Amy Banks
Amy Banks
Title: Student-Athlete: Basketball, Softball, Field Hockey
Year: 1980

Amy Banks (Class of 1980) was an outstanding three sport varsity athlete in field hockey, basketball, and softball during her four years at Brewer High School. She possessed the skill, talent, desire, and competitive spirit that allowed her to become one of Brewer's best all around athletes. Her individual accomplishments earned league, regional, and state honors. Her contributions and leadership resulted in team success and outstanding season records. At the end of her senior year in 1980, Banks received the prestigious Omart and Hinkley Award given to the school’s outstanding female athlete.

Amy Banks’ extracurricular activities outside the athletic arena were equally as impressive as her athletic prowess. She was a strong academic student and was a member of the National Honor Society her junior and senior years. She gained the respect of her peers and served on the Student Council for four years. Banks was a leader and utilized those qualities as Student Council President as well as at Girls’ State. She also received the DAR Good Citizen Award for her service and commitment to her school and community.

Banks was a four year starting forward on the field hockey team and consistently led the team in scoring. During her sophomore season, she scored 18 goals contributing significantly to the team record of 9-3, which not only qualified them for the Maine Principals’ Association Tournament, they were the Penobscot Valley Conference (P.V.C.) Champions for the first time in school history! Banks co-captained the 1979 team her senior year which finished with an respectable 13-3 record, only losing to eventual state champion Waterville in the semi-finals.

Brewer softball dominated the P.V.C. for many years. Amy Banks became a starting shortstop as a freshman in 1977 and over her four year softball career, Brewer won the P.V.C. conference championship and qualified for the post season tournaments every year. During that span, Brewer’s record was an impressive 52-12. The 1977 team also won the Eastern Maine Championship. Amy Banks was everything a coach would want in a shortstop. She had a good glove, covered a lot of ground, and had a strong arm. She hit for a high average every year that she played, batting .365, .400, .473, .620. Banks had great speed and was a good base runner who led the team in steals each season. In 1980, the P.V.C. selected an All-Conference Team for the first time and Banks was selected First Team Shortstop.

As gifted as Amy Banks was in field hockey and softball, she was an elite basketball player. As a four year starting guard/forward for the Witches, she led the team to three Eastern Maine tournament appearances. Paul Soucy, Banks’ basketball coach her senior year, recalls, “Amy was an excellent all around player. She could score, handle the ball, rebound, and play defense. She shot with either hand. In fact, if she was shooting a foul shot and missed with her right hand, she would use her left the next shot and made it on a regular basis.” Banks’ sophomore year (1977-78), she scored 13 ppg and led Brewer to their first ever tournament appearance. In 1978-79, she scored 19 ppg, including a career high 35 points in a semi-final loss to Skowhegan. Her senior year (1979-80), she also scored 19 ppg. In a game against Old Town on Jan 29, 1980, Banks scored her 1000th point, becoming the first and only Brewer female to accomplish that milestone! During her basketball career, she was named to the 1979 and 1980 All Tournament Team and All-State Teams.

Amy Banks was recruited and sought after by many colleges. She chose to attend the University of New Hampshire, studied marine biology and played Division 1 basketball from 1980-82. In the fall of 1982, Banks transferred to Tufts University where she played Division 3 basketball. In 1984, she earned Academic All-American honors.

After earning her Bachelor’s Degree from Tufts in 1984, Banks enrolled at the Georgetown Medical School, graduating with her M.D. in 1989. After finishing her residency in psychiatry at Harvard Medical School in 1993, she opened her own practice in Lexington, Massachusetts. Banks is a trauma and abuse specialist for women and works closely with Wellesley College lending her expertise in the field of neuroscience of human relationships. She also is an instructor in psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Banks is a renowned clinician and expert on “the neurobiology of relationships.” She travels and speaks all over the country on this subject. She co-edited 'The Complete Guide to Mental Health for Women' and authored her own book titled 'The Connected Brain.'

Amy Banks and her partner Judy reside in Lexington, Massachusetts. They are proud parents of twins, Jayme, and Alex. When not working or following the kids’ activities, Banks enjoys playing softball, biking and doing small construction projects around the house. Banks proudly reports that daughter Jayme is an outstanding runner who has qualified and competed in the 2015 and 2016 national indoor track meets.

 

 

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