After 37 years of coaching hockey in Stevens Point, Rusty Mitch decided to retire at the end of this season.

Along the way he spent time as an assistant coach for the Pacelli High School and Stevens Point Area Senior High School (SPASH) boys hockey teams, as well as with the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (UWSP) men’s hockey team, before he helped restart the Pacelli hockey program, where he spent the last 11 seasons as its head coach.

In his honor, Mitch’s wife Wendy threw a surprise party for the longtime coach at the Pacelli Catholic High School Faith, Arts, and Community Center Saturday, April 21, where friends, family members and former players gathered to celebrate his coaching career.

“It’s a game I’ve always loved,” said Mitch. “My mother got me hooked on the (Chicago) Blackhawks, from the first time I could watch television, I’ve been a big Blackhawks fan, and she’s the one who got me playing hockey as a youth.