“Mongo was a selfless, caring, joyful man who knew everything there was to know about the sport and had a joke for every circumstance. For instance, the Greenwich Point cross country trails seemed to always stay magically trimmed, properly marked, and cleaned up after storms. Really, it was Mongo taking time before and after weekend practices to make sure his athletes had the best conditions to train and compete.”
– From the William Mongovan Memorial Foundation’s GoFundMe pageMaddie Robinson, GHS class of 2018 who was Outdoor Track captain, also reached by phone Monday, said she had a very close relationship with Coach Mongovan.
“I remember the first day he met me, he said, ‘You have long legs and a fire in your eyes – and you should try hurdles,'” she recalled. “Nobody had said, ‘You’re special, you’ll do well.’ It was cool to have someone believe in me.”
As for the scholarship, Robinson said, “We’re trying to raise money to help people bring their dreams to reality. That’s what Mongo did.”
“He loved the sport so much, and it was infectious,” Kosyakov said.
The foundation started a GoFundMe campaign on December 24.
As of Monday afternoon it had raised $1,866, mostly from former athletes and their families. Now the foundation seeks to reach the entire Greenwich community and beyond to support the effort.
Kosyakov and Robinson said the plan is to cover the costs of memorial efforts for Mongo, with the remainder of the funds going towards developing a scholarship award for outstanding Greenwich High School student-athletes who live up to the ideals of Coach Mongovan.
See also:
GHS Track Coach, Bill Mongovan, 78
Dec 21, 2020