Gerry Strong

Retired high school teacher/coach Gerry Strong is the 2024 winner of the Bob Turner Award.

The Turner Award is presented annually to a member of the Windsor/Essex County community who provided many years of dedicated service to athletics, promoting participation, continuous improvement and the all-around development and well-being of athletes.

Award winners typically coach multiple sports over many years with an emphasis not on trophies and championships but on leadership, well-being and mentoring.

Strong’s lengthy coaching career at Forster, Walkerville, Riverside, Herman and Sandwich embraces everything the Turner Award represents.

“My goal in teaching and coaching was to make a difference in the lives of my students and athletes,” Strong said.  “My duty was to assist, encourage, and motivate.”

The foundation for Strong’s outstanding coaching career was built on the elite coaching he received while playing football at St. Francis Xavier and McMaster Universities.

He started his teaching and coaching career in 1968 at Forster where he learned under Jerry Carpenter and Max Karcz while coaching football, basketball and track and field.

The following year he helped establish a wrestling team at the school that saw instant success, winning eight straight city championships and seven SWOSSA titles.

The success of Forster’s program helped spur an interest in high school wrestling across Windsor/Essex. In 1973, he was asked to help establish a wrestling team at St. Clair College.

Strong moved to Walkerville in 1980 for six years and then on to Riverside in 1986. In 1991, he coached Riverside to its first football championship in 25 years and followed up with a second Wilson Conference title the next season.

Strong coached many high-calibre athletes through the years, including two Royal Arcanum winners in Forster’s Derek Doidge (1970-71) and Riverside’s Jamie Pepper (1989-90).

But Strong’s commitment to student-athlete success extended right down the bench.

“As a coach and mentor Gerry always stressed the value of work ethic and grit,” said former Riverside player Scott Westbury. “He fostered a sense of belief and selflessness in terms of an emphasis on ‘the team’ and its success. It wasn't about individual success (although that was there too). It was about contributing to ‘the team.’ Everyone felt a part of the team and that they contributed to it.”