Edward Raymond "Abe" Abramoski (November 5, 1933 – June 24, 2022) was an American athletic trainer, known for serving as the head athletic trainer for the Buffalo Bills in the American Football League (AFL) and the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL) for a total of 37 years. His service to the team and the city of

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...

, was formally recognized in 1999 with the inclusion of his name on the Wall of Fame at

Ralph Wilson Stadium Highmark Stadium is a stadium in Orchard Park, New York, in the Southtowns of the Buffalo metropolitan area. The stadium opened in 1973 as Rich Stadium and is the home venue of the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). It was kn ...

Career

Abramoski initially played football at his high school in

Erie, Pennsylvania Erie (; ) is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. Erie is the fifth largest city in Pennsylvania and the largest city in Northwestern Pennsylvania with a population of 94,831 ...

, and received a football scholarship to

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and mone ...

, but had to stop playing in his sophomore season due to a back injury. It was during this time that he started studying to become an athletic trainer. Abramoski later began working as an athletic trainer for the Buffalo Bills in 1959 and prior to his stint in Buffalo, Abramoski also served as an athletic trainer for the

University of Detroit The University of Detroit Mercy is a private Roman Catholic university in Detroit, Michigan. It is sponsored by both the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) and the Sisters of Mercy. The university was founded in 1877 and is the largest Catholic univers ...

, the Detroit Lions, and the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

. He has worked as an assistant trainer at

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...

and at age 21, became the youngest Division I head trainer in the nation when he took on the position at the

. In 1990 and again in 1994, Abramoski received the Buffalo Bills Alumni Association Appreciation Award, and was inducted into the NATA Hall of Fame in 1986 and the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame in 1996. He is also a member of the Niagara Frontier for Distinguished Achievements in Sports and frequently volunteered for the New York State

Special Olympics Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities and physical disabilities, providing year-round training and activities to 5 million participants and Unified Sports partners in ...

. Abramoski retired from his position in 1996 and in 1999 had his name placed on the Buffalo Bills Wall of Fame.

Personal life

Abramoski was raised in Erie, Pennsylvania, with four sisters and married his wife Patricia Abramoski ('' née'' Casey) in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

, on June 18, 1960. They had five children together and several grandchildren. Abramoski became a member of the Buffalo Homing Pigeon Association in 1962 and has attended multiple national pigeon conventions. In 2007, Abramoski received the International Federation Person of the Year. In 2002, he co-wrote ''The Tale of the Tape: A History of the Buffalo Bills from the Inside'', a non-fiction book detailing his time with the Buffalo Bills. Abramoski donated his portion of the proceeds from the book to the Shaken Baby Syndrome Program at Children's Hospital of Buffalo in honor of an adopted grandson that suffered from

shaken baby syndrome Shaken baby syndrome (SBS), also known as abusive head trauma (AHT), is the leading cause of fatal head injuries in children younger than two years. Diagnosing the syndrome has proved both challenging and contentious for medical professionals, ...

. Abramoski died on June 24, 2022.

Bibliography

*''The Tale of the Tape: A History of the Buffalo Bills from the Inside'' (2002, with Milt Northrop)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abramoski, Edward 1933 births 2022 deaths American people of Polish descent Sportspeople from Buffalo, New York Sportspeople from Erie, Pennsylvania University of Detroit Mercy Athletic trainers