By NATHAN WHALEN

Special to the News-Times

Years after his passing, Pete Hulswit’s presence is still being felt.

A volunteer trainer for decades at Oak Harbor High School, Hulswit was inducted into the Washington chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.

Hulswit, who has a background as a masseur, gave his time helping athletes prevent and recover from injuries.

Warren Howe, who is a retired doctor, volunteered alongside Hulswit helping student athletes.

“The only compensation he got was the joy of seeing these kids be successful,” said Howe, who nominated Hulswit for the Hall of Fame. “Everybody was happy this was being done.”

Howe, who currently resides in Pennsylvania, spent about a year gathering the information needed for Hulswit to be accepted into the Washington chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.

The induction ceremony took place May 4 in Federal Way. He was one of 11 people inducted this year, two of whom are deceased.

“It was very emotional going through all of this,” said Gloria Carothers, who is Hulswit’s daughter. “He really dedicated his life to ‘here’ and all of the kids.”

Hulswit, longtime owner of Dairy Valley, started volunteering as a trainer in 1971, Caruthers said. He had a background as a masseur, a skill he developed working on cruise ships before World War II.

“Pete got us into massaging our wrestlers before they wrestled,” said Bruce Biddle, an assistant wrestling coach at Oak Harbor who attended the ceremony. He said the massages benefit the wrestlers; it improved their flexibility and helped with stiffness and soreness.

Biddle, along with former wrestling coaches Brian Farmer and Jack Kerr, attended the ceremony in Federal Way.

Hulswit maintained a presence in wrestling throughout his years of service. He attended every state tournament from the mid-1970s to the early 2000s, Howe said, adding that Hulswit would help visiting and opposing team players.

Hulswit in 1999 received the Joe Babbit Contributors Award from the Washington State Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame. The award is given to people who have contributed to the sport of wrestling in Washington state, according to the coach’s association website. Howe earned the same award in 1991.

During World War II, Hulswit was a member of the Dutch resistance, was captured and eventually spent three years in a concentration camp, Carothers said. He moved to Oak Harbor in 1957. Hulswit passed away in 2007.

“It’s just too bad he didn’t live long enough to see this,” Biddle said.