Lucia Rodriguez
Owner/Partner St. Louis Rams
Chair of the Rams Foundation/Community Outreach
For Lucia Rodriguez, life has been about family, education, philanthropy and football. In her role as Owner/Partner of the St. Louis Rams and Chair of the Rams Foundation/Community Outreach, Lucia has incorporated those guiding principles into her leadership of the St. Louis Rams as she continues a family legacy that began more than 50 years ago.
Lucia's father, Carroll Rosenbloom, was a trail-blazing owner, first with the Baltimore Colts during the era of Johnny Unitas, and later the Los Angeles Rams, who were a dominant NFL team during Rosenbloom's tenure. Her mother, Georgia, was an equally remarkable figure, taking over the team upon her husband's death in 1979, and guiding the Rams through the next three decades.
Upon Georgia's passing in January 2008, Lucia and her brother, Chip Rosenbloom, assumed majority ownership of the team. In her first season as owner, Lucia made an immediate impact in the St. Louis community assisting various non-profits, including Variety the Children's Charity of St. Louis, while also joining Chip in overseeing football and business matters. Following the 2008 season, Lucia was involved in the head coaching search and interview process, which culminated in the hiring of Steve Spagnuolo. She was also instrumental in the restructuring of the Rams' front office.
At her introductory press conference, Lucia announced the formation of "Team Georgia" to participate in the Komen St. Louis Race for the Cure, which is one of the largest breast cancer fundraising walks in the world. Because philanthropy was such an integral part of her mother, Lucia felt it was a fitting way to celebrate her mother's life and help others – something Georgia would have wanted. The extended Rams family – from staff to sponsors to fans – responded to Lucia's call and raised more than $23,000 for breast cancer research during "Team Georgia's" initial year.
Lucia also built upon her mother's support of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital by hosting a memorial "Georgia's Drive Fore the Kids" dinner and golf tournament, which raised more than $185,000 to enable St. Jude to continue its internationally recognized pioneering work in finding cures and saving children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases. After the tournament, Lucia made a trip to Memphis to visit the children who are receiving treatment at the hospital.
During the season, Lucia led an effort to recognize outstanding local volunteers dedicated to improving the community. The recognition program, named the "Georgia Frontiere Community Quarterback Awards," granted $20,000 to local non-profits in honor of their volunteering service.
Variety the Children's Charity of St. Louis has also received support from Lucia and her brother, both of whom sit on the group's board. In addition to hosting Variety's "Bikes for Kids" program, which provides new bicycles to children in need, Lucia served as honorary chair of Variety's Fashion Show, and provided Rams player and cheerleader assistance. Lucia also sits on the board of United Way of Greater St. Louis and has served on the fundraising committee of St. Roch parish and school in St. Louis. Additionally, she has served as the honorary chair of fundraising events for Wings of Hope and Dance St. Louis.
She made numerous other charitable appearances during her first year of ownership, including assisting the Urban League in handing out turkey dinners to low-income families prior to Thanksgiving, and hosting more than 3,000 underprivileged children who attended the team's "Project Angel Tree" holiday party at the Edward Jones Dome. She also visited a local school with players and cheerleaders to speak on the importance of literacy and helped in the groundbreaking of a new multi-purpose athletic facility for Sumner High School and the historic Ville neighborhood in the city of St. Louis.
Lucia is married to Lupe Rodriguez. The couple has three sons, William, Stuart and Andrew, and a daughter, Lauren. Will was a place-kicker at Lindenwood University and currently plays for the River City Rage of the Arena League. He also achieved All-American status for his kicking prowess at the semi-pro level. Will works in the Rams scouting department and lives with his wife, Laura, in St. Louis.