John W. Purnell, President and CEO of Henson Company, Inc. and creator of Brute Wrestling was elected to the NCAA Division Ill Wrestling Hall of Fame as a Contributor in 1997, named the AAU Wrestling Man of the Year in 2001, in 2002 was named the Pennsylvania Wrestling Man of the Year by both the Pennsylvania Wrestling Coaches Association (PWCA) and the national wrestling periodical Wrestling USA. In 2005 he was inducted into the AAU Wrestling Hall of Fame. Purnell attended Bishop Ireton High School in Alexandria, Virginia, where he graduated with a highly accomplished wrestling record. He attended and graduated from West Chester University, West Chester, Pennsylvania. Once considered one of the University's top wrestling recruits, his wrestling career ended in injury at the onset of his 2nd varsity season. Upon graduation he was employed by Gar-field High School, Prince William County, Virginia, as a teacher and coach. His soccer teams lost 1 match in two seasons; as co-head coach of the wrestling team, his team placed 2nd in the Virginia State Wrestling Championships his second year. In 1975 Purnell left teaching to join the Henson Company, then a wrestling mail-order house. In 1981 Purnell, along with company founder - Joe Henson, moved the company from Merriefield, Virginia to Reading, Pennsylvania. Upon moving to new facilities in Reading, the company established the registered trademark "Brute" and founded its own production facility. Brute has grown to be the largest manufacturer and distributor of wrestling products in the world. Since 1994 the Henson Company has been the Exclusive Distributor for all wrestling related Adidas products. Adidas is a Sporting Goods industry giant and the international leader in wrestling. Under a newly created company umbrella trade name Henson Group, Purnell negotiated long term agreements with Adidas as the Exclusive Distributors and Licensee for both men's and women's Lacrosse in 2006 and Women's Field Hockey in 2008. Purnell feels his greatest accomplishment, other than his family, is his involvement as one of the founding members of the Pennsylvania Wrestling Coaches Association Convention and the creation of the non-profit organization known as R.E.A.C.H.E.S. (Rewarding Educational Athletic Choices Helping Each Sport). REACHES receives its funding from profits the Henson Group generates from company sponsored events like the Brute-Adidas Nationals for wrestling, and the Adidas All-American Lacrosse Classic for lacrosse. Donations from REACHES have enabled the purchase of new wrestling mats for the Delaware State University Wrestling room, provided equipment for the new wrestling program at Highlands University in New Mexico, provided wrestling mats for new high school programs in the state of Arkansas, and lacrosse equipment for the Los Angeles inner city lacrosse organization known as LAX in LA. REACHES is also a major contributor to the Equity in Athletics non-profit organization.