John H. Brueggemeier (1942-2019)

Old Fort athletic director inducted into Hall of Fame.

By Mark Zaborney / The Blade
Wed, 04 Dec 2019 05:00:00 GMT

link -- with images

OLD FORT, Ohio — John H. Brueggemeier, a math teacher at Seneca County’s Old Fort High School who as the longtime athletic director organized tournaments and got to know ballplayers, coaches, and officials from across the state, died Friday in his Tiffin home. He was 77.

He had cancer, his wife, Donna, said. He’d recovered from ailments over the years and remained active in church and the community. Until the last year or so, he attended Old Fort High home basketball games, his mobility aided by walker or cane.

With his distinctive wave and deep voice, he greeted friends and encouraged athletes. “His quiet voice was still his big voice,” his daughter said. “You knew when my dad was in the room.”

Starting as a high school student, he attended the state high school basketball tournament in Columbus annually, through 2018.

Mr. Brueggemeier retired as Old Fort athletic director in 2004, seven years after he retired from teaching math. As a sideline, he drove a school bus for much of his career, his wife said. He’d been freshman and varsity basketball coach. He taught driver’s education.

His daughter Kelli said: “You think of Old Fort, you just thought of my dad. He loved what he did and loved the community.”

Old Fort High played host to basketball and other sports tournaments after a new gymnasium opened in the 1980s.

“He was good at what he did. He was very organized,” his daughter said. “He took his time, but he knew how to handle people. He took control, but in a good way.”

Trophies to be awarded were displayed atop white table cloths, freshly pressed by Mrs. Brueggemeier. Old Fort hospitality rooms were fondly anticipated by coaches and referees, with community volunteers pitching in to supply sandwiches, cookies, and refreshments.

“He wanted everything to look nice and be nice for everybody,” his wife said.

He served on boards of athletic associations and received honors through the years. He was a 2006 inductee to the Old Fort Hall of Fame.

“It meant the world to him,” his daughter said.

Previous inductees had been Old Fort student athletes, his wife said.

“That tells you what the Old Fort community thought of him,” his wife said.

He was born Sept. 29, 1942, in Pemberville, Ohio, to Lauretta and Martin Brueggemeier. He was a 1960 graduate of Eastwood High School, in a district formed in 1958 by consolidation. At 6-feet, 4½ inches tall, he was a leading scorer and rebounder for the basketball Eagles. With a 22-1 record, the team took a Northern Lakes League title and played in the state basketball tournament’s Class AA Toledo regional contest.

He played basketball at Defiance College, from which he received a bachelor’s degree in education.

In Tiffin, he sang in the choir and served on the council of First Lutheran Church.

Surviving are his wife, the former Donna Chapman, whom he married June 19, 1965; daughters Kelli Brueggemeier, Amy Lake, and Julie Richards; brother, James Brueggemeier, and three grandchildren.

Visitation will be from 3-8 p.m. Wednesday at Hoffmann-Gottfried-Mack Funeral Home, Tiffin. Services will be at 10:30 a.m. Thursday at First Lutheran Church in Tiffin, where the body will be after 9:30 a.m.

The family suggests tributes to the Old Fort High School athletic fund; First Lutheran Church, or a charity of the donor’s choice.

link