BUTLER TWP — Family plus friends equal support.

This year's Butler Area School District Athletic Hall of Fame inductees definitely benefited from that equation.

Melanie Buczko Lincoln, Katie Butler Hinrichsen and Des Schunr were inducted into the Hall during a ceremony Friday evening in the high school cafeteria. Former Butler boys basketball coach Mark Jula was inducted the previous weekend.

“Through five years of track, four years of track and gymnastics at the same time, my parents were my No. 1 fans,” Buczko Lincoln said. “They always made me believe I could accomplish anything.”

A 2003 Butler graduate, Buczko set the WPIAL pole vault record while at Butler and still holds the school record in that event. She placed seventh at the National Adidas Track and Field Championships.

She went on to become a three-time Patriot League champion in the pole vault with Bucknell University. Buczko set the Bucknell and Patriot League meet pole vault records.

“I had an anonymous donor who I still don't know the identity of, for whom I will be forever grateful,” Buczko Lincoln said. “I was going to have to leave gymnastics at a young age because I couldn't afford to pay for the club membership.

“An anonymous donor believed in me and paid my fees so I could continue. Without that, I probably don't stay with gymnastics, probably never enter track and field or try the pole vault.”

Buczko Lincoln's husband is a track and cross country coach for a school in Arizona.

“I have a greater admiration for how difficult that job really is,” she said. “I'm very grateful for my coaches.

“Athletics taught me time management and opened doors to other opportunities.”

A 1999 Butler graduate, Butler Hinrichsen was a standout sprinter and hurdler. She accumulated 10 WPIAL medals and five state medals during her prep career.

She was three-time MVP of a girls track team that went 46-1 and won three WPIAL team championships.

“You don't realize the sacrifices your parents are making for you at the time,” Butler Hinrichsen said in reflecting on her high school days. “I've got a daughter playing on softball teams and I know what it takes to get her where she needs to be.

“There were four of us kids growing up and we were involved in sports, band, music, etc. and our parents always encouraged us.

“Everyone in my family — cousins, aunts, uncles, siblings — were always my biggest support,” Butler Hinrichsen added.

She went on to participate in track and field at Liberty University.

“There was never anything I didn't think was possible with hard work,” Butler Hinrichsen said. “You just keep trying until you get it. That was always my attitude.

“I was the first one to do the pole vault, I quit basketball to compete on our first indoor track team. I'd always be willing to try anything.”

Schnur was an outstanding pitcher at Butler and the University of Pittsburgh. The 1987 Butler graduate led the Golden Tornado to two section championships.

“Baseball was a way of life for my family growing up in East Butler,” Schnur said. “We were always working on something up at the baseball complex.”

Schnur still does that to this day as he coaches and umpires games there.

“The people I met through baseball have shaped the kind of person I am today,” Schnur said. “All of the teammates and friends I've met through the years are still my friends today.”

Schnur was a four-year starter at Pitt as a pitcher and led the Panthers with five wins one year.

Jula coached basketball at Butler from 1987 through 1993. He was 136-34 with the Golden Tornado, including 78-10 in section play.

He guided Butler to the 1991 WPIAL championship. Now with alma mater Ambridge, Jula is in his 36th year of coaching this season.

The Butler Area School District Athletic Hall of Fame now has 52 inductees. The inaugural year was 2010.

“We've needed a home for all of the great student-athletes, coaches and supporters in the community,” HOF chairperson Brian Slamecka said.

“I'm proud of the diversity of athletes in the Hall of Fame here. They've all contributed to the tradition of this district. The awards and championship experiences they've had are timeless.”

Ten different sports — basketball, baseball, cross country, football, gymnastics, swimming and diving, tennis, track and field, volleyball and wrestling — are all represented in the Butler HOF.