Lariccia finds joy in giving

Pretty much everyone has a story about Tony Lariccia, but we'll start with one of the most famous ones first. Happened a few years ago in Boardman. The high school needed a baby grand piano for the new performing arts center. They were going to hold a fundraiser.
"Then the next morning, there's a check there for a baby grand piano from Mr. Lariccia," said Boardman athletic director Dave Smercansky. "And there's a note that says if they need another one, let him know."
The piano's cost? A mere $75,000.
"It was a Steinway," Lariccia, who has worked at Merrill Lynch for the past 36 years, recalled. "I got it from the head of the music department at the University of Akron. When I found one, I said, 'Let's get it.' "
OK, that was a famous story. Here's a common one. Lariccia walks up to the ticket counter at a Boardman High girls basketball game (he's good buddies with Spartans coach Ron Moschella), hands over a $100 bill and keeps walking.
"He does that quite often," said Smercansky. "Then he'll walk over to the person doing the 50-50 raffle, give him $100 and not want the tickets."
It isn't one schoolor even one person
This isn't just at Boardman. At this year's girls district basketball tournament in Alliance, he gave the ticket lady $50 and didn't want change.
Or how about this one? Little girl comes up to his door selling something. He answers the door, tells her she can have whatever cash he has in his pocket. Hands over $500.
OK, you get the idea. Thing is, this story was supposed to be about a gift, but when I sat down to write it, I couldn't stop thinking about the giver.
A little while ago, Lariccia, who lives in Boardman, called up Canfield superintendent Dante Zambrini and said he wanted to do something in honor of their standout tailback Angelo Babbaro, who helped lead the Cardinals to the Division II state final last fall.
Gives $5,000in Babbaro's name
Thing is, Babbaro already had a full ride to Villanova.
So they got to talking. Lariccia found out that Babbaro was also a good student -- he has a 3.88 grade point average -- and decided to give $5,000 to the school in his honor, for academics and athletics. During the conversation, Zambrini told Lariccia about the Cardinal Nest Builders, a Canfield community group that's raising money to renovate the school's athletic complex.
So Lariccia decided to give another $5,000.
He'd never met Babbaro. He'd only seen him play twice in person. But he followed the Cardinals last fall, reading the papers, listening on the radio, watching the games on TV, and liked what he saw.
"This kid, Angelo Babbaro, he's wonderful and he's Italian," said Lariccia. "If he hadn't gotten hurt in the title game, they would have the state title."
The first time Babbaro heard about the gift, he was sitting in his Spanish class. Lariccia and Zambrini walked in.
"I had no idea what was going on," he said, smiling. "When I heard about it, I was really grateful. He's a really generous man."
Generosity covers Valley
How generous? Well, here's a few more numbers. He's given more than $400,000 to the Boardman local school district (where his daughters went to school). He's given more than $100,000 to Struthers (where he graduated in 1963). He's given $50,000 to Chaney (where his wife, Mary, went to school). He's given more than $1 million to YSU (where he graduated in 1966), including $100,000 for the statue of former basketball and baseball coach Dom Rosselli. And that's just the beginning. All told, he's given more away than $5 million.
It all started in 1984, when their 10-hour-old son passed away in the hospital. Lariccia started giving and never stopped.
"I don't believe in living in mansions, buying Mercedes, belonging to a country club or owning a Florida condo," said Lariccia, 60, who attends St. Charles in Boardman. "My real joy is giving back to where I've lived my whole life.
"All those material things are empty compared to the fulfillment you get from helping others. Happiness begins where selfishness ends."
And, as the Bible says, true wealth comes from giving it away.
Joe Scalzo is a sportswriter for The Vindicator. Write to him at scalzo@vindy.com.