The Lynn Tech boys basketball team will have a sparkling, new look this season thanks to the generosity of two of the school’s proud alumni.
Mark King (Class of 1978) and John Raye (Class of 2004) have donated brand new uniforms to first-year head coach Corey Bingham’s program. King is the owner of Marion Street Auto Body in Lynn. Raye works at JetBlue airlines.
“Mark and I joined forces to get the basketball team new uniforms,” said Raye, who is an officer in the East Lynn Pop Warner and Silverbacks youth football organizations.
Tech’s new uniform jerseys are reddish-orange and navy blue and match the Tigers’ new logo. The basketball shorts feature the claws of the Tech tiger.
“When Corey played basketball at Tech (before becoming a Division 1 college player at Toledo), the uniforms were white, and he told us he was looking for red uniforms,” said Raye. “With a new coach, Mark and I figured, ‘let’s start Corey off with something nice and new.’ Corey was really happy when we presented him the new uniforms.”
Raye said Mark King has always stepped up for their alma mater and local organizations, without fanfare.
“Mark King is one of the most generous people I’ve ever met in my life,” credited Raye. “Through his business, Marion Street Auto Body, he’s helped the Silverbacks, East Lynn Pop Warner, and now’s he helping Lynn Tech once again. We’re both proud Tigers. We both graduated from Tech and the school gave us a lot.”
Raye, 35, specialized in television production and media while he was a student at Tech. After graduation, he was an owner of music studios. Raye has fond memories of his years at the vocational school and the outstanding education that he received.
“I had some great teachers, but mainly Donald Hussey – he was the television media teacher at the time, and he’s a department head now – he put a lot of work into all of us students in that shop,” recalled Raye. “Mr. Hussey got us jobs after high school and kept us busy. To this day, I keep in touch with him. He’s had a positive influence on so many students’ lives at Tech. I can honestly say if it weren’t for Mr. Hussey, I would have been lost, because this dedicated teacher took me under his wing and kept us all in line. He expected a lot out of us, and he made sure that we lived up to it.”
Coach Corey Bingham, who starred for some powerful Tech teams coached by Marvin Avery (Avery is now the head coach at Lynn Classical), will lead the Tigers on to the court in December for their first game.
Thanks to two generous alumni, the Tech players will have the look of champions all season.