Burlington Edison High School 1960-1961 University of Illinois 1961-1962 Mt Vernon High School 1962-1963 Skagit Valley College 1963-1070 Whatcom-Skagit Wrestling Officials 1961-present Gary Knutzen wrestled at Burlington Edison High School for Hall of Fame Coach Bo Campbell where he finished 3rd in State as a junior and 2nd in State as senior. After graduating from Western Washington College he returned to coach in the Skagit Valley at the high school and junior college level for 10 years. His Skagit Valley College teams won two Washington State Junior College Championships and finished in the fop four the other five years. His dual meet record at Skagit Valley College was 98 wins and 19 losses. Knutzen made outstanding contributions to the sport of wrestling as an official. For over 40 years Gary provided leadership in the local association and at the state level as well as being one of the top officials on the mat. He officiated at 20+ WIAA State Wrestling Championships often serving as the head official. He also officiated two NAIA national tournaments, ten Pac-8 Championships as well as many college dual meets and tournaments for colleges in Washington. Knutzen served as the Assigning Secretary for the Whatcom-Skagit Wrestling Officials Association most of his officiating career. On the state level he was the WIAA head Wrestling Clinician for 10 years. Awards have been numerous for Gary in recognition of his many years in wrestling. These honors include the 1984 Washington State Wrestling Coaches Association Contributors Award; 1998 National Rotary Paul Harris Award; Creation of the Gary Knutzen Spirit of Wrestling Award in 2005 presented annually by the Whatcom-Skagit Wrestling Officials Association; 2006 Bo Campbell, Paul Reiman and Ken Driskill Award for service to wrestling; 2006 inducted into the Burlington Edison High School Hall of Fame and inducted into the Washington State Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2007. Knutzen still serves Skagit Valley College as their athletic director where he has also been honored for his administrative contributions. He was elected as the inaugural chairperson of the Northwest Athletic Association of Community Colleges Executive Board and served for 14 years. He received the Outstanding Athletic Director of the Year Award in 2004. In 2009 the Skagit Valley College Board of Trustees named the new Campus Center Building as the "Gary Knutzen Cardinal Center". Gary and his wife Diane, who recently celebrated their 54th wedding anniversary, reside in the Skagit Valley and have three adult children, Greg, Gretchen and Geoffrey. They have six grandchildren one of them, Kelsey Klein, was a two-time Washington State Wrestling champion for Hoquiam High School.