It was exactly this time of the year in 1980 when Sports Illustrated named Mike Eruzione and the gold-medal-winning USA Olympic hockey team Sportspersons of the Year.
Eruzione had scored the winning goal in a monumental 4-3 upset of the Soviet Union team who was seeking its sixth consecutive Olympic gold medal. Two days later, Team USA beat Finland, 4-2, in the gold medal game. SI later named Mike Eruzione’s achievement “The Top Sports Moment of the 20th Century.” Al Michaels became a sports broadcasting superstar, a career launched by his dramatic calls of Team USA’s games.
Following a visit with President Jimmy Carter at the White House, Eruzione had the opportunity to play in the National Hockey League, but he declined those offers, opting not to turn professional.
Today Mike Eruzione and his wife, Donna Eruzione, continue to reside in Winthrop, and the family’s Winthrop Charities has emerged as one of the town’s most generous donors. This year, Winthrop Charities donated $25,000 to various organizations and causes. One of its substantial donations was a gift to the Winthrop schools for the purchase of defibrillators. All told, the Eruzione family’s Winthrop Charities has donated more than $250,000 during its two-decade history.
In August, Mike made a special appearance at the Winthrop Cultural Center inside the former E.B. Newton School building to talk about his book, “The Making of A Miracle.” WCAT videotaped the talk, and it has been viewed on YouTube by people around the world. The Mike Eruzione Pro Shop in downtown Lake Placid has opened as a tribute to the 1980 Miracle on Ice Team.
Olympic gold will always shine brightly in the town – as will Mike and Donna Eruzione’s Winthrop Charities’ incredible generosity for the past 20 years – and into the future.