WEST NEWBURY — It really was a daunting task to undertake.
For a while now, many knew that it was past time for Pentucket Regional Middle/High School to have a Hall of Fame. So when Principal Brenda Erhardt, Superintendent Justin Bartholomew and their committee got together in January of 2024 to begin the process, an expansive 70 years of history stood between them and picking an inaugural class.
Where to even start?
But after an extensive and thorough process, the class assembled is one that everyone involved should be proud of.
On Friday night, Pentucket Regional held a ceremony in its gymnasium to honor its 10-person first-ever Hall of Fame class. The inductees were chosen based on their commitment and service to the district, their embodiment of Pentucket’s core values, and their impact on the school community.
“When we initially started the whole process, we were concerned about what the first Hall of Fame inductees would look like,” said Erhardt. “There’s 60 years of people that we have to try and recognize. But, the people who are getting inducted tonight are such a great, diverse group of people. We have an Academy Award-winning producer, an actor, longtime teachers, athletes, a war hero. So, I think we’re really lucky in that regard.
“We’re really proud of the class.”
It’s a group of 10 absolute heavy-hitters.
You have an Academy Award-winning documentary producer in Geralyn White Dreyfous (Class of 1980), who has produced 180 films over an illustrious career. Her work has earned both an Emmy Award and a Primetime Emmy, and she has worked on two movies that have won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.
Then, in a similar field, you have actor/director Steve Kidd (Class of 1993). A resident artist at The Gamm Theatre, Kidd has performed in and directed more than 50 professional productions and founded The Gamm’s education department and its PLAY Project, which brings literacy-based theater to schools, community centers and prisons across southern New England. His solo show, “Sigh/Omelas”, has raised over $500,000 for Camp AmeriKids, where he served as program director for 20 years.
You even have a war veteran in Dudley Farquhar (Class of 1967), who served in Germany, volunteered for Vietnam and received the Bronze Star. He established Operation Platoon Mom to help support deployed personnel with personalized care packages from veterans organizations around the world to the troops.
Then you can’t forget about Maria Stephanos (Class of 1984), the former Groveland native and current co-anchor of WCVB’s NewsCenter 5 newscasts at 4:30 p.m., 6 p.m., 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. She has covered many major events, from the 9/11 attacks and the Boston Marathon bombings to World Series and Super Bowls.
“It’s really humbling,” said Stephanos. “This was my life and my soul, and I never thought I was going to leave Groveland. It’s a true privilege and an honor to be here. Having (the Hall of Fame) is amazing, because it shows that you can come from a town that didn’t even have a traffic light, and then you can go on to interview three Presidents, or win an Oscar, so it’s pretty impressive.”
Pentucket Regional also wanted to induct influential administrators into its Hall of Fame, starting with the school’s first Superintendent, John Jakobek. It was a position he held for approximately 30 years, as his leadership guided the early development of Pentucket’s governance and educational framework.
Then there’s Stephen H. Meline, a science teacher and coach who dedicated more than three decades to the school district. A fixture in the classroom and on the athletic fields, he taught science at the junior high, middle and high school levels for 35 years before retiring in 2004. He coached cross-country for 30 years, building a strong and respected program that saw numerous championship seasons.
Also inducted was Roger Roy, “the billingual gem of Pentucket” who has been at the school for 60 years. Besides being a longtime teacher — and now substitute teacher — he coached the 1994 baseball team to the Division III state championship and was added to the Massachusetts Baseball Coaches Association Victory Club, which recognizes coaches with decades of service, indicating a substantial and impactful coaching career.
“It’s difficult to leave this place, you know, especially after you make that kind of investment,” said Roy, a Newburyport native. “I just feel that what being at Pentucket does for me now, is I can feed off the energy of the building, the teachers and the students. And, for me, it’s an elixir in that it keeps me focused, it keeps me connected, and it makes me believe that I’m a little younger.”
Finally, of course Pentucket has plenty to honor in the athletic field.
Top among them, arguably still to this day, is Stephen Puelo (Class of 1990), who earned 11 varsity letters. In football, he was a two-time Daily News and Cape Ann League Player of the Year, and the first Pentucket running back to gain 1,000 yards in a single season, rushing for 3,584 yards in three seasons with 36 touchdowns. He was then a forward on the hockey team, and a 1989 Conference All-Star.
Then in baseball, Puleo was a four-year starter at catcher, finishing with a career .429 batting average. His awards included Cape Ann League Player of the Year, 1989 and 1990; Boston Globe Division 3 Player of the Year, 1989 and 1990; and Gatorade Circle of Champions Massachusetts Baseball Player of the Year 1990. He continued his baseball career at the University of Maine and was a two-year captain, before playing in the prestigious Cape Cod Baseball League in 1993 and 1994.
Finally, Pentucket inducted its two “Football Architects” in Tom Flaherty and Steve Hayden.
Hayden (Class of 1973) served 43 years as Pentucket’s football coach from 1982-2024, and compiled an 251-202-2 record to rank him 16th all-time in wins in Massachusetts high school history. He was also an outstanding athlete in his years at the high school, when he captained the football and wrestling teams from 1971 to 1973. He is a member of the Massachusetts High School Football Coaches Hall of Fame.
Meanwhile, Flaherty coached Pentucket from 1963-81 before moving to Milton Academy. He’s known for being honored in 2002 by the Eastern Massachusetts Chapter of the National Football Foundation for his decades of impact on the game. He also was the president of both public and private school coaches associations and the founder of private school football playoffs.
On Friday night, Flaherty was introduced into the Hall of Fame by his daughter, Ruth Beaton, who herself is a legendary figure in Pentucket history as the school’s longtime field hockey coach.
“The format of the Hall of Fame is outstanding, I love it,” said Flaherty. “And by that I mean, athletes, dedicated faculty members, celebrities, it’s incredible.”