Local volleyball official Dan Richard has been selected by the IHSAA to work in this year’s Indiana High School Volleyball State 4A Final Championship between Yorktown and Fort Wayne Carroll, to be held November 9 at Worthen Arena, on the campus of Ball State University in Muncie.
Richard’s legacy as a volleyball official is unmatched. He has been officiating high school and college volleyball for over 45 years, and has refereed in 39 state Sectionals, 29 Regionals, and 13 Semi-States, and this will be his 11th State final championship.
Although he has retired from his full-time position as Director of the Kosciusko County Area Plan Commission, he shows no signs of slowing down in the volleyball circuit. He has been a member of the Northern Indiana Officials Association for 44 years, including serving as Chairman for 34 years. During the high school off-season, Richard enjoys refereeing high school club volleyball. He is excited to see Indiana recognize Boys High School volleyball as an official sport; had he had the chance, he would have loved to play for his alma mater, Carmel High School (class of 1971). Richard was a member of the Ball State University men’s volleyball team prior to graduating in 1975. He met his late wife of 48 years, Becky, at Ball State; now, you’ll frequently catch him in the audience cheering on Cardinal volleyball, along with his daughters, Erin and Kelly, his son-in-law, Dave, and his two granddaughters Harper and Lily.