News

South Kent School is pleased to announce that Patrick Bonis will step into a full-time role as strength and conditioning coach for the upcoming school year. Coach Bonis is a long-time fitness enthusiast with impressive and varied experiences in sport. 

Coach Bonis has extensive experience with both hockey and athletic conditioning in many forms. He played both at Proctor Academy and in the EJHL (Eastern Junior Hockey League). He is a USA certified swim coach, lifeguard, lifeguard instructor and is the Connecticut Trainer for Heroes of Tomorrow, run by former Navy Seal Stewart Smith. Patrick was a competitive cyclist and now competes as an open water swimmer, conquering the 2018 Lake Champlain Open Water Race and the 2019 Peaks to Portland open water swim. Whether it is climbing the tallest peak in the Rocky Mountains, swimming across the largest lake in New England, clinging to a rock face, or pushing impressive weight in various directions, Patrick Bonis has spent the better part of his life connecting with people through fitness. 

Asked what the best part of training people is, Patrick said, “To climb to the top of a mountain with someone else, encouraging them the entire way. When at the top, my feelings of accomplishment and appreciation of the view are unimportant. Looking at the person you brought with you and seeing the wonder in their eyes, their feeling of accomplishment, that is the ultimate reward!” 

Jon Hutcheon, Director of Hockey Operations at South Kent Selects Academy, commented, “We are extremely excited to add Pat Bonis to our athletic department as our strength and conditioning coach. Pat is a man of integrity and discipline who will help our young men not just become stronger physically but mentally as well. His enthusiasm is infectious and his care for our players will be second to none.”

Patrick has a Bachelor of Science degree in Community Health and has taught anatomy and physiology and philosophy. He has been mentoring student-athletes both inside and outside the weight room at South Kent since 2005. The classes he has taught, as well as the training programs he has designed, always take the mind and body connection into account. An excellent motivator, Coach Bonis knows that it takes self-reliance to accomplish anything, ”Working out is not always the hardest thing, it’s sometimes just getting to the gym that is the most challenging part.” 

Director of Athletics Owen Finberg expressed his excitement, “Pat has been hugely influential with our students for a decade and a half. As a mentor, as someone who lives by example, as someone who has trained many of our top athletes for years in an unofficial role, it is great for him to have the ability to dedicate his focus to this role full time.” 

Student-Athlete Testimonials