Dan Jorgensen/Augsburg Public Relations
MINNEAPOLIS — A former All-American wrestler and his wife have contributed $2 million to “Access To Excellence: The Campaign for Augsburg College “in support of a major addition to the College’s athletic center, Si Melby Hall.
The gift, made by Fridley natives Dean Kennedy ’75, and his wife Terry, was announced Monday by Augsburg President William V. Frame, who said the gift not only is “a magnificent gesture of support for the campaign, but also significant recognition for the work of coaches and others who shape the lives of those of our students and colleagues who are engaged in athletics.”
Kennedy, an independent businessman, was the first four-time All-Lutheran Tournament champion in the tournament’s history. And he was at the front end of what has been built into the most successful small-college wrestling program in the nation. In his senior year, as co-captain, Kennedy led Augsburg to a runner-up spot in the NAIA national finals with a third-place finish at 142 pounds. In the ensuing 30 years, Augsburg has consistently finished among the top 10 in the nation, winning a record nine NCAA Division III national titles and taking second seven more times.
A four-year varsity wrestler for Augsburg, Kennedy was a 142-pound All-American his senior year. He also was a two-time Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference champion, and two-time MIAC Tournament Most Valuable Player. In dual-meet competition, he lost only one match during his career and had 53 victories his junior and senior seasons. In 1996, he was inducted into the Augsburg Athletic Hall of Fame.
He credits the discipline that was instilled in him by his coaches and mentors, particularly Mike Good (a current Augsburg Regent) and John Grygelko (Augsburg’s head coach from 1973-80), as keys to his success.
Good preceded Kennedy at both Fridley High School and Augsburg where he, too, was a champion wrestler. He went on to a successful business career in New York and has served on Augsburg’s board for the past three years. Just out of college in 1971, Good convinced Kennedy to come to Augsburg and then coached him his freshman year. Grygelko was Kennedy’s coach for his final three years.
“I was fortunate to be on the varsity for four years and take my lead from good leaders who remain my lifelong friends, “Kennedy said. “It was such an important part of my life at the time, and it molded me and shaped my values as a person.
“Terry and I have been blessed to be in the position to do this. We’re doing it for Jeff Swenson, Mike Good, John Greygelko, and all the outstanding young men for whom the Augsburg wrestling program has meant so much. And now that we’ve thought it through and made the commitment, we’re feeling very good about it, both of us.”
Swenson is current wrestling coach and Assistant Dean for Athletics and Recreation. Kennedy said he is a great admirer of Swenson’s coaching, but more importantly how he has shaped his team members into outstanding men who excel in the classroom and in society.
“Augsburg has done a very good job in working with its student-athletes. I took great pride in the program when I was there, and 30 years later I’m still able to take pride. When I was at this year’s national tournament (in Northfield, Minn.) I was very impressed by Jeff’s work with these young men. They were articulate, and even with all their success, very humble. I attribute that to Jeff and his coaches.
“You see a lot of successful ‘sports’ programs, but you don’t hear them talk about their graduation rates or in-classroom successes. But you do hear that at Augsburg. This is a college that teaches its students how to think critically and care about the world. I wanted to be supportive of that.”
Kennedy said he also was spurred into making his gift by an earlier gift made by Twin Cities wrestling legend Alan Rice — a non-Augsburg alum who donated $1 million to the campaign just a year ago. He said he had long known and admired Rice and when he saw that kind of commitment from him, he knew that he, too, needed to step forward to insure that good facilities were available for future generations.
The goal for the new facility is about $5 million, and nearly $4 million has now been raised. The College hopes to bring in the last of the money before fall and have a ceremonial groundbreaking soon thereafter.
“I hope that Terry’s and my gift will not only spark interest in other generations of Augsburg athletes whose lives have been shaped by the college, but also by Augsburg alumni in general in support of the many other important projects, such as the new Science Center, that will serve so many students in so many different ways, “Kennedy said.
Wrestling Gear
