In Memory of Ron Brace

Many football players are remembered for how extraordinary they are on the field but only a few are remembered for how extraordinary their heart is. The perfect balance between the two was a man named Ronald Brace III or Ron Brace. Although he was born in Springfield, Ron Brace is nothing short of a legend at Burncoat High School. At Burncoat, he was on the football team, but he also excelled on the track team and won the state shot-put titles in 2003 and 2004. In 2003, he was a team captain and MVP of the football team. The next year he played in the Massachusetts Shriners Football Classic. He finished his high school career with these honors plus Worcester Telegram & Gazette's All-Star honors and All-State honors. These accomplishments show that Ron Brace was an outstanding athlete but he also had a wonderful soul.

Someone who knows this personally is Kevin Cox Sr. who coached him for four years on the track team. After pointing out that Ron stood out from everybody else because he was 6'3 and 330lbs, Mr. Cox shared one of his most unforgettable memories with Ron:

"I can remember one time we were at the state meet and somebody from one of the other schools, a top contender, came right up to Ronnie about two inches from his face and said 'Are you Ronnie Brace? You're going down today,'" Cox stated. "Ronnie could've done any one of a hundred things, including squishing him into a little ball, but he just put out his hand and said, 'Yeah, man. Go for it. Come get me. Let's go.'" Ron did not let people get into his head and he kept his cool no matter what.

Ms. Janice Corazzini had him as a student for three and a half years. When asked about how he stood out she said, "I noticed immediately that he had a beautiful heart." Elaborating on this she said, "One boy was going through cancer treatment and he would come into my room every day and throw up in the basket. Ronnie would just know ahead of time and he would go over, take the plastic bag, go into the dumpster, throw it away, and come back."

Ron Brace graduated from Burncoat High School after leaving a lasting mark on the hearts of his teachers, his coaches, and other students. He went on to play collegiate football at Boston College and in 2009 the New England Patriots drafted him for defensive tackle. Ron was a New England Patriot for four years and he was known for helping out in the community. On April 23rd, 2016, Burncoat, Massachusetts, and the world lost an exemplary human being. The end to this amazing life was also where it started – Springfield, Massachusetts.