School athletics engenders pride passed from one generation to the next
— Photo from John C. LeVine
John C. LeVine, with his daughter beside him, points to his name on a list of Guilderland High School record holders: LeVine holds the Dutchmen school record for the 110-meter hurdles at 14.6 seconds. In 1975, Levine edged out Bob Davis, whose 1971 time was 15.2 seconds. Since then, only John Hutton has come close to LeVine’s time. Hutton ran the hurdles in 15 seconds in 1981.
To the Editor:
This past January, I returned to Guilderland High School with my family to celebrate a piece of local sports history: the 50th anniversary of the 1974-75 boys’ basketball team winning the school’s first Suburban Council Championship.
Seven members of that championship team came back to attend a boys’ basketball game on a snowy “Seniors Night,” Jan. 31, 2025 — a special evening that brought together generations of Guilderland athletes, students, and families.
That night was a reminder of how enduring school athletics can be — not just in banners or records, but in shared memories and community pride passed from one generation to the next.
Oh, by the way, also 50 years ago, in 1975, I set the high-hurdle record at Guilderland High School—a record that, remarkably, still stands today. In October 1999, The Altamont Enterprise ran a brief “Sports Short” noting that achievement after 25 years. Now, a quarter century after that article, the record remains unbroken, and the milestone has taken on even greater meaning for me with the passage of time.
Together, these moments — a historic championship season and an enduring track record reflect the lasting tradition of athletics at Guilderland High School and the community that has supported it for decades.
Thank you for your continued coverage of local history and sports.
John C. LeVine
Philadelphia
Editor’s note: John C. LeVine played soccer, basketball, and ran track for his four high school years at Guilderland, graduating in 1975.