George Munnich dies; wrestling coach was 78

George Munnich walked around wrestling rooms with silver dollars jangling in his pockets. The head coach at Grand Avenue Middle School and assistant at Bellmore JFK High School for more than 20 years would reward his wrestlers who properly executed the head-to-heel move with one of the coins.

The gesture may not have fit his outwardly gruff look, but it was emblematic of the man with the military crew cut. "He had a rough and tough look on the outside," his son, Mark, 43, of Bellmore, said. "But he was soft on the inside."

Munnich died Wednesday at Winthrop-University Hospital in Mineola after suffering a stroke Nov. 3. He was 78.

Born April 17, 1937, in Bellmore, Munnich wrestled for Mepham High School from 1950 to '54. He earned an appointment to the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, where he was a three-time conference and AAU champion, team captain and runner-up at the NCAA Championships as a senior. He was awarded the Admiral Stedman Trophy, given to the top graduating cadet athlete.

He placed fourth at the 1960 Olympic Trials in Greco-Roman wrestling.

Munnich served in the Merchant Marine and the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War. He then earned a master's degree in secondary math education at Adelphi University. He taught at Grand Avenue Middle School for 25 years, where he was wrestling coach. He was an assistant coach at Bellmore JFK High School until his death.

"He was the type of coach any parent would want their kid to have," Bellmore JFK wrestling coach Brian DeGaetano said. "As accomplished a wrestler and coach as he was, he paid more attention to the kid who didn't really know how to wrestle. He was always focused on the JV kid, the guy who, maybe one day, could be good. . . . He was the only guy I've ever known that nobody had a bad word to say about."

DeGaetano said the silver dollar tradition at Bellmore JFK will continue. Munnich coached at least 125 all-county wrestlers, said Lilly Ann Munnich, his wife of 47 years.

"The kids idolized him," she said. "He cared for them so much. I always used to say, 'You're like the grandpa for these kids.' If they lost, some of them would get upset or cry and they would always go to George for comfort."

He was inducted into the USMMA Athletic Hall of Fame in 1990 and the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2008. Munnich was also a life guard at Jones Beach and on Fire Island, and was a member of the Baldwin Bay Colony Rowers, a lifeboat racing team.

In addition to his wife, Lilly Ann, Munnich is survived by his son, Mark, daughters Jennifer of Massapequa Park, and Erika of Cocoa Beach, Florida, and grandchildren Lilly and Sam.

A wake will be held Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. at the C.S. Bartholomew & Son Funeral Home in Bellmore. His funeral is Monday at 10:30 a.m. at Christ Lutheran Church in Wantagh.

The family requests donations to 'George's Surf Boat,' a gofundme.com fundraiser to donate a boat in Munnich's honor to Jones Beach lifeguards.