On October 12, Monsignor Edward Pace High School (Pace) will induct five new members into its Hall of Fame during the 2018 Homecoming football game against Miami Edison Senior High School.
This year’s inductees are husband and wife Jorge and Elsie Alvarez, Joel Rodriguez, Maurice Sikes and Rosemarie Banich.
Alvarez attended Pace and graduated in 1984. He and his wife are proud parents of Pace alumni Daniel Plasencia (class of 2006), Kristen Plasencia (class of 2009) and Christine Alvarez (class of 2012.) They have three grandchildren and reside in Miami Lakes.
The Alvarez’s have been in the commercial real estate lending industry for over 25 years. Jorge Alvarez attended Miami-Dade College and Florida International University while his wife attended Miami-Dade College and Barry University. They both currently serve on the Pace finance committee, Pace board of trustees and Immaculate Conception Catholic Church finance committee. While the children attended Pace, Elsie Alvarez was active with yearbook and teacher appreciation week activities. Jorge Alvarez serves on the Town of Miami Lakes Economic Development Committee.
Rodriguez grew up in Miami Lakes, and graduated from Pace in 2000. As a student athlete at Pace, he was a top-ranking football center and offensive lineman and went on to play for the University of Miami (UM) from 2000 through 2004.
Rodriguez served as the offensive line coach and run-game coordinator for Fordham University in New York before returning to UM as their director of player development and defense, a position he still holds today. Rodriguez has also served as the keeper of the famous Hurricanes “turnover chain” during the past couple seasons, which has brought a great deal of excitement to the South Florida community. In June of this year, Rodriguez was inducted to the Miami Lakes Sports Hall of Fame.
Sikes is a 1999 Pace alumnus. Like Rodriguez, he played Spartan football and received mentoring by head football coach and athletic director Joe Zaccheo. His efforts on and off the football field eventually earned Sikes an athletic scholarship to UM, where he was a member of the 2001 national championship team.
He graduated with a degree in criminology, and pursued a career in law enforcement with the Coral Gables Police department. He has received various accolades in his profession including several Officer of the Month awards and squad commendations. He has worked to help mentor younger police officers and received a Silver Medal of Valor for saving three people from a burning vehicle. He currently serves as sergeant of the motorcycle unit.
Banich completed her high school years at Archbishop Curley-Notre Dame High School and graduated in 1986. She went on to earn a bachelors degree in English from the University of South Florida, and a Juris Doctorate degree from the UM School Of Law.
After practicing law for several years in Miami and Oakland, California, she earned a masters degree and subsequently taught English literature at California State University. In 2012, she was named by Archbishop Thomas Wenski as the Director of the Second General Synod of the Archdiocese of Miami, and was selected in 2014 to serve as the Director of the Archdiocese of Miami’s Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministry, where she continues to serve. Rosemarie is married to Marc Banich and they have one son, Matthew, who is a proud Spartan and member of the class of 2021.
The five will be inducted as part of the Homecoming game festivities on Friday, October 12 at the Pace football field, which includes the annual Homecoming Alumni Bash for Pace alumni and friends starting at 6 p.m. Parking is $5 for the event. For more information about the event, email alumni@pacehs.com.