Kenneth Augustine Bray (May 26, 1879 – January 9, 1953) was an American
Episcopal
Episcopal may refer to:
*Of or relating to a bishop, an overseer in the Christian church
*Episcopate, the see of a bishop – a diocese
*Episcopal Church (disambiguation), any church with "Episcopal" in its name
** Episcopal Church (United State ...
priest,
teacher,
sportsman and
coach. He founded the athletic program for
Iolani School from 1932 to 1953, establishing the "One Team" philosophy touted by many teachers, coaches and students at the school.
Biography
Kenneth A. Bray was born on May 26, 1879, in
Barrow-in-Furness,
Lancashire,
England. His father, the Reverend Thomas William Bray, was once a
vicar of St. Paul's Church in
Aberdeen,
Scotland. Father Bray studied at the
University of Oxford. He stated, "When I went to Oxford, I did not go in for the scholastic honors as my brothers did," but instead, "I went in for athletics. Mother was disappointed." He earned the
Bachelor of Divinity
In Western universities, a Bachelor of Divinity or Baccalaureate in Divinity (BD or BDiv; la, Baccalaureus Divinitatis) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded for a course taken in the study of divinity or related disciplines, such as theology ...
degree from
General Theological Seminary in
New York City and was ordained in 1909. He coached football, basketball, and baseball at
Geneva High School (New York) where he also led the drama club. That overlapped his service as rector of
St. Peter's Episcopal Church (Geneva, New York) from 1914 to 1924. During his early teaching years, in 1917, Bray enlisted in the military for service in
World War I. He taught both
Greek and
Latin at St. Stephens College and
Nashotah House,
Wisconsin. He also taught at
Choate School
Choate Rosemary Hall (often known as Choate; ) is a private, co-educational, college-preparatory boarding school in Wallingford, Connecticut, United States. Choate is currently ranked as the second best boarding school and third best private high ...
in
Wallingford, Connecticut, and
The Hill School in
Pottstown,
Pennsylvania, where he coached basketball, baseball,
lacrosse and football.
Father Bray moved to Hawaii in 1932, and taught at
Iolani School. During the next two decades of athletics, Father Bray distinguished his players with traditions that exemplified outstanding character qualities of excellence, humility, hard work, discipline and sportsmanship. Numerous championships over two decades came as a result of Bray's coaching, including a "Clean Sweep" of three championships (1950–1951) in football, basketball and baseball in the same school year.
Seabiscuit's horseshoe
In 1939, following the epic victory of
Seabiscuit over
War Admiral in the match race at
Pimlico
Pimlico () is an area of Central London in the City of Westminster, built as a southern extension to neighbouring Belgravia. It is known for its garden squares and distinctive Regency architecture. Pimlico is demarcated to the north by London V ...
racetrack in Maryland (1938), Father Bray wrote a letter to
Charles S. Howard, the wealthy owner of Seabiscuit. He explained how the display of courage had drawn the admiration of not just of an entire nation, but of young athletes from a small school in
Honolulu. He requested one of Seabiscuit's horseshoes. Howard responded with more than a letter. Howard sent one of the shoes Seabiscuit used during the dramatic win against War Admiral. The shoe became a talisman for Iolani football players who would ceremoniously kiss the horseshoe on their bus rides to the old
Honolulu Stadium
Honolulu Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium located in the Moiliili district of Honolulu, Hawai'i, at the corner of King and Isenberg Streets. Opened in 1926, it was the primary sports venue in Hawaii preceding Aloha Stadium. During its final y ...
.
Influence
Many of Father Bray's "boys" went on to become leading high school and collegiate coaches, teachers, business leaders, and professionals in the medical and dental fields. On June 24, 1981, the Father Kenneth A. Bray Athletic Complex was dedicated at Iolani School. He was honored as a member of the
Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame.
References
External links
Iolani School official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bray, Kenneth A.
People from Barrow-in-Furness
People from Wallingford, Connecticut
1879 births
1953 deaths
The Hill School faculty
20th-century American educators
20th-century American Episcopalians