Rita Benson LeBlanc

Who is Rita Benson LeBlanc?

Rita Benson LeBlanc is Vice Chairman of the Board of the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League. She is the granddaughter of Tom Benson, the principal owner of the New Orleans Saints and the New Orleans Pelicans.

Born in Houma, Louisiana when her family lived in nearby Cut Off, she was raised on a ranch near Johnson City, Texas, where she attended Lyndon B. Johnson High School before receiving a bachelor of science degree in agribusiness at Texas A&M University. She began interning for the Saints and in various league offices while still in high school, and went to work for the Saints after college. In 2003 she took over management of the New Orleans VooDoo, the Arena Football League team also owned by Benson, and was named the indoor league's top executive. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, she began to take on a more public role and greater responsibilities in the management of the Saints. She chairs the NFL Employee Benefits Committee, and she has been publicly identified as Tom Benson's intended successor as principal owner of the team. http://www.nola.com/saints/index.ssf/2012/04/rita_benson_leblancs_conspicuo.html