Bruce P. Colon, age 84, of Lake Placid, N.Y., passed away on May 24, 2025.
Bruce was born in Athol, Mass., to Katherine P. and Percy “Bill” Colon on Aug. 17, 1940, as the youngest of three children. After graduating from Athol High School in 1958, Bruce attended Paul Smith’s College, where he was a vital member of the ski team and graduated with an associate degree in forestry in 1960. He served in the U.S. Army from 1962 to 1964 and then earned his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of New Hampshire in 1967.
Bruce returned to the Adirondacks in 1967 to teach and coach football, golf, and alpine skiing at Saranac Lake High School. From 1968 to 1977, he held the position of assistant headmaster at Northwood School in Lake Placid, N.Y., where he led the history department and coached baseball, golf, football, and alpine skiing. By his second year at Northwood, he had led the football team to an undefeated season, and two members of his ski team were selected for the U.S. National Junior Team. He also played a key role in transitioning Northwood School to a co-educational institution and establishing its women’s sports programs.
Bruce was an influential volunteer, championing Lake Placid community youth sports as a Little League baseball coach, area golf instructor, and Lake Placid Sports Council member. In 1977, he was appointed women’s alpine director for the 1980 Olympic Winter Games.
One of Bruce’s lasting legacies is as a founder of the New York Ski Educational Foundation (NYSEF). Since its inception in 1973, the Whiteface Alpine Training Center—later renamed NYSEF—has become a nationally recognized program that has trained thousands of youth in alpine, Nordic, freestyle, and snowboard disciplines over more than 50 years. In 2018, Bruce was an inaugural inductee into the NYSEF Hall of Fame.
Following his tenure at Northwood School, Bruce became the founding headmaster of Carrabassett Valley Academy in Maine and later headed alpine ski programs at Mt. Bachelor, Ore.; Mt. Alyeska, Alaska; and Aspen, Snowmass, and Crested Butte, Colo. Dozens of Coach Colon’s athletes went on to compete or coach at national, international, and Olympic levels. In 2003, he was honored with U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s Chairman’s Special Recognition “Tom Reynolds Award for Lifetime Achievement in Coaching.”
Upon retirement, Bruce returned to Lake Placid, where he pursued his passion for golf, perfected his craft of custom bamboo fly rod building, and relished spending time with his children and grandchildren.
Bruce is survived by his four children: Laurie (Johnny) Woods of Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Clarke (Elizabeth) Colon of Waterbury, Vt.; Lisa (Shawn) Holes of Boise, Idaho; and Eric Colon of Silt, Colo.; eight grandchildren: Eliza (Kent) True, William Holes, Logan Holes, Mazie Holes, Heath Colon, Davis Colon, Levi Colon, and Claire Colon; and four great-grandchildren. He is also survived by his friend and former wife, Nancy Colon of Lake Placid, and his girlfriend of 20 years, Carol Nevulis of Lake Placid. He leaves behind numerous nieces and nephews and countless former students and athletes whose lives he positively impacted.
His parents, his brother Frazier P. Colon, and his sister Joan E. Duncan preceded him in death.
A celebration of life will take place later this summer. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to NYSEF, P.O. Box 300, Wilmington, NY 12997 or nysef.org.
M.B. Clark Inc. Funeral Home in Lake Placid is handling arrangements. To share a memory or leave condolences, please visit www.mbclarkfuneralhome.com.
A memorial tree was planted in Bruce’s honor.
We are deeply sorry for your loss — the staff at M.B. Clark Inc. Funeral Home – Lake Placid.
Join in honoring his life: Plant a memorial tree.
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