Della Russo Basketball Courts To Be Named in Honor of Ace McCarrick

By Adam Smith

The basketball courts adjacent to Harry Della Russo Stadium will now be known as the Robert “Ace” McCarrick Courts in honor of a giant of basketball and recreation in the city of Revere.

The council unanimously approved the name change at its Monday night meeting.

“He was an ‘ace’ guy who did every sport, and was a referee and a player. He did everything that is right for the citizens of Revere,” said Ward 2 Councillor Ira Novoselsky. “I think this is a great commendation for him to make this happen.”

Parks and Recreations Director Michael Hinojosa requested that the courts be named after McCarrick, and sent a letter highlighting some of McCarrick’s many accomplishments in the city.

“Robert ‘Ace’ McCarrick was born, raised, educated, worked, and lived in Revere for over 70 years prior to his death in 2018,” stated Hinojosa.

McCarrick was the three-time most valuable player of the New England Catholic Tournament while playing basketball for Immaculate Conception High School in the early 1950s. He went on to become a lifelong coach and athletic educator at Immaculate Conception High School, Revere High School, Dom Savio High School, and Pope John XXIII High School. He worked in various capacities in Revere as an assistant recreation director, coach, umpire, referee, and league administrator for over three decades.

In the early 1970s, McCarrick started the first city-wide basketball league for girls, and he was also instrumental in developing the first women’s softball league in the city.

In the late 1970s, he coordinated Revere’s first summer outdoor basketball league, which drew tough competition and tremendous crowds to the courts at Hill Park in its heyday in the 1980s and ‘90s, according to Hinojosa.

McCarrick married former Beachmont resident Eleanor Gaffney McCarrick and raised four children on Reservoir Avenue.

“I think everybody that knew Ace loved him, and this is a wonderful tribute,” said Councillor-At-Large Anthony Zambuto.

Ward 5 Councillor John Powers said he worked with McCarrick for 23 years and that no one put more time and effort into his position.