The Greenfield athletic community lost a legend on Monday.
Donna Woodcock — who coached the Greenfield High School field hockey program from 1982-2005 and the softball team from 1989-2004 and later spent time as the Green Wave athletic director — died on Monday following a single-vehicle crash on the Mohawk Trail (Route 2) in Shelburne on Friday.
Woodcock dedicated her life to impacting the youth of Greenfield, from coaching to serving as a physical education teacher at both Greenfield Middle School and High School before later becoming vice principal and principal at GHS. Her death is felt by those she worked with and coached throughout the years.
“It’s devastation for the athletic community in Greenfield,” Greenfield Athletic Director Mike Kuchieski said. “She’s a legend in Greenfield athletics. She was really the face of women’s athletics at Greenfield for a long time. She was my mentor in the AD field. She always knew how to take care of business, she had really good organizational skills and was always on top of things. She was a wonderful women and I was lucky to have known her.
“We lost a piece of Green Wave Nation,” he continued. “She was tough but fair. We will miss her dearly and my heart goes out to her family.”
Woodcock was a highly successful and respected coach with the Green Wave. She’s best remembered for his time coaching the Green Wave field hockey team, where she compiled a 265-83-53 record, won five western Massachusetts titles and made it to four state championship games. Woodcock won two state titles, the first coming in 1989, the second in 1999.
Her softball record is nothing to gloss over, as Woodcock went 218-98 over 16 years coaching the Greenfield varsity squad. She won five league championships and brought the Green Wave to four Western Mass. title games. Between the two sports she has a record of 483-181-53, giving her a winning percentage of .711.
Kelly Doton was one of those players coached by Woodcock. Doton was part of the 1999 state championship team and went on to play field hockey at the collegiate, Olympic and professional level. She is currently serving as the head field hockey coach at Boston College, crediting her success to Woodcock, who had a big impact on her as both a player and a person.
“This one hurts — a lot — and I’m still at a loss,” Doton said. “I’ve always looked forward to catching up with Donna when I’ve been back in town, whether at the Country Club, at a holiday gathering or elsewhere. There’s no doubt in my mind that if I wasn’t coached by her as I started my field hockey career, I would not have been afforded the collegiate, Olympic and professional experiences that I have.
“Donna’s impact on the community, the GHS field hockey program and the students and athletes she supported throughout the years cannot be measured,” Doton continued. “I can still picture her on the bus holding the 1999 state championship trophy as we made our way back from Worcester to Greenfield. She just couldn’t stop smiling and that’s just how I will remember her. I will miss her greatly.”
A pair of Woodcock’s former players are still coaching field hockey in the area. Erin Thayer was part of the 1989 state title team, was an assistant coach with Woodcock during the 1999 state championship team and took over as the head coach of the field hockey program when Woodcock retired in 2005.
Thayer noted Woodcock’s love for both the school and the players she coached.
“Donna for sure loved Greenfield,” Thayer said. “She loved all parts of Greenfield, from teaching to coaching the kids. It is a very big loss for the educational community.”
Rian Lovett is another coached by Woodcock, playing both field hockey and softball under her. Lovett has gone on to coach softball at Greenfield and currently serves as the field hockey coach at Franklin Tech. Lovett remembers Woodcock as someone who cared deeply about her players, something Lovett has always tried to emulate in her own coaching.
“She was tough and she was demanding but in a way that she was respected,” Lovett said. “I remember when I graduated and went off to college and the first week I really missed Donna and her coaching style. Never in a million years did I think that’s how I would feel but you always knew the more she got on you, the more she cared about you. There was never any ill intent, you just respected her.
“Even before her death I’ve always hoped to take what Donna taught me and bring it to my girls,” Lovett added. “One time this fall I even said ‘the Donna came out in me.’ She had a presence but she really cared. Even after we graduated she cared. She’d come to games, she knew about us and about our lives. She knew about my kids. It wasn’t just the athlete, she cared about the people that she coached.”
Tom Suchanek got to work alongside Woodcock for many years, with both teaching phys ed together at Greenfield Middle School.
Suchanek coached baseball and served as the athletic director at Greenfield High School while Woodcock was coaching, remembering her for how she impacted the community.
“We taught at the middle school for at least 15 years,” Suchanek said. “She was a successful field hockey and softball coach for a long time. She was a very good field hockey coach. She was tough but she was fair. What happened to her and her family is unfortunate and sad. I know she impacted a lot of kids over the years as a principal, vice principal, athletic director and as a coach.”
John Hickey, the current softball coach at Greenfield, was the athletic director at Mohawk Trail when Woodcock was the AD at Greenfield. He says she helped him with the job and was someone he always respected.
“We were athletic directors at the same time when I was at Mohawk,” Hickey said. “She really helped me there and when I left Mohawk she got me the job at the middle school. I respected Donna as a coach, as an admin and as a person. She took a hard line but you always knew where you stood with her.”
While Woodcock retired from coaching in 2005, she didn’t leave athletics all together. She served on the Game Officials Committee, was on the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Council, served as the lead chair for the Western Mass. softball tournament and served on the PVIAC executive board.
In her retirement Woodcock was an avid golfer. This past fall she represented the Country Club of Greenfield at the 2022 Mass Golf Women’s Fall Cup, with her partner, Sue O’Connor, noting she was a highly skilled golfer while being an even better person.
“She was a fantastic friend,” O’Connor said. “She was a very good golfer. We just had a great time together. She was my partner out there and we golfed at least three or four times a week. As everyone says, she was a giving, nice person. She was always a pleasure to be around.”