(From "The Breeze" Newspaper in 2019 by Bruce Doorly)
I do recall that he was a basketball coach that led the boys to an unpreceded three straight State Championships. I later search the internet. When I cannot find a decent biography on him, I know what my topic needs to be for my next article.
His wife Gerry, who still lives in Bridgewater, gladly sat down with me to tell his story.
An excellent football player in high school he went to Penn State on a football scholarship in the early 1940s. His tenure there was interrupted when he served stateside during World War II. He would graduate with a degree in “Vocational Agriculture”.
This would start a lifelong commitment to learning everything he could about coaching basketball.
He soon set out to see the world and make a difference when he took a job with the government to work overseas in Community Development. It was 1962 and he and Gerry packed up and moved to Vietnam.
Overseas he worked with the people in remote villages who grew rice and vegetables. The aim of Community Development was to try to improve their lives in the areas of Health, Education, and Agriculture and generally introduce them to new and more progressive ways. He stayed in Vietnam till 1966 when they came home for a year.
Gerry was “safe-havened” in Bangkok where she taught at the International School there. Vaughn came to Bangkok every 4-5 weeks for a few days.
Vaughn and Gerry's time overseas.
But initially he would be the basketball coach at another school - Immaculata High School in Somerville – coaching for nine seasons. He led the team to winning records and to the state final in 1983 where they lost by one point.
It is hard to put into words the impact that Vaughn Stapleton had on the players that he coached. One player summed it up best by saying that Stapleton taught you life lessons that went beyond basketball. He loved his players – treating them like they were his sons. (Vaughn and Gerry had no children.) His practices were challenging but fun. Often toward the end of practice he had some competition where Snickers bars were given to the winners.
But one interesting habit of his was after a timeout where he did some yelling, he would quickly pat them all on the head before sending them back out to play.
On this team was future NBA player Eric Murdock. He and Eric would become close. Murdock would later say that coach Stapleton was the most influential person in his life. In the next two seasons Vaughn would again coach the team to State Championships - cementing his legendary status.
Click for their story.
He taught Biology, “Honors Biology” and “Eco Biology”. He often held extra help sessions before school where he brought along hot chocolate for the students. He led the Eco-Biology club which planted extensively on the school property. He also organized class trips for the students.
He grew every vegetable imaginable including tomatoes, onions, corn, and peppers. His house/farm, which is now gone – dozens of houses are there - was located just behind where Stapleton Drive is today. (The developer who built Stapleton Drive had a son who had Vaughn as a teacher and wanted to honor him.)
When Vaughn’s harvest was ripe and picked he would put the vegetables in bags and leave them on the doorsteps of his friends. This led him to be nicknamed the “Phantom Farmer”.
The next morning at school all the basketball players were told to report to the gym office right after homeroom. There they were told by the assistant coaches that their beloved coach had passed away. They, the school, the community, former players and former students grieved at his passing.
A thousand people would attend the viewing at the funeral home.
about his death.
In 2013 Eric Murdock would open a restaurant named Stapleton’s in his honor. The place had a special atmosphere as many former teammates, as well as former opponents, would shake hands and embrace when arriving.
This author had the pleasure of being there one evening when Mrs. Stapleton stopped in. Needless to say, she was treated like royalty. Unfortunately, the restaurant would close in 2015.
She often gets a call from Eric Murdock who will pick her up and take her to a local basketball game.