 |
 It’s
said that no man is poor who has friends. If that’s true, then Joe
Tronzo was a very wealthy man. Tronzo amassed a wide range of
friends and touched numerous lives with his words over the course of
his 60-plus years as a sportswriter in The Valley, first for the
News-Tribune and later for The Beaver County Times. And the subjects
he wrote of were like a who’s who of the area’s greatest athletes
and coaches, including the likes of
Joe Namath,
Joe Walton, and
Larry
Bruno.
Tronzo may have been born to be a writer, as he penned his
first article at the age of 12 covering a Polish Falcons Track Meet.
In 1942, as a senior at Beaver Falls High School, he enlisted in the
United States Army, and spent two years in Germany during World War
II writing for Stars and Stripes. Following his military service, he
returned to Beaver County and joined the News-Tribune as a
sportswriter. He spent 32 years with that publication, including the
final 19 as the sports editor.
In 1979, the News-Tribune was
purchased by The Beaver County Times. Tronzo then became a columnist
for The Times, a position he held until his death in 1999. Even
after his passing, Tronzo’s legacy lived on. He had several columns
already written at the time of his death, which The Times ran for
weeks after he left us. Today, at the end of every school year, The
Times recognizes local high school student-athletes with "The Tronzo
Awards", given for dedication to sports, an unsung hero or an
inspirational player.
But Tronzo did more for local sports than
simply write about them. Tronzo helped to organize many of the
Little Leagues, Youth Leagues, and Booster Clubs in the Valley. He
was also honored by many groups throughout the county for his
dedication to sports and for his community service, including being
named The Upper Beaver Valley Jaycees Man of the Year. He won
several writing awards, and was also named an Honorary Letterman by
Geneva College. Tronzo also helped form and was a charter member of
the Executive Committee of The Beaver County Sports Hall of Fame.
This year his name will be added to the institution he helped
create. Tronzo’s career and life were dedicated to chronicling and
honoring high school athletes in the Valley and singing the praises
of Beaver County.
Tronzo was married for more than 50 years to Dorothy Koah Tronzo. |
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