Board of Directors

Hal Smith

Hal Smith is a 1967 graduate of The Kings College in New York. He earned masters degrees from Montclair State (NY) in 1971 and from Fresno State (CA) in 1982. He is entering his 33rd season as a head coach on the NAIA level (career record of 605-431 and his 23rd season at Malone.  His 431-282 record at Malone rank him as the all time leader in wins and winning percentage. His 605 overall victories ranks him sixth (# of victories) among active NAIA coaches and, on January 25, 2005 in a 91-88 win at Ohio Dominican University, he became just the 49th collegiate head men's basketball coach (at all levels) to reach 600 wins. Smith has led the Pioneers to 20 winning seasons in his 22 years at the helm, as well as directing the Pioneers to the NAIA national tournament twice.  In addition, he led Malone to the NCCAA Division I National Championship in 1996.

Smith has been serving as the Athletic Director since 1987 as well as being an Associate Professor in the Physical Education Department
             
Hal was diagnosed with PSC in 1991 and underwent a successful live donor transplant in April of 2000. He is a co-founder of the Hoops 4 Healing Organization and has been an active speaker in support of organ and tissue donation at the local, state, and national levels.
  
Hal and his wife, Barbara, live in Canton and have three adult children.

Chuck Cooper

Chuck Cooper was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio. He moved to Wooster Ohio in 1969 to attend college and is a 1973 graduate of the College of Wooster. 

Following graduation he coached men's basketball at the College of Wooster, at Adrian College in Michigan, and at Northwestern High School where he also coached football and baseball. He also served as the athletic director at Northwestern High School from 1985 - 1989. In 1989 he moved to Wooster High School to become the Director of Athletics and Student Activities, a position he held until his retirement in June of 2005.  

Chuck was diagnosed with Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis (PSC) in 1998 and underwent a successful, traditional liver transplant at the Cleveland Clinic in July of 1999.  He is one of the co-founders of the Hoops 4 Healing organization.

He currently works for the NuHop Center where he facilitates leadership training and team development programs for athletic teams, schools, and corporations. He is also a volunteer speaker for LifeBanc of Northeast Ohio.

Chuck and his wife Joan have 3 adult children.

Bruce Brown

Bruce Brown is a native of Columbus, Ohio.  He did his undergraduate work in education at Bowling Green State University, graduating in 1972.  From 1972-1981, he taught school and was a head boys basketball coach in Ohio at three high schools.  In 1981, he returned to his collegiate alma mater and served as an assistant men's basketball coach for the Falcons for three years.  In 1984, he returned to the high school coaching ranks where he continued to be a head basketball coach until 1999.  He is currently the athletic director at Uniontown (OH) Lake High School (since 1998) where is serves on several district and state athletic administrative organizations.
   
Bruce was diagnosed with Crohn's disease in 1968 and with PSC initially in 1995.  He is presently asymptomatic and continues to monitor the disease through his specialists.  He, along with Hal Smith (athletic director and head basketball coach at Malone College) and Steve Loy (former head basketball coach at Walsh University), and Chuck Cooper (former athletic director at Wooster High School) helped develop the initial concept behind the "Hoops 4 Healing" basketball project.

Karen Loy

Karen (Rugani) Loy was raised in Waynesburg, Ohio, graduating from Sandy Valley High School. She graduated from The Ohio State University in 1978 with a B.A., and again in 1987 with an M.B.A. Upon graduating from M.B.A. school, she moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico for 2 years working as an accountant at Honeywell Defense Systems, but returned to Ohio to marry her long-time sweetheart, Steve Loy, who was an assistant basketball coach at The University of Akron.

In 1990, they became the parents of Alexander Benjamin, and in 1992, Meredith Marie.

In April 1992, Steve became the head Mens' Basketball Coach at Walsh University leading his teams to great success, posting a record of 254-130 in 12 seasons. In 1997, Steve was diagnosed with Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis (PSC). His condition remained stable until August 2003, when he was diagnosed with cholangiocarcinoma (bile duct cancer). After a valiant fight, he succumbed to the disease in February 2004.

Karen is employed as an accountant at Lockheed Martin Corporation in Akron, Ohio.

Jeff Young

Jeff Young, an Akron native, earned his bachelor's degree from Walsh University in 1990. He completed requirements for his master's degree in education from Walsh in '91. Young served as the University's Men's Golf Coach for seven years and initiated the Women's program. He guided the men to the American Mideast Conference Golf Championship and a NAIA National Tournament in 2002 and led the women to the AMC title in their first year.

When Head Coach Steve Loy, one of the original founders of the Hoops 4 Healing Foundation, passed away on February 7, 2004 due to complications from liver cancer, Young was named the head mens' basketball coach at Walsh. In his first year as head coach Young guided the Cavaliers to the NAIA National Championship and was named NAIA National Coach of the Year. Coach Young has continued Walsh University's involvement in Hoops 4 Healing by becoming a board member in 2004.

Jeff and his wife, the former Lesley Keller, reside in Jackson Township.