Diana Bennett

Sunday was one of the most euphoric days in Stepinac Athletics history. It was also one of the saddest. Longtime assistant football coach Gary Farmer passed away shortly after the Crusaders’ CHSAA Basketball City Championship game victory over Cardinal Hayes at St. John’s University. Farmer was 58. Farmer was part the Stepinac security staff for Sunday’s game, as he has been all postseason. During the postgame ceremony on the court, Farmer suddenly began to feel seriously ill. Stepinac staff immediately had him taken by paramedics to a local hospital. Most of us on the court had no idea. Farmer died shortly thereafter. An Alexander Hamilton High School graduate and retired Greenburgh Police officer, Farmer has been working security at Ossining High School for several years in addition to the endless hours he spent at Stepinac for over a decade. On a personal note, Gary and I have been friends for nearly 20 years. You will not find a more loyal, genuine and thoughtful person. He was engrained in so many communities in our area. When he wasn’t at Stepinac, you could find him courtside at the County Center or along the fence at the best high school football game of the week. He always wore his beloved Stepinac colors. And he was always smiling. What’s so surreal is Gary and I spoke at length in pregame on Sunday, as we always do. I never felt like I was truly at a Stepinac event until got that big hug from Gary. On Sunday outside the locker room during warmups, he told me how focused the team was and how he felt this was their best chance. I’ll never forget the look he gave me walking off the court at halftime with Stepinac leading by 11. He just knew and believed in these kids. Gary actually came over to me in pregame and we spoke while I was filming. The conversation was all caught on tape. I just keep listening to it tonight since it will be the last time we ever spoke. Like many of us close to him, the Stepinac community is devastated. Schools like Stepinac function on a daily basis because of the people like Farmer. He kept the mood light. He knew how to connect with kids and keep the ones who needed it on course. He wouldn’t think twice about grabbing a broom to sweep the locker room or to offer a player a ride home in the opposite direction after practice. He had an inside joke with everyone he knew. He was a proud dad. He loved to golf. He loved his Cowboys. He loved his cigars. He loved his hilarious memes. And he never forgot to text you on your birthday. Or to ask how your wife and children are doing. Or to just say something that made you feel good about yourself. Gary was a special kind of human being. He left us too soon. But he went out the only way he’d want: as a champion. I can promise you he’s smiling down right now after that forever Stepinac victory. Please keep Gary and his family in your thoughts tonight. God Bless you, G Farm.

Congratulations to JOYCE BROOKS for being selected by Section One as the Athletic Secretary of the Year!!! Her longtime commitment to the Ossining community has been PRICELESS!!! THANK YOU!!! Your the BEST!!! @OssiningSchools @OHSPride @OABCBoosters