Karen Bogues

    Bogues Karen Bogues
Basketball, 1979



This 2019 Danbury High School Hall of Fame inductee was a two-sport athlete. While at DHS, Karen played basketball and softball under legendary coaches Bob Bergman and Mike Cioppa. Karen credits learning important life skills of team work, communication, problem-solving, goal setting, and perseverance from her high school athletic experiences.

After sophomore year on the jayvee basketball team, Karen moved to the varsity squad her junior and senior years. She scored a total of 175 points on varsity but is remembered for her solid rebounding skills, leading the team in both her junior and senior years with a total of 283. Karen was also the starting catcher for the varsity softball team her junior and senior years. While at Danbury High School, Karen was a member of the Varsity Club.

After her Danbury High graduation, Karen continued her studies at Western Connecticut State University while flourishing as a three-sport athlete. From 1979-1983, Karen was a four-year starter for the basketball team. Competing under the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA-Western entered the NCAA after Karen’s graduation), the basketball team was 37-34 during Karen’s career. Karen’s senior year was the first year that the Western women’s basketball team made the post-season playoffs. To cap off her stellar senior season, Karen was selected All-District NAIA. At Western Connecticut, Karen was also a three-year softball starter at catcher, third base and first base. She was also a three-year starter at goalie for the Field Hockey team.

Karen coached basketball at several levels for many years. At St. Joseph’s School in Danbury her team won two titles. She was also an assistant coach at Western Connecticut State, St. Michael’s College, and Columbia University. She was also a Head Coach at Mansfield University in Pennsylvania. After concluding her coaching career, Karen moved to Florida where she founded a non-profit organization that serves teens in Sarasota County. Community Youth Development (CYD) serves over 2,000 middle and high school teens each year. The skill-set that Karen first learned playing sports in Danbury has led the CYD to be recognized as a national leader by the Department of Health and Human Services for youth leadership training.