• Terry Klay - 2019

Terry Klay was born and raised in one of the legendary homes of Minnesota Hockey, International Falls, and played youth hockey in that community.  After graduating from high school, Klay served four years in the United States Navy.  Following his military service, Klay played one year of college hockey at UW-River Falls.

He moved to Wausau on Jan. 1, 1976, and on Jan. 2, he found the ice arena and began skating.  He signed on with the Wausau Area Youth Hockey Association in the Fall of 1976 and his first assignment was to coach a Bantam and a Squirt team at the same time.  He was a newlywed at that time and his wife Gail would come along for support and assistance.

In 1980, Klay began a 21-year career as Assistant Coach at Wausau East High School, serving first under Denny Overland for four years, and then under Tim Sager for 17 seasons.  Klay not only mentored two head coaches from his own team, but he was also able to keep situations under control when the relationship between rival head coaches became strained.
          
Once Klay’s high school coaching career ended, he returned to Marathon County Youth Hockey, where he had started his coaching career in 1976.  Klay began coaching Squirts and Peewees again, and then began working with younger kids in player development.  In 2012, Klay and others took over the Learn to Skate Program.  His latest coaching venture is working with the Try Hockey for Girls Clinics.  Klay has now spent more than 40 years working to improve the hockey program in Wausau with work at all levels of coaching.

In addition to the hockey program in Wausau, Klay was the Coordinator of Hockey with the Badgers State Games for 16 years.  He was also a high school and NCAA Division 3 hockey official, working games around the State of Wisconsin.  Klay worked part-time for the Marathon County Parks and Forestry Department in Wausau.  In that position, Klay was able to use his common sense with ice scheduling to make the numerous adjustments needed throughout the season to allow youth hockey, high school hockey, figure skating and other public use to function smoothly together.

Klay is retired from Wilson-Hurd in Wausau, where he and his wife Gail reside.  They have two children, Tim and Rebecca.