Obituary of Bruce W. Webster

Bruce William Webster, 80, of Monroe Connecticut, died April 26, 2017. Bruce was born in Glen Cove, Long Island, the only son of Ruth Rebmann and Bill Webster. Raised in Minneola, Long Island, he attended Minneola High School where he excelled in sports, earning MVP and All Long Island in basketball and football (1954-55). He went on to Rutgers University on a football scholarship earning his BS and MS in Physical Education. A 1959 graduate, he remains the last Rutgers student athlete to have earned nine letters combined in the three major sports: basketball, baseball, and football. While at Rutgers, he was also commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant, ROTC, receiving recognition as a Distinguished Military Graduate. He was promoted to First Lieutenant and became inactive in 1962. After graduating from Rutgers, he was hired as Rutgers' assistant men's basketball coach from 1960 to 1965. In 1965, he was named Head Coach of the men's basketball team at the University of Bridgeport. During his 34 years, his UB teams posted 549 wins, making him the school's all-time leader in career victories. He guided the Purple Knights to ten 20+ victory seasons, 12 NCAA Division II tournaments, five Elite Eight appearances, and two trips to the championship game (1991-1992). He was named NABC National Coach of the Year in 1992, and three times NABC District I Coach of the Year. He has been inducted into several Hall of Fames, including the New England Basketball Hall of Fame, the University of Bridgeport Athletics Hall of Fame, and the Fairfield County Sports Hall of Fame. He is remembered with love and admiration by his wife, Judy; his son, Keith and daughter in law Stacey; daughters, Lore' and Suzan and sons in laws Kevin Long and Chris Roberts; his six grandchildren Austin, Casey, Brett, Derek, Ethan, and Mia; his sister-in-law Debbie Vail, niece Courtney Vail Pittsonberger and husband Jason Pittsonberger, nephew Matthew Vail and great nephew Jaxon Pittsonberger. A memorial gathering celebrating Bruce's life will take place on Saturday, May 6, 2017 from 5-8 pm at the Abriola Parkview Funeral Home 419 White Plains Rd, Trumbull, CT 06611. Family Remembrance's will begin at 6:30 pm. Interment will be private at the convenience of the family. In lieu of flowers, donations to the Alzheimer's Association (http://www.alz.org) would be greatly appreciated.