Dan Spano, personal trainer-turned-entrepreneur and humanitarian, dies from COVID-19 at 30

GymGuyz Dan Spano — Dan Spano, owner of the Fairfield County franchise for GymGuyz. Photo by Phil Hall

Dan Spano, a Ridgefield native who brought the GYMGUYZ in-home personal training franchise to Fairfield County and organized a coat and food drive last Thanksgiving to help families in need, died on April 11 from complications involving COVID-19. He was 30 years old.

Spano was a 2008 graduate of Ridgefield High School and played on the school”™s football team. He received a Bachelor’s of Science degree in sport management from Coastal Carolina University and also had certification from National Council of Strength and Fitness. After working as a trainer at several gyms, he bought the GYMGUYZ franchise for Fairfield County in October 2017 and employed six personal trainers.

Last December, Spano was interviewed by the Business Journal regarding a humanitarian effort he spearheaded: in the run-up to Thanksgiving, he collected 1,200 coats from 10 collection boxes around Ridgefield and worked with businesses to buy 250 turkeys for distribution at Salvation and Deliverance Church in Harlem to financially struggling families.

“We always wanted to help out in the community,” Spano said. “We thought it would be a good idea to do something different.”

Spano”™s family stated that he had no underlying health conditions before contracting COVID-19. A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family cover medical and funeral expenses.