MONTAGUE — She’s thrown punches in California, earned world champion status in the Caribbean and taught middle schoolers in New York.
She’s been all around the world, but Saturday, Sonya “The Scholar” Lamonakis, came back to her roots in Turners Falls.
“This is a special day for me,” Lamonakis said. “You know they say, ‘It takes a village,’ and Turners Falls did it for me. You guys raised me; the teachers taught me; my family I’m grateful for.”
The special occasion was the unveiling of a plaque at Unity Park off First Street, a metal sign dedicated to Lamonakis and her achievements.
The 44-year-old women’s heavyweight boxer is a four-time Golden Gloves amateur boxing champion and 2014 New York State Female Heavyweight champion and former International Boxing Organization World Female Heavyweight title-holder. Since Lamonakis began professionally boxing in 2010, she’s earned a 10-2-3 record.
“All you guys who have come down to New York to see me fight, to go to Worcester to see me fight, this is all possible because of you,” Lamonakis said. “I just want to thank the town for their support. It means a lot.”
The idea for the sign was that of Lamonakis’ former classmate and friend Tawnya Brunelle, who wanted the town where Lamonakis grew up to remember her accomplishments forever.
“In today’s day and age, we focus on so many negatives that we just really wanted to bring a positive to our town,” Brunelle said. “It’s our neighbors that are doing such huge things every day in little ways, so this was just one way of recognizing someone who does that every single day in her life. And, she’s someone who never forgets us, so we didn’t want to forget her and we wanted her to know that.”
Brunelle got the sign approved after approaching Town Administrator Steve Ellis and Parks & Recreation Director Jon Dobosz, but still had to raise money for it to be installed.
Lamonakis decided that a one-time scholarship to a Turners Falls High School senior, raised through a GoFundMe campaign, could make the sign a reality while also helping someone else. It took 30 days to raise $2,500, and Lamonakis provided paperwork to apply for the scholarship at the unveiling Saturday. She also brought boxing gloves to sign and posed for pictures with fans.
Dobosz, who attended the sign’s unveiling, had some more exciting news to break.
“Today has been chosen to be (dedicated) Sonya Lamonakis Day, and we feel very lucky to not only have Sonya here, but also to have this plaque that commemorates her accomplishments,” Dobosz said. “She truly is a daughter of Montague.”
Besides boxing, Lamonakis has also been a teacher for 19 years, and teaches language arts at Primary School/Middle School 183 in Queens, New York City. She has no plans to quit boxing, though, and says her weight division typically sees boxers fight at ages that might be considered old for boxers with slighter builds.
She’s already put some titles under her belt, but still trains six days a week, hopes to one day win the World Boxing Championship “green belt” and wants to be on the bill for the first boxing show promoted by MGM Springfield — it’s still early in negotiations.
Lamonakis smiled as she and her mother cut the ribbon around the new sign, her friends and family — and fans — looking on.
“Welcome To Turners Falls, Mass,” the sign reads. “Home of World Champion Boxer Sonya “The Scholar” Lamonakis.”
“That’s it,” Lamonakis said. “I’m in the history books now.”
Reach David McLellan at dmclellan@recorder.com or 413-772-0261, ext. 268.