By Andy Loigu

The Warren County Hall of Fame committee has chosen Dr. Nick Avallone, an orthopedic physician with a focus on sports medicine who has helped numerous local athletes, as one of its inductees for the Class of 2022. He has been recognized as a “Top Doc” for orthopedics surgery by Inside New Jersey and Jersey’s Best magazines five years in a row. Also, he has been recognized as a Castle Connolly New Jersey “Top Doctor” eight years in a row.

A physician with St. Luke’s Orthopedics Care, he treats a wide variety of disorders. In his current role he is the athletics physician for Belvidere, Warren Hills, Warren Tech, Phillipsburg, Delaware Valley and North Hunterdon high schools’ sports programs. He also includes a connection to Centenary University in Hackettstown.

A gentleman with a diverse array of interests, a true Renaissance Man, he has a sports background that goes back to his days as a collegian with the Princeton Tigers where he was the first player to be a 4-year letter winner in football.

During his residency he assisted in the care of professional sports teams, including the New England Patriots, New York Jets and the New York Islanders. In 2019 he was chosen as the Sports Medicine Provider of the Year at St. Luke’s All-Star awards program. St. Luke’s services much of Eastern Pennsylvania and the New Jersey Skyland Region. He was honored as the 2016 Physician of the Year for St. Luke’s Warren Campus.

Avallone was a standout defensive back for the Princeton Tigers, winning varsity letters all four years, the first player in Princeton’s long and proud college football history to do so.

He grew up in Parsippany and returned to New Jersey after a residency at Harvard University and administering sports fellowship medicine in New York City, before starting his practice in Warren County in 2007. In 2012 he discovered a need and founded the region’s first concussion center and has gone on to engage with local youth sports groups on initiatives such as knee ligament and throwing injury prevention.”The kids are fabulous,” he remarked. “It’s all about working with people and taking care of the community.”

He added, “I have felt fortunate to have had wonderful team members along the way: office, operating room, administration, we’re all in this together at the hospital. I’ve built a comprehensive medicine practice in our community and have enjoyed giving student athletes from around the Lehigh Valley world class medical care.”

Avallone likes teaching medical students, residents and fellows, passing on his experience and insight to the next generation. He was chosen Teacher of the Year at St. Luke’s Warren Hospital on multiple occasions.

All this is going on while he and his spouse, Jessica, are raising three children who are in their teenage years. That’s a challenge in itself.

He relaxes by hiking, skiing and growing fruits and vegetables as a gardener. We also may be seeing and hearing him doing the weather reports on local radio and television one of these days.

Another area of his interest is meteorology, which he also has studied. He foresees a future in weather forecasting as a possible career change, or sideline gig.

For now, though, he can revel in being a Hall of Famer.

“It’s a wonderful award to be named to the Warren County Hall of Fame,” he exclaimed.

The Hall of Fame induction ceremony and dinner, which is open to the public, is scheduled for Saturday night, Nov. 5. For more information and tickets contact the Warren County Community College Foundation, samir@warren.edu.