Dean Sylvaria
Graduating class: 1987
Inducted into Hall of Fame: 2004
Hall of Fame Category: Athlete
Dean was an all-around athlete at F.H.S. playing football (4 years), basketball (3 years), and baseball (4 years). He was a letter winner 6 times.
But it was in football chat Dean really shined in the spotlight. He started on both sides of the ball in his sophomore through senior years and was also the team captain during his last season. Dean rushed for over one thousand yards from the fullback position in the wish bone offense. He was the second leading scorer in Division 4 with over 100 points. Dean was also the team's punter and place kicker.
Dean was both a South Coast Conference and Standard Times All-Star in 1986. He was selected as the Perfection Oil Player of the Week twice and also the Boston Globe Player of the Week.
Dean was selected by his coaches in 1986 to receive the Black Ace Award for outstanding defensive play as a linebacker. Dean's highest honor came when he was chosen by the area coaches as only the fifth recipient and first for a Fairhaven High School athlete to receive the Otto Graham Football Achievement Award in his senior year.
Dean went on to graduate from UMass Dartmouth in 1993 with a Bachelor of Science degree in both biology and marine biology. Dean is a certified Histocompatability Specialist specializing in testing bone marrow solid transplantation at Brigham and Women's Hospital. He is also an inspector for the American Society for Histocompatability and Immunogenetics.
Dean lives in Fall River with his wife, Michelle, and their two children, Alyssa and Dean Jr.