It's a career that spanned more than 50 years, and now the longtime sports announcer at Fairfield University is ready to sign off.

James Fitzpatrick, the announcer for the Stags men's basketball games, is retiring.

First Selectwoman Brenda Kupchick declared Feb. 3, 2021 as James D. Fitzpatrick Day.

"Well, my hope was that I was always going to be a legend coming out of Fenway Park in Boston," says Fitzpatrick, who is also the VP for auxiliary services at the university.

Fitzpatrick hit home runs in his own way running the Barrone Campus Center, mentoring, assisting, and inspiring a countless number of students.

"I would have done this for nothing," says Fitzpatrick. "It's been that much of a great experience for me."

The university raised more than $100,000 to name press row of the new convention center in Fitzpatrick's honor.

Fitzpatrick also spearheaded a decades-long volunteer project at Bridgeport's Prospect House and revitalized the annual spring break service trip to Kentucky.