Troy 30-C to dedicate gymnasium to former board member J. Terry McFadden  Public invited to attend ceremony

The community is invited to attend the dedication of the Troy Middle School gymnasium to former school board member J. Terry McFadden on Friday, August 20, at 6 p.m.

The district has made some changes to the gym over the summer and is now dedicating the space to McFadden for his long term service as a board member and his love of youth sports.

McFadden passed away June 11, 2020.

McFadden’s family will be in attendance, as will other members of the community. The ceremony will be brief, respectful and celebratory.

McFadden served on the Troy School Board for over 40 years and was elected for the first time when he was only 28 years old. He worked with every Troy School District Superintendent from Don Bacon to Todd Koehl. He was very proud of the teachers, staff, students and the community he represented.

He was born in Joliet and attended Joliet East High School.  He was a natural athlete and the star pitcher on the school baseball team. He graduated from Illinois State University with a BS in Education, earned his MS in Educational Administration from Northern Illinois University and continued with post-graduate studies throughout his teaching career.

McFadden taught English at Downers Grove North and South High Schools.  He retired in 2007 after 35 years of teaching. While at Downers Grove, he was an assistant baseball coach and a peer mentor. He also taught rhetoric at Joliet Junior College for many years. He positively impacted thousands of students.

McFadden was also a volunteer baseball coach in many local baseball leagues from pinto level to pony league.  He coached for the love of the game.  He coached his three sons and many athletes from the Shorewood area. He was also an accomplished junior high, high school, and college basketball official. He was a downstate official many times including officiating the IHSA State Finals, twice. He was awarded the Official of the Year honor.

Troy Middle School is located at 5800 W. Theodore Street, Plainfield.