Fondly remembered by hundreds of students as an outstanding English teacher. Frank Coffey was also an exceptional multi- sport athlete in the 1960’s & 70’s.

Frank Coffey sadly passed away over the Canada Day weekend on his beloved Wolfe Island. A retired teacher, Coffey was a fixture on the island for decades. He spent 55-years on the river, boating and fishing. Frank was a well-known fishing guide on his vintage classic Lyman boat,’ The Grinch’. The boat is a 1969 limited edition ‘Offshore’ Lyman – only 26 of them were manufactured.

Coffey, 73, was a highly respected and influential English literature & Latin teacher for 30 years, mostly spent at Kingston’s Regiopolis Notre Dame High School.  

A natural performer, Frank brought Shakespeare to life in the classroom with the same theatrical flair as his favourite Stratford performers. He kept students engaged and awake with his booming voice and animated characters. Frank was admired for his quick wit, eloquent command of the English language, steady strength, and the high standards he brought to everything he pursued.

A Regi graduate and a star halfback on the football team, Coffey was a favourite target of quarterback Frank Halligan. “The Frank’s Are At It Again,” read the headline in a 1968 Whig Standard sports story.

The Regi junior team had four players named ‘Frank’ in their back field. In a 35-2 win over LaSalle, Frank Halligan threw four TD passes, two to Frank Corrigan, a 70-yard bomb to Frank Coffey and another TD pass to Frank Murphy.Coffey also competed in track & field at Regi. At the Kingston High School championships, he finished third in the 100-yard race and set a new Kingston record for the longest throw in the junior discus event. He was inducted into the Regi Sports Hall of Fame in 1992.

Coffey’s primary sport was hockey, but Frank also starred in baseball. In his rookie season in 1968 in the Kingston Minor Baseball League’s Midget division he won the batting championship with a lofty .571 average and was named league MVP. Coffey beat out Jim Scullion who hit .514 for the batting title. Terry Burnette was next at .359. In later years Frank played fastball for the Wolfe Island team in the Loughborough Men’s Fastball League.

Growing up and playing in the Church Athletic League, Coffey led Wolfe Island’s Sacred Heart team to a CAL PeeWee hockey championship. Frank graduated to the Rotary Kiwanis Minor Hockey League and was one of the league’s top scorers. Playing for Wilf Pluard’s Bantam Panthers team he was named league MVP.

During the 1967-68 season Coffey helped lead the Rotary Kiwanis Midget all-stars to an all-Ontario OMHA championship for coach Garry Lavallee. Kingston beat Sarnia in the provincial final in front of over 2,000 fans at the Memorial Centre. Coffey was regarded as one of the top midget players in the province and after winning the OMHA championship was recruited and signed to a tryout by the Ottawa 67’s. Coach Bill Long personally visited the Coffey family on Wolfe Island that summer.

Coffey attended Ottawa’s training camp competing for a spot on the blueline. The 67’s had a 14-year-old at camp that year, a young defenseman by the name of Denis Potvin. Incredibly, Potvin had already played three games for Ottawa the previous season. Potvin, one of the all-time greats, would go on to win four Stanley Cups for the NY Islanders and was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Coffey ultimately left the 67’s camp and returned home to Kingston, deciding to focus on education and attend university. He played two seasons for Bob Senior’s Kingston Jr. ‘B’ Frontenacs. In 1969-70, the Fronts won the Eastern Ontario title losing to Hamilton in the provincial semi-finals.

In the fall of 1970, he attended Queen’s University and played for the varsity Gaels. It was the first season of play in the ‘new’ Jock Harty Arena built on campus. Coffey was one of seven Kingston players that played for Queen’s that season.The Gaels had a great year. Losing to the powerhouse University of Toronto Blues in the league final. Toronto then went on to win the CIAU championship.

Coffey started out as a defenseman at Queen’s, but in the 1974-75 season he was moved to forward. In one of his first games on left wing, Coffey had three goals and 5 points against Brock University. He would be named Queen’s team captain before graduating.

Frank was a long-time member of the Cataraqui Golf & Country Club as both an avid golfer and curler. Over the years he recorded three perfect shots at Cataraqui, holes in one recorded on #8, #12 and #15. Frank joked about his ace on #15 saying it was, “The first time I hit that green in years.”

In addition to his distinguished teaching career, Frank will be remembered for his love of the river and his passion for fishing. Coffey leaves behind his wife of 45 years, Jane, and his children Edward, Anne, Thomas and Margaret.

Mark Potter is a member of the Kingston & District Sports Hall of Fame and a longtime Kingston broadcaster.