By Steve Svetovich

Ryan Ferguson is a Dunmore lifer, and he shows that all the time with great enthusiasm as both a teacher and coach. He cares about his students, players and the community. And it shows.

He always puts his students and players first.

“It’s all about them,” he said. “It’s not about me.”

Married for 10 years to the former Leslie Colosimo, the couple has three children: John, 7; James, 4,  and Elizabeth, 2. He met his wife close to two decades ago at First National Bank in Dunmore where she was working as a bank teller.

“Family is my priority,” he said. “I’m pretty lucky.”

Ryan and Leslie’s son John last month played in his first coach-pitch baseball game in Dunmore.

“That was huge for him,” Ferguson said. “My son loved it. It was a big deal for him. His baseball coach was Chris Bantell, who was great with the kids.”

Ferguson, 40, has been a teacher in the Dunmore School District for the past 18 years.

He has also been the coach for the Dunmore Lady Bucks softball team for the past 16 years.

He led Dunmore to an impressive 12-8 record while advancing to the district semifinal, a loss to Holy Cross, this past season.

He now has 138 career wins as the Dunmore Lady Bucks softball coach.

Ferguson also was an assistant basketball coach for 16 years for the Dunmore seventh and eighth grade team. “I’m giving the basketball up now to spend more time with my kids,” he said.

He actually started his coaching career 20 years ago as a varsity basketball assistant under his brother Joe at Scranton Prep. He coached under his brother for four years before taking on the coaching positions at Dunmore.

Ferguson, a Dunmore graduate, received his bachelor of science degree in Elementary Education from Marywood University. He received his masters in Eduction from Wilkes University.

He is a Title 1 mathematics teacher for third through sixth grade at Dunmore Elementary Center.

Ferguson could not say enough about his assistant coaches for the Dunmore Lady Bucks softball team. The assistants are Mike O’Malley, Colleen Ross, and Dean Tallo.

“They are all great,” he said. “They all work hard and the girls are very lucky to have them.”

He also praised volunteer assistant Alyvia Svetovich. “We are certainly going to miss her,” he said. “She had one of the hardest jobs in the district and did an amazing job, She is going to be successful at whatever she does. She was so good with the girls and also did a great job in the classroom.”

Always positive and full of energy, Ferguson said his Dunmore Lady Bucks softball team had great chemistry.

“The senior group was exceptional in terms of leadership,” he said. “And our freshmen put up really good numbers. Sophomore Rachel Walsh is going to be an incredible softball player. She already is. She’s a great kid and we expect Rachel will come back from injury and pitch for us again. I can’t provide a timeline, but I think it will happen. She can still hit in the meantime. And she’s a great hitter.

“As a senior, Tristen Canavan did an outstanding job catching Rachel. She just did a tremendous job handling her. Tristen was also one of our best hitters. She smacked the ball all season. And every time she got on base, she was a threat to steal and score. She is a tremendous base runner. She batted .452 with five homers, but also had 25 stolen bases and 31 runs scored.

“Tristen, Allie Dempsey, Sophia Summa and Mollie Gatto were the seniors who represented Dunmore in the Field of Dreams Game at PNC Field in Moosic. We were honored to have these four girls represent Dunmore. I was able to coach them in the game and face off against Joe Ross of Holy Cross. What a pleasure.”

Always looking at the bottle as half full, Ferguson talked about his coaching philosophy.

“Teaching is the philosophy,” he said. “The idea is to teach and let the kids become better each day. I love coaching. Every year it’s a new team and new experience.

“It all comes back to the classroom. I love to teach. I’m lucky to have such wonderful kids at Dunmore. I’ve never had a bad one.

“It’s a testament to the kids and their families. It’s due to the great parents.”

The 2002 Dunmore graduate played baseball in his high school years under coaching legend Gino Tempesta. “I love Gino,” Ferguson said. ‘I learned so much about the game of baseball from him. He still is involved coaching baseball. And I’m still learning from him.” 

Coach Ferguson is living his dream as a teacher and softball coach. “I give credit to the community, kids and their parents,” he said. “They deserve all the credit, I also have great coaches and administrators. I also am blessed with a wonderful family.

“Dunmore has been a big part of my whole life. I love teaching and coaching. It’s just a fantastic part of my whole life.”