UNB alumnus honorary degree recipient and CFL all-star Tony Proudfoot loses battle with ALS
Author: Communications
Posted on Jan 4, 2011
Category: UNB Saint John
MONTREAL - Tony Proudfoot, a former CFL all-star who once employed a staple gun to give his team an edge in the Grey Cup's storied "Ice Bowl," has died at the age of 61.
The former defensive back died Thursday after a battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a terminal, degenerative illness more commonly known as Lou Gehrig's diseaseOn the field, Proudfoot was an aggressive, yet cerebral, defender who refused to back down from a challenge — whether it was the slick, icy turf or a big-time collision.
Away from the gridiron, the former defensive back proved to be even more courageous in the face of adversity.Proudfoot rushed to save a student's life amid a hail of bullets at Dawson College in September 2006 and then stared down a disease he knew would claim his own.
Read the full story at the Winnipeg Free Press.
Read a posthomous article by Proudfoot in the Montreal Gazette