAMY award nominations and was also awarded the Performing Arts Director’s Award. She is a National Honor Society Member and a BHS Hall of Fame Academic Award recipient and will be attending the University of Pittsburgh to major in Biology.
The BBRBS Armand Sabourin Memorial Award: Cassidy Schuman
Coach Sabourin coached football for 30 years at Bedford High School and during that time also coached the baseball team. He is in the Massachusetts Football Coaches Hall of Fame, the Massachusetts Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame, the Dean Academy Hall of Fame, Northbridge High School Hall of Fame, and the Bedford High School Hall of Fame. Coach Sabourin died in July 2021 after battling Parkinson’s.
A two-time BHS softball captain and DCL all-star in 2021. Cassidy participated every year in BBRBS’s spring and summer softball teams since she was in tee ball. Cassidy not only played in our program, but she also helped run clinics and provided private lessons for younger players, coached a Farm Softball team and helped run clinic for younger children in the winter during the pandemic. Cassidy is also a two-year varsity volleyball player and member of the 2021 state semifinals team and was the 2019 Massachusetts Gymnastics Level 8 State Floor Champion and All-Around runner-up. She is a National Honor Society member, an AP Scholar, a 2022 Superintendent Award winner, and a Miss G Scholar-Athlete Award winner. Cassidy will be attending the University of Pennsylvania, majoring in Biomedical Engineering with a specialty in Neuro Engineering.
Congratulations to all of the award winners and the entire Bedford High School Class of 2022.
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