Walter Johnson’s Frank De Las Casas Named R.A.I.S.E. Champion of the Year

James Koutsos has known Frank De Las Casas since he was a high school student at Richard Montgomery High School.

“He was the type of student-athlete who was ubiquitous,” said Koutsos, who was then a teacher at Herbert Hoover Middle School and an assistant football coach at Richard Montgomery. “He wanted to be a part of not only the football program, not only athletics, but anything to do with the school.

“He would always find a way to contribute and would do anything that was asked of him as a student.”

De Las Casas is this year’s R.A.I.S.E. Champion of the Year, an award given by the Department of Athletics. De Las Casas said he was stunned when he learned of the award, but those who know him say he’s more than deserving.

“He is someone who makes the experience better for any student, family, guest or community member,” Koutsos said. “He always wanted to do his part to make the event memorable for them. He was that way as a student. ‘No problem, Coach. I’ll take care of it.’ That was always what he said.”

When Koutsos opened Clarksburg High School as principal, he hired De Las Casas as a building service worker. But he became much more to the school.

“He became involved in athletics and again did whatever was asked of him,” he said. He helped provide security for games, escorted officials before games, helped students and cleaned up after events.

De Las Casas, now a building service worker at Walter Johnson High School, is still doing whatever is asked of him. “The feeling here,” he says, “is family. That’s the reason I came to WJ. I love it here.”

Born in Washington, D.C., De Las Casas grew up in Montgomery County and graduated from Richard Montgomery. He started helping with the athletic program as a student-athlete on the football team. He played all four years as nose tackle.

After graduating in 1995, he began working as a weight room instructor for after-school sports at Richard Montgomery and helped manage athletic events for the school. He set up for events, worked the ticket booths, and maintained fields and courts. He said his father, an auto mechanic, taught him how to fix anything and everything.

“I’ve worked every sport in Montgomery County,” De Las Casas said. Others echoed that, saying he has worked events in field hockey, volleyball, golf, tennis, Poms, cheerleading, football, baseball, basketball and any other sport you can name.

The R.A.I.S.E. award speaks to De Las Casas’ “longevity, his commitment and the experience he’s gained over time,” Koutsos said. “Frank is someone who goes about his work in such a humble way and whose only desire is to serve others. He’s done nothing to seek attention. He’s simply done his job day in and day out to help others. To recognize that is extremely special and what we should be doing in MCPS.”

Larry Hurd, athletic director at Walter Johnson, nominated De Las Casas for the award. They have known each other for more than 20 years. He first got to know him at Clarksburg High School. He brings a positive attitude, and acts as a mentor and motivator to student-athletes, Hurd said. 

“I marveled at this guy, who was at every event and would do anything for anyone—a coach, a student, a parent. He was engrossed in [his job] and wanted to succeed,” Hurd said. “I don’t know what my job would look like without Frankie. … He is everything that is good about MCPS.”