Robert I. “Ric” Cusick is a member of the Trinity Class of 1961. He also attended Holy Cross Catholic School. As a Trinity student, he was a member of the National Honor Society, swim team and The ECHO newspaper staff. He also wrote for Trinity for The Voice-Tribune newspaper in St. Matthews. He passed away on November 25, 2014.

After graduating from Trinity, Cusick attended Bellarmine University and then the University of Louisville, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in history in 1965. He also earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Louisville Louis D. Brandeis School of Law in 1968. He entered the U.S. Navy and was commissioned as an ensign to serve as a Judge Advocate General Officer. He retired from the Navy with the rank of captain, having served at sea aboard the USS America aircraft carrier during the Vietnam War.

Cusick returned to Louisville in 1972 and became a partner at Wyatt Tarrant & Combs LLP, where he was in charge of ethics counseling. Cusick also served several terms as bar governor of the Kentucky Bar Association and the Kentucky Board of Examiners, which administers the Bar examination. Additionally, he chaired the Ethics 2000 project to update Kentucky’s Code of Professional Responsibility, which governs the manner in which attorneys practice law. He also served on the Jefferson County Ethics Commission.

It was this special feature of his legal work and his dedication to ethics that brought him to the attention of President George W. Bush, who appointed him Director of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics in Washington, D.C. He retired from practicing law in 2006.

Cusick’s dedication to Trinity ran deep. He was a member of the Trinity Foundation Advisory Board and a generous donor. He also was a supporter of Catholic education. He was recognized for this by being named a Distinguished Graduate of Catholic High Schools by the Catholic Education Foundation and honored at the 2007 Salute to Catholic School Alumni Dinner.

Because Cusick was the man he was, and though he never married, he loved the children of his close friends and was considered part of their families. This included his first godchild, Julayne Ricketts Amstutz, daughter of Charlie Ricketts ’61, and her brothers, Matthew Ricketts and Jonathan Ricketts, who followed Cusick’s example, becoming a Navy JAG Officer. He also loved his second goddaughter, Margaret Dyson. Cusick had an adopted daughter, Laura Hill, whom he loved dearly.

These individuals shared a strong and loving relationship with Cusick. He took pride in their accomplishments, nourished their dreams and inspired their lives. There are many other offspring of friends for whom he would give special recognition and for which he will never be forgotten.

C - Hall of Fame

Keith Calvin

Jim Campbell

Richard Carey

The Reverend Kevin Caster

Kenneth Combs

Ken Conliffe

Jim Connell

Mark L. Corbett

Steve Crump

Robert I. Cusick