Rick Raymond Pribyl

An Eagle Scout at age 13, Rick Pribyl never shied away from a challenge or an adventure. That spirit deepened at Rockhurst High School where “his quiet sense of determination” propelled him to both academic and athletic success, which continued at Saint Louis University where he developed his commitment to learning and service that would guide him the rest of his life. That’s half the story. What you won’t read in the papers or glean through the accolades is the story of a teacher who, before his first day of teaching, had no class notes but carried instead a list of jokes that might begin the day. You won’t read the story of a poker player who made sure to lose the biggest pot of the night to the person most in need of a win. You won’t read the story of a coach for whom a rainout was an opportunity to play in the mud or a mentor who never had to say the quiet part out loud. Nor will you read the story of a father who by hook or by crook gave the world to his boys.

It is perhaps Rick’s second act for which he will be most remembered — as teacher and coach, a sobriquet he wore until the very end. Rick came to his career teaching and coaching later in life, first flying RC-135s in the Air Force and then working for his family business with his father Cecil and brother Ron. During this time, he also started a family with his first wife Catherine and maintained his pilot license. By any measure this would already be a life lived fully, but Rick wasn’t done.

In 1988, he began teaching and coaching soccer in Blue Valley, building on that early success coaching his boys, first at the Rowdies and then at the Comets. Indeed, he would turn that experience into something of a dynasty at the high school level. It would be difficult to overestimate what he accomplished during this time of his life. The laurels and (hardy) handshakes are too numerous to name, but here are a few: Rockhurst hall of fame inductee, BVNW hall of fame inductee, coach of 7 Kansas state soccer championship teams, and two-time national high school soccer coach of the year.

But Rick would be the first to tell you that success is not measured in trophies. Much like that of a teacher, the career of a coach is measured in the lives touched and the relationships built. “Coach” for him wasn’t reserved the field. He carried that mentality with him everywhere.

His kids and grandkids would attest to that. They would also describe to you someone whose sheer determination was matched by his generosity of spirit. He asked no more than he was willing to give. Wrestling, football, baseball, rugby, and, of course, soccer. Dance and theater. There was a lot of that too. He was there for all of it and travelled for it. Between 4am wakeups, long days in the classroom and on the pitch, and late-night pickups, he seemed to give everything to those around him. It was one way Rick practiced what he preached: Leave it all on the field.

No matter how hard he worked he always found time for family vacations in the mountains of Colorado. Eventually, he made a second home there with Linda, his wife of 32 years, best friend, and partner in crime. Like everything they did, the Colorado cabin was for others as much as for themselves. It was a place for their friends, their 7 sons, and their 15 grandchildren to call home, to bring those closest to them together around the hearth where an evening’s conversation might veer easily from close readings of The Heart of Darkness to a Mel Brooks sing-a-long to trading jokes so silly they were barely worthy of the title “dad jokes.”

Make it count; don’t be afraid to laugh at yourself. He meant this as a philosophy for life, whether teaching, coaching, or telling a joke. He could bring down the house in a room of hundreds with the silliest of one liners or spin stories for hours around the dinner table – no subject too lofty, no pun too low. And somehow amidst the achievements and accolades, Rick also found time to develop his craft for the prank. To most a prank is a prank. He elevated the prank to an art form. To know him was to be pranked by him. No setup was too elaborate, no punchline too great. Pranks were, in a way, his love language, a winking nod to show his affection.

We all wish his death were one last elaborate prank, but alas no. There is no punch line this time. He has shuffled off this mortal coil. The angels should watch their backs.

Determined, generous, and irreverent to the last, he will be missed. He leaves behind his brother Ron, seven sons – Skip, Scott, Sean, Shea, Davis, James, and Patrick – and 15 grandchildren.

And so forth and that…

A celebration of life open house will be held at Rockhurst High School’s Barry Commons on January 4th, 2025 from 4-7pm. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Tuition Assistance Fund at Rockhurst High School, 9301 State Line Road, Kansas City, MO 64114. You can donate here: https://www.rockhursths.edu/giving/memorialtribute-gifts

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.mcgilleyhoge.com for his family.