Bennett wraps up 43-year teaching career

When Ron Bennett started at English High back in the 1950s and a basketball coach at the time suggested he try out for the team, Bennett knew he had some work to do.He headed to Cook Street playground, which was near his home on Hamilton Ave., with the intention of getting in some practice but when he got there, there were a bunch of guys playing and they looked pretty good.?I looked at them and I said, ?I can?t play.? I turned around and went home,” Bennett said.But he didn?t give up. He returned later at night and practiced on his own. He kept going back until he got better and in time, he joined in the Cook Street games.Bennett went on to play two years of varsity basketball (he was a center) for coach Al Levy and when the snow finally melted in the spring, it was on to baseball at English.Bennett?s association with English and the Lynn schools in general — as a student, an athlete, a basketball coach, a baseball coach and a physical education teacher — spans over 40 years. In another week or so, that chapter in his life will end when he retires from teaching.Bennett graduated from Boston University and after spending time as a substitute teacher, he landed a job in physical education. His teaching career started at the old Eastern Junior High (now Thurgood Marshall Middle School) with a long stop at English before moving to his current home, Pickering Middle School, about 10 years ago.?The kids have been good,” Bennett said. “I?ve really enjoyed it. I?ve been very fortunate. It?s a little bit different from years ago. The kids were quieter, but they?re still good now.”Bennett said the biggest change in teaching physical education came when the classes became coed. Bennett said it became tougher to come up with games that lent themselves to having boys and girls play together and get something out of it.Bennett started playing baseball at a young age, due in large part to the influence of his uncle, Jim Hegan. Hegan was a catcher with the Cleveland Indians who had a long career in the Major Leagues. Bennett said growing up, his family lived on the third floor of a triple-decker and his grandparents were on the first floor. When Cleveland came to Boston, they would wait for the call from Hegan telling them how many tickets he had scored for the game.Bennett played baseball (he was a shortstop) in high school and went on to coach for about 35 years. Once he discovered basketball, however, it became a passion. He coached the Bulldogs for 40 years (until 2006).One of the guys he coached against on a regular basis and later taught with at Pickering was Classical High basketball coach Tom Grassa. Grassa said he has known Bennett since Bennett was a young coach at English (Grassa was in elementary school at the time and his father was the faculty manager at English).?We coached against each other for a ton of years,” Grassa said. “He was always a perfect gentleman and a classy guy. He did a great job coaching. I spent eight or nine years teaching with him and he did an outstanding job as an educator.”St. Mary?s girls soccer coach Jim Foley has worked alongside Bennett as a physical education teacher at Pickering and said there?s a side of Bennett that some people don?t see.?He has a very dry sense of humor,” Foley said. “He loves sports. He follows my teams and other teams in the area. We talk baseball and football. He knows his sports.”Foley said Bennett is well liked by the students, teachers and the administration.?He?s a good guy, a very kind guy,” Foley said.Bennett is also a dog lover. A big (as in 165-pound Mastiff) dog lover. Bennett said his first dog was normal-sized, but his second one was a St. Bernard. The last four (King, Duke, Coach and now Champ) have been Mastiffs.?I?m chump,” Bennett joked.