Pair of Seniors Honored as Top Graduating Athletes at IHC Spring Awards Event
WATERTOWN — Two members of the Immaculate Heart Central Class of 2025 are the top graduating athletes and recipients of the Clarence B. “Boots” Gaffney Award. Abigail D. Bombard was selected as the women’s recipient and Samuel E. Charlebois was named as this year’s men’s honoree.
The Italian-American Civic Association established the Gaffney Award in 1980 following his retirement as athletic director to honor his commitment to Immaculate Heart Academy and IHC students. That same year, the award was first presented to the top graduating male and female athletes at Immaculate Heart.
Mr. Gaffney was also a multi-sport coach at Immaculate Heart. The award perpetuates his legacy to local athletics and the greater Watertown community. The honor is awarded to an outstanding male and female graduating student athlete who demonstrates exceptional performance and personal growth. School faculty, the athletic director, and designated varsity coaches determine recipients.
The Community Foundation was selected to help continue the Gaffney family legacy by administering a charitable fund in perpetuity and raising awareness of the legacy award for students who strive to earn the prestigious honor. The Foundation partners with the Italian-American Civic Association and IHC to provide a $1,000 scholarship to each Gaffney Award recipient.
About the recipients
Abigail D. Bombard is an accomplished three-sport athlete, competing for four years at the varsity level in soccer, basketball and lacrosse. She is a multi-year New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) Scholar Athlete and the recipient of the Air Force Scholar Athlete of the Year Award.
As a varsity soccer player, she was a four-year starter and a team captain in her junior and senior years. In her sophomore, junior, and senior years, Abigail was named a Frontier League First Team All-Star. In her junior year, Abigail was named to the All-North Second Team and was a Section III All-Star in her senior year.
On the basketball court, she served as team captain for three years and was a four-year First Team League All-Star, earning Frontier League MVP honors for the A/B Division in her junior and senior years. As a sophomore, she was named to the All-North Second Team, and as a junior and senior, she was named to the All-North First Team. In her junior and senior years, she was a named a CNY First Team All-Star and was named to the New York State (Class D) Second Team in her senior year.
On the lacrosse field, she was a four-year starter and a team captain in her junior and senior years and was named a Frontier League All-Star in her sophomore and junior years.
Off the athletic field, Abigail is a top-ranked honor student who will graduate this month with a New York State Regents Diploma with Advanced Designation and Honors. She is a two-year member of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Chapter of the National Honor Society, serving as vice president her senior year. Abigail was a Math League Award winner in her junior and senior years. She participated in numerous extracurricular clubs and activities, including Faith Community Service, Mystery Players, Whiz Quiz, and Yearbook Committee. She was also a peer tutor, youth coach and a Samaritan Medical Center volunteer.
Abigail is the recipient of numerous awards and scholarships throughout her high school academic career, including the St. Michael’s College Award for Academic Excellence, the RIT Business Leadership Award, the Rensselaer Medal Award, the Air Force Science and Mathematics Award.
She will attend Jefferson Community College this fall where she plans to study liberal arts. Abigail is the daughter of Jennifer and Lance Bombard, Chaumont.
Samuel E. Charlebois is an accomplished three-sport athlete, competing for three years on the Cavaliers’ varsity soccer and basketball teams, and two years on the varsity lacrosse team. He is a multi-year New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) Scholar Athlete and served as a soccer and basketball team captain.
Off the athletic field, Samuel is a two-year member of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Chapter of the National Honor Society, serving as chapter president his senior year. Samuel participated in Odyssey of the Mind and in numerous extracurricular clubs and activities, including Whiz Quiz, Yearbook, and the Rotary Interact Club and Prom Committee. Samuel was also active in the school musical for four years, first as a crew member and as the lead role his senior year.
Samuel was a Class Officer and three-year Student Council member, serving as President in his freshman and junior years and as Vice President his senior year. He is the recipient of numerous awards and scholarships throughout his high school academic career and is an active community volunteer, helping several local organizations through car washes, park clean-ups, and tree plantings.
Samuel will attend North Carolina State University, Raleigh, this fall where he plans to study English. He is the son of Melissa and Daniel Charlebois, Watertown.
Since 1980, 90 graduating Immaculate Heart seniors have received the Gaffney Award. An all-time list of Clarence “Boots” Gaffney Award recipients may be found at bit.ly/Gaffney-All-Time-25.
About Clarence B. “Boots” Gaffney
Clarence B. “Boots” Gaffney was a Watertown native who served as a city firefighter for 33 years and retired as a captain in 1970. He was also the athletic director at Immaculate Heart Academy (IHA) and IHC for nearly 40 years before retiring from that role in 1980. He coached football, basketball, and baseball at IHA. His basketball teams captured Northern New York Catholic League titles in 1953, 1954, and 1956.
Mr. Gaffney was a three-sport star at Watertown High School and the Manlius Military Academy. He graduated in 1936 from Clarkson University where he played football, basketball, and baseball. He was considered the best New York State small school quarterback and was the leading scorer on his basketball team. Mr. Gaffney was an inaugural inductee of the Clarkson Athletic Hall of Fame in 1992.
He also played football for the Watertown Red and Black for two seasons and coached them for four years. He was a 1995 inductee in the Red and Black Hall of Fame and a member of the North Country Sports Hall of Fame’s 2016 inaugural class.
Mr. Gaffney’s life and commitment to students aligns with another athletic legacy the Community Foundation stewards — the William I. Graf Award. Mr. Graf was a heralded teacher, coach, and administrator at Watertown High School and across the North Country. Mr. Graf died in 1954 and his passing motivated the Italian-American Civic Association to establish the William I. Graf Award to honor outstanding graduating athletes from Watertown and IHA schools. The inaugural awards were presented shortly after Mr. Graf’s passing with Mr. Gaffney’s son, Peter, named as the first IHA recipient.
The Graf Award honored students from Watertown High School and IHA until the Italian-American Civic Association announced the Gaffney Award in 1980. Graf Award recipients each receive a scholarship.
About the Northern New York Community Foundation
Since 1929, the Northern New York Community Foundation has invested in improving and enriching the quality of life for all in communities across Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties.
Through partnerships with businesses and organizations, charitable foundations, and generous families and individual donors, the Community Foundation awards grants and scholarships from an endowment and collection of funds that benefit the region. Its commitment to donors helps individuals achieve their charitable objectives now and for generations to come by preserving and honoring legacies of community philanthropy while inspiring others.
The Community Foundation is a resource for local charitable organizations, donors, professional advisors and nonprofit organizations. It also works to bring people together at its permanent home in the Northern New York Philanthropy Center to discuss challenges our communities face and find creative solutions that strengthen the region and make it a great place to live, work, and play.