The second annual class of the Harwood Hall of Fame includes Edward Steele, 1955 (Waterbury HS); John Grace, 1957 (Waterbury HS); Robert Fielder, 1964 (Waitsfield HS); Grace Potter, 2001; Andrew Harris, 2004; and the 1975 boys’ varsity basketball team.
The inductees were announced today by Dwight Fiske and Mitch Casey, co-chairpersons of the Harwood Union Hall of Fame Committee.
“The goal of the Hall of Fame committee each year is to elect individuals or groups who represent the best that Harwood, Waitsfield and Waterbury High Schools have to offer. Our inaugural class set the benchmark for all other classes to follow, and we are excited to announce the Harwood Hall of Fame Class of 2011 honorees,” Fiske said. “This group of inductees has left their mark on their respective high schools and greater communities through their actions and accomplishments during high school and beyond,” Casey added.
Edward Steele, Waterbury High School Class of 1955
Cross Country, Basketball, Baseball
Steele was a cross country runner and catcher in baseball. He was selected to the All-Tournament Team in the 1954 State Basketball Tournament. With no three-point baskets he scored 91 points in his last two home games his senior year. He went on to Norwich University where he participated in basketball, baseball, skiing, golf, the Outing Club, the Jr. Weekend and Winter Carnival Committees. He graduated from Norwich in 1959 with a B.S. in business and a commission of 2nd lieutenant in the U.S. Army Armor branch. After eight years of active and reserve duty he separated as a captain. His active lifestyle found him providing service to the town of Waterbury on the select board from 1980 to 2006 and he served as the chair for 25 of those years. He received the Keith A. Wallace Memorial Community Service Award and the Waterbury Highway Maintenance Facility is named in his honor. Through his generosity, the Steele Family Scholarship was established. He received the 2009 Distinguished Alumnus Award from Norwich.
John Grace, Waterbury High School Class of 1957
Cross Country, Basketball, Baseball, coach
Grace lettered in cross country, basketball and baseball in high school. He received a B.S. from UVM and an M.A. in mathematics from Bowdoin College. During his years at Harwood he was a math teacher, athletic director, varsity coach of softball, baseball, boys’ basketball and girls’ varsity and JV basketball. Grace’s Harwood baseball record of 51-17 for a .750 winning percentage is the best in Harwood baseball history. His Harwood baseball jersey is retired. He has served the youth of Vermont as Math Department chair and assistant principal at Colchester High School, assistant principal at Essex Junction Educational Center, interim principal at Black River High School and principal at Windsor High School. He has served as a supervisory visitor use assistant at the Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site in Cornish, New Hampshire. He has been a major contributor to many educational systems and their youth in Vermont.
Robert F. Fielder, Waitsfield High School Class of 1964
Soccer, Basketball, Baseball
Fielder lettered in soccer, basketball and baseball at Waitsfield High School. Baseball seemed to be his strongest sport as on the pitching mound it is said that the 6-foot 4-inch lefthander was a formidable force. However, it was his leadership and positive attitude that really stood out. He competed for the ski team at Mad River Glen during his early years. Fielder enlisted in the United States Marine Corp immediately after graduation. He was promoted to private first class upon graduating from basic training. He was ordered to Vietnam and was killed in action while serving there. The Fielder family established the Robert F. Fielder Memorial Award to be awarded to the Most Outstanding Senior Male Athlete at Harwood Union. The recipient has to demonstrate outstanding leadership qualities, outstanding sportsmanship and excellent athletic performance. The Fielder Award has been awarded annually since the opening of Harwood Union in 1966.
The 1975 Boys’ Varsity Basketball Team
Harwood’s First State Championship Team
The 1975 varsity boys’ basketball team finished the regular season with a record of 15-5 and had a great run through the playoffs. With a 58-45 win over U-32, the team finished the year with a 19-5 record and a VPA Class I State Championship – Harwood’s first. The team was coached by Dave Lapointe, who was assisted by Larry Allen. Ralph Chilton and Stuart Maynard were the team captains. Maynard was inducted in his own right as a Charter Member of the Harwood Hall of Fame in 2010.
Grace Potter, Class of 2001
Musician, Recording Artist, Performer
Potter is a singer, player and writer of songs. Before pursuing music professionally, she attended St. Lawrence University for two years. She plays Hammond B3, Fender Rhodes, Wurlitzer Electric piano and electric and acoustic guitar. In the spring of 2003, Matthew Burr, Scott Tournet and Potter became the founding members of the band that became known as Grace Potter and the Nocturnals. Potter released a solo album, Original Soul (2004). The band independently recorded and released one album, Nothing But the Water (2005). At the Boston Music Awards in 2005, the band was nominated for Best Local Female Artist and performed at the awards ceremony. In December 2005 the band signed a deal with Hollywood Records and on May 23, 2006, rereleased Nothing But the Water.
In 2006, the band won the Jammy Award for Best New Groove and was nominated for a Boston Music Award: Female Vocalist of the Year (for front woman Grace Potter). The band released its second album, This Is Somewhere in August 2007. August 2007 was the same month the band made its network television debut on NBC’s The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, ABC’s Good Morning America and CBS’s The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. May 2010 found Vermont specialty chocolate maker Lake Champlain Chocolates creating a new chocolate bar: Grace Under Fire. The band has albums and singles as well as tracks that Potter wrote and were used by Disney in Tangled, with Potter singing by herself.
Andrew Harris, Class of 2004
Basketball, Baseball
Harris lettered in baseball (three years) and basketball (four years, Capt. 4). He received the Outstanding Male Athlete Award and the Scholar-Athlete Award in his senior year. In basketball he was the Capital Division and the Times-Argus Player of the Year in 2004, 2004 Burlington Free Press First Team All-State, Capital Division First Team 2003 and 2nd Team 2002, Times-Argus Second Team 2003. His 1,382 career points is a boys record at Harwood. At Harwood he was the 2004 class salutatorian. Harris attended Middlebury College. Graduation in 2008 saw him earn the Charles B. Allen Memorial Prize for excellence in biology, chemistry and/or physics and the Hazeltine-Klevenow Memorial Trophy for excellence in athletics and academics, four years of basketball (Capt. 4) along with Sports Information Directors Academic All-American 1st Team Honors 3 and 4 and USA National Team – 2nd Team 4. Among his Middlebury records, he is ranked first – Highest 3 Point Field Goal Percentage in Season, second – Highest Career 3 Point Field Goal Percentage, and second – Most Career 3 Point Field Goals. He recently received the Woll Award for the student who shows excellence in general pathology and the Buttles Award for excellence in the topics of systemic pathology. Only one other time has the same student won both awards.
For more information about the Hall of Fame and to access nomination forms, log on to Harwood Union’s website at www.harwood.org or contact Dwight Fiske at
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