Friends of Basketball

Carl Rice

Year Inducted: 2002

Category: Friends of Basketball

Schools / Organizations:
(Chicago) St. Benedict High School
(Chicago) St. Benedict Grade School

Biography:

Every high school should have a volunteer like Carl Rice. Rice joined the (Chicago) St. Benedict booster club because three of his sons attended the school.  Carl remained loyal to the school long after his sons graduated. During his many years in the club, eight as president, Rice organized fundraisers that accumulated $500,000 to help keep athletics a viable and affordable option for St. Benedict.

Rice also earned feathers in his cap when he volunteered to organize and run the North Central Parish League (NCPL) for 22+ years. It was made up of seventh- and eighth-grade basketball teams from Catholic grammar schools on Chicago’s north side. Rice expanded the league in 1987 to include seventh- and eighth-grade girls’ teams. The league had 25 different teams from 1982-2002 and had 16 at the time of Rice’s HOF induction.

Rice was a successful grammar school coach when he volunteered to coach the St. Benedict Grade School boys for five seasons and girls for three seasons.

Carl Rice died on March 25 2015 at age 72.