LYNN — He’s been described as beloved, an icon, a team player, and the real mascot at Lynn English High School.
For beloved manager, waterboy, and English superfan Carl Benson, who passed away last week at the age of 81, it was all of the above.
“He was harmless as can be and never hurt a soul,” said Bob “Moona” Mullins, a student-athlete who graduated English in 1971. “He was certainly a great guy and deserves recognition for what he brought to the school.”
You name the sport, Benson was there.
“He hung around for practices of whatever was going on,” Mullins said. “Everything in his life was Lynn English. That was strictly Carl.”
He sure made his presence felt. Gary Molea was an assistant football coach when he was introduced to Benson, and said it’d be hard to find someone like him in today’s day and age.
“Sad to see,” Molea said. “He was definitely an icon there for a long time.”
When asked what kept Benson around the city, Molea pointed to his relationships.
“Well, I think it was the fact that the kids really treated him well, as the coaches did. I think that had a lot to do with it,” Molea said. “He felt like he was a part of all the teams he helped out with.”
People just wanted to be around him, too.
“I think the kids took a liking to him right away,” Molea said. “That’s what made Carl coming back all the time.”
Molea remembers Benson arriving early at the school and eating lunch there before practice.
“You could count on Carl being there,” Molea said.
But then, he meant business. From filling up water bottles to dishing out towels, his gameday duties were endless.
“Back in those days, the headsets were all wires. There were wires everywhere,” Molea said. “There was a little box that he had to carry around, and Carl always had that box [and] he was always next to the coach. He had a lot of duties and responsibilities on game day.”
Football, basketball, soccer, you name it. Benson was there through it all.
“Ron Bennett coached baseball and basketball. Carl was his right hand,” Molea said. “Billy Hall was the head football coach and Carl was his manager.”
Mullins added how much Benson enjoyed the English band.
“The band was his big thing,” Mullins said.
As far as friendly rivalries go, you won’t find many better than this one. What Benson was to English, the late Howie Grob was to Lynn Classical.
“Any time there was a sporting event at the high school, say a basketball event or whatever, him and Howie used to go at it with each other,” Mullins said. “He was representing Lynn English and Howie Grob was representing Lynn Classical.”
On home court or in enemy territory, Benson and Grob would do anything for their schools.
“They’d shoot baskets together and the crowd would get into it,” Mullins said. “That’s what Carl was all about. [He was] just a great, great guy.”
In 1980, Lynn English Principal Alvin R. Tagney presented a special appreciation award to Benson. A year later, the football team gave Benson a varsity jacket for being its “most faithful follower.”
“Everyone in Lynn knew of Carl Benson,” Molea said. “That’s for sure.”
