University of North Carolina Athletics
An Enduring Legacy
September 11, 2016 | Women's Lacrosse
by Blake Bozymski with Turner Walston
Before every practice, before every home game, the Carolina women's lacrosse team gathers in its locker room -- The Chris Quackenbush Locker Room. Twice in the last four years, teams that used that locker room have won NCAA championships. But as a student volunteer with the team, I recently realized that many players didn't know who Chris Quackenbush was.
I know.
Chris was a 1979 Carolina graduate. During his time in Chapel Hill, he worked at Purdy's, a Franklin Street bar, with my father Mike.
After he graduated from Carolina, he went on to NYU School of Law and began a career at Skadden, Arps, a prestigious New York law firm. From there, he became a founding partner of Sandler O'Neill, establishing the firm's investment banking division.
And on the morning of September 11, 2001, he became one of 2,977 people – and six Carolina alumni – killed in the 9/11 attacks.
I was in first grade in Winston-Salem on that day. Nine years later, as a student at Woodberry Forest School, I met Seamus and C.J. Dunne. We quickly realized a connection - my dad had been a Carolina classmate of Chris Quackenbush's, and Jimmy Dunne, Seamus and C.J.'s father, was his best friend in New York. My father and Jimmy would reminisce about 'Quack' from time to time, but I could tell it was a difficult subject.
And then, walking to lacrosse practice recently, I saw Chris's name again. I knew his story, but the players did not.
I knew it needed to be told. So I reached out to his family, his business partners and friends. All of them returned my calls.
Even from New York, Chris's ties to Carolina ran deep. His parents and three of four siblings had graduated from Carolina. His grandfather was a Carolina professor, and in 1996, Chris established a scholarship in his name, the Albert Ray Newsome Distinguished Professorship for the Study of the South. Chris donated funds for the restoration of Memorial Hall, Kenan Stadium, Navy Field, Anderson Stadium and UNC Finley Golf Course. He served on the University's Board of Visitors.
And he endowed a scholarship for women's lacrosse.
The Carolina women's lacrosse program was in just its fifth year of existence when Chris became involved. Head coach Jenny Levy met Chris when funds were being raised for Francis Henry Stadium, which includes the women's lacrosse locker room.
"Chris was one of the greatest donors the athletic department ever had," said John Montgomery, executive director UNC's Educational Foundation. "He loved our student-athletes. He was one of the best Tar Heels of all time."
Chris's generosity was not limited to Carolina. In 1993, he and his wife, Traci, established the Jacob Marley Foundation, named for Ebenezer Scrooge's partner in Dickens' A Christmas Carol, which provides scholarships and programs for children on Long Island. "Marley is the one who comes back and says to Scrooge, 'You have a responsibility to take care of people,'" said Michael Quackenbush, Chris's older brother.
One of the beneficiaries of the foundation was Mercy Haven, Inc., a non-profit in Islip Terrace, New York dedicated to serving the homeless.
"He was a very practical visionary," said Sister Patricia Griffith, Mercy Haven's executive director. "Chris didn't care about getting anything from the generosity of his foundation except it meeting its mission to help others.
“One of the foundation's gifts to us after 9/11 was a four-family home, which continues to remind us of his presence. I've yet to meet a man quite like my friend Chris."
His legacy continues through his children, Whitney, C.J. and Kelsey. Through the Jacob Marley Foundation. Through his gifts to Carolina. Through his belief that the Carolina women's lacrosse program could become one of the nation's best – and has.
"He was the first person who took a pretty big interest in in women's lacrosse at Carolina," Levy said. "I was overwhelmed by his generosity and his interest in our program. It helped me understand what we could build at Carolina with his overall belief in our program."