Charles M. Sacavage

• Post by: mcalibrary
• January 11, 2024
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INDUCTEE

Charles Sacavage was literally born to wrestle. He is the eldest son of the late Charles A. Sacavage who was on the first Mount Carmel High School Wrestling Team in 1934 and was the first coach after the school reintroduced the sport in 1952. Together with his two brothers Bob and Greg, they have followed their father’s lead as a a wrestler, coach, and referee for a period spanning over half a century of service to the sport.

A 1964 graduate of Mount Carmel High School, Charlie led the Red Tornado wrestlers as one of its senior co-captains. Sacavage was a true scholar athlete. In addition to his athletic success, he was also the valedictorian of his class of 1964. He continued his wrestling career by competing at the collegiate level at Bucknell University where he was co-captain of the Bison wrestlers in both his junior and senior years. He graduated in 1968 with a BA in History and was also commissioned a Lieutenant in the United States Army.

While serving his country, Charles continued to serve the sport of wrestling. He was the assistant coach of the All Army Wrestling Team in 1969 that won the Inter-Service Tournament and head coach of the Fort Hood Team that would go on to win the Fourth Army Championship in 1970. After returning to civilian life, he became the head coach at Steelton-Highspire High School from 1970-1973. He then returned to his coal region base as the head coach of the Pottsville Area High School Crimson Tide Wrestlers from 1973-1982.

While achieving excellence on the mat with his many teams, Charlie maintained equally high standards in the classroom. He earned a Master’s in Education, received the Excellence in Education Award from Time Warner, was selected as Educator of the Year in Schuylkill County, and received the Exceptional Performance Award from Partners in Distance Learning.

In 1982 he became a member of the Keystone Chapter of Wrestling Officials where he served as Rules Interpreter until 1995. Sacavage also worked for many years as a volunteer coach for the Pottsville Youth Wrestling Program. In 1997 he was inducted into the Bucknell University Wrestling Hall of Achievement in recognition of success in life and contributions to society.

Sacavage and his wife Mary have two children: Charles, a First Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corp and Susan, a Lieutenant JG in the US Navy. Since leaving public education in 1999, he has worked as an Adjunct Professor of History at Alvernia College and an Educational Consultant. Today, Charles joins his father Charles A. – 1991 – and brother Robert – 1984 – as inductees of the Ed Romance Lower Anthracite Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame.