The Joseph Iacono Memorial Scholarship

Joseph O. Iacono, known by his friends and teammates as “Chief,” was a long-time Delaware County athlete. Joe’s athletic career began in the first Chester Little League in 1949, where he pitched his team all the way to the Little League World Series in Williamsport. He was one of the all-time great pitchers in the Chester Teener League; in 1953 the Daily Times called him “a happy-go-lucky kid with magic in his right arm.” The “Chief” was a three-sport star at Chester High, where he was a quarterback on the football team, a basketball star on the legendary Clipper hoops teams of the mid-1950s, and a powerful pitcher on the baseball diamond. He then played baseball in the Delco League for Ridley Park, El Rancho, and Fizzano Brothers. He later served a 2-year stint in the U.S. Army where he traveled the country as the starting pitcher for the Ft. Devens baseball team, which won the First Army baseball championship. From the 1960s all the way into the early 1990s, he continued his athletic career by playing on many softball teams through Delaware County. For his athletic achievements, he was inducted into the Pennsylvania Athletic Hall of Fame, Delaware County Chapter in 2008. He was also inducted into the Delco Athletes Hall of Fame, the Chester High Hall of Fame and Ridley Old Timers Hall of Fame.

Joe was a longtime Ridley resident and loved following his grandchildren’s sports careers throughout their time at Ridley High School. This scholarship has been created in his name to support a senior at Ridley High School who plays baseball or softball and intends on pursuing a trade or a college education. Please consider making a contribution in honor of his life.