DUNMORE, Pa. — For nearly 50 years, Jack Henzes led the Dunmore Bucks football team and gained the love and support of the community both on and off the field.
A statue was built and dedicated last year after his retirement. Now, it is a memorial to his legacy at Dunmore.
Coach Henzes passed away Monday night.
Maria Wolfel, the coach's granddaughter, stopped by to take some photos at the stadium where he spent so much time.
"He loved Dunmore and once a Buck, always a Buck. Everyone has just been so wonderful," Wolfel said.
Current Dunmore football head coach Kevin McHale took over the reins after Henzes' retirement. McHale says the respect Coach Henzes had from his players was second to none, but it was the other side of Henzes that he also has fond memories of.
"Coach did have a funny side. It didn't come out very often, but among coaches and players, there are thousands of moments that we could go back on and smile and laugh," McHale said.
With high school football season just around the corner, the first night under the lights in Dunmore may feel a bit different, but Henzes' legacy will remain.
"For our kids to go and look at that statue and know about things that he did so very well. He had a certain recipe for molding toughness and for molding enthusiasm," McHale said.
"He's here on the sidelines screaming, yelling just as he always did. He's watching over," Wolfel said. "He lived one heck of a life, and he embraced it. He's finally at rest, and he's finally at peace. He touched so many lives. And I'm so grateful and blessed that I was part of his family."
Coach Henzes' career spanned more than five decades.
Colleagues of Henzes shared their memories with Newswatch 16.