Dave Fay
Born(1940-03-05)March 5, 1940
Brighton, Boston, US
DiedJuly 17, 2007(2007-07-17) (aged 67)
Monrovia, Maryland, US
OccupationJournalist
Spouse(s)Mary (died)
Patricia (married)
Children4
AwardsElmer Ferguson Memorial Award

David G. Fay Sr. (March 5, 1940 – July 17, 2007) was an American sports journalist. He was posthumously awarded the Elmer Ferguson Memorial Award in 2007 after dying of cancer. Prior to his death, Fay worked for The Washington Times covering the Washington Capitals and Washington Redskins. In his honor, a charity hockey game was formed to raise funds for Hockey Fights Cancer and the Capitals media dedicated an award in his name.

Early life

Fay was born on March 5, 1940, to parents Leo and Mary Fay and one brother. After graduating from public school, Fay served in the United States Navy before beginning his journalism career after being honorably discharged.[1]

Career

In 1961, Warren Times-Mirror hired Fay as a journalist. While working for the Mirror, Fay toured Canada, the Soviet Union, and other parts of Europe.[1] From there, he worked for various newspapers before joining The Washington Times as an assistant sports editor in 1982.[2][3] However, Fay shortly thereafter began working as the Capitals beat reporter due to a lack of interest from other journalists. Until his death, Fay covered the Capitals for the Times in all but two years.[3]

He was named a life member of the Professional Hockey Writers Association and the Professional Football Writers Association.[1] In May 2007, the Hockey Hall of Fame announced that Fay was the winner of the 2007 Elmer Ferguson Memorial Award,[4] however, he died of cancer before being able to receive the award.[5]

Personal life and legacy

After his first wife, Mary, died, Fay remarried to Patricia Delaney Fay. At the time of his death, Fay had four sons.[1] In October of the season following his death, the Washington Capitals announced they had donated $10,000 to charity in his honor.[6]

In his honor, Rob Keaton and Gavin Toner began a charity hockey game to raise funds for Hockey Fights Cancer.[7][8] Starting in the 2015–16 season, the Washington Capitals media awarded the Dave Fay Award for a player who best cooperates with the media. The first award was given to Karl Alzner.[9][10] In the same year, the Capitals honored Fay in their Washington Capitals Media Wall of Fame.[11]

References

  1. ^ a b c d "David Fay Sr". legacy.com. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  2. ^ "Dave Fay, Washington Times sports writer, dies at 67". ESPN.com. Washington. July 18, 2007. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  3. ^ a b Heller, Dick (July 18, 2007). "Honored Times sportswriter Dave Fay dies". The Washington Times. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  4. ^ "Hockey Hall to honour Hewitt". The Toronto Star. May 29, 2007. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  5. ^ "Honoured hockey writer Fay dies". cbc.ca. July 18, 2007. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  6. ^ Fendrich, Howard (October 27, 2007). "Canucks Top Capitals to End Losing Skid". Associated Press Newswires. During the first period, the Capitals honored longtime Washington Times hockey writer Dave Fay, who died of cancer in July, and announced the team's $10,000 donation to charity in his honor.
  7. ^ Gordon, Chris (July 24, 2011). "The 4th Annual Dave Fay Memorial Hockey Fights Cancer Game". russianmachineneverbreaks.com. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  8. ^ Schad, Tom (July 21, 2011). "Charity game to honor Times' late hockey writer, Dave Fay". The Washington Times. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  9. ^ "2016–17 Media Guide" (PDF). NHL.com. p. 36. Retrieved April 3, 2019. Was the recipient of the inaugural Dave Fay Award for cooperation with the media
  10. ^ @CapitalsPR (April 8, 2016). "The #Caps media presented @KarlAlzner with the inaugural Dave Fay Award today after practice" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  11. ^ Sorensen, Jon (February 17, 2016). "Capitals Honor Media Legends through Media Wall of Fame". novacapsfans.com. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
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