Boccanfuso makes Jadwin shine

He knew Joe Scott '87 when he was a starter in a Tiger jersey. He went on recruiting trips and tournaments with men's basketball's legendary coach Pete Carril, and he has been around long enough to see Jadwin raised from its raw materials to the towering monolith of Princeton athletics.

At close to 80 years old — 58 of those spent at Princeon — George Boccanfuso is the living history of Jadwin Gymnasium.

A Princeton native, Boccanfuso retired in 1991 before returning shortly thereafter to work part-time. He still reports to work at 6 a.m. every weekday to take care of the main floors of the gym that he has grown old with.

Boccanfuso began working for Princeton in 1947 as a maintenance and grounds crew worker and was soon promoted to superintendent, where he stayed for 42 years until his retirement 14 years ago.

Taking care of Princeton athletic facilities is a family thing. Boccanfuso's father worked on the maintenance and grounds crew before him, taking care of the various athletics fields and courts on campus for 47 years.

Boccanfuso's brother worked on the grounds crew as well.

"My dad started to work here as a grounds man," Boccanfuso said. "He became foreman then hired me, and I just stayed here all my life. I went into the service for three years, and when I came back, I came back here."

His wife is also employed by the athletics department, working part-time as an usher. The two met, appropriately enough, while both worked in one of Princeton's athletic facilities.

"I met her at the public skating down at Baker Rink," Boccanfuso said. "She was skating, so I went out skating with her. She's been around here as long as I have."

Coming back to work

Boccanfuso's work with the University has assumed a special place in his life. Because of this, retirement didn't seem an appealing option, which is why he is back at his post today.

"I retired one day, and I came back to work three days later — I just couldn't stay home."

It is clear that Boccanfuso loves his job.

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"They don't give me too many special privileges, but they treat me good. I couldn't ask for a better job," he said. "I like sports."

Boccanfuso has seen his share of athletes and coaches.

"Oh my God. Bill Bradley ['65]. Cosmo Iacavazzi ['65]. There's a mess of them. Pete Carril — I've met them all."

Carril was one of Boccanfuso's all-time favorite Princetonian sports personalities.

"He was just my type of guy, I guess," he said.

The two became good friends during Carril's tenure, and Boccanfuso was given the opportunity to travel with the basketball team on recruiting trips and tournaments, giving him plenty of stories to tell.

"We used to do a lot of crazy things, like when we went to a tournament up in Rochester," Boccanfuso said. "We won and got drunk that night and were dancing on top of the piano and everything, so someone called the cops on us and they told us to be quiet or get out."

Boccanfuso also remembers knowing current Princeton men's basketball head coach Scott in his early years as a point guard for the Tiger basketball team in the late 1980s.

"Joe, he's great," Boccanfuso said. "He's the same; he's still tough on the players."

Although the faces of the athletes and coaches change, Jadwin itself has stayed the same according to Boccanfuso. A few improvements have been made, like installing new flooring and a new track — but that's about it.

This interview has taken 15 minutes, and although Boccanfuso graciously continues to answer questions, it's clear he would rather be tending to Jadwin than talking about it. At the end of the interview, the slight, white-haired Boccanfuso is up with the vigor of a 20-year-old, searching for the next small task that needs to be done to ensure that Jadwin is in top form.