North Mason to honor Ed Amick by renaming its new wrestling center
Ed Amick spent 42 years coaching the sport of wrestling in North Mason School District before retiring in 2006. Pretty soon, Amick's name will be a permanent part of the program he helped construct in Belfair.
North Mason's school board on June 19 approved the renaming of the east addition of the district's community center gym as the Ed Amick Wrestling Center. One of Amick's former wrestlers, 1975 state champion Milo Smith, spearheaded the effort and spoke to board members at last week's meeting.
"We would like to show him what he meant to us," Smith said.
With Amick battling health issues, Smith said he and numerous other school and wrestling program alumni were eager to see the renaming happen. A ceremony is planned for Aug. 19.
Coaching wrestling within North Mason School District from 1964-2006, Amick compiled a record of 409 wins, 179 losses and 4 ties. His teams qualified for state tournament competition for 36 consecutive years and he coached four state champions: Don Dillenburg (1970), Tommy Johnson (1975), Smith (1975) and Jerry Riggs (1988). Amick's North Mason wrestling teams won teams won five regional titles, 11 district titles and 13 league championships.
In addition to teaching and coaching wrestling in the North Mason School District, Amick coached multiple other sports. After his retirement in 2016, he spent several years as an assistant coach at North Kitsap, where his son Joe served as head coach for a time.
Amick was inducted into the Washington State Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2001 and the Kitsap Sports Hall of Fame in 2011. The National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2013 inducted Amick for his lifetime service to the sport.
Ahead of August's renaming ceremony, Smith is organizing a fundraiser in tandem with the school's booster club with a goal of paying for wrestling center signage, two new wrestling mats and a trophy case.
"They've got two mats in there now," Smith said. "One belongs to the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association. The other mat is not in good shape."
This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: North Mason High to honor longtime wrestling coach Ed Amick
