The weight training room at Bishop Brady High School has gotten new life this month and was formally dedicated Thursday to the memory of former teacher Jeff Kaplan.
About 30 people gathered in the Bishop Brady High School gymnasium Thursday for a ceremony dedicating the school’s newly redesigned weight room to the memory of Jeff Kaplan, a teacher, coach and father of eight who died in January due to complications from COVID-19.
In the weight room, a small space located off the high school’s gymnasium, the walls are painted in the Bishop Brady colors of green, white and gold and decorated with quotes from famous athletes. Outside the room, a sign with a photo of Kaplan coaching lacrosse hangs on the wall, beside a framed Cornell University football jersey displaying the number 72, Kaplan’s number when he played for the team in the late 1970s and early 80s.
“In loving memory, Mr. Jeffrey Kaplan,” the sign reads. “Teacher, coach, colleague, friend, godspeed.”
Kaplan’s death in January 2021 left Bishop Brady students, athletes and staff members heartbroken, as he was beloved by many. Over the course of the next several months, students made cards, signed jerseys, made a heart sculpture in the courtyard using painted rocks, used the hashtag #KaplanStrong on their senior shirts, dedicated the 2021 yearbook to him and left one chair empty for him at graduation.
Principal Andrea Isaak Elliot said that when the renovation of the weight room began, administrators realized it was the perfect thing to dedicate to Kaplan, who had dedicated many hours to training student-athletes.
“It’s a wonderful gesture, because we knew how much our dad loved the importance of strength and conditioning and coaching,” said Matt Kaplan, Jeff Kaplan’s son, who spoke at the ceremony. “Every day we all miss our dad. He impacted so many people, so I thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”
Kaplan began working at Bishop Brady High School in 2016, after he responded to an advertisement for a part-time science teacher.
“I didn’t interview anyone else after I met Jeff,” Elliot said. “Before the school began, we added an extra class to his schedule and before you knew it, he was wearing as many hats as the rest of us do in a small private school. He fit right in and we were extremely blessed to have him as part of our staff.”
Over the years at Bishop Brady, Kaplan taught chemistry, science electives and algebra, coached the football and lacrosse teams and even drove the minibus for morning transportation, according to Elliot.
About 70% of Bishop Brady’s student-athletes will use the machines and dumbbells in the Kaplan Weight Room in their training this year, according to athletic director Tony Johnson.
At the ceremony, Johnson spoke about coaching football alongside Kaplan at Plymouth State University in the 1990s, Kaplan’s first job after moving to New Hampshire.
“He came in with unbelievable passion. He loved the game, he loved the fact that he was dealing with kids,” Johnson said. “And what he did every single day was bring that passion to the game.”
Jeff Kaplan’s wife, Mary Kaplan, used the community donations the family received following his death to create a scholarship fund for students who had known him. At the ceremony, Elliot presented the family with a copy of the 2021 yearbook.
“When one student asked Mr. Kaplan to describe himself using one word, he responded ‘dedicated,’ and those of us who worked with him would agree with that, 100%,” Elliot said. “Devoted husband, father of eight and grandfather, Jeff did it all with dedication and with passion.”