Brosnahan, Bridget

Driven, determined, and goal-oriented, with a persistent and unwavering focus on achieving success, defines the life of Cheshire native Bridget Brosnahan, according to childhood friend and high school basketball teammate Jen (McGowan) Connelly.

“That is the way Bridget has been, in athletics and with her careers, actually with everything she has done in her life, ” noted McGowan Connelly.

Put all of those special personality traits together, and you have a winning combination for the 1990 Cheshire High School graduate and two-time, two-sport all-state selection.

“She was the type of captain who was so approachable, helpful, and supportive of all of her teammates, ” said McGowan Connelly. “Bridget had a take-charge type of (commanding) presence about her, a true leader by example, who always put in that extra time looking to improve her skills. She was always asking for feedback from her coaches and teammates. That made her such a special player.”

Special indeed.
On the basketball court, the 5-foot-9 forward-center recorded 1,246 career points and led the state in scoring as a senior, averaging 22 points and 12 rebounds per game for head coach Cindy Hitchcock.
Her career best individual moment came with a 45-point performance against Holy Cross of Waterbury at the Southington Christmas Tournament.

Her success led her to NCAA Division II Franklin Pierce in New Hampshire, where she helped the team to three New England Collegiate Conference titles in four years and was a scholar-athlete throughout her college career.

Recently, Brosnahan admittedly had quite a lofty goal, aspiring to be among the state’s elite scholastic basketball players as a grammar school student at Norton School.

Now more than three decades later, upon hearing the news that she was selected to be part of the newest class of the Connecticut Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, Brosnahan noted, “I am really happy. It has been a dream of mine since I was a little girl.”

But she takes little credit for her ultimate success, saying her dreams and aspirations arrived thanks to the unwavering support from her father, Brian and her late mom Margaret (Pat).

“My dad instilled in my siblings and me a strong work ethic, ” said Brosnahan. “My mom, a teacher, stressed to love what you do and if you put your mind in something that would lead to success.”
Father and mother knew best.

But as influential as her parents were, Brosnahan said she would be remiss if she didn’t praise her two high school coaches - field hockey’s Arlene Salvati and basketball’s Hitchcock.

“Arlene and Cindy prepared me and challenged me and made me better, ” said Brosnahan. “They, along with my parents, gave me a strong foundation, setting me up for success. They deserved the credit for making me who I am today.”

Hitchcock said she was honored to have guided Brosnahan and the likes of Wendi Kemp, an idol of Brosnahan while she was growing up.
“Bridget always played under control, ” said Hitchcock. “She was just a very competitive, talented player who was so coachable. She did whatever was asked of her.”

Brosnahan said she loved all of her high school teammates, noting that “I remember how hard we all played and how cohesive we were. As a captain, I loved that role. It wasn’t about me. It was about leading the team to a certain place and standing.”

A less-than-obvious aid to her athletic prowess happened to be the proximity to where the family home was - a fence separated the house from the outdoor courts at Norton School.

“I played basketball from dawn to dusk, and played with the guys, and that made me better, learning to shoot over players who were taller and better, ” she said. “They were towering over, and I had to learn how to shoot over their fingertips. It came down to plenty of practice. It was all day, every day.”

As good as she was in basketball, Salvati thought that field hockey was Brosnahan’s ticket to college, having made an impression at multiple field hockey camps over the years.

“I remember walking into Arlene’s office and her saying that I could pick anywhere I wanted to go, but I had to tell her that I wanted to play basketball, ” she said. “I was addicted to basketball. It was my love, my passion.

Brosnahan had hoped to play Division I basketball, specifically in Indianapolis.
“I wanted to go to Indiana and be a Hoosier; I had family in Indiana. But when that didn’t happen and I received an offer from Franklin Pierce, it turned out to be the right fit.”

A two-year starter and double-figure scorer at Franklin Pierce, Brosnahan graduated Cum Laude in graphic design and fine arts, earning All-American honors in the classroom.
“When I started college, I was planning to have elementary education as my major, ” she noted. “One of my teammates was a graphic arts major. At the time, I didn’t even know there was such a thing. Art had always been a passion of mine, so I changed my major for the second semester.”

Upon graduation, Brosnahan returned near her hometown, working as a graphic artist for the clothing apparel company, Starter, in New Haven, and did that for five years.

“In those days, there were companies like Nike and Campion, but they were located out of state and I wanted to stay close to my family, which was very important to me. Moving far away was not going to be an option.”

Brosnahan would never compromise her values and convictions.
Still always seeking to follow her dreams, Brosnahan said she became “obsessed and fascinated” with the television show Forensic Files.

“I woke up one day and said that I am going to be a detective someday, ” she said. “I was maybe 24 or 25. I worked during the day and went to school at night, studying criminal justice at the University of New Haven, and found a way to balance it all. I knew that I could always be an artist on the side, too.”

Brosnahan became a police officer for six years and later served as a Crime Scene Detective for 16 years, investigating hundreds of murders and death scenes with the New Haven Police Department, where she retired in 2021.

Brosnahan has taken part in the Uncovered Cold Case community, a national web-based organization that works to help compile information on murdered and missing victims all over the United States, and continues to work for those victims with no voices and has compassion for surviving family members. She is a member of K9 First Responders and has been deployed to major post-incident debriefings following mass shooting incidents.

Currently, Brosnahan is a full-time faculty lecturer at the University of New Haven.

Reflecting on all of her feats and accomplishments, Brosnahan said: “I’ve had an amazing life and am so thankful to all of the people around me who helped shape me into the person that I am today.”