National Field Executive, and hanging up the running shoes in exchange for a bicycle somewhere along the way. But physically isn’t the only way in which he is active. Bagelman takes the spirit, mind, body trian- gle to heart and is active spiritually and intellectually. “Spirit always comes first,” he says, a


statement evidenced by his activity in St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Waverly. He has served as congregational president, as well as an active member of prayer and reading groups. In addition, he reads voraciously and used to write a column for the Y’s “Perspec- tive” magazine called “Bookmarks,” in which he recommended books by such writers as Malcolm Gladwell and Norman Vincent Peale for professionals to read in order to become more complete. “One of my favorite people is Ken Blanchard,” he says. But, Bagelman is a bit of a leadership guru


himself. “It’s important to help spread the word to people, to be an advocate of these philosophies, so they can be the people they are, but they can’t do it without core values,” he says. “You have to have a faith to live by, it doesn’t matter which it is,” he says.


Cross-Country Golf


In 2000, when she retired from teaching sciences in the Holyoke (Mass.) Public School system, Carla Spinoglio Pierce ’60 and her husband, John, set out to golf in each of the United States. At this writing, they have achieved every state but Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, and Wyoming. In addition to the cross-country golf goal, they strive to golf year round. Weather has been a big factor, however: Wyoming has been too cold and windy on each of their attempts, and West Virginia eluded them for a while because of snow. When asked if they’re good golfers, Pierce says humbly, “We’re good for our age.” Physical activity isn’t all that keeps Pierce


young, she says, explaining that the spirit, mind, and body philosophy has provided the base for her entire life. She participates in the College’s Learning in Later Life program, where she enjoys the opportunity to meet people and to participate in discourse and the exchange of ideas on such topics as poli- tics, economics, and ecology. She also


TRIANGLE 1 Vol . 82, No. 1


volunteers in the Springfield (Mass.) Public Schools reading aloud program and is very active in her church where she is an ecumenical minister, member of the women’s club, and the choir. “My church family is my support,” she says, explaining that this connection allows her to rely more deeply on a greater power. “Keeping the body well, keeping the spirit


well, keeping the mind well—those three components are necessary to the whole well- ness of an individual. It’s a great philosophy that we don’t see in many schools. I taught in schools where there were disadvantaged students. I wanted to show them how to achieve even though they didn’t have a history of high achievement or esteem. I could show them through this philosophy,” she concludes.


From Boxer to Championship Skeet Shooter


After serving in the military, Fritz William Wiedergott Jr. ’58, a beneficiary of the GI bill, looked to Springfield College with thoughts of becoming a medical doctor. He switched to biology and was prepared to be a graduate assistant to Dr. Britton McCabe, former chair of the biology department, when a job too good to turn down came along: teaching at St. Mark’s preparatory school in Southboro, Mass. He and his wife raised their children on the campus, where Wiedergott taught math, and was the assis- tant athletic director until David Coe ’31 left the position open and he became athletic director. “At one point in time,” he says, “besides teaching math classes, I was the head trainer, the assistant athletic director, soccer coach, wrestling coach, and the first varsity lacrosse coach. “I never went to work a day in my life. I


never considered it work. It was great,” says Wiedergott, who retired in 1997. Due to some family challenges, Wieder-


gott had a tough childhood and adolescence, but his attitude and his spunk were what kept him going. He was active in his local Boys Club growing up in Pennsylvania, where he swam and boxed. When he went to Springfield College, he wrestled, played soccer, and ran track. He was class president his senior year and remains president today.


So how did Wiedergott become a world


champion skeet shooter? “When I was a youth, my grandfather


taught me how to shoot … One day I heard some noise — shooting noise — and I discov- ered a skeet field,” he recalls. “It looked like fun … so I took it up.” That was in 1960. He has been a part of five world championships, was himself the world champion in 1966, and a three-time all-American (which is harder because athletes are evaluated on the entire year, not just for one shoot.) He was inducted into the Massachusetts Skeet Shooting Hall of Fame in 1982 and the National Skeet Shooting Association (NSSA) Hall of Fame in 1988. He has been a representative in the state association for 40 of the 50 years he was involved, and a director to the NSSA. His last competitive championship was in Octo- ber 2009 in San Antonio, Texas. He had a cataract removed from his right


eye (his shooting eye) so he could see the targets a little better, but was one of the unfortunate minority to have a posterior vitreous detachment as a result of the surgery. “It presents a problem because, out of 100 birds, 4 rounds of 25, I won’t see maybe as many as 8-10 birds. On instinct I might shoot, but can’t really be as competi- tive as I need to be,” he explains. Much in the same way he handled his


childhood challenges, Wiedergott handled this setback. Being a part of the sport had tremendous benefit, he says. “The cama- raderie and social life: Meeting people and competing with them … and it's a healthy thing to be competitive in a nice way rather than putting other people down. It's just doing the best you can and enjoying it.” Wiedergott says he “never thought about


spirit, mind, and body until I got to Spring- field. But, I have to admit that that triangle got into my heart and it’s been there ever since. It’s a wonderful, simplistic thing. But I think if you can endeavor to do and keep in control of the spirit, the mind, and the body, then you can’t help but be a good person. “There were a lot of challenges in my


youth, and you know what the German philosopher said: ‘That which does not kill you makes you stronger.’”1


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