After Fire, Port Washington Rallies Around 'Coach Mac'

Port Washington is rallying around a beloved track coach who was rescued by firefighters in a house blaze earlier this week.

Bruce MacDonald – or “Coach Mac” as folks in town call him – is a three-time Olympic track athlete. Those who know him also point out that Coach Mac not only started Port Washington’s track and field team 57 years ago, he’s coached Olympic athletes as well.

Treated and released at a nearby hospital for smoke inhalation this week, Coach Mac now finds that his home is uninhabitable because of the fire damage.

Now Port Washington residents and the track and field community are stepping it up for the man who has given them so much.

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A GoFundMe campaign launched Wednesday aims to raise $50,000, and possibly more from the thousands of students and athletes he’s inspired over the generations.

“I hope we can all help him get back on his feet and show him just how much we appreciate and love him,” said Marilyn Zahn-Veritzan, a recent inductee into Schreiber High School’s Athletic Hall of Fame. “He taught many generations of runners about confidence, hard work, dedication, and teamwork, lessons that have carried throughout our lives. He made us better people.”

Zahn-Veritzan is hardly alone in her sentiments.

“He is known and loved by the entire track and field community, and it means so much to see everyone coming together to help him,” said Nicole Dumpson, a Port Washington track and field team alum who now serves as head of the boys track and field and girls cross country coach.

He’s been a positive influence on fellow coaches as well.

“Anyone who Bruce has coached or worked with would have something fond to say about him,” said Jeremy Klaff, a Schreiber High School teacher who coaches boys cross country track. “Coaching young athletes has been his life since before many of us were born.”

“I coached cross country at Weber with Bruce for seven years and it was one of the best coaching experiences of my career,” said David O’Connor, a Schreiber teacher.

“I learned so much about running and coaching from him by observing his approach and asking him many questions,” O’Connor added. “He pushed and encouraged his athletes to do things that they didn’t think they could do, and they learned about the importance of hard work and determination. I applied his lessons to my own running and I saw some rather dramatic improvements. It was a great honor for me to be able to coach with an Olympian.”

To donate, visit the Bruce MacDonald Fire Fund GoFundMe page.