The Harry Agganis Foundation, named in honor of the legendary athlete from Lynn who died from a pulmonary embolism at age 26 back in 1995, is turning 70 years old.
Since its foundation, the Agganis Foundation has awarded $2,588,000 in scholarships to 1,074 student-athletes from across the North Shore.
The foundation will mark seven decades of preserving the legacy of Harry Agganis with an event at the Lynn Museum & Arts Center on May 20 from 6-8 p.m. At the celebration, the Demakes Family and Demakes Enterprises will be honored for their longtime generous support of the foundation and the Agganis All-Star Games.
Also recognized will be past Agganis All-Star and scholarship recipient Mike Giardi, a teacher and three-sport coach at Marblehead High School. So will current scholarship recipients Brady Warren of Lynn, a junior at Saint Anselm College, and Victoria Quagrello of Swampscott, a sophomore at Middlebury College.
Agganis scholarship recipients receive $2,000 per year for the four years they are in college.
“We are proud of the role the foundation has played and continues to play in providing meaningful scholarships in the name of Harry Agganis,” said John Meklis, foundation president and a 1990 Agganis scholarship recipient. “This event gives us an opportunity to celebrate 70 years of success, while reaffirming our commitment to continue that legacy.”
The Agganis Foundation — which came to fruition in the months after his death — was spearheaded by Attorney Charles Demakis, The Daily Item owner Peter Gamage, Boston Red Sox owner Thomas A. Yawkey (for whom Agganis was playing at the time of his death) and Harold O. Zimman, a confidante and mentor of Agganis. The purpose of the foundation was to raise money for college scholarships to be presented in the name of Agganis, an All-American football player at Lynn Classical and record-breaking quarterback at Boston University who opted for professional baseball so he could play for the Red Sox and be near his widowed mother.
The Agganis All-Star Games serve as a fundraiser for the foundation. What started as a football game in 1956 has expanded to nine All-Star games: softball, baseball, girls and boys basketball, girls and boys lacrosse, girls and boys soccer and football. This year’s games will be played in Lynn June 27-28.
For information on tickets and sponsorships for the May 20 event, visit agganisfoundation.com