Woodbridge High Track Named For Beloved Former Coach Henry Chomicki

WOODBRIDGE, NJ — This Saturday, the track at Woodbridge High School will be named and dedicated in honor of one of Woodbridge's most beloved coaches, Henry Chomicki.

Chomicki was a biology and chemistry teacher at Woodbridge High School for more than 40 years; he also coached track & field and the cross country team.

Chomicki passed away at the age of 85 in 2020 and ever since, there has been a movement in the Woodbridge community to have the high school track named after him. More than 3,000 people signed this Change.org petition to rename the Woodbridge High track in Chomicki's honor.

Chomicki's family called the naming ceremony "an honor." They will be there Saturday.

The dedication will be at 10 a.m. this Saturday, Sept. 17 at the Woodbridge High School track. All are welcome to attend.

In 2015, Chomicki was inducted into the Woodbridge Athletic Hall of Fame. There is also a Facebook page in his honor, In Memory of Henry Chomicki.

"To all that read this, I believe I am the only track runner that he has coached that have made it on a Olympic track team and has run in a world-class championship," wrote one former Woodbridge High student, Keith McQuitter. "I truly love the man; he has inspired me even until this day. I am a world-ranked track runner at the age of 63 and on the USA masters track and field team. I would not have hurdles as a runner if not for coach HC. He is missed, never forgotten, love you coach."

"Mr. Chomicki was a man who had the right temperament to attract students and motivate themselves to be the healthiest version of themselves," wrote another former student, Rick Scarpa. "He was an inspirational leader and his teachings have been handed down to my son from my best man from 250 miles away. I could see in the coaching of my son the passion that was installed in form, fit and function. He was a standard to which others should strive to become and name the track will ensure his commitment to the community remains."

"My mom passed away just before I entered Woodbridge High School," recalled Woodbridge resident Ken Gardner, formerly a Councilman and local fire commissioner. "It was a hard time for me; I could have very easily become a statistic. The teachers at Woodbridge High, and specifically Coach Chomicki, made sure I was given the opportunity to dream and achieve the way every high school student should."

Gardner ran track at Woodbridge High and he said Coach Chomicki always "kept an eye on him, on all the students he coached."

"He had this dynamic way to connect stories to learning," said Janine Gardner, a former student of his and now a Woodbridge High School teacher herself. "Mr. Chomicki always had a small story or anecdote to relate, which would capture the attention of a class of fourteen- or fifteen-year-olds."

When Chomicki retired in 2006, Gardner and his wife wrote to the Woodbridge schools superintendent, asking that the track be named in his honor.

"It was written back to us that the person had to die first. When I told Chomicki this, he joked that he would have to run in front of my car," said Gardner. "He was very witty like that."

When Gardner saw how many people signed the petition, "We realized he had done this over generations."