BUTLERTWP — Andy Hilliard, George "Red"Slater, Harry Leyland, Mike Kelly and Rudy Corona are linked by a common bond:Loyalty to Butler area football.

All five were recognized for it at the third annual Hometown Heroes ceremony before the Golden Tornado's 23-0 win over Fox Chapel last Friday at Art Bernardi Stadium.

Nominees for Hometown Heroes must be age 50 or older, have contributed to the Butler football program, made a positive experience after Butler football, be in good standing with the community and be known for good character.

Hilliard, 62, has been a baseball and basketball coach and a basketball official in Butler for years. He has worked with Butler's football equipment dating back to the reign of head coach Tim Nunes.

"I was an only child and my Dad went to all the games around town, so I went with him,"Hilliard said. "I've got a baseball program from every year there was minor league baseball at Pullman Park."

Hilliard stopped officiating basketball in 2003 "because my arthritis wouldn't allow me to keep up with the pace up and down the court."

Recently retired from the Butler School District, Hilliard continues to be involved in athletics, serving as the ninth grade equipment manager since 2001.

"I've never been married, so sports have always been a big part of my life,"he said.

Hilliard coached one of the two Butler freshman basketball teams to a 1-17 record one year. The other Tornado freshman squad was 18-0.

Corona played football in high school, but he made a name for himself as an athletic trainer. He was Slippery Rock State College's first athletic trainer in the 1950s and has worked in that field for 53 years.

Also the first athletic trainer at Butler, Seneca Valley, Grove City High School and Butler County Community College, Corona has taken care of athletes, band members, cheerleaders, sequinettes and spectators.

Corona is a member of the Butler Area Sports Hall of Fame, Slippery Rock University Hall of Fame and Pennsylvania Athletic Trainers Hall of Fame.

Leyland, Slater and Kelly have all spent years coaching in the Butler Area Midget Football League.

Kelly, a 1966 Butler graduate who went on to play football at Notre Dame, was coached by Leyland.

"It was the 1962 Midget league all-star game,"Kelly recalled. "I was a fullback up until then. Harry told me I'd be a tackle for him, so I played tackle.

"Growing up in a town that had role models like Harry Leyland and Red Slater ... I was blessed."

Kelly coached with the Penn Street Cardinals from 1985 through 2003.

"Coming back home and giving back to my community just seemed like a natural thing to me,"Kelly said.

Leyland, a 1949 Butler graduate, coached for 50 years in the BAMFL and is currently an assistant junior high football coach for Butler. He is the treasurer of the Butler Cubs Association and has been a head basketball coach at Butler Catholic.

He became involved in the BAMFLby accident.

"I was walking down the street in my neighborhood one day and stopped to watch the kids practice,"Leyland said. "(Head coach)Bill Ford asked if I wanted to help out."

He's been helping out ever since. Leyland and his wife, Louise, have seven children, 22 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

"I had the dubious distinction of playing for one of the worst teams in Butler football history. New Castle beat us 67-0 in 1948," Leyland said. "When I got into coaching, I vowed that wasn't gonna happen around here again."

Slater, 78, is a 1945 Butler graduate who began his coaching career with the Lyndora Copperheads of the BAMFL in 1963. He won numerous league titles with Meridian from 1964 to 1990 before serving as offensive coordinator at Moniteau High School from 1991-95.

"I thought I was gonna get out of coaching after that,"Slater said. "A friend asked me to help him coach Center Township, then he switched jobs and couldn't do it and I became head coach again."

Slater is still Center Township's head coach and is president of the BAMFLtoday. The league has 507 players this year, the most in its 58-year history.

"I just enjoy being around the kids,"Slater said. "Some people think I'm just a big kid myself. The players all call me Red. Some people think that's being disrespectful. But it's just being me."

Anyone wishing to nominate someone for next year's Hometown Heroes should submit the candidate's address, phone number and accomplishments to Kevin and Joni Vogel, 140 Garden Grove Drive, Butler, Pa., 16002.