On Saturday, April 12, Camden Catholic High School, Cherry Hill, will welcome 15 individual inductees and three teams into its Hall of Fame.
Eight of these inductees will be installed in the Emerald Hall of Fame for Academics and Arts, and the remaining seven individuals and three teams will be installed in the Green and White Hall of Fame for Athletics. This is the eighth group to be recognized with the honor since the event began in 2007.
Hall of Fame committee chairperson Jack Wixted ‘72, said, “Each year it is a true pleasure to accept nominations for so many highly-accomplished members of the Camden Catholic family, those who have proven themselves on the athletic fields, on stage and in studios, and in the classroom. These graduates are emblematic of the true spirit of Camden Catholic.”
Funds raised at the Hall of Fame event benefit scholarships for current CCHS students who are selected by the Hall of Fame committee based on a submitted essay, leadership qualities, determination, and Camden Catholic spirit.
The Hall of Fame induction ceremony will take place on Saturday, April 12, at 7 p.m. in the Grandi Auditorium at Camden Catholic (300 Cuthbert Road, Cherry Hill). A cocktail reception will follow the ceremony. Tickets are $45/person in advance and $55/person at the door. Purchase online at www.camdencatholic.org/halloffame, call 856-663-2247 ext.136 or email jindelicato@camdencatholic.org. Donations to the Hall of Fame Scholarship Fund may also be made in the honorees names, and a program book offers the opportunity to congratulate the inductees.
Emerald Hall of Fame for Academics and Arts:
Jack Carty ‘47: longtime reporter, columnist, and editor for the Courier-Post; played on resurrected football team and first CCHS baseball team; awarded first Tom Kenney Outstanding Athlete Award in 1946.
Joseph Clarke, Sr. ‘32 (posthumous): longtime reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer; established Clarke Realty.
Pat Delsi (Pasquale DelSignore) ‘52: broadcaster, disc jockey, sportscaster and popular master of ceremonies throughout the Delaware Valley; the voice of Drexel basketball for the last 30 years.
Charles Grandi ‘69: former president and CEO of Fibre-Metal Products Company; established the Charles & Marie Grandi Foundation which has supported more than 100 students at CCHS in addition to major funding of the arts programs at CCHS.
William Lanza ‘66: Vietnam veteran, longtime volunteer for the Atlantic County Veterans Service.
Elizabeth Tirrell Mazzeo ‘77: COO, Bloomberg L.P., responsible for Operations, Professional Development, Career Development, and Administration.
Dennis McGonigle ‘78: COO, SEI Investments; responsible for guiding the efforts of a number of units within the company, including the corporate and insurance markets, as well as SEI’s own financial team.
Robert Viggiano ‘54: Courier-Post sports reporter for 49 years; South Jersey Baseball Hall of Fame; Camden County Sports Hall of Fame; researched and compiled South Jersey high school sports history from 1900 to the present, cataloguing for the use of schools’ research.
Green and White Hall of Fame for Athletics:
Ralph Bantivoglio ‘56 (posthumous): baseball and basketball; established career school marks in basketball for assists and points; was the first Irish player to surpass 1,000 points.
Joseph DiPietro ‘76: football and baseball, former softball coach.
Kristina Branca Gozdan ‘86: softball; one of the key members of the first Camden Catholic state championship softball team.
Barbara Patterson ‘73: field hockey, basketball and softball; earned 11 varsity letters at CCHS.
John Sigmund ‘96: football and basketball.
David Slattery ‘82: basketball; finished Irish career with 1,097 points in 77 varsity games; a school record of 723 rebounds (now third on list) and his 307 rebounds in 1982 is the second highest single-season total in school history.
William Wheeler ‘86: football, wrestling, baseball.
1929 Boys Basketball Team: winners of the Trenton Diocesan Championship; traveled to Chicago to compete in the National Catholic Basketball Tournament held at Loyola University; 21-4 record.
1974 Wrestling Team: the only undefeated and untied team in school history.
1990 Girls Soccer Team: NJSIAA State Group 3 Co-Champion, South Jersey Group 3 Champion, school’s first Olympic Conference National Division championship in soccer.