John Parente Receives Amby Smith Distinguished Service Award

By Melissa Maitland

GNAC Sports Information Specialist

John Parente, the Director of Athletics at Johnson & Wales University and former Commissioner of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference, received the Amby Smith Distinguished Service Award from his alma mater, West Warwick High School. Parente was honored at the WWHS Athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremony held on October 1. This award is named after Amby Smith, a 65-year Rhode Island newspaper veteran, athletic supporter, humanitarian and WWHS alumni, who passed away in 2005.

“Amby Smith was an icon of Rhode Island sport, and a longtime friend and mentor of mine. To receive an award in his name is a phenomenal honor. To receive this prestigious award from my hometown is especially meaningful to my family and to me, and I am humbled as I am honored,” said Parente. A 1973 graduate of West Warwick High School, Parente, much like his mentor Amby Smith, has spent his life dedicated to athletics and community involvement.

In the early 1990s, Parente became the Sports Information Director at the Community College of Rhode Island, where he also lent his voice to announcing play-by-play action at basketball and hockey games. In 1995 he took a similar position at Johnson & Wales University, and in 2001 he became the Director of Athletics at JWU. Parente was the Commissioner of the GNAC from 2001-2005, as well as a member of the Board of Directors of the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) from 2006-2009. A member of the American Legion Executive Board since 1986, Parente was inducted into the Rhode Island High School Baseball Hall of Fame in 2004.

Parente’s involvement in athletic administration dates back over four decades. When he was just a seventh grader at John F. Deering Junior High School he became a team manager and statistician. Under the tutelage of WWHS Hall of Famer Dan Sylvester, Parente began making his mark in West Warwick by managing schedules, lining fields, and doing public address announcements at Wizards games. While a junior at WWHS, Parente began his outstanding 24-year radio career as the voice of the Wizards. The winner of 12 Associated Press news and sports awards, he became a part owner of his local radio station by the time he was 26. Parente also hosted local cable news and sports programs in the 1980s.

If there was a league or organization that needed help, Parente was there to lend a hand. He served on the Board of Directors of the Pawtuxet Valley CYO, was the president of local little leagues and adult softball leagues, handled publicity for the West Warwick Steelers youth football team, as well as coached and broadcasted basketball games. In 1979 he became the Wizards’ assistant basketball coach, and in 1988 he went on to become the head coach. In 1984, Parente organized, coached, and was the general manager of the West Warwick Post Two American Legion Baseball team. He eventually won nearly 600 games in his nearly 20 year tenure with the team. Parente also served as the longtime Commissioner of American Legion Baseball for the state of Rhode Island.