NIAGARA FALLS -- There are certain people in Niagara Falls who have left such an indelible mark on the sporting community that their legacies will far outlast their lives. Bill Rootes was one of those people. He was one of the faces of basketball in this city. He was one of the main creators of the Niagara Falls Red Raiders program, which has helped introduced hundreds of youths to the sport.

Rootes died Wednesday at the age of 61.

The father of Brock University basketball coach Brad Rootes was well known to many for his work on the court. He was a regular figure at basketball games across Niagara -- be that with the Raiders, at the high school level or on the sidelines of the Brock Badgers games.

"He had a huge impact, not just in Niagara Falls, but in the region," said Brian Mulligan, a close friend of Rootes for the past 15 years and a Badgers assistant coach. "Basketball is a little different than hockey. It's a smaller community, but it extended and went wider and wider. Coaches from all of the schools have been calling."

Comments

Add New

Write comment
Name:
Email:	do not notifynotify
Title:
	Please input the anti-spam code that you can read in the image.

Powered by !JoomlaComment 3.23

3.23 Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved."