NEW CASTLE — Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame will recognize the late Steve Cherry for his contribution as a high school basketball official with a 2019 Men’s Center Circle Officials Award.
Cherry, along with two other Center Circle Officials Award winners, will be honored at the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame’s 58th Annual Men’s Awards Banquet on Wednesday, March 20.
Cherry was a 1965 graduate of Shelbyville High School and earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in radio/television from Ball State University.
His officiating career included 25 sectionals, 22 regionals, five semistates, two state finals (1989, 1993) and four Hall of Fame Classic games.
He also officiated IHSAA football (1989) and baseball (1983, 1987 and 1991) state finals.
A 30-year member of the Calumet Athletic Officials Association and a 25-year member of the Indiana Officials Association, he served as president of CAOA in 1973 and 1975.
The 1990 Roy Gardner Officials Award recipient from the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association, he also officiated freshman college games at Ball State University and worked JV college games in the Heartland Conference.
A teacher at Pendleton Heights schools from 1969 to 2005 in speech, radio and television courses, he remained in service to the Arabians athletic department as public address announcer and other roles until his late years.
He was a member of the Pendleton Park Board for 30 years — serving as president for 20 years — and umpire coordinator of the Pendleton Junior Baseball Association. He had been an intramural basketball coordinator in the district.
He died Jan. 5.
A midday reception on March 20, free and open to the public, is set at the Hall of Fame museum in New Castle.
The evening banquet will take place at Primo Banquet Hall in Indianapolis.
Banquet reservations are available at hoopshall.com/events or by calling 765-529-1891.
For more details, email [email protected].
