A 1960 Colby-Sawyer multi-sport athlete joined four others in entering the college’s sports Hall of Fame this month. Patty Canby Colhoun played varsity basketball, lacrosse and field hockey during her two years at the New London, New Hampshire college. And 58 years later, C0lhoun, who now lives in Boothbay Harbor, is part of the school’s 13th Hall of Fame Class.

Colhoun was nominated three years ago by her friend Beth Camp who works in the school’s alumni office. Colhoun was stunned when she received a congratulatory letter welcoming her into the Hall of Fame. “Needless to say I was stunned to be accepted into the Hall of Fame. I knew I was nominated, but I never expected to be accepted. You don’t really realize it until you walk into the sports center and see those giant plaques and read Patty Canby Colhoun, multiple sport athlete, and realizing it’s there forever,” she said. 

Sports have played a big role in Colhoun’s life ever since she first stepped onto a slopped field hockey field as a fourth grader at her girls school in Chestnut Hill, Pennsylvania. As a child and teenager, Colhoun enjoyed playing lacrosse, field hockey and basketball with her friends. When it came time for college, then-Colby Junior’s athletic program was a major factor in her school choice.

“Sports was the main reason why I chose Colby Junior. It’s always been a big part of my life. As a young girl, I was a tomboy, and not about to let boys outdo me. And yes, I fell through a basement window trying to keep up.”

As an athlete, Colhoun enjoyed field hockey most. She made the All-New England team. In her high school and college days, she played “Six Man.” This archaic form of basketball was designed for girls. It had three guards and three forwards who were restricted to playing on opposite ends of the floor. Years later, most high schools and all college basketball teams played the same game, but Colhoun never regretted playing six man. “I loved all the sports I played, and that’s all we knew, and never thought about playing any other way.”

But her college basketball playing days were cut short both years at Colby Junior. Each season, she started playing, but two skiing accidents curtailed her time on the hardwood. “I was looking in the yearbooks and I saw I wasn’t in either team photo. I remember both years I wrecked my knee skiing, and I wasn’t able to compete for the last half of each season.”

In her final year, Colhoun’s injury curtailed her field hockey career, but she served as a coach in the spring.

After college, Colhoun’s  love of sport continued. She played in an adult field hockey club league. Colhoun coached her daughter’s fifth and six grade basketball teams in Iowa. And the Hawkeye State was the last to adopt five-person basketball. So Colhoun coached her two daughters in six-man. She was also an avid tennis player. She captained two tennis league teams in Florida. And Colhoun began playing pickleball, which she still plays.

As she continued her active lifestyle, Colhoun needed to mend her ailing knees. She began water therapy, and later became a water aerobics and  therapy instructor at the Boothbay Region YMCA. Her service at the Y resulted in receiving “Volunteer of the Year” Award. She is also a recipient of Maine’s YMCA Pine Tree Award.

Colhoun described her athletic playing days as providing her with great joy and the freedom of running ont0 the field and “doing (her) thing.”

“Sports teaches how to lose gracefully and interact with others. It’s given me confidence to tackle many issues. I was teased and shy, but I can now stand back and say thank you, Colby Junior,” she said.

Colhoun is also a sports fan. She adopted rug hooking over 30 years ago. She merges her passion for sports and rug hooking by doing both while watching baseball. She also lives close enough to Boothbay Region High School to walk to games.

During the Oct. 14 ceremony, Colhoun joined Colby-Sawyer alumni basketball player Taylor DeSanty, Class of 2013; baseball players Shawn O’Herily, Class of 2001  and Marc Ferlo, Class of 1999; and lacrosse player Brittney Murphy, Class of 2012.