Volume 37, Number 1
The Magazine of Jesuit High School of New Orleans • Fall/Winter 2010–2011
Volume 37, Number 1
INSIDE
fall/winter
2010–11
Dear Blue Jay Alumni, Parents, Students, and Friends of Jesuit:
Jesuit High School’s web site is a popular resource for students, teachers, parents, and alumni. Our
home page, www.jesuitnola.org, is the equivalent of the main sheet of a daily newspaper’s web site. I
do not equate jesuitnola.org with nola.com (The Times-Picayune) except to point out that in a general
sense they share three striking similarities of being informative, entertaining, and dynamic.
Jesuit is not your garden variety high school web site. How can it be with more than 2,700
pages featuring 25,000 photographs? Our focus is to showcase student life, academics, athletics, cocurriculars, and info for parents and alumni. It is also a multi-purpose tool used for online pledges
and donations, online registration for special events and class reunions, and to recruit new Blue Jays.
Our site is rich in content and relevant information for the whole Jesuit community. Our
numerous photo galleries of LHSAA varsity sports (and club sports like rugby and lacrosse)
are marvelous vehicles to show the talents of Blue Jay athletes, win or lose the games. Each
weekday offers a surprise lurking near the bottom of the home page — “Jayson’s Daily Wild
Photo” — entertaining and innovative snapshots of student life at Jesuit. The home page is lively,
flexible, and fluid because fresh content is introduced on a daily basis and dated material is moved to
an appropriate location elsewhere on the site.
An analysis of our web site statistics covering the final three months of 2010 (October through
December) reveals a few interesting tidbits:
189,000 unique visitors identified by their IP addresses viewed a total of 610,000 pages.
The average number of visits per day is 5,200; the average number of pages visited per day is 27,400,
or five pages per visit; average length of a visit is four minutes.
Tuesday and Wednesday are the days with the heaviest traffic; Saturday or Sunday, the least
trafficked.
The most active hour for visits? Between 1 – 2 a.m. on weekdays. Go figure. The least active
hour? Between 9 – 10 a.m. Really.
The days that attracted the most visits coincided with Homecoming in October and the posting
of progress reports in November.
Missed a Wild Photo? A lot of Blue Jays did. The Wild Photo archives drew almost 9,000 visits.
The most popular audio files were from the Mother – Son Mass & Breakfast in October. The
homily by Jesuit president Fr. Anthony McGinn, S.J. ’66 and the touching speech by senior Joey
Tumminello each received almost 12,000 visits. Fr. McGinn’s homily at the Christmas Eve Midnight
Mass got 8,500 visits.
Are there aspects of our web site that can improve? Yes. An online Blue Jay Shop is long overdue.
Sometimes parents and alums have difficulty navigating the site. And a few people have complained
there is too much information on the home page, it’s cluttered, and space is wasted. Could the site be
more interactive and forum-oriented, especially for alums and parents? Perhaps Jesuit’s web site needs
a thorough spring and summer maintenance overhaul. We are considering an online survey to solicit
opinions among students, parents, and alums that will help guide us as we address these various
issues.
Yours truly,
Pierre DeGruy ’69
Director of Communications/ Editor, Jaynotes
A Master of Jesuit’s Web Site
Will Return to the Classroom Fulltime
For the past four years, English teacher Jack
Culicchia ’83 has served as Jesuit’s webmaster,
a role similar to that of a photojournalist, as can
be seen in the photo at right. Jack has managed
his webmaster duties while juggling three or
four English classes. Sharon Hewlett, who is
Jesuit’s director of technology, computer
science teacher Dan Wagner, and network
administrator Stephen Blum provide invaluable
support on the academic and technical sides of
the site. Jesuit also has the services of the coolest
computer guru genius in Tony Giannasi, who
troubleshoots all sorts of technical glitches that
arise on an almost daily basis.
continued next page
Jaynotes, the magazine for and about alumni,
parents, and students of Jesuit High School of
New Orleans, is published three times annually
by the Office of Institutional Advancement,
including a special graduation issue in the
summer. Opinions expressed in Jaynotes are
those of the individual authors.
President
Anthony McGinn, S.J. ’66
[email protected]
Director of Institutional Advancement
Thomas V. Bagwill II
[email protected]
Jaynotes Editor
Pierre DeGruy ’69
Director of Communications
[email protected]
Director of Alumni Affairs
Mat Grau ’68
[email protected]
Director of Special Projects
Bro. William Dardis, S.J. ’58
[email protected]
Coordinator for the Office
of Institutional Advancement
Michelle M. Tanner
[email protected]
Administrative Assistant for
the Office of Institutional Advancement
R. Logan Diano
[email protected]
Executive Assistant to the President
Krista Roeling
[email protected]
Volunteer Coordinator
Marilyn Beauford
[email protected]
Design & Layout
Design III
[email protected]
Printing
Garrity Print Solutions
A Harvey Company
Michael Brennan ’95
Letters, photographs, and correspondence
are welcome and may be either submitted by
e-mail ([email protected]) or mailed to:
Jaynotes
Jesuit High School
4133 Banks St.
New Orleans, LA 70119
Address changes should be submitted to
[email protected] or contact Jesuit’s alumni
office at 504-483-3815.
Parents: If you are receiving your son’s copy of
Jaynotes and he no longer lives with you, please
let us know so we can update our database and
send the magazine directly to him. Let us know
if you enjoy reading Jaynotes. We will be glad
to send a copy to his new address and a copy to
you. E-mail changes to: [email protected].
Sign-up online for class reunions and other
events: www.jesuitnola.org/cgi-bin/events.cgi.
It is easy to contribute online to the HFA, LEF,
PAG, and various Scholarships on Jesuit’s
web site: www.jesuitnola.org. Look for the
Donate Online link in the upper left
corner.
On the Cover:
Behind those closed eyes, senior sprinter
Philip Aucoin savors crossing the finish line
ahead of 300 runners at the state cross country
meet, becoming only the second Blue Jay
to capture an individual state championship
while also leading his team to the state title.
P RE S I D E NJTE’ SS UM
E
ITE S
TS
OA
DG
AY
Never Surrender to the
Lunatic Fringe
Complex enterprises like Jesuit High School as well as individual persons develop
and accomplish their goals when a broad range of people invests in their success.
I appreciate all that so many friends of Jesuit have done to contribute to its
achievements over the past twenty years. Thank you for helping to make a difference.
At the end of his term as president, George Washington advised
the nation against permanent alliances. As he was leaving the
presidency, General Dwight Eisenhower warned America about the
growing influence of the military-industrial complex. In my last days
at Jesuit, I caution the school community about the lunatic fringe.
We see the lunatic fringe in politics, in economics, in religion,
in education, in parenting, in sports, and in psychology. Although
it takes many forms, the fringe usually elevates The Agenda above
everything else. Advancing The Agenda, whatever it may be,
supersedes all other values. So powerful is The Agenda that some
on the fringe behave as if the revealed word of God and the laws of
nature are subservient to it.
Whether the group is traditionalist or progressive, whether it is
academic or anti-intellectual, whether it is hierarchical or egalitarian,
there is no doubt about who has a monopoly of the truth. There
is only one way, one expression of orthodoxy, one correct mode of
living. Wherever it manifests itself, the fringe shows deep contempt
for outsiders as either stupid or unworthy. Only malice or invincible
ignorance can explain why anyone would question The Agenda.
Elitism has a very strong appeal. The lunatic fringe cultivates
“the best and brightest.” Zeal for The Agenda enhances a young
person’s sense of belonging. It is flattering to be chosen to receive a
special invitation to belong, especially where following a charismatic
leader brings a higher status. In the cult of the personality, the
benevolent leader demands loyalty to himself and to The Agenda with
the result that promoting The Agenda lapses into self-promotion.
The fringe can be very popular. When the size of a group
reaches a critical mass, it can appear so normal that no one questions
The Agenda. What is truly normal can be made to appear perverse.
Integrity is reduced to fidelity to The Agenda.
Those who belong to the lunatic fringe have a strong sense
of entitlement. Many insist on being exempt from ordinary
accountability. Their friends deserve special treatment and leniency,
whereas outsiders deserve to suffer the consequences of their
mistakes. What ordinary people see as reasonable accountability, the
fringe deplores as victimization.
Master continued from previous page
Few people know what it takes to
oversee and operate a web site the size of
Jesuit’s. Thank goodness fewer people
remember what the site was like before
Katrina. Let’s just say it was an albatross, a
beast of burden. Jack and I formed a great
partnership and each of us took our web
responsibilities seriously. In addition to
his classroom duties, Jack worked 25-40
hours extra each week photographing any
number of Jesuit events and quickly posting
Many who try to advance The Agenda lose perspective. They
lose a sense of humor and a sense of compassion. Among the Agendadriven, self-deception joins self-promotion in a destructive alliance.
On the one hand, the lunatic fringe trusts children to make
life-changing decisions without guidance or boundaries. Yet
micromanaging parents do not allow children age-appropriate
freedom. One develops coping skills by experiencing frustration,
disappointment, and defeat. No one can grow if he is insulated from
setbacks and challenges.
The irrational demand for total allegiance to The Agenda
transforms healthy passion into lunacy. Thinking becomes distorted.
Disappointments become catastrophes. Disagreement becomes
disloyalty. Pejorative labels are assigned to those with different
perspectives. Those who push The Agenda cause strife and hostility
which divide communities and families.
The great challenge of the school community is to answer the
call to greatness without employing the methods of the lunatic
fringe. Our way must be to show conviction without intolerance,
confidence without arrogance, and passion for the truth without
contempt for those who see things differently.
I am very grateful to so many people who helped me during
the years I guided this enterprise. I appreciate their differing
perspectives, their tolerance of my mistakes, their loyal support,
their efforts to be inclusive, and their skepticism of one-dimensional
solutions. The support and honesty of so many friends of Jesuit
prevented me from lapsing into lunacy and surrendering Jesuit to the
fringe. n
Anthony McGinn, S.J. ’66
President, Jesuit High School, 1992 – 2011
Editor’s note: The Jesuit community is invited to a reception honoring Fr. McGinn
for his 19 years of service as president of Jesuit High School. The event is scheduled
Saturday, May 22, from 4-7 p.m. in the Traditions Courtyard and Student
Commons. A program begins at 5:30 p.m. If you plan to attend, please RSVP
online on Jesuit’s Events Registration page: http://www.jesuitnola.org/cgi-bin/
events.cgi. You may also RSVP by phone: 504-483-3841.
the stories and galleries. The pace he kept
for four years was astonishing as it was
frightening. I contributed by maintaining
alumni pages, pledges and donations, events
registration, and all that special stuff. I would
needle him good naturedly. He would have
a photo gallery up inside an hour after the
event. By contrast, it would take me 12-24
hours, but my photos were much better.
He laughed every time I reminded him. He
and I both knew he was my right arm. He
nurtured the home page and beyond, even
learning what I taught him — it never hurts
to write a headline with a little sizzle.
Jack is hanging up his webmaster’s
hat and will be returning to his English
classroom fulltime for the 2011-12 year. It
was his decision and that is what he wants.
I wish him the very best knowing that I
will miss his presence in my Jesuit web life.
Thanks, Jack, for all that you have done to
make Jesuit’s web site outstanding. It’s been
fun, exhilarating, and exhausting, a wild and
crazy ride like never before. n — The Editor
Fall/Winter 2010 – 11
1
TH
A
N EN UTITLE
S M IRA
G OBEILI
S S
H ERE
Coach
Gernon Brown’s
Dream Team
Nostalgia being trendy these days, Annus Mirabilis is chic stuff. This regular feature in each issue
of Jaynotes enjoys a measure of fondness and popularity among readers, particularly those Blue Jay
alumni who easily lapse into reminiscing about their years at Carrollton and Banks.
The wealth of articles that lay buried deep inside the archives
of Jesuit’s student newspapers, The Blue Jay and Jayson, are
resurrected to provide the grist for the Annus Mirabilis feature.
Obviously, one of the main objectives of Annus Mirabilis (the
Latin term for a remarkable year) is to shine a spotlight on a
memorable moment of time in Jesuit’s long and rich history. These
moments might be significant, possibly amusing, and perhaps
unforgettable. But the vignettes that bring these Jesuit moments
back to life are always interesting.
Once in a while, the material for Annus Mirabilis does not
originate from the archives of the Jesuit student newspapers. Such
is the case with this Annus Mirabilis. A couple of months ago,
Jesuit alumnus Al Widmer (Class of 1941) took the trouble of
sending a copy of an article that was published in the New Orleans
Item on Sunday, November 22, 1953.
Sporting the headline “Jays of 1940 Finest In History,” the
story was written in the first person by Jesuit’s legendary coach
and teacher, Gernon Brown (with some assistance from Item sports
reporter Steve Perkins, himself a sports writer for The Blue Jay and
a member of the Class of ’42; Perkins died in 1987). The story
focused on the Blue Jay football team that went undefeated and
won the state championship that year. The Jesuit-Holy Cross game
at City Park Stadium still holds the record for the largest crowd
to ever watch a prep football game at that field. As a wingback,
Widmer was a star player on the 1940 team. A retired pharmacist
who lives in Metairie, Widmer is the only surviving Blue Jay who
played on that memorable championship team.
Coach Brown graduated from Jesuit in 1920, played college
football, and earned a history degree before returning to his alma
mater where he spent the next 35 years coaching and teaching. He
was much beloved by Blue Jays, including those who never played
sports. Coach Brown died on January 23, 1963. Below is the
article as it appeared in the New Orleans Item.
By Gernon Brown (as told to Steve Perkins)
I still “dream” about that season of
1940.
There may have been Jesuit teams
who surmounted more difficulties or more
spirited teams in my 20 years as head coach
— but when you get right down to big,
powerful, talented, smartly quarterbacked
football teams, that, brother, was it!
As I said last week, Jesuit and I
saw some mighty lean days in the four
years before the “big breakout,” and the
youngsters I groomed during those seasons
paid off in a big way in 1940.
Power Added
For the first time since I had taken over in
1933, Jesuit was blessed with power as well
as speed. In the spring of that year, when
I evaluated the material I would have that
fall, I decided to switch from the doublewing offense of Pop Warner to the singlewing attack of the Behrman school.
Luckily, I could turn to an excellent
source for advice on the new system, a
2 JAYNotes
matter which I intend to go into great detail
next week.
Here is the backfield that made it
go: O.J. Key at tailback, Tony DiBartolo
at fullback, Leonard Finley as blocking
back and signal caller, and Al Widmer at
wingback. Together, they could do it all.
And the second string tailback was
good enough to star for any other team in
the league — Jay Schulte.
The Tailback
O.J. Key could do everything — run, pass, kick. And he was tremendous —
6-foot, two inches, and about 200 pounds.
He was big enough to just run right over
everybody in his way, and he was a dash
man on the track team. Key was also the
best I’ve seen at running to the left and
passing right-handed.
I remember several occasions during
the season when Key would hit the wrong
hole in the line and blast his way through,
40 or 50 yards for a touchdown. He’d
trot back to the huddle and say, “Nice
blocking.” Lenny Finley would die!
Finley was a terrific blocker, but his
main asset to the team was a signal-caller.
He had a 98 average for four years at Jesuit
and became the engineering school’s top
student at Tulane University.
I asked (coach) Henry Frnka about
him, shortly after Finley became the Tulane
quarterback. “He’s all right, except for one
thing,” Frnka told me. “He knows more
football strategy than I do.”
In light of later developments, we’ll
let that one pass. Tony DiBartolo gave us
the power we needed on straight bucks.
The next year he moved to tailback and led
Jesuit to a second successive state title.
Al Widmer was extremely shifty and
highly valuable on reverses. He was also a
talented passer and thus kept the defense
honest when he swept wide with the ball.
The line was a prep coach’s dream
in itself. The ends were Johnny Ballatin
and Paul Limont. Ballatin pulled in Key’s
J E S U ITALT U
OM
D AY
NI
passes with one circus catch after another.
And he kicked all of our extra points. We
didn’t need any field goals or he would have
kicked those too.
We called Ballatin “Buck” because he
lived in Bucktown by the lake. He was a
happy boy. I’ll never forget his speech at
the football banquet:
“I enjoyed the year very much,” he
said, “and I especially enjoyed meeting a
nose like John Tessier’s.”
Line Four Deep
Limont was also an excellent pass
receiver — he caught the pass that brought
us from behind in the state playoffs against
Istrouma — but he was more than excellent
on defense. He later starred for Notre
Dame. Louis Ford was a second-string end
who was good enough to start for anybody
else.
At tackles were Emile “Peachy”
McMillan and John Tessier. They were
big, quick boys who reacted smartly. They
had to be good to relegate Gerry Ford to a
sub’s role. Joe Fontcuberta gave us
another strong replacement at the
position.
We had four good guards.
The starters were Dave Brennan,
captain of the team, and Nick
Liuzza — a couple of five-byfives. Dan O’Leary and Benny
Raymond were nearly their equal.
Cy Kirsch, one of the
best centers in the history of
the league, had Lucius Caruso
pushing him for the job. Cy, I
believe, could have become a great
college lineman. He planned to
enter Auburn. He was killed in
action with the Marines in World
War II.
The Blue Jays of 1940 were
never really extended, until the
Istrouma game, which Jesuit won,
13-6. Istrouma was the only team
to come within one touchdown
of Jesuit, and the Blue Jays played
against some strong squads.
Jesuit’s Undefeated
1940 Football Team
State Champions
Behrman
4-0
Baton Rouge
20-0
St. Aloysius
20-6
Fortier
14-0
Nicholls
45-6
St. Stanislaus
21-0
S.J. Peters
39-6
Holy Cross (City Title) 25-7
Easton
60-6
State Playoffs
Istrouma
13-6
State Championship
Lake Charles
26-6
We played on Sunday at City Park
Stadium, and the greatest crowd in the
history of the league, before or since, was
in attendance — an official count of some
34,000. People were standing on the cinder
track and crowding up to the end zone to
see us win, 25-7.
The Orange Bowl that year drew
35,000.
The final prep game of the season
was only a formality. Easton had had little
success that year, and had no success at all
in stopping our first 10 backs. The score,
a record, was 60-6. It went a long way to
making up for four long years. n
Jesuit’s greatest team, selected by Gernon
Brown, was this 1940 club which averaged
195 pounds on the line and 185 pounds in
the backfield. Kneeling from left are linemen
Johnny Ballatin, Emile McMillan, Nick Liuzza,
Cy Kirsch, Dave Brennan (captain), John
Tessier, and Paul Limont; (standing from
left) right halfback Al Widmer, quarterback
Leonard Finley, fullback Tony DiBartolo, and
left halfback O.J. Key. They beat traditional
rival Warren Easton, 60-6, that season. Truly a
dream team.
Dark the Passer
St. Stanislaus, beaten 21-0, had Felix “Doc”
Blanchard. Lake Charles, the team we beat for the state
championship, had the finest schoolboy passer I’ve ever
seen — Alvin Dark, now passing from shortstop for the
New York Giants.
And Holy Cross had one of its finest clubs.
Driscoll, Arthur, Winters, Jerome Daly in the
backfield, and Jim Loflin at end led a team that was
undefeated in prep up to our game.
Fall/Winter 2010 – 11
3
T H E JTITLE
A Y N O TGEOSE SI NHTER
EREV IEW
Lawrence Huck, S.J. ’87:
A Brother for All Seasons
Among the Jesuits currently living at the Banks Street residence is a Blue Jay alumnus who graduated
with his twin brother in the Class of 1987. Lawrence “Larry” Huck was, by his own admission, an unremarkable
student at Jesuit High School, a regular guy who frequently struggled to bring home acceptable grades. After his graduation, Larry
attended UNO and accumulated 80 credit hours of business administration courses. He balanced his studies at UNO with a hefty
load of volunteer work. In 1990, he became a licensed master electrician, a requisite skill if he planned to continue working for
the family business, Jack’s Electrical Service, Inc., a company founded by his father and grandfather.
Larry and his twin brother Lloyd were the heirs apparent at Jack’s (which, incidentally was started by his grandfather, Jack
Huck, and passed on to father Jimmy, who retired from his own company in 2008 to become Jesuit’s director of maintenance.)
Lloyd got married, started his own family, and operates the electrical contracting business. Larry, on the other hand, could not
shake a capricious feeling of emptiness within. This emptiness was vexing, an inexplicable void in an otherwise normal, busy, and
healthy life. He contemplated joining the Society of Jesus, but could not decide if taking that step
would dissipate that emptiness.
Ultimately, his decision to become a Jesuit brother was made rather easily. Brother Huck has
happily lived the life of a Jesuit for almost 18 years, most of which have been spent teaching and
influencing in positive ways hundreds of students, especially those whose good fortune placed
them in his theology class, the student council, or on the Jesuit tennis team which he coached for
two years. Br. Huck completed his Tertianship last summer and was busily making plans to begin
a new assignment for the Jesuit Southern Province when he was diagnosed with colon cancer.
He snapped out of the initial shock and depression in a mere two hours, proclaiming, “This ain’t
gonna kill me.” After surgery, he endured six months of chemotherapy. His prognosis is good, his
mood is even better, his sense of humor has made a full recovery, and he’s wearing a wide smile.
Everywhere Br. Huck looks, it’s as if he sees a beautiful rainbow.
Jaynotes: Can we talk about your illness?
Huck: I have colon cancer. Hopefully, with the surgery, it’s gone.
They got it all out. But, statistics say for the stage I have — stage
3A — if you have the surgery, have it removed, and do chemo, the
chances of this not coming back rises to something like 83%.
Jaynotes: What were your symptoms?
Huck: This all started after I had finished my Tertianship and I
was making a pilgrimage in Spain. I would walk up a flight of
stairs and be out of breath. My heart was racing, I was not feeling
up to par, and I had very little energy. Something was not right.
The results of blood work showed my heart was fine, but I was
extremely anemic. At this point, I decided it was time to go home.
When I got back to New Orleans, I did more blood work which
indicated I probably had a bleeding ulcer. Instead, they found a
tumor the size of a ping pong ball. It had been bleeding which is
what caused my anemia. The tumor had broken through the wall
of the colon and got into some nearby lymph nodes. The doctors
surgically removed the tumor and of the 28 lymph nodes they
took out, only five were cancerous. The doctors are very confident
they got it all out.
Jaynotes: Did it hit you like a ton of bricks when your doctor
told you it was a malignant tumor?
Huck: Sure, I didn’t want to hear it. It was depressing. For two
hours, I just laid there in bed thinking, “What am I going to do?”
And after two hours, it was by the grace of God that I told myself,
“This ain’t gonna kill you.” I was at peace. I didn’t send myself
this message. Somehow, it came by God’s grace. He gifted me.
Jaynotes: You found out a lot of people were praying for you?
4 JAYNotes
Huck: Oh, yes, that’s the other grace — feeling the power of
prayer. It’s unbelievable the number of people praying for me.
There are people who are praying for me and I don’t even know
who they are. But they know somebody who knows me. The care
and concern of people is another way that God shows how He
loves us and is with us.
Jaynotes: All of this has pushed back the start of your next
assignment?
Huck: I’m not even supposed to be here (at Jesuit). I was supposed
to move last August or September to Grand Coteau, where my
new assignment is to oversee on behalf of the Jesuits a massive
renovation of our novitiate spirituality center. It’s a 100-yearold building in very bad shape, including the infrastructure. I
am the owner’s representative and will be working closely with
the superintendent for the contractor and the architect, making
decisions on behalf of the province and the Society.
Jaynotes: You are going back to where it all began. Tell us
about your decision to join the Society of Jesus, the Jesuits.
Huck: During my senior year at Jesuit, my father took my
twin brother Lloyd and me to Manresa for his retreat. When
I graduated from Jesuit in 1987, I went to UNO and studied
business administration. I was already working with the family
business in electrical contracting, but I also thought that there
might be a vocation for me as a Jesuit. I was the best man for
Lloyd’s wedding in August 1992. I was not attending UNO, I
was a master electrician, and I was working full time at the family
business. It was the first time I asked myself, “What would make
me happy?” The answer was to become a Jesuit, and specifically, a
NI
J E S U ITALT U
OM
D AY
“It’s not about attention. It’s not
about being up in front of people. It’s
what the Lord wants of me. I think
that’s in any discernment process that
one goes through — the Lord calls
you to something.”
Jesuit brother. There was peace with that and there was some fear.
Jaynotes: Did you have a so-called hallelujah moment?
Huck: During my Manresa retreats, I kept asking the Lord, “What
more do I need to do because there is something missing in my
life?” I was volunteering at Jesuit, helping with the football team,
and doing things in my church parish. But I always thought there
was something missing. Maybe I need to do more volunteer work.
When Lloyd was married, it was a very emotional time for me.
I asked God in prayer, “If you want me to be a Jesuit, bring me
that feeling.” I went on retreat at Manresa in March 1993, and I
was reflecting and praying when suddenly that moment came. Fr.
Harry Tompson (S.J.) was the director at Manresa and I had an
appointment to see him on Saturday evening. When I sat down,
he asked, “What’s going on?” And I said, “Well, I think I need to
be a Jesuit.” His instant reply was, “Oh, it’s about time!”
Jaynotes: Was there any particular reason why you chose to be
a Jesuit brother and not a priest?
Huck: Priests get all the attention. It’s not about attention. It’s not
about being up in front of people. It’s what the Lord wants of me.
I think that’s in any discernment process that one goes through
— the Lord calls you to something. If you understand what the
Lord calls you to, you can be the happiest you’ve ever been. It’s
the Lord who is doing the work, not me. He is using my gifts and
I’m allowing the Lord to do so to help people come closer to Him.
When that call came, that hallelujah moment as you put it, it was
never to be a priest. It was to be a Jesuit brother.
Jaynotes: So off you went for some rigorous training at Grand
Coteau?
Huck: I went to Grand Coteau, which is the novitiate where
everyone does their first two years of training. I was one of 14 men
who entered the Society that year and that number included four
Blue Jays. I am the only Blue Jay who remained in the Society.
The novitiate helps you understand what it means to be a Jesuit,
whether you intend to become a priest or a brother. I learned about
the history of the Society of Jesus, its spirituality, and how to pray
to develop a prayer life. I made the full 30-day Spiritual Exercises
(of St. Ignatius). During those first two years, Grand Coteau was
home, but all of us novices were sent out here and there. It’s an
experiment in which they placed us in certain ministries. It is done
to test us and challenge us.
Jaynotes: What was your test?
Huck: I worked with severely handicapped children. The challenge
for me was directly related to my personality which is such
that I need to help people. I want to help people, realizing that
sometimes helping people means is being with them. I can’t solve
their physical inabilities. In a sense, it is how the Lord blessed
me and loved me, and taught me about loving through severely
handicapped children, some of whom could not speak or talk
or walk. Yet, through them, the Lord was communicating His
unconditional love for me. As a Jesuit, when visiting someone with
a terminal illness, I just sit and listen to their story. And something
happens — there is a grace that’s given to them and to me. I
experienced this when I was undergoing my chemo treatments.
There is this roomful of patients, including me, and we’re all
telling our stories. We can’t solve each other’s cancer issues, but
we’re listening. It is interesting because a little community begins
to develop. We can laugh and have some fun because we all know
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what we’re going through and we are going through it together. I
think that’s part of being a Jesuit and it relates directly to Jesus —
He listened to people and their stories, and He was able to change
our lives.
Jaynotes: After you graduated from Creighton University in
1998 with a history degree, your first teaching assignment as
a Jesuit took you to the Jesuit High School in Tampa. What was
that like?
Huck: (Laughing) It was the worst year of my life. The boys
knew I was the new teacher and they took advantage of me. They
smelled blood in the water like sharks and they went after me.
That first year of teaching was not easy. But there was something
about being with high school kids that I liked. In my second year,
I became campus minister. I was also in charge of the choir and
the music for the Masses. I enjoyed a variety of experiences during
my four years at Jesuit Tampa.
Jaynotes: But then you returned to your alma mater for your
next assignment.
Huck: I came here for the 2004-05 school year, which was great
because there were several teachers who taught me who were still
here. I understood more about teaching and the result was that I
felt more grounded in the classroom.
Jaynotes: Who were some of those teachers who most
influenced you as a student?
Huck: I started as a freshman and two teachers were very good for
me — Ms. Denise Dupuis taught English and Ms. Rosalyn Kreller
taught social studies. (Ms. Kreller is known as Mrs. Rosalyn
Moreau; she the wife of Jesuit athletic director Dave Moreau and
still teaches social studies.) I was a new student and they were
caring and encouraging. In my sophomore English class, Mr. Tim
Murphy was a stern disciplinarian, but we could have fun with
him and learn at the same time. (Mr. Murphy ’XX today serves
as executive director of Manresa.) Ms. (Kathy) Tomeny made
geometry come alive. I remind her every now and then that she
gave me my one and only PH in the four years I was here — for
not having my nametag. She was following the rule and she was
right. It wasn’t personal. I’ve given PHs for the same thing. In fact,
when I was in Ireland for my Tertianship, three kids got PH after
I informed Top (Abshire, Jesuit’s prefect of discipline) that they
were posting to Facebook from their phones on campus. [laughs]
Jaynotes: What inspired you to teach high school boys?
Huck: It’s funny, but a lot of teachers don’t particularly enjoy
teaching sophomores. It’s not specific only at Jesuit. Sophomores
are a tough group because they’re in between. They’re no longer
these innocent freshmen or pre-freshmen. Their hormones are
raging. They think they know everything, yet they don’t know
much of anything. They are rebellious, they think they are adults,
and they don’t want to listen to mom and dad anymore. These are
all the reasons why I love teaching the sophomores. As much as I
try to teach them, I’m always surprised by how much they teach
me about life, about love, and about being a person of compassion.
At the same time, they want discipline. They’ll never admit it, but
they appreciate fairness and discipline.
Jaynotes: You spent most of the 2009-10 school year in Ireland
completing your Tertianship?
Huck: I was based in Dublin for eight and a half months and in
Edinburgh, Scotland for the final two and a half months. I worked
with the homeless as part of my Tertianship program. Tertianship
is a time to make the 30-day retreat once again, and to review
the constitutions and way of life of the Society of Jesus. I realized
6 JAYNotes
the Society’s formation process actually works. I saw how my life
had been deeply integrated into the ways that we’re supposed to
be living as Jesuits. My Tertianship was a very confirming and
affirming time of my life as a Jesuit. I’m in the right place and I’m
doing what the Lord wants me to do.
Jaynotes: How did you deal with students you knew were
having trouble outside of school?
Huck: They may not say anything about their family life if their
parents are going through a separation or divorce. It’s a tough
time for everyone, especially for the kids who try to patch up their
family, which may not happen. You’re there for them. I’ve enjoyed
getting to know them outside of the classroom. I moderated the
Student Council for three years and was the tennis coach for
two years. I did a lot of retreats and got to know them in these
different contexts and situations. They got to know me differently.
Hopefully, they saw the more human side of me, that I’m not
perfect, and I can share my imperfections with them. We’re
all imperfect. God doesn’t want us to be perfect, but we’re still
loved. Many kids have a hard time accepting that, even some of
the seniors. When I taught the senior prayer class, they so much
realized what they had done wrong that they focused only on
the negatives. I saw the goodness in them, their many gifts and
talents, and how generous and caring they were, but they didn’t or
couldn’t see it themselves..
Jaynotes: Why do you think that is? Is it their home
environment, the crazy world they’re growing up in?
Huck: Many have a hard time expressing their goodness and their
gifts. The majority of the boys don’t want to be showy or arrogant.
They want to be humble. You always have a few exceptions. There
is a simple exercise I’ve done with many students. I ask them to
write a list of all the things they like about themselves. Can they
recognize the giftedness that the Lord has given them? And the
kids can usually list two or three things quickly, but it becomes
difficult. They take a long time to come up with a list of 10 things
they like about themselves.
Jaynotes: Did you also ask them to compile a list of what they
don’t especially like about themselves?
Huck: Yes, and that’s a very easy list to make because they are
very much aware of their imperfections and their sinfulness. But
spending too much time dwelling on imperfections is not healthy.
It’s not good spiritually. I would tell my students, “When you
spend time sitting with the Lord, let the Lord show you your
giftedness. By doing so, it helps you to see how good a person
you really are, and how you can help other people and share your
goodness with them. What you do, and do well, you do most of
the time.” Basically, God wants us to be loving, compassionate,
and forgiving.
Jaynotes: Over the years, have some of the Jesuit students
sought help with personal problems and confided in you?
Huck: When you spend time with them outside of school just
talking, you pick up things which start adding up. “Ah, that’s it,
that explains it,” whether it’s something good or something they’re
struggling with. Now I understand how to help the person a little
bit better. But it’s hard because I’m a student’s teacher. I am not
their friend. I am an adult to the student, an authority figure, but
one, hopefully, as compassionate and caring as a parent would be
towards their children. There are always a few kids who I’ve taught
and have graduated in which a friendship developed. One of the
good things is, they feel much freer to tell you something insightful
because they’re no longer students here and can’t get in trouble.
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“Sophomores are a tough
group because they’re in
between. They’re no longer
these innocent freshmen
or pre-freshmen. Their
hormones are raging. They
think they know everything,
yet they don’t know much
of anything.…These are the
reasons why I love teaching
the sophomores.”
Jaynotes: As a Jesuit brother today, and looking back some
25 years ago when you were a student, what are some of the
similarities and differences that pop into your mind?
Huck: The same spirit, the same camaraderie, the solid academics,
the same caring of the students by the teachers — all that is
still there. One of the differences is good, but it comes with a
downside. The number of clubs and organizations that Jesuit
offers its students today is unbelievable compared to when I was
here. These clubs, sports, and co-curricular activities give our kids
many options along with the means to find their own niche and
to form their own little communities within Jesuit while fostering
friendships outside of class. However, the downside in becoming
so involved is where is their free time? Where is their down time?
Where is their time to be with their own family? The boys are
running here and there, and doing this and that. From a religious
aspect, I wonder if our students set aside some time to sit quietly
and reflect and pray about what they are doing in their lives and
how does God and the church fit in?
Jaynotes: Would you agree that the main school building that
was finished some 85 years ago is in the best shape ever?
Huck: Structurally, the buildings and the facilities are in great
shape. Nowhere is that more evident than Jesuit’s nine science
labs, all of them very modern and sophisticated. The central
air conditioning Jesuit installed many years ago eliminated the
humidity problem that caused the paint to peel off the walls in the
hallways and stairwells. Many alumni remember the basement,
which at certain times of the year, was covered in a layer of dew.
If you wanted to sit during lunch, you either sat on the wet floor,
or sat on your jacket or bookbag which became wet. Fr. McGinn
deserves a lot of credit because what he has accomplished in terms
of improving the facilities is unbelievable. The facilities were
already very good when I arrived the year before Katrina. He had
brought everything up to par over the course of his presidency.
Then Katrina forced him to do it again. The entire first floor had
to be redone, and he had to find the money to pay for it. The
Jesuit auditorium had just been renovated the year before Katrina,
and it had to be redone all over again.
Jaynotes: What are you reading these days?
Huck: I recently dabbled in a book called the God of Surprises (by
Gerard W. Hughes; Darton, Longman & Todd Ltd; 3rd edition;
January 1, 2008). I read it a chapter at a time and then reflected
and prayed. After my surgery last summer, I read several of the
“Big J Read” books — The Great Divorce (by C.S. Lewis); Season
of Life: A Football Star, a Boy, and a Journey to Manhood (by Jeffrey
Marx); and, The Shadow of His Wings: The True Story of Fr. Gereon
Goldmann, OFM (by Gereon Goldmann).
Jaynotes: What music are you listening to on your iPod?
Huck: A mixture of stuff — oldies from the ’50s and ’60s, and
classical. I’m usually into light rock. That explains why I have the
Forrest Gump soundtrack. I was never into ACDC, head banging
music, or rap.
Jaynotes: What is your favorite food?
Huck: Oh, I’ll eat anything. After this interview, I’m meeting my
pathologist at Parkway, so I’ll probably have a shrimp poor boy. I
will say this much — having spent a year in Ireland and Scotland,
the food over there is terrible, especially compared to our culinary
standards in New Orleans. It’s bland — meat, potatoes, cabbage,
lamb, mutton, and no spice on anything.
Jaynotes: Do you have any advice for Fr. (Raymond) Fitzgerald,
S.J. ’76, who becomes the next president of Jesuit High School
at the end of this school term?
Huck: Fr. Fitzgerald will do very well at Jesuit. The job he had
at the province office involved a lot of human resource issues,
which should help him tremendously in dealing with the
academic and administrative aspects of running the school, as
well as understanding how the care of teachers and staff can best
be accomplished. He’s very bright and efficient and has a good
sense of the fund raising side. He knows the city, its people, Jesuit
alumni, and he understands our students. Fr. Fitzgerald has a
different personality than Fr. McGinn and will do things his own
way. He will bring his own personal touches to the job. My one
word of advice would be: let God guide you and remind you that
you are not alone to do the job. n
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John Charbonnet ’54
Honored as
2010 Alumnus of the Year
John D. Charbonnet, a 1954 graduate of Jesuit High School whose distinguished
civic endeavors and notable accomplishments in the volunteer arena have
benefitted numerous non-profit organizations, foundations, and schools in
New Orleans, was honored as Alumnus of the Year for 2010.
The award is given annually to an outstanding
alumnus who is recognized for his achievements and
distinguished service, either to Jesuit or the community-at-large,
and in many instances, both. Charbonnet received the award at
Homecoming Mass for Jesuit alumni on Sunday, October 10 in
the Chapel of the North American Martyrs.
“This award is long overdue for John, who has quietly, but
effectively, dedicated his life to helping those less fortunate in our
community,” said Fr. Anthony McGinn, S.J., president of Jesuit
High School. “In the early 1980s, John’s expertise in construction,
along with his poised guidance and unwavering support, were
crucial factors in Jesuit successfully converting a large portion
of the Jesuits’ Banks Street residence into a contemporary
environment for faculty and students. John’s efforts resulted in
Jesuit sporting an administrative wing classic in its design and
8 JAYNotes
multi-dimensional in its use.”
When Fr. McGinn informed him that he had been selected
as Alumnus of the Year, Charbonnet said he initially thought there
must have been a mistake. “I know what Tony McGinn’s voice
sounded like, but I still didn’t think he had the right Blue Jay,”
said a surprised Charbonnet. “When I later called Jesuit and they
congratulated me, it began to sink in.”
In characteristic humble fashion, Charbonnet added that the
Alumnus of the Year honor is a manifestation of his community
service “as we were all taught at Jesuit High School to give back
and help others.”
Charbonnet holds undergraduate and master’s degrees in civil
engineering from Tulane University. He served two years on active
duty as a commissioned officer in the Civil Engineering Corps of
the United States Navy.
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Jesuit’s 2010 Alumnus of the Year
Lives by the Motto Pro Bono Publico
At Homecoming Mass in October, Jesuit president Fr.
Anthony McGinn, S.J. ’66 introduced the 2010 Alumnus
of the Year with these words...
At the annual Alumnus of the Year dinner, former Blue Jays
who have been honored pay tribute to John Charbonnet ’54.
In top left photo, Charbonnet talks with Hon. Moon Landrieu
’48, who was Alumnus of the Year in 1970.
His professional career as a licensed general contractor
spans nearly 50 years with two closely held companies,
Marsiglia Construction Company, where he was vice-president,
and his own firm, Charbonnet Construction Company, of
which he was president. He also served as the chief executive
officer of the Foster Corporation, a Chalmette-based company
that specializes in the manufacture of custom sewn fabric
products such as tarps and covers.
Charbonnet reigned as Rex, King of Carnival at the
1988 Mardi Gras. In 1992, the Young Leadership Council
recognized him as one of its Role Models for the citizens of
New Orleans.
Charbonnet is married to the former Dorothy Nelle Storey.
He and Dottie have three children: John D. Charbonnet, Jr.
’83; J. Storey Charbonnet ’85; and, Anne Charbonnet Goliwas.
The Charbonnets have a total of eight grandchildren. n
Read the entire article and visit the Alumnus of the Year
Archives on Jesuit’s web site: http://www.jesuitnola.org/alumni/
Alumnus_of_Year_Master_Archive_Home_2008-10-16.htm.
Very early on when I became president of Jesuit High
School, I had a conversation with our 1964 Alumnus of the Year,
(Leon Sarpy), who was a graduate of the Class of 1924. That
conversation clarified for me very important principles of Jesuit
High School — how important it is to maintain the continuity.
His experience from 1924 to my experience when I was a student
to my experience (when I became president) in 1992, there was a
tremendous sense of continuity.
Although many things had changed, the basics remained
the same — a tremendous sense of continuity through the years at
Jesuit High School. I became convinced that the number one job
description of president of Jesuit High School is to preserve the
continuity amid the change.
I see before me the Class of 1985, who I knew as 15-yearolds, and today, as parents of students of Jesuit High School.
They are still the 15-year-olds they once were, but they have
changed and grown and developed. That is the great grace that
God has given to them, a great consolation to me personally,
and for all of us at Jesuit High School — to see people grow and
develop.
I can’t say the same thing about the Class of ’60, because
they were a bit ahead of me. You know one of the realities that
we face here at Jesuit High School in this day is every year we
get closer to the front, which is a day of reckoning for us and the
Class of ’60.
Talking about continuity, and as I come to acknowledge the
great gift that John Charbonnet has been to Jesuit High School
and to the City of New Orleans, I noted his civic leadership, and
particularly the leadership he exercised in 1991 and 1992 when
he led the effort to maintain continuity in our city while still
accepting change.
We live by mottos in our lives. Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam, of
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course, is a great motto for us at Jesuit
High School. There is also a motto that
John Charbonnet lives by — Pro Bono
Publico, which he has displayed in his
civic leadership and in the many ways
in which he’s helped people through
the years serving on various boards
and non-profits. Pro Bono Publico — to
maintain the continuity in the midst of
the challenge of change. And for that,
we are grateful as fellow graduates of
Jesuit High School, but also as citizens
of New Orleans for his leadership in
many civic areas.
Jesuit High School is a place of
great continuity, but great change. In
the early 1980s, (Jesuit’s president) Fr.
Harry Tompson (S.J. ’54) saw that we
needed to preserve the school building
as a way of maintaining continuity.
But there needed to be changes.
Through John Charbonnet, and with
help from Charlie Gambel (’55) who
is here today, a project was led by them
to provide 10 extra classrooms and new
facilities for administration, staff, and
the guidance department by renovating
the Jesuit residence and the second
floor of the school building. That
tremendous renovation was a change
for us, but always intended to provide
the continuity that we needed going
forward.
I’m very grateful to John, as I saw
him during those years in the great
effort that he made to be not just an
engineer, but also a friend, a leader, a
guide, a comforter, and a challenger in
those difficult tasks that he and Charlie
Gambel both had back in 1981 and ’82.
So without any further hesitation,
I am pleased to present to you our
2010 recipient of the Alumnus of the
Year Award from the Class of 1954,
John Charbonnet. n
In his address at Homecoming Mass last October, 2010 Alumnus of the Year
John Charbonnet ’54 recalled when he was a young freshman Blue Jay back
in 1950, he was not particularly enamored of Jesuit High School. Along the
way, Charbonnet learned something important that has served him well
throughout his life.
This is really intimidating, but I can’t thank Father McGinn enough. I want very
much to thank all of the guys who have joined me over the years in working on the
(construction) projects, not only here at Jesuit but also throughout the city. I want to thank
Dottie, who stayed with me as my wife of 50 years, and our family and friends for being
with us today.
We were taught at Jesuit High School to be “men for others,” and taking that
very little statement and trying to live by it has really worked. I have to tell you a little
experience that I had here at Jesuit High School.
I graduated from St. Rita’s School (on Fontainebleau Drive), came to Jesuit, and
suddenly realized I was in a big world. I was not a particularly good student and was put
in Class 1F — that’s the bottom of the bottom. After a couple of months at Jesuit, I came
home one day and told my father I really didn’t like this place. I wanted to get out of Jesuit
and go anywhere else. “Tell you what, we’re not even gonna’ have this conversation,” my
dad said, quickly adding, “My suggestion to you is that you work as hard as you can for
the next four years so you don’t extend your unhappiness.”
With the assistance of the Jesuits, I made it out on time. I went to Tulane University,
earned a couple of degrees in engineering, and joined the Civil Engineer Corps of the U.S.
Navy.
What worked in my life is that I learned discipline. I learned how to discipline myself
here at Jesuit High School, and I want to thank all of you (Jesuits) for that. New Orleans
is extremely fortunate to have had, since 1847 when this school was established, a high
school run by the Jesuit order. It has assisted many of us in becoming real men. So again, I
thank you all for everything.
And not to be cute, but pay attention to today’s Gospel and listen to what Father
McGinn said in his homily.
I have only one word in closing — Hallelujah! n
Following Mass, the Charbonnet Family joins the Alumnus of the Year in front of the
altar. From left are sons Storey ’85 and Jack ’83; John and Dottie Charbonnet; and,
daughter Anne Charbonnet Goliwas, her husband, Billy, and their son, Walter.
10 JAYNotes
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At a Student Assembly, Jesuit’s Alumnus of the Year
Offers Simple Advice
Gentlemen: Congratulations on being Blue Jays!
I, also, am a Blue Jay. And I am very fortunate to be
chosen as Jesuit’s 2010 Alumnus of the Year.
You are attending the best high school in New Orleans and, I
believe, the best in the Gulf South. We are fortunate to have had
the Jesuits open this school in our city in 1847. Several generations
of our families and friends have had this privilege. Now, it is your
turn. You are quite lucky. Please take advantage of your time here
at Jesuit.
As you grow older, you will realize what you experienced here
at Jesuit was the development of young boys into men, and that
this education has prepared you for life.
I came here from a local parochial school and found Jesuit
hard and tough. I was put into a class at the bottom of the bottom,
not an accelerated program. I wanted to go to another school.
My father would not even discuss the subject. His advice was for
me to study hard, try to get out in four years, and not extend my
unhappiness. I woke up in my junior year, improved my grades,
followed the rules, and graduated on time. At Tulane, I earned a
masters degree in engineering and then served as a Commissioned
BACK
TO BANKS!
This annual fun celebration
coincides with Homecoming
activities and always attracts
Blue Jays and fans across the
Jesuit community.
Officer in the U. S. Navy.
At Jesuit, I was a little,
skinny guy and not an athlete.
However, I did earn two
letters at Jesuit — one was P
and the other was H. Penance
Hall was my homeroom. Poor
Father Heiter was the prefect of
discipline, and he got tired of
John Charbonnet’s senior
seeing me. One day, he gave me
photo in the 1954 Yearbook
a scapular medal and told me if
I wore it every day, maybe Mary
the Blessed Mother would look after me, as I needed all the help I
could get. That was 57 years ago. Today, I still wear that medal.
In addition to receiving a fine academic education at Jesuit,
you learn responsibility, integrity, honesty, and morality. What it
all comes down to, in my opinion, is that you learn to discipline
yourself and follow the rules set down by your parents, or
guardians, and what you were taught here at Jesuit.
Again, congratulations! You are all Blue Jays! n
There are always surprises at Back to
Banks, including football players, kids
sporting their favorite Blue Jay faces,
Jayettes Blaire Roeling and Taylor
Turkman, and a most enthusiastic (and
one of the loudest) Jesuit fan, Buddy
Lazare ’43.
Check out the two Back to Banks
photo galleries: http://www.jesuitnola.
org/alumni/BacktoBanks_2010_
PG2_100910.htm
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Dr. Frank Incaprera ’44 is director of
medicine for the Guardian Medical Group
in Elmwood Business Park off Jefferson
Highway. Frank was recently interviewed
on a cable program, Business Spotlight,
about the services provided by Guardian,
which include servicing the area businesses
with pre-employment physicals and drugtesting, post-work related accident physicals
and drug testing, and administering flu
shots to employees. Guardian’s medical
services include urgent care, physical
exams, preventative medicine, and pain
management. Also available is weight
loss therapy, psychiatric care and massage
therapy. The clinic also provides cosmetic
services and procedures on an out patient
basis.
Frank Birtel, Ph. D. ’48 is on the faculty
at Tulane University for several decades,
mostly as a mathematics professor. For the
past 25-plus years, he has also been deeply
involved in the science-faith framework. He
taught several colloquia at Tulane on the
topic, including Science and Human Values,
God and Science, and God and the JudaeoChristian Experiment.
Edgar Saunders ’51 plays the banjo in
the Orleans Original Jazz Ensemble. “We
play for civic events, charitable events,
retirement homes and private parties”, says
Edgar, who serves as a faithful volunteer for
the fall and spring LEF phone drives.
Dick Lochte ’54
has teamed up with
Al Roker of NBC’s
Today Show to
co-write two murder
mystery novels. The
Morning Show
Murders: A Novel
came out in
September 2010.
Their latest is The Midnight Show Murders:
A Billy Blessing Novel. In an interview to
promote the first book, Roker says he did
not have “an iota of a way to write” so he
teamed up with Dick, who he describes as
“a terrific murder mystery writer” who
helped him crank the book out. Dick, who
lives in Santa Monica, is the author and
co-author of several mystery books and
novels. Check him out on amazon.com.
12 JAYNotes
Earl Higgins ’59 has a whimsical new
book out about the streets of Metairie.
Metairie, Ames, High: The Streets of Jefferson
Parish is a companion to Frenchmen, Desire,
Goodchildren and Other Streets of New
Orleans by the late cartoonist John Chase.
Earl says his newest book is lighthearted,
in a style similar to one he wrote two
years ago — The Joy of Y ’at Catholicism.
“There are history and geography and
the origin of names and even a chapter
about dendrology, streets named for
trees,” says Earl. “From Bucktown on
Lake Pontchartrain
to Grand Isle on
the Gulf, there are
many, many streets,
some with interesting
names, some with
dull and ordinary
names that could be
in Anywhere, USA.”
Readers will discover
Hooter Road in Nine
Mile Point and streets
with names in Latin, Spanish, Provencal,
Italian, Tagalog, German, and Greek. “Do
you know where Elvis Court is?” asks Earl.
“Was it named for The King? You can
learn a lot of trivia.” Find the book at local
stores and Pelican Publishing: http://www.
pelicanpub.com/default.asp.
John Berthelot ’60 released a CD last
year called John Berthelot (The Maestro)
which is a retrospective of compositions,
arrangements, and productions of 19
diverse songs. John was a member of the
Blue Jay Band from 1956-1960 when it was
under the direction of Mr. Salvadore
Castigliora. John’s CD on Great Southern
Records is available from
www.louisianamusicfactory.com.
Jay Conner ’61
recently completed
a trip to China
where he took the
relatively new 48hour train trip to
Lhasa, Tibet and
continuing on to
the base camp at
Mt. Everest. Jay
approached a group
(Summiteers) that was preparing to climb
the mountain and asked if they would
mind placing a Jesuit Blue Jay banner when
they reached the summit. Jay claims he was
told that Fr. Harry Tompson, S.J. ’54
had already arranged for such a banner to
be placed at the summit. “Besides, it was
well known among the Summiteers that the
Jesuits have banners at much higher places
than the summit of Mt. Everest,” writes Jay.
Tom Kitchen ’65 is president and CEO
of Stewart Enterprises, Inc. Prior to his
promotion, Tom was Stewart’s senior
executive vice president and chief financial
officer. He is not unfamiliar with the
responsibilities that conme with his new
position, having served as Stewart’s acting
CEO between June 2006 and March 2007.
Tom, who is a CPA, is a longtime member
of the President’s Advisory Council (PAC)
at Jesuit High School. He also serves on
Jesuit’s board of directors. Perhaps it is
fitting that another Blue Jay, Lew Derbes,
Jr. ’89, has been tapped to fill Tom’s
shoes. Derbes, also a CPA, joined Stewart
in 2005 as the company’s treasurer. Lew
most recently served as Stewart’s senior vice
president of finance. Stewart Enterprises
currently owns and operates 218 funeral
homes and 141 cemeteries, making the
Jefferson Parish-based company the second
largest provider of products and services
related to the death care industry.
Rick Ortega ’71 is a chemical engineer
with Lyondellbasell Chemical Co. and lives
in Clear Lake, TX with his wife, Marcy,
and their daughter Tracy. Rick writes
that in cooler months, the family enjoys
camping at any of the numerous Texas state
parks. He also gigs with a nine-piece band
as often as possible.
Ralph Dwyer ’73 is enjoying more
than ever his career as a civil engineer for
HNTB Corporation, an employee-owned
infrastructure firm serving federal, state,
municipal, military, and private clients.
Ralph, who has been working and living
in Chicago for the past five years, writes
animatedly of his recent projects: “I’ve
added ‘Open Road Tolling’ to the Illinois
Tollway, put a 2800-foot extension on
O’Hare’s busiest runway, put a green roof
on the world’s largest rapid-sand water
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filtration plant, and now I’m relocating
all the sewer and water lines on Lower
Wacker Drive (think Blues Brothers or the
latest Batman movie) in preparation for
reconstruction of the viaduct. All for the
Greater Glory of God! The Lord has truly
blessed me with fantastic opportunities in
my civil engineering career. I’ll just keep
suckin’ the heads and squeezin’ the tails.
Laissez les bon temps rouler! ”
Blair Brown ’74, whose grandfather was
Coach Gernon Brown, was elected a Fellow
of the American College of Trial Lawyers.
Blair is a partner in the law firm of
Zuckerman Spaeder LLP in Washington,
DC, where his practice focuses on white
collar criminal defense and complex civil
litigation. Blair also serves on the Boards of
Directors of the Southern Public Defender
Training Center and the National
Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.
He and his wife, Susan, live in Takoma
Park, MA
Casey Collins ’77 (above right) is chief of
staff at the Joint Task Force Civil Support
in Fort Monroe, VA. Casey recently began
his new job after retiring as captain from
the U.S. Navy last August. His 29-year
Navy career included two different tours
commanding EA-6B aircraft squadrons and
a tour commanding Naval Support Activity
in Norfolk, VA. “I have more than 3,000
flight hours in the EA-6B Prowler and 930
arrested landings (traps) on ten different
aircraft carriers,” writes Casey. “I was very
fortunate that RADM (Rear Admiral)
David Woods, who I met when we were
students together in flight school 29 years
ago, came down from Washington, D.C.
to conduct my retirement ceremony. My
sons — Chris, Ben, and John — and I still
live in Virginia Beach.” The Joint Task
Force Civil Support’s mission is part of the
Department of Defense’s overall effort to
support a presidential directive regarding
combating terrorism.
Rodney Lenfant ’80 is vice president for
Accretive Solutions, a national consulting
and executive search firm. He is focusing
on building a finance and accounting
consulting practice in Houston. Rodney
recently retired after 24 years of public
accounting in the audit practice at Deloitte
to join forces with Accretive. Rodney
pens this update: “I’m a regular speaker
on a variety of accounting topics at CPA
seminars across the Gulf Coast, participate
actively as a board member at the Houston
Downtown YMCA, and have just been
named to the Audit Committee at Catholic
Health Initiatives, the third largest Catholic
health system in the U.S. One day, I’d like
to teach in college, but for now, I’m having
fun doing what I’m doing.” Rodney added
that he is looking forward to the first pitch
at John Ryan Field.
Brian Quirk ’80, who is the managing
partner of the law firm of Irwin Fritchie
Urquhart & Moore, L.L.C., was recently
elected president of the New Orleans Bar
Association. CityBusiness selected Brian
as one of 50 attorneys to its “Leadership
in Law Class for 2011.” The newspaper
honored lawyers in the metro area based on
their legal, professional, and community
contributions. Brian and his wife,
Katherine, live in New Orleans with their
three children, ages 11, 9, and 7.
Glenn Geraci, Jr. ’84 was recently elected
to a term to serve on the Board of Directors
for Pivot Ministries in Bridgeport, CT
which is a Christ-centered, bible-based
ministry for men, whose mission is to treat
drug and alcohol addiction as a spiritual
problem, and to return the men to their
families whole.”
Marc Miller ’84 was recently promoted
to sergeant for Georgia’s Dekalb County
Police Department, where he has completed
his ninth year as a police officer. “Following
in Jesuit style, I am the first in my academy
class to make rank,” writes Marc. “I am
assigned to South precinct on evening
watch.” Dekalb the second largest county
in Georgia and includes the eastern half of
unincorporated Atlanta and surrounding
areas. Marc is a 4th degree knight in
the Knights of Columbus, St. Brigid
Council 13204 in Alpharetta. He lives in
the Atlanta area with his wife and three
children — Jacqueline (10), Bridget (8), and
Owen (5).
Mickey Parenton ’84 will be the vice
president and general manager of Pinnacle
Entertainment, Inc.’s new $357 million
casino and hotel currently being built
in Baton Rouge. The facility’s projected
opening is late 2011. Parenton has more
than 18 years of casino industry experience
and has been serving as Pinnacle’s vice
president of special projects.
John Zollinger ’85 is president of the
Northshore market of Home Bank and
oversees all of the bank’s operations in that
area. Home Bank recently acquired the
assets of Statewide Bank from the FDIC.
Jamie Lagarde, Jr. ’89 is the chief
operating officer at AdRevolution, an
Austin-based company that provides digital
media technology to publishers and on-line
advertisers. Jamie is responsible for the
day-to-day operations of AdRevolution,
including technology development and
revenue generation. Jamie lives in the
downtown section of Austin and currently
serves as president of the Downtown Austin
Neighborhood Association.
Jason Hemel ’92 is the vice president of
development at St. Margaret’s Healthcare,
a home for elderly citizens needing skilled
nursing and custodial care. The facility is
located on St. Claude Avenue at Gallier
Street.
Ryan Thibodaux ’92 was named to
Gambit’s “40 under 40” list of local people
who are making a difference in their
community. According to Gambit, Ryan
“splits his time between blowing the horn,
riding bikes, and pulling teeth.” As an
original member of the Bucktown AllStars band, he plays the trumpet. Ryan
rides his bike to his family dental office on
Causeway Blvd in Metairie.
Fall/Winter 2010 – 11 13
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Ben Grau ’93 and his family have
returned to New Orleans after spending
five years in Dallas… no thanks to Katrina.
Ben is an attorney with the law firm of
Galloway, Johnson, Tompkins, Burr &
Smith, APLC.
Collyn Martinez ’93 and his company,
Colorsmith, are working on decorative
finishes for the new Superior Seafood
restaurant to give it an old world ambience.
The restaurant is located at Napoleon and
St. Charles and will revitalize a corner that
has been dormant since Katrina.
Frank Rabalais ’93 recently began his
third year as a tax credit consultant with
New Orleans-based Crescent Growth
Capital. Frank and his family — Cynthia
Steward, his wife of eight years, and their
seven year-old daughter Sophie — live in
Mid-City, not too far from Jesuit, which
conjures up fond memories when he drives
past the school, an almost daily occurrence.
Brett Estrade ’95 is a senior researcher
for the University of Houston’s computer
science department and his wife, Cynthia, is
a veterinarian in Houston’s downtown area.
The Estrade family lives in Sugarland, south
of the Big H. (See their entry in Bib Notes).
John-Patrick Fritz ’97 is a bankruptcy
lawyer in Los Angeles. His brother,
Andrew ’99, is a financial analyst in
Boston. Andrew is married with an
21-month-old daughter.
Bryan Hymel, Jr. ’97 (above) has taken
on the biggest role of his acting career and
stars in the lead role of Don José in Carmen
in 3-D, the first opera filmed in spectacular
3-D. The movie is currently playing in Real
3D theaters around the country. A co14 JAYNotes
production of RealD and London’s Royal
Opera House, Carmen in 3-D gives viewers
the best seats in the house, taking them on
a magic carpet ride into the heart of the
production and immersing them into an
exciting story of love, jealousy, and betrayal.
According to the movie’s web site, “Carmen
in 3-D is a dazzling film, filled with some
of the best-loved music ever written and
performed by a world-class cast.” The
movie is in French with English subtitles
and is the perfect event for life-long opera
fans and first-timers alike. Hymel is loyal
to his alma mater and his city, and always
proudly wears his Jesuit ring.
www.carmen3d.com.
Michael Zeringue ’97 joined
Ponchartrain Bone and Joint Clinic in
August 2010 in Metairie and Destrehan.
He completed medical school and a
public health degree at Tulane School of
Medicine and School of Public Health.
Michael then completed his residency and
fellowship training at John Peter Smith
Hospital in Fort Worth and University
of Texas Southwestern in Dallas. He
is board certified in interventional
pain management/ sports medicine/
family medicine. Two of his partners
at Pontchartrain Bone and Joint Clinic
include fellow Blue Jay alumni Dr. John
Burvant ’80 (son Brian is a current Blue
Jay) and Dr. Charlie Haddad ’91.
Ray Gruezke ’00 recently opened Rue
127, a gourmet restaurant just a bit more
than two blocks from his alma mater. Ray
serves as chef/owner of this addition to the
hot Mid-City restaurant scene.
Bear Peterson ’00 is passionate about
yoga! He is the founder and CEO of Yoga
Sherpa, an international travel company
designed specifically for yoga studios
and instructors. The company’s mission
is to improve individuals’ personal wellbeing and foster yoga studios’ sense of
community by coordinating extraordinary
international group yoga retreats to some
of the most beautiful places on the plane.
Bear earned a B.A. in international studies
from Middlebury College and a Masters
in business from Tulane University. He
began practicing yoga with Prem Prakash
in Vermont 11 years ago and has always
appreciated the
many benefits of
yoga. Bear has
lived, worked,
travelled, and
practiced yoga
in over 20
countries. When
he is not
traveling around
the globe,
home is still New Orleans. http://www.
yogasherpa.com/index.php.
Craig Paddock ’02 has a new CD of six
songs produced by classmate Eric Heigle.
www.craigpaddockmusic.com.
Ryan Favret ’03 works as a marketing
coordinator for Tulane University’s athletic
program.
Brandon Sanchez ’03 is a reservoir
engineer with Shell Oil Company. He lives
in Metairie and works out of the company’s
New Orleans headquarters in One Shell
Square on Poydras Street.
Sean Somers ’03 is a production
engineer for Chaparral Energy, L.L.C. and
lives and works in Oklahoma City.
Peter “Hill” Dupuy ’04 married Regan
Shackelford on June 12, 2010 at the
Cathedral of Christ the King in Atlanta.
Adam Ganucheau ’04 teaches theology
and journalism at St. Mary’s Academy in
New Orleans.
Michael Gretchen ’05, along with his
classmates Robert Casey and Michael
Tufton, spent five weeks (driving more
than 5,000 km) camping throughout
Australia and New Zealand. The trio
flew to Brisbane, Queensland, where
they rented a camper van and took a road
trip south along Australia’s southeast
coastline to Sydney in New South Wales.
After spending a few days in Sydney,
they continued south toward Melbourne,
Victoria. “On the way to Melbourne, we
stopped in Canberra, Australia’s capital,
where we saw Prime Minister Kevin Rudd
in person,” writes Gretchen. “While we
were only in Canberra for a few hours,
we were able to stop by Parliament and
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sit in the visitor’s gallery of the House of
Representatives where we watched Rudd’s
address. Less than three days later, he was
forced to resign by an uprising in his own
party.” The three Blue Jays then toured
Melbourne and the “stunning Great Ocean
Road” before flying to Christchurch, on the
South Island of New Zealand. “We drove
around the South Island for the final 11
days of our trip,” writes Gretchen, “enjoying
the beautiful scenery and challenging
skiing of Queenstown. (In the photo below,
from left, Robert Casey, Michael Tufton,
and Michael Gretchen ski The Remarkables
near Queenstown, New Zealand.) While
our trip was fantastic, we are particularly
mindful of the natural disasters to befall
both Australia and New Zealand since
we returned. Our prayers are with the
victims of the Christchurch earthquake and
Australia floods that have devastated much
of what we so thoroughly enjoyed.”
Matthew Hobbs ’06 is working in
Atlanta at Think Interactive, Inc., a full
service marketing and advertising agency
that touts its focus on smart thinking,
collaboration, and innovation.
Lars Stoulig
’06 graduated
in the top 100
of his class with
honors from the
United States
Naval Academy
in May 2010. He is training to become a
naval aviator and attends flight school in
Pensacola.
Stephen Duncan ’07 will soon graduate
from LSU Business School, where he
studied international trade and finance. He
plans to pursue an MBA at LSU. Stephen is
a soccer coach for the junior varsity team at
Episcopal High School in Baton Rouge.
Michael Lane ’07 is studying general
business at the University of Alabama
with a graduation date in 2012. Michael is
working at the university’s aquatic center.
Class of ’56 Still Gets Its Luncheon Kicks
LET US KNOW…
Where Y’AT!
You enjoy reading about fellow
Blue Jay alumni and they enjoy reading
about you. Take a moment to tell ’em
WHERE Y’AT!
E-mail the editor: [email protected].
Send one or two high resolution digital
photos. Or mail to Jaynotes, Alumni
Office, Jesuit High School, 4133 Banks
St., New Orleans, LA 70119
Jesuit encourages alumni to contribute
to HFA, LEF, or Scholarships. Your gift to
Jesuit will help the school in many ways.
Go to www.jesuitnola.org and click on
donate online to jesuit.
Nineteen members of the Class of 1956, including one who currently lives in St.
Louis, met at the Bon Ton Restaurant on Magazine Street for lunch just days after
the deaths of two classmates, Richard “Dick” Daigre and Denis Manchon. These
’56ers remain active and supportive, meeting monthly to remain connected to each
other and to Jesuit High School. Each December, the class gathers at a memorial
Mass to remember their deceased classmates.
“We are pleased that many of our classes are choosing to get together between
their five-year reunions for informal luncheons and dinners,” says Jesuit alumni
director Mat Grau ’68. This spring and summer, reunions will be held for classes
ending in 1 and 6. Register for your reunion online on Jesuit’s web site:
http://www.jesuitnola.org/cgi-bin/events.cgi.
At the luncheon, seated from left in the front row, are: Numa Marquette
(Baton Rouge), Tony Bonfanti (Hattiesburg), Pat White (Kenner), and R.J. Schilleci
(Destrehan); seated second row, from left: Ewell Smith (Kenner), Ed Williams (River
Ridge), Frank Courtenay (New Orleans), and Rene Curry (New Orleans)
First row standing, from left: Mickey Landry (Slidell), Louis Menard (St. Louis),
Robert Weilbaecher (New Orleans), Pat Browne (New Orleans), Sam LeBlanc (St.
Francisville), and Tom Arata (Gretna). Back row, from left: George Kreider (Metairie),
Skip Hanemann (Houma), Dave Schof (Kenner), and Larry McNamara (Metairie).
Fall/Winter 2010 – 11 15
LEF
T H E TITLE G O E S H ERE
A total of 227
Jesuit alumni
from 1940 to
2006 responded
to the personal
invitation by
packing
St. Ignatius Hall
for four nights
during October
to connect with
classmates.
Living Endowment Fund:
Results of Fall Drive break records while forging stronger connections
among Jesuit alumni.
Academic counselors at Jesuit invite new Blue Jay students to get
involved early. Raymond “Rocky” Daigle ’85 is setting a shining
example for his son, Alex ’15. Before his eighth grader completed
his first homework assignment, Daigle accepted an invitation from
Fr. Anthony McGinn, S.J. ’66 to serve as chairman of the 2010
- 2011 Living Endowment Fund drive. Jesuit’s president made a
perfect pick.
“Rocky brings great energy to the project and has
wholeheartedly embraced our spirit of personal connection and
meaningful involvement,” says Fr. McGinn.
A total of 227 Jesuit alumni from 1940 to 2006 responded to
the personal invitation by packing St. Ignatius Hall for four nights
during October to connect with classmates. Those calls produced
1,304 pledges totaling $388,160. The average fall pledge was
$304. Since then, the drive has surpassed $1 million in pledges.
“When you’re asked to lead an effort of this magnitude, it
can be frightening at first,” admits Daigle, “but the support I’ve
received from our alums and the assistance I’ve gotten from Fr.
McGinn and Jesuit’s office of institutional advancement, have
16 JAYNotes
made for an incredibly satisfying and memorable experience.”
Daigle reminds alumni that this year’s LEF Drive began July 1,
2010 and ends June 30, 2011.
Changes, some of them suggested by alumni, have made
calling classmates easier and more meaningful than ever.
“Rocky and past chairmen suggested streamlining and preprioritizing the cards used for calling,” explains Tom Bagwill,
who is Jesuit’s director of institutional advancement, “and young
alums recommended reconfiguring St. Ignatius Hall for wireless
capability. The new ideas paid big dividends.”
“Wouldn’t it be great if my son Alex is invited to lead LEF
one day?” Daigle wonders. At Jesuit, that sort of thing can happen,
and often does. n
Alumni may pledge or donate online to the LEF drive: http://
www.jesuitnola.org/about/Donate_Online_to_JHS_Template.
htm.
Check to see how your class is doing so far: http://www.
jesuitnola.org/alumni/fund.htm.
J E S U ITALT U
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Those calls produced 1,304
pledges totaling $388,160.
The average fall pledge
was $304. Since then,
the drive has surpassed
$1 million in pledges.
Mr. and Mrs. Nicholas S. Matulich, Jr. ’68
on the birth of their grandson, Jacques PierreClaude Meyer, December 22, 2010.
Mr. and Mrs. Leonard A. Young, Jr. ’86 on
the birth of their son, Nolan Randolph Young,
February 22, 2010. Nolan is the grandson of the
David B. Lester ’59 and the nephew of D. Brent
Lester ’87 and James R. Young ’89.
Mr. and Mrs. Darin C. Boue ’90 on the birth
of their daughter, Sofia Marcelle Boue, on
November 16, 2010.
Mr. and Mrs. David J. Mitchell, Jr. ’91 on
the birth of their second daughter, Sedona Faye
Mitchell, September 24, 2010.
Mr. and Mrs. Michael F. Pou ’92 on the
birth of their daughter, Virginia Josephine Pou,
December 6, 2010. Virginia is the niece of
Manelik F. Pou ’93.
Mr. and Mrs. Cory J. Howat ’93 on the birth
of their son, James Francis Howat, December
20, 2010. James is the nephew of Carl J. Howat
’89, Craig J. Howat ’90, and Chad A. Howat
’92.
Mr. and Mrs. Neill O’Connell ’93 on the birth
of their third daughter, Evelyn O’Connell,
November 10, 2010.
Mr. and Mrs. Brett D. Estrade ’95 on the
birth of their daughter, Camille Dominique
Estrade, January 20, 2010. Camille is the
granddaughter of Stuart R. Estrade ’62 and the
niece of Matthew W. Estrade ’95 and Grant M.
Estrade ’98.
Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan G. Kowalski ’95 on
the birth of their son, Theodore Kowalski,
March 10, 2010. Theodore is the nephew of
Christopher J. Kowalski ’91.
Mr. and Mrs. Kurt Offner ’95 on the birth of
their second son, Evan Louis Offner, May 30,
2010. Evan is the nephew of Eric P. Offner ’98.
birth of their son, Miles Daniel Martiny,
February 9, 2011. He is the nephew of Jeffrey D.
Martiny ’01 and Steven A. Martiny ’04.
Mr. and Mrs. Paul V. Saltaformaggio ’96
on the birth of their son, Philip Vincent
Saltaformaggio, December 27, 2010. Philip is
the grandson of the late Edward J. Ludman ’41
and the nephew of David J. Saltaformaggio ’00.
Dr. and Mrs. Ryan M. Truxillo ’96 on the
birth of their son, Jude Ryan Truxillo, January
12, 2011. Jude is the great-grandson of the late
Marion M. Truxillo ’32 and the late Emile
A. Bertucci, Jr. ’37; the grandson of Bryan J.
Bertucci ’68 and M. Mark Truxillo ’71; and,
the nephew of Kevin F. Truxillo ’99, Bryan J.
Bertucci ’99, Stephen M. Bertucci ’01, Nicholas
T. Bertucci ’03, and Matthew B. Bertucci ’05.
Mr. and Mrs. Matthew J. Welch ’96 on the
birth of their son, Christopher James Welch.
Christopher is the godson and nephew of Mark
E. Welch ’99.
Mr. and Mrs. Stephen M. Pesce ’97 on
the birth of their son, William Joseph Pesce,
January 14, 2011. William is the great-grandson
of the late Harry N. Charbonnet ’36; the
grandson of George G. Pesce III ’63 and John J.
Dardis ’59; and, the nephew of John J. Dardis,
Jr. ’88, William C. Dardis ’90, Douglas M.
Pesce ’92, and Stephen P. Dardis ’97.
Mr. and Mrs. Geoffrey C. Pizzaloto ’98 on the
birth of their daughter, Ainsley Mae Pizzaloto,
August 12, 2010.
Mr. and Mrs. Keith G. Jenkins ’99 on the
birth of their son, Konnor Joseph Jenkins,
August 6, 2010.
Mr. and Mrs. Ryan D. Martiny ’99 on the
Dr. and Mrs. Raymond G. Areaux, Jr. ’00 on
the birth of their daughter, Eleanore Charlotte
Areaux, December 23, 2010.
Mr. and Mrs. Joseph M. Cardwell ’00 on the
birth of their son, Landon George Cardwell,
June 25, 2010. Landon is the nephew of Wesley
S. Cardwell ’96.
Mr. and Mrs. Christian C. Higgins ’00 on the
birth of their son, Austin Earl Higgins, January
3, 2011. Austin is the grandson of Earl J.
Higgins ’59 and the nephew of Sean M. Higgins
’92 and Matthew B. Higgins ’96.
Mr. and Mrs. Brandon M. Mohr ’00 on
the birth of their son, Cullen Michael Mohr,
November 19, 2010.
Mr. and Mrs. Stephen George Pivach ’00 on
the birth of their son, Charles Nolan Pivach,
September 27, 2010. Charles is the grandson of
George Pivach II ’73 and the nephew of John E.
Pivach ’06.
Mr. and Mrs. R. Dan Serio, Jr. ’01 on the
birth of their son, Richard Daniel Serio III,
January 4, 2011. He is the great-great-grandson
of the late Daniel Levy, Sr. ’20 and the greatgrandson of the late Daniel Levy, Jr. ’41.
Send Biblist info to: Krista Roeling (roeling@
jesuitnola.org) and she will send you a blue or
pink Blue Jay bib!
Fall/Winter 2010 – 11 17
I N M E M O RIA M
Each edition of Jaynotes lists those members of the Jesuit High School community
who have died. Please remember our recently deceased in your prayers.
Lawrence J. Cristina, Sr. ’34; Numa Livaudais,
Jr. ’34; Charles J. Derbes, Jr. ’37; Edward J.
Harrigan ’38; Rev. Thomas M. Gillin, S.J. ’39;
William J. Oldenburg ’39; John Dane, Jr. ’40;
Paul J. Rau ’40; Bryon J. Berteau ’41; Sidney F.
Hecker ’42; Adolphe W. Indest, Jr. ’43; Harry
S.H. Verlander, Jr. ’43; Jack P. Ruli ’44; David
P. Banowetz ’45; Rev. John F. Deeves, S.J. ’45;
George H. VanGeffen ’45; Ronald F. Fontana
’46; John K. Golden ’46; Michael J. LeBoeuf,
Jr. ’46; Gaspar L. Trapani ’47; Anthony J.
Clesi ’48; Michael J. Larose ’48; George A.
Pettit ’48; Salvador E. Palmisano, Jr. ’50;
Ralph C. Redmann ’50; Edward J. Trahan,
Jr. ’50; Jerome H. Alciatore ’51; Thomas J.
Mathews ’51; Paul A. Menard, Jr. ’51; Robert
J. Despenzero ’54; Charles E. Silva, Jr. ’54;
Thomas F. Surcouf, Sr. ’54; Richard G. Daigre
’56; Harold C. Dufour ’56; Denis D. Manchon
’56; George R. “Bobby” Boasberg ’59; Charles
G. Eberhardt ’59; Don R. Gomez ’59; Michael
P. Casey, Sr. ’62; Edward L. Arroyo ’66;
John S. Thiele ’70; Thomas J. Byrne, Jr. ’74;
Christopher S. Tunis ’74; Logan J. Martin ’84;
Shawn P. Curry ’89; Kevin G. Abascal ’00.
WIFE OF… The late Warren R. Aitkens ’28;
the late George H. Antonini ’36; Harold S.
Barker, Jr. ’52; Frederick E. Barocco ’40; the
late Jules P. Barrios, Jr. ’33; the late Gerald L.
Blache ’26; the late George H. Boudousquie
’48; Timothy A. Calamari, Jr. ’54; A. Richard
Christovich ’38; Laurence R. DeBuys III ’52;
the late J. Paul Demarest ’60; the late Joseph S.
DiFatta, Sr. ’38; the late John B. Donnes II ’45;
Arthur G. Duffy, Jr. ’44; Michael P. Falk ’65;
the late Gordon W. Faust ’38; the late Joseph
L. Fontcuberta ’41; the late Vincent J. Greco
’45; the late Donald V. Higgins ’32; Chester A.
Hingle, Jr. ’50; the late Charles A. Hoffman,
Jr. ’41; the late Thomas G. Holten ’36; the late
William H. Johnston ’40; James J. Kenney
’43; the late Paul E. Lacourrege ’37; John
Lulich, Jr. ’44; Joseph A. Miceli, Jr. ’55; the late
Conrad J. Miller ’37; the late John G. O’Hern
’38; Norman A. Pettingill ’61; Austin G.
Phillips, Jr. ’66; the late Eustace H. Pritchard
’33; Albert A. Rodehorst ’45; the late Ernest A.
Roth, Jr. ’41; Joseph F. Sarrat ’44; Michael W.
Sciortino ’38; Henry J. Steudlein III ’88; the
late Lawrence J. Strohmeyer ’34; the late John
W. Waters, Sr. ’42.
FATHER OF… The late George V. Avila,
Jr. ’59; Brandon R. Blouin ’99; William
L. Boasberg ’89; Brian M. Bourgeois ’85
(stepfather); Justice V.J. Buras ’05 (stepfather);
Christopher S. Burmaster ’02 (stepfather);
Brett M. Casey ’91; Douglas A. Cresson ’60;
18 JAYNotes
Lawrence J. Cristina, Jr. ’60; Eric C. Cusimano
’06; James G. Dalferes II ’67; Charles J. III ’60
and Louis J. Derbes ’67; Roger J. Drake ’71;
Robert J. Durand ’73; the late J. Kenneth Esler
’59; Craig M. ’67, Kurt P. ’70, Mark S. ’78,
and Brett T. Forshag ’84; Joseph V. Franks II
’63; Roy F. Guste, Jr. ’69; Nesbitt W. Hagood
IV ’81 (stepfather); Michael E. ’67 and Daniel
J. Harrigan ’70; Edward C. Hernandez ’84;
Alfred L. Hijuelos ’69; Darrel R. Hotard
’61; Adolphe W. Indest III ’71; Anatole J. ’93
and Aleksander K. Karpovs ’95 (stepfather);
Ramiz K. ’79 and Samir T. Khalaf ’87; John
V. LeBlanc ’77; James F. Lee ’68; Eugene H.
Lillis, Jr. ’65; Michael E. ’66, David W. ’69,
and Dennis J. Maher ’71; Brody L. Martin ’15;
M. Craig Martin ’60; Andrew W. McGowan
’05; Brandon D. Myers ’14; Mark H. Olivari
’72; Jack N. ’63 and the late Jerrold B. Peterson
’69; Robert A. ’91 and Brian L. Porche ’95;
Michael F. ’92 and Manelik F. Pou ’93; Calvin
A. Rauch, Jr. ’70; Etienne F. René ’08; Michael
B. ’73 and John A. Robinson ’83; Thomas
M. Rulli ’82; Ray C. Tackaberry ’64; Jake A.
’76 and the late John-Martin E. Terranova
’80; Stephen K. ’83 and Scott K. Tonguis ’87;
Edward J. Trahan III ’73; Clyde A. White, Jr.
’89; W. Patrick ’74 and Kenneth T. Williams
’75; Noel C. Young ’80 (stepfather).
MOTHER OF… Carl L. ’65 and Donald J.
Aspelund ’69; Christopher G. Barnes ’92;
Charles A. Barrere ’61; Devin P. Black ’87; the
late Adrian M. Bordelon ’64; Harold J., Jr. ’76,
John T. ’79, and Paul G. Bosworth ’83; the late
Michael D. Brune ’83; Christopher T. Castro
’84; Ralph C. Cox, Jr. ’64; Clyde, Jr. ’56 and
Foster E. de la Houssaye ’66; Jack J. DiLorenzo
’59; John D. III ’74, Alan G. ’79, and Richard
J. Donnes ’83; David J. ’72 and Roy J. Ducote
’73; Frank J. ’89 and Troy J. Eberhardt ’91;
Ronaldo F. Espinosa ’68; Michael P. Falk, Jr.
’89; Hudson F. Folse ’73; Thomas E. Gernon
III ’49; Charles E. Grey, Jr. ’62; Thomas S.
Grimes ’70; David J. Guglielmo ’60; Gregory
G. Hoffman ’73; the late David F. Jaubert
’75; William H. Johnston, Jr. ’69; Ronald J.
’58, Michael E. ’65, and the late (Mr.) Albert J.
Jung, S.J. ’55; Alan D. Landeche ’53; Donald J.
Landry II ’75; Edward C. Langla ’78; James C.
Lauga ’61; Fred J. Lipps, Jr. ’51; Juan L. Lopez
’77; Chalon C. Mumphrey ’82; the late Patrick
H. O’Reilly III ’68; Robert L. Palmer, Jr. ’83
(stepmother); Joseph D. III ’60, Jeffrey M.
’70, and the late John S. Perez ’64; Michael A.
Pettingill ’99; J. Maurice Pilié, Jr. ’66; Bryce F.
Puissegur ’68; the late Stephen S. Rappold ’79;
Douglas A. Regan, Jr. ’14; Jeremy C. Reese ’05;
Michael L. Richarme ’75; Lawrence C. Robert,
Jr. ’66; John C. Roppolo ’60; Louis J. Schilling
III ’69; Alvin R. Senner, Jr. ’64; Kevin A. Serio
’76 (stepmother); Brian G. ’80 and the late
Kevin D. Shearman ’87; Emmett A., Jr. ’55 and
Richard R. Smith ’65; Donald J. Strohmeyer
’34; Gary A. Trinchard ’66; Sean P. Tynan ’93;
Earl J., Jr. ’70 and Wayne L. Vicknair ’76; Paul
Vitenas, Jr. ’73; Gary F. ’73, Gordon R. ’76,
and Glen M. Wadge ’78; Lynn V. Webre ’60;
Edward L. Yoerger, Jr. ’68.
BROTHER OF… The late Michael W.
Banowetz, Jr. ’36; Harold F. Battaglia ’57;
Christopher E. Berthaut ’66; Jack M. Boasberg
’58; Owen E. Brennan, Jr., ’52; Kerry P. Byrne
’78; Patrick H. ’63, Bryon J. III ’67, and Glenn
A. Casey ’72; the late Thomas E. Clapp ’43; the
late Henry L. Clesi, Jr. ’36; Calvin F. Cristina
’43; Paul J. Daigre ’64; the late Everett F. Dane
’45; William H. Deeves ’49; the late Edward G.
Gillin ’41; Robert J. ’54 and Gerald J. Guidry
’63; William J., Jr. ’38 and Roy F. Guste ’39;
the late James J. Hecker ’38; the late Paul J.
Hernandez ’48; the late Adrian Z. Johnson ’31;
Eugene M. Katz ’66; the late Finley J. Lee, Jr.
’33; Gary F. LeGros ’48; Edward J. Martin III
’78; Robert L. ’54 and G. Sidney Menard ’56;
Raymond G. Mock, Jr. ’59; Carl J. Oldenburg
’40; Ronald L. ’51, David E. ’56, Robert E. ’58,
Morris B., Jr. ’40, the late William V. ’43, the
late Kerry P. ’45, the late Richard P. ’47, and the
late Jerome R. Redmann ’53; Joseph T. Ruli
’42; Gerald J. Russell ’48; Donald P. Schellhaas
’51; Thomas F. Surcouf ’54; the late Donald
C. Trahan ’53; William C. Welp ’49; the late
Louis J. Wendel ’35.
SISTER OF… The late L. Maurice, Jr. ’29
and Robert J. Baudier ’30; Robert E. Bauer
’63; the late Michael Becker ’61; James T. Bell
’03; James A. Cobb ’44; Sutherland G. Cole,
Jr. ’46; Nicholas J. Compagno ’33; Salvador J.
DeSalvo ’54; W. Timothy Deeves ’75; the late
Ralph D. Dwyer, Jr. ’40; the late Rev. Lawrence
P. Elizardi, S.J. ’47; Lawrence J. ’44 and the
late Thomas J. Flanagan, Jr. ’37; the late Rev.
Albert J. Hebert, S.M. ’31; George F. Huber
’87; Charles C. Jaubert ’42; Charles Karst III
’46; the late Carlos J. Kelly ’51; Robert G. ’47,
Kenneth ’57, the late Joseph O., Jr. ’42, and the
late Conrad M. Kuebel, Sr. ’50; Emile X. Levet
’33; Peter J. Marrero, Jr. ’53; the late Ernest J.,
Jr. ’26 and the late Rene J. Mittelbronn ’34; the
late Ambrose F. Morel ’50; the late J. Edward
Muldrey, Jr. ’35; Brian M. Olagues ’93; the
late George M. Olivier ’31; the late Pascal R.
Palmisano ’52; Stephen G. Piske ’68; John W.
Pitkin, Jr. ’42; the late John D. Reid, Jr. ’58;
the late Peter J. Ricca ’39; the late Charles L.
AL U M N I
’39 and Rev. Hilton L. Rivet, S.J. ’39; Edward
A. Rodrigue, Jr. ’68; the late Anthony P.
Schiro ’31; Joseph J. Schmitt, Jr. ’64; Stanley
L. Turegano ’41; the late Samuel T. Vinturella
’45; John S. ’48, Martial E. ’49, Francis X. ’54,
and the late Harry J. Waldo, Sr. ’45; Gilbert T.
White ’52; Elm D., Jr. ’62 and Paul T. Wood
’69; Mark W. Woods, Jr. ’14.
SON OF… Thomas J. Byrne, Sr. ’43; the
late Bryon J. Casey, Jr. ’35; the late Frank J.
Daigre, Jr. ’31; the late Adolphe W. Indest,
Sr. 1912; Edward J. Martin, Jr. ’53; the late
Paul A. Menard, Sr. ’26; the late Raymond G.
Mock, Sr. ’28; the late Raoul Sere ’18; the late
Anthony W. Smith ’34.
DAUGHTER OF… The late Otto K.
Abele, Jr. ’30; Anthony H. Compagno ’60
(stepdaughter); William H. Deeves ’49; the
late Lawrence P. Elizardi, Sr. ’18; the late
Paul J. Gelpi, Jr. ’19; Henry L. Klein ’62
(stepdaughter); the late Philip Montelepre ’17;
the late James T. Nix, Jr. ’33; the late Stanley
A. Thouron ’41.
GRANDFATHER OF… Daniel J. ’86 and
Andrew P. Abramowicz ’89; Charles W. III ’85
and James M. Adams ’88; Grant M. Alexander
’01; Benjamin D. ’09 and Christopher C.
Anderson ’09; Adam J. ’01 and Evan J. Bailey
’13; Joseph B. Battaglia IV ’13; Brett J. Baudot
’14; Gabriel T. Blatty ’14; Michael S. Blaum
’06 (step-grandfather); Charles L. ’10 and
Seth R. Bourg ’10; Roy G. ’05 and Christian
T. Bruno ’14; Charles D. Brown ’86; John C.
’07, Barron M. ’11, and Andrew J. Burmaster
’13; Kevin B. Burns ’82; Brandon E. ’01 and
Alexander L. Caire ’04; Kevin M. Calcagno
’88; Nicholas J. ’09 and Joshua M. Caluda ’12;
Christopher C. ’04 and Stephen V. Cazenave
’07; Matthew A. Chivleatto ’05; Jeffrey P.
Clement ’92; Jerad J. Comarda ’05; Brian V.
Credo, Jr. ’11; Hunter G. Daigre ’15; Lewis J.
Derbes, Jr. ’89; Paul H., Jr. ’02 and Douglas
J. deVerges ’05; Johnny DiBartolo III ’88;
Rene C. IV ’89 and Jacques L. Duffourc ’91;
Kevin P. Duffy ’02; Andrew P. Dupont ’00;
Joseph K., Jr. ’83, Robert S. ’85, and John
M. Esler ’90; Casey J. ’02, Craig C. ’06, and
Trent P. Forshag ’15; Joseph V. III ’91 and
David H. Franks ’97; David M. Fraychinaud
’06; Melvin M. Gerrets III ’04; Michael A.
Goodier ’95; Michael J. Guste, Jr. ’12; Luke
E. Hahn ’14; Michael T. Hall ’92; Patrick B.
Hagood ’09 (step-grandfather); Matthew P.
Hemphill ’14; Jordan D. ’00 and Christopher
J. Hernandez ’08; Jonathan C. ’99 and
Jeffery T. Hijuelos ’01; Tyler B. Johnson ’11;
Stephen J. Kampen ’08; Michael C. ’05 and
Thomas J. Krouse ’05; Cade R. Landeche ’12;
Michael E. Lillis ’03; Salvador E. Longo, Jr.
’86; Andrew G. Martin ’14; Edward L. III
’94 and Scott C. Martina ’96; Matthew J.
Mutter ’00; Timothy H. ’96, Taylor M. ’98,
and Troy D. Norton ’00; Paul C. III ’96 and
Gregory M. Perret ’01; John L. Perrier ’15;
Jerrold B., Jr. ’00 and Henry J. Peterson ’02;
Albano A. Pineda II ’11; Anthony J. Pirini
’08; Steven C. ’13 and Ashton C. Queyrouze
’14; John S. Ratte ’99; Nicholas J. Rauber ’98;
Sidney H. Raymond ’89; Ryan M. Roussel
’07; Matthew P. Ryan ’07; Glenn J. Scheyd, Jr.
’95; Anthony J. Smith ’15; William R. Smith
V ’03; Adam M. Stierwald ’12; Steven M.
Terrio ’93; Eric S. Testerman ’03; Christopher
T. ’89 and Timothy W. Thomas ’93; Kenneth
L. Verlander, Jr. ’00; Ricardo G., Jr. ’94 and
Jason G. Vita ’97; Christopher M. Voigt ’93;
Nicholas M. Walsh ’07; Jonathan M. Warren
’00.
GRANDMOTHER OF… John M. Alongia
’09; Charles A. Barrere, Jr. ’89, Taylor B.
Bendeck ’15; Brett J. ’99 and Jordan A.
Bennett ’00; Michael S. Blaum ’06; Brett C.
Bodin ’05; Kristoffer J. ’93 and Matthew J.
Bonilla ’02; John W. IV ’95 and Patrick S.
Boyle ’98; Troy V. Buckley, Jr. ’95; F. Turner
III ’95 and William S. Buford ’98; Raymond
C. Burkart III ’93; Christopher H. Burmaster
’02; Patrick H. Burns ’88; Leonard J., Jr. ’80
and Craig M. Cassioppi ’82; William C.
Charbonnet ’09; R. Christopher Cox III ’89;
Craig J. ’85 and Chad J. Crespo ’89; Randall
A. Davenport ’94; Frederick J. ’08 and Andrew
R. DeBram ’09; Christian L. DeBuys IV ’12;
Eric J. ’95 and Curt A. Deister ’96; Austin
J. Delaune ’13; Ferdinand J. Delery III ’67;
John J. DeLucca ’94; Chase A. DeMonte ’14;
David B. Donnes ’07, Walter G. Eckhardt
’93; Robert L. ’85, Franklin V. III ’86, and
David H. Endom ’93; Esteban O. ’90 and
Ricardo R. Espinosa ’92; Leo J. Falgoust III
’08; Matthew J. ’05, Ryan P. ’09, and Sean M.
Flynn ’13; Andrew H. Folse ’08; George J.
Fowler IV ’95; Cy A. Gannuch ’94; Brandon
J. Gantar ’00; Jeffrey P. Gernon ’90; Cary L.
Guglielmo ’95; Evan W. Gwyn ’00; Michael
T. ’85 and Kyle I. Happel ’89; George D.
Hasseltine ’93; Taylor L. Hauth ’13; Taylor
E. Hillburn ’09; E. Jason Hirstius ’92; Eric
D. Hoffman ’99; Bradley E. Hookfin ’97;
Joshua M. ’99 and Zachary J. Hudson ’05
(step-grandmother); Christopher F. ’89 and
J. Webre Janssen ’97; Kenneth W. Keller ’03;
Joshua A. Koenig ’13; Christopher J. ’91 and
Jonathan G. Kowalski ’95; Eric S. Kramer
’91; Edward T., Jr. ’82, James F. ’84, S. Van
’86, Kevin A., Jr. ’06, and Trevor P. LaBorde
’10; Christian P. Lagarde ’93; Christopher R.
Lakey ’94; Richard A. Landeche ’74; Robert
J., Jr. ’80 and David S. Landry ’84; Cole E.
Lauman ’15; Brian J. Lawson ’99; J. Dwight
III ’79 and James J. LeBlanc ’81; Douglas E.
Lee II ’03; Brandon M. Leon ’00; Leonard M.
Long ’73; Robert T.S. Lupo ’01; Brandon M.
’98 and Kyle N. Maitre ’02; Ryan J. Migliore
’11; Kevin B., Jr. ’01 and Blair A. Milano
’12; Chad G. Miner ’99; Matthew V. ’97 and
Peter V. Mistretta ’03; Gregory A. ’03 and
Matthew W. Mondello ’06; Robert J. II ’97
and Brian P. Mora ’99; John S. Perez, Jr. ’94;
Curtis B. Pursell ’03; Julian S. Richards III
’08; Richard T. Romano, Jr. ’01; Randall C.
’83 and Timothy L. Romero ’84; Scott C.
Roos ’91; Stephen J. ’83 and John C. Roppolo
’86; Stephen C. Scarpero ’85; Lyle J. ’99 and
the late Lance J. Schilling ’94; Michael A.
Schiro, Jr. ’94; Daniel I. Senentz ’83; Scott J.
Senner ’85; Christopher M. ’01 and Andrew
M. Serio ’04; Edward P. Seyler ’08; Daniel J.
Shanks ’03; Ryan R. ’03, Jared M. ’08, and
Brandon P. Shearman ’11; Eric H. ’05 and
Michael H. Simmons ’09; John R. Smestad,
Jr. ’92; Clinton J. Smith ’01; Richard R.O. ’88,
Emmett A. III ’90, Ryan L. ’93, and Kennedy
O. Smith ’98; Christopher L. Speed ’00;
Kenneth C. Steele ’11; Robert E. ’80, Brent A.
’81, Shaun K. ’85, and Christopher P. Talbot
’95; Brett M. Topey ’03; Andre G. Toujas ’01;
Jerome L. III ’88, Jean-Paul ’90, and Jeremy H.
Tujague ’93; Ramon J. Vallejo IV ’01; Ryan P.
Vincent ’98; Christopher M. ’07 and Jeffrey P.
Vitenas ’10; Paul A. ’99, Michael J. ’01, Patrick
J. ’04, and John C. Viviano ’06; Gordon F.
Wadge ’04; Grant-David Ward ’79; William
G. Waters ’04; David A. Weilbaecher, Jr. ’85;
David L. Williams, Jr. ’11; Reese M. ’04 and
Charles A. Woessner ’07; Gordon H. Wogan
’02; Christian D. Woodin ’12.
GRANDSON OF… The late Edward J.
Martin, Sr. ’29.
GREAT GRANDFATHER OF… William M.
Baldwin ’12; Warren T. Bondi II ’10; Colby A.
Simoneaux ’14.
GREAT GRANDMOTHER OF… Taylor J.
Billings ’12; Jared C. Blohowiak ’13; Clayton
N. Colombo ’14; Austin M. Courrege ’12;
Shane J. Delery ’09; Stanton C. Dupuy ’11;
John T. Erwin ’04; Stefan E. Karasoulis ’06;
Nicholas P. Knowles ’07; James F. Laborde
’15; John F. Lee ’07; Jay M. Napolitano, Jr.
’11; Paul E. Riviere ’15; Austin J. Schillaci ’12;
Daniel I., Jr. ’12 and David A. Senentz ’15;
William J. III ’03 and Brandon M. Walker ’08.
The list above represents information received
from July 30, 2010 through January 31, 2011.
For current announcements about deceased
members of the Jesuit community, view the “In
Memoriam” page on Jesuit’s web site: www.
jesuitnola.org/alumni/inmemoriam/htm.
If any information listed is not correct, you are
encouraged to promptly notify Bro. William J.
“Billy” Dardis, S.J. ’58: [email protected].
His office phone is (504) 483-3814.
Fall/Winter 2010 – 11 19
TH
P
RIEN TITLE
C I P AL ’GSO C
ES
O RHNERE
ER
Jesuit Earns Its
20 JAYNotes
J E S U IT T O D AY
Accreditation
Accompanied by Praise and Suggestions for Improvement
In December 2010, Jesuit High School successfully completed its five-year accreditation
process. As a result, the school received numerous commendations as well as
suggestions for improvement. We are very blessed and thankful to be members of a
school community that has a rich tradition of doing many things well. However, we also know that we can never be satisfied by what we have accomplished
in the past. The magis (Latin for “more”) to which we are all called as members of the
Jesuit High School community requires that we constantly seek ways to improve. Jesuit maintained its accreditation status because:
• the school met or exceeded the AdvancED standards and policies established for quality secondary institutions;
• Jesuit engaged in continuous improvement; and,
• Jesuit demonstrated quality assurance through internal and external reviews. As part of the rigorous and important accreditation process, Jesuit
received many commendations from the review team that visited
the school on several occasions. Among the accreditation team’s
significant commendations were:
1. Jesuit provides a clear mission and vision and fosters a strong sense of Jesuit, Ignatian Catholic identity.
2.Jesuit creates multiple opportunities using a variety of methods for stakeholder communication which produces a strong sense of community and trust.
3. Jesuit has implemented a plan to provide ongoing research-
based professional development.
4.Jesuit has implemented a comprehensive planto ensure that the school provides adequate facilities to support its educational programs and co-curricular activities.
5. Jesuit engenders pride and ownership among its various constituents, having established an environment in which stakeholders cherish the past while looking toward the future.
The administration and faculty are eager to begin implementing
the accreditation team’s suggestions for improvement, including
the following noteworthy items:
1. Design a process/develop a plan to use available data to guide teaching and learning.
2.Continue to upgrade traditional teaching styles to research-based teaching strategies, while incorporating the use of more technology to help students transition to life beyond high school.
3. Analyze the impact of including creative arts and integrating more social justice in the curriculum.
4.Include all faculty and staff in the process of interdepartmental collaboration in order to increase ownership for all involved in the teaching and learning process.
5. Develop a comprehensive process to analyze both summative and formative assessments as the school develops a culture of effective use of data.
6.Create a systematic procedure for curriculum design and review and implement the procedure on a formal schedule.
7. Design strategies to share continuous improvement goals and the school’s progress on these goals with all stakeholder groups.
8.Increase involvement of parents in the process of continuous improvement of student performance.
9. Utilize a variety of assessment instruments in grades 8-10 to systematically track the improvement of individual student academic progress.
We have reviewed, discussed, and analyzed the entire report
from the AdvancED accreditation team. In the coming weeks
and months, our plan is to methodically approach the process of
implementing the suggestions for improvements that will make
Jesuit an even better and more attractive high school for young
men in the metro New Orleans area.
This process of improvement never ends. We never reach the
goal line and triumphantly spike the ball. In his 2005 book, Good
to Great and the Social Sectors, Jim Collins writes: “No matter how
much you have achieved, you are only merely good compared to
what you can be in the future.”
As a school community embracing the magis, we look forward
to the blessings that the future holds for us in this process.
—Mike Giambelluca ’82
AMDG n
AdvancED is dedicated to advancing excellence in education
worldwide. To learn more about AdvancED and the importance of
the accreditation process, visit: http://www.advanc-ed.org/.
Fall/Winter 2010 – 11 21
K S G I VGI N
RIERE
VE
T H EA NTITLE
OG
E SD H
Thanksgiving Drive 2010:
Coaxing the Divine Spark from Within
Each Thanksgiving — going back even before Jesuit High School relocated from
Baronne Street to its present location in 1926 — afforded Blue Jays the opportunity
to put into action those characteristics of being “men of faith” and “men for others.”
The gathering of food items and groceries, packaging baskets, classmates
working together, and personally delivering these gift boxes to needy families
throughout the New Orleans area, is one of those time-honored traditions at Jesuit
High School. Assisting families at Thanksgiving may not register as something
significant to students at the time they are doing it, but years later, as Blue Jay
alumni, the memories of this annual event are vivid and meaningful.
The Thanksgiving drives opened the eyes of Blue Jays, many for the first time,
to a real world of poverty, gratitude, graciousness, love, humility, and kindness. In
more recent years, a chapel service was introduced and a Jesuit faculty member
addressed students before they were dismissed to begin delivering their baskets.
For the 2010 Thanksgiving drive chapel service, Michael Prados, an alumnus from
the Class of 1983, was given the honor of speaking to Blue Jays. Mr. Prados has
taught English at Jesuit for more than 20 years and, since 2002 has served as
director of student activities.
In relating a personal story about one of his neighbors, Mr. Prados shared a
valuable lesson learned about the true meaning of the term “give until it hurts.”
Some of my most vivid memories, both as a student and a
teacher at Jesuit, are from delivering Thanksgiving baskets. I
especially remember an old shotgun double that my homeroom
delivered to when I was a senior. Fr. (Nick)
Schiro, (S.J. ’44) was our homeroom
teacher. My classmates and I climbed the
steps to the house with boxes of food, and
the elderly lady began to cry. We walked
into her house, dropped off the boxes, and
we prayed with her and visited with her for
a little while. She hugged each one of us,
gave us a kiss, and told us she loved us.
Each one of us was a bit choked up
after this experience. I think if I were to
pass that same house today, I would still
recognize it. And it’s because of powerful
experiences like this, when we are being
our best selves, when we truly are men
for others and unselfish, that so many
Jesuit students and teachers consider this to be one of the most
important days in the Jesuit school year.
I’m not quite as proud of this next story. In fact, I’ve rarely
told it. For the first five years that I taught at Jesuit, I lived just
across the back field on South Hennessey Street. One of my
neighbors was a scraggly old man named Gene. Gene always
looked unkempt, his white hair was a mess, he was unshaven
, his shirt was never buttoned properly, and his eyes had this
glazed over look about him. But he was one of the nicest guys
I knew and he was a good friend, and every year Gene would
ask me to put his name in for a Thanksgiving basket. It wasn’t
mainly for him; it was for his daughter and her kids. Gene was
22 JAYNotes
The Thanksgiving drive is a multi-faceted,
disciplined, and finely tuned machine.
Beginning from left, Blue Jays shop at
Robért Fresh Market, fill their grocery
carts, and pay for everything with the
money they raised through various
projects during homeroom. The groceries
are carefully sorted and loaded in cars
and trucks. The final stop is the home
of someone who has asked Jesuit for
a basket. Below, Mike Prados ’83 at a
morning assembly.
always thankful and appreciative. One time he even brought me
about a dozen crabs that he caught in the bayou just to show his
appreciation.
And then one year, I forgot to submit
Gene’s name for a basket. I don’t think
that it just slipped my mind and it wasn’t
like I was being negligent or irresponsible.
I forgot to do it because I didn’t make it
important enough to me to make sure
it was taken care of. I was probably too
caught up in my own selfish concerns to
care about somebody else’s. Well the day
for delivering baskets came. I did my part
here at school and then I went home. I had
a lot of work to do over the break and so I
sat on my sofa, turned up my music, kicked
back, and started grading papers.
Around noon, I hear this hesitant
knock on my door and it was Gene. He
somewhat shyly asked me if the students had finished delivering
baskets. I immediately realized that he had been expecting to
receive one and didn’t get it. And instead of admitting that it
was my fault, I basically pretended that I didn’t know what had
happened and sent him on his way. I sat back on my sofa, picked
up a paper to grade, stared at it for 10 seconds, and realized what
I had to do. I got up, I came back to Jesuit to see if there were any
extra baskets hanging around that weren’t delivered, but there was
nothing.
On my way home, I realized what I needed to do. I went
over to Gene’s house and told him we were going shopping. He
says, “Oh, no, no, it’s not necessary.” I refused. He told me I was
J E S U IT T O D AY
stubborn. I took it as a compliment, always have. We got in my
car and drove to a nearby grocery store. I grabbed the shopping
cart and just started loading up. Gene kept telling me, “Oh no, we
don’t need that,” and I just kept throwing things in. I remember
I grabbed the pumpkin pie and he said, “Oh no, we don’t need
dessert.” I said, “Gene, everybody should have a pumpkin pie on
Thanksgiving.” I put it in the cart. We loaded up that cart and I
don’t even know how much I paid for it, but it didn’t matter.
It’s amazing how much I enjoyed shopping that day. You
know, you may have heard the expression to give until it hurts.
Giving should never hurt. Giving feels good. If it doesn’t feel
good, you’re not giving enough. So we brought everything
back to his house and unloaded it. Sure enough the next day,
Gene was able to provide his daughter and his grandkids a great
Thanksgiving meal.
I look back on this story and I have to ask myself why did I
get off the sofa that day? It might have something to do with my
upbringing in a good Catholic family and good Catholic schools.
Guilt and shame may be part of it. But ultimately, I think it was
that little bit of God within me that was not going to allow me
to get away with this. We all have a spark of the divine within us.
We are made in the image and likeness of God and although one
of His greatest gifts is our free will, our freedom to make our own
choices, that bit of the divine within me gave me a solid kick in
the butt that day. God basically told me that I would freely choose
to get up off the sofa and do something, and that I couldn’t be the
person that I’ve always believed myself to be if I didn’t.
How could I be a theology teacher, supposedly striving to
bring my students closer to God? How could I lead students on
service project trips, encouraging them to be men for others? How
could I quote Julius Caesar in my English II class saying cowards
die many times before their deaths, the valley it never tastes of
death but once, if I were, in fact, a coward. Nobody would ever
know it but me, and it was something I could never have lived
with.
I know I’ve made a lot of bad decisions in my life, both for
things I’ve done and I haven’t done. I have a number of regrets,
but on that day I would not have another one. And the God
within me was making sure of it. God may let us choose, but He
strongly encourages us to make the right decisions.
Needless to say, I made sure Gene got a basket every year
after that. I would personally speak to the homeroom teacher to
whom I’d assigned Gene to make sure he was being taken care of
on Thanksgiving.
A few years ago, Gene died, but I’m really glad to know for
many, many years his family was able to enjoy some wonderful
Thanksgiving meals provided by Jesuit students. And so I urge
you to listen to the divine within you, not just this morning, but
every day. Don’t let providing these baskets be the only good that
you do today or this week or this year.
Be nice to your fellow Blue Jays. Be nice to your teachers,
be nice to strangers, be nice to your family at home. They’ll
probably think you’re up to something and when you’re lying in
bed tonight, hopefully saying your prayers, do an examination
of conscience. Think about the good things that you have done
today, not just as part of this Thanksgiving drive, but what else? I
encourage that, not just today, but every day.
Next, I want to thank all of you who have chosen to help
people in need on this day. Whether you’ve contributed food and
money, went shopping, or you are about to deliver, part of you is
going to each home that is receiving a basket. The can of corn or
the jar of peanut butter that will help feed somebody represents
you making a positive difference. I know for myself as a member
of the Class of ’83, I feel a small part of every turkey, all 400
turkeys that we unloaded here last night that are going to these
homes. And I’m sure that my classmates, Mr. (Jack) Culicchia,
Mr. (John) Lavie, and Mr. (Greg) Ernst all feel the same way.
And for those of you who are about to deliver baskets, I have
a few suggestions. First, don’t judge anyone. You have no idea why
someone has requested help. It’s not up to us to decide why people
are poor or to determine whether or not they really need food. We
don’t know their stories. All we know is that we have been asked
for help and we have offered it.
Next, don’t feel sorry for anyone. Don’t help them out of pity
or compassion. That’s insulting. If anything, respect them for
dealing with circumstances that are far more challenging than
you may ever face. Respect their dignity and their perseverance.
Also, don’t look at their situations and think about how lucky you
are and how good you’ve got it. This isn’t about you. The purpose
of helping others is not to make you appreciate what you’ve got.
That’s selfish. Also, don’t take needless pride in what you’re doing
today or compare your actions to what others are, or are not,
doing on this day. That is arrogant.
I’ve encouraged you to give until it feels good, but don’t
confuse your feelings with the real purpose here. Feeling good is
merely a pleasant bi-product of our real purpose.
Give because you have been asked for help.
Give because it is the right thing to do.
Give because you really are a man for others.
Give out of humility and with love for your fellow man.
Give for the greater glory of God.
Give because the divine within you encourages you to choose
to do so. n
Fall/Winter 2010 – 11 23
TH
E O
TITLE
G ERIT
O E S HSERE
N
ATI
N AL M
C H O LAR S
Class of 2011
Produces 28 National Merit Scholars
The National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) recognized 28 seniors from
Jesuit High School’s Class of 2011 as semifinalists in the annual Merit Scholarship
Competition. One Blue Jay had a perfect score of 240 — James Burvant, the son
of Robert (’76) and Nancy Burvant of New Orleans.
No other high school
in Louisiana had as
many National Merit
Semifinalists as Jesuit,
which also ranked
among the top Catholic
secondary schools in the
United States, according
to data provided by
the NMSC. An additional 15 seniors received recognition as
“Commended” scholars.
Three Jesuit seniors (above, from left) — Jarvis Harris, Chris
Andrade, and Nicholas Johnson — received recognition in The
National Achievement Scholarship Program, an academic
competition that acknowledges outstanding African American
high school students. Two Jesuit seniors (above, right) — Stephen
Noya (left) and Anthony Davila — were honored by The National
24 JAYNotes
Hispanic Recognition Program, which acknowledges outstanding
Hispanic students.
The National Merit Scholars from the Class of 2010 gathered
on the front steps of Jesuit. Front row, from left: John Rose,
Connor Ryan, Brandon Slay, Thomas Steen, Nicholas Wallbillich,
Donald Ward, and Kevin Whittaker; middle row, from left:
Alex Hotard, Bradley James, Nicholas Johnson, Salvador Maffei,
Matthew Martin, Jacob Moore, Christopher Munna, and Charles
Pratt; back row, from left: Michael Berry, Richard Bordelon,
David Brett, Barron Burmaster, James Burvant, Nicholas Caluda,
Daniel Cooper, Brian Credo, Cal Creel, Matthew Decuir, Thomas
Dowling, Daniel Dupre, and Robert Helm.
The 15 Blue Jays “Commended” by the NMSC were Edward
Arnold, Anthony Avena, Robert Butera, John Dunlap, Connor
Eckholdt, Christopher Fox, Vincent Gennaro, Nicholas Graves,
Gavin Harrington, Matthew Hose, Stephen Noya, Marcel
Provensal, Matthew Sanchez, Austin Speaker, and John Zimmer.
J E S U IT T O D AY
Bobby ’11 and
Brandon Butera
’13 with their
mother, Cindy
Josh DeBlieux ’13 and his mother, Karen
Joey Tumminello ‘11 and
his mother, Ana
Spencer Smith ’14 and
his mother, Kathy
Scott Naccari ’11
and his mother, Susan
Ben Bagwill ’12 and his mother, Dana
Sentimental and Sentient,
Blue Jays and Their Mothers Gather for Traditional Mass, Breakfast
A new venue and lingering enthusiasm early in the school year helped sell out the annual Mother-Son
Mass and Breakfast. More than 550 sons and mothers packed the Crescent City Ballroom at the
newly-renovated Roosevelt Hotel for a morning of quality time between mothers and sons.
Joey Tumminello ’11 , the son of Ana and Joey Tumminello
’79, was the featured speaker and, on behalf of all Blue Jays,
thanked the mothers for their guidance through the years.
“Before we became ‘men for others,’ someone was responsible
for being a woman for us, and if you look to your side, you’ll see
that incredible person,” said Tumminello. “I can definitely say that
Jesuit is a better place because of the ladies sitting next to us and
the support that we receive from them.”
Tumminello plays football, baseball, and wrestles for the
Blue Jays. His mother, Ana, is the co-chair of Celebration 2011.
Tumminello saved his final thoughts for the person he called the
most important person in his life. “She is the one who gave me
life, she is the one who loved me more than any other, and most
importantly, she is the one deserving of my respect.” He concluded
by asking his fellow Blue Jays to bury those words in their hearts,
“for nothing will bring you greater happiness.”
Fr. McGinn thanked the mothers “for all that they do…to
guide, strengthen, support, and correct your sons in their years of
growing up.”
The annual event was conceived by Jeanne Colon, wife of
Adrian Colon ’59, when their son, Adrian Colon, Jr. ’83 was a
student.
Listen: In Their Own Words — audio of Joey Tumminello’s talk
and Fr. McGinn’s homily at the Mother-Son Mass and Breakfast
are on Jesuit’s web site: http://www.jesuitnola.org/about/Parents_
Event_Photos_2009-10__091409.htm.
Fall/Winter 2010 – 11 25
TCHELE
E TITLE
B RATI G
OO
N E! S H ERE
In Creating His Original Portrait for
Celebration 2011,
Artist
Terrance Osborne
Fixed His Eyes on
Jesuit’s Main Entrance
For the past three years at Celebration, New Orleans artist Terrance Osborne has generously donated one of his
coveted art items to Jesuit High School. He even comes to Celebration and patiently sits among the audience during
the live auction waiting for the moment when his art work goes up on the block. Osborne is not shy about jumping
up on stage with Fr. McGinn to coax higher bids from the crowd. Celebration 2011 was different for Osborne and
Jesuit. For this event, he was commissioned to create a special piece of art that focused on something exclusive
about Jesuit High School. Osborne painted “Star of Our Youthful Years” as a “relief” piece that featured Jesuit’s
front doors facing Carrollton Avenue. At Celebration 2011, an anonymous bidder bought the original for $10,000,
then turned around and donated the piece back to Jesuit. A win-win situation for all involved in this project.
Jaynotes: How did this Terrance Osborne original painting for
Jesuit come about?
Osborne: It’s a funny story. My next door neighbor is Jay
Loetzerich whose son James graduated from Jesuit in 2008.
Initially it was Jay’s idea that I do a poster for Jesuit. Naturally I
was onboard because I had already donated several of my works to
Jesuit’s Celebration in the past two or three years. What’s funny is
I’ve frequently asked him to come over to take a look at my work
and give me an opinion. He’s an insurance agent and he’s very
honest with his criticism which always helps. I tell people I get all
my ideas from my next door neighbor who’s an insurance agent.
Jaynotes: Did you come up with the title of the painting “Star of
Our Youthful Years?”
Osborne: No, I did not. I thought my original title was cool —
Osborne: Usually when I am commissioned to do a painting,
it takes a week or two, often longer, for the client to come up
with the money. But with this project, I got a crash course in the
way that Jesuit, and supporters of the school, do things. My fee
for the original painting was $15,000. The expense of printing
lithographs and making a giclee that Jesuit could turn around
and sell added another $5,000, bringing the total commission to
$20,000. I was initially approached by Joey and Ana Tumminello
about doing a painting in connection with Celebration 2011. The
day that I told them that my fee would be $20,000, they said
they’d get back to me. They immediately called 20 of their Jesuit
friends, explained the idea of the painting and the lithographs, and
asked them if they were willing to invest $1,000 each. Well, the
very next day they called me and said, “Hey, let’s go, we have the
money.” I was stunned. And I was impressed.
“The House that St. Ignatius Built.” That was my preference. But
Joey Tumminello (a Jesuit alumnus, Class of 1979) and his wife
Ana (a co-chair of Celebration 2011) are Jesuit parents and they
suggested “Star of Our Youthful Years,” a title that also worked
well. Both titles were presented to Fr. (Anthony) McGinn (S.J.,
Jesuit’s president) and I believe “Star of Our Youthful Years” was
his ultimate choice. And that was fine because everyone associated
with Jesuit is familiar with the title since it happens to be one of
the lines in the school’s Alma Mater.
Jaynotes: Did anyone in the investment group, or anyone at
Jesuit, have any suggestions as to what you should paint?
Osborne: They left the entire creative process up to me, which
Jaynotes: A group of Jesuit parents and alumni actually
commissioned the painting and put up the money?
Jaynotes: It sounds like you did your homework and might have
walked around the block 10 times.
26 JAYNotes
was great. I love those commissions because I have the freedom
to express my ideas. The vision of the front doors (on Carrollton
Avenue) stuck in my mind. I tried to deviate and even did some
sketches of other areas, inside and outside, of the school. But those
doors are very prominent. In the end, I couldn’t paint anything
but those doors.
J E S U IT T O D AY
“Overall, it was a pretty
enjoyable piece to paint. And
I was happy to have worked
with Jesuit. The partnership
was great and I look forward
to participating in many
more Celebrations.”
— Terrance Osborne
Osborne: (Jesuit’s alumni director) Mat Grau (’68) and Fr.
McGinn gave me a tour and took me all around the school. I shot
tons of pictures which helped me appreciate the school’s history
and tradition. Prior to this, I had limited knowledge about Jesuit.
But as I walked those hallways and looked at the history and
the achievements, it was just mind blowing. I did not need any
motivation. Still, the vision of those massive front doors stuck
with me. I also thought since it was an outdoor view of the school,
Jesuit parents and alumni would easily relate to it.
Jaynotes: As an artist especially intrigued with the color red,
how did you square your use of red with Jesuit’s primary colors
of blue and white?
Osborne: That was tricky for me because I wanted to use red. The
bricks are a nice brown, but I made them a hard red because I like
that. However, I toned down the intensity in a gradual process.
Those are brown bricks, but they’re spiked with a little saturation.
Then I added a nice vivid blue light coming from underneath
which turns purple, then magenta. At first glance, the viewers do
not realize it, but the colors go from blue to pink, or blue to purple
to pink to red and reddish brown. It’s really a trick on the eyes, but
it’s believable. I love doing that.
Jaynotes: In creating the original painting, why did you decide
to add a three-dimensional component?
Osborne: I didn’t see it any other way. It’s called “relief” and I’ve
been doing relief pieces since pre-Katrina. Relief is an artistic term
for 3-D. It’s similar to a pop-up book. I take some prominent part
of the piece and raise it beyond the flat surface to create a higher
effect.
Jaynotes: You obviously enjoy painting houses, which you have
said is similar to painting people. Why is that?
Osborne: It’s kind of like the clothes you wear. It’s more of an
expression and extension of your appearance. Your houses are the
same. You decorate them and make them an extension of you. It
is similar to discovering a culture and looking at the houses they
lived in to understand what kind of people they were. That’s why I
paint houses.
Jaynotes: Explain the differences between a lithograph and a
giclee.
Osborne: Lithographs are essentially posters, their quality is
generally good, and they consist of dots similar to a magazine in
which the images also are made up of little dots. I signed about
300 of the lithographs for Jesuit and another 200 are unsigned.
Jesuit is selling the signed lithographs for $75 and the unsigned
ones for $40, and these are really good prices for the buyer. A
giclee is a funny sounding French word (pronounced Jee-clay) that
means “to spray.” A giclee pertains to the process of printing the
image, which is a high end reproduction of the original. Giclees
do not consist of little dots. Instead, the image is sprayed onto the
surface of a canvas using pinhead sprayers that cause the paint to
mesh together in a continuous tone, which is why a giclee looks so
much like the original. Some people can’t even tell the difference
between the original and a giclee. Jesuit is also taking orders for
regular giclees of “Star of Our Youthful Years” for $1,000 each.
A re-worked giclee, where I go in and add a layer of paint, costs
$1,500, but the quality of the piece is exceptional and it adds value
to it.
Jaynotes: You managed to include a Blue Jay in the painting.
Osborne: I added a Blue Jay to make it appear it was gazing in
honor at the Virgin Mary. The Blue Jay has a little halo around its
head that is almost similar to the Virgin Mary’s halo. I also added
two banners, one on each side of the doors. The banner on the left
is Jesuit’s motto, Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam, and the right banner
depicts “Men for Others.”
Jaynotes: What obstacles did you encounter in the process of
painting “Star of Our Youthful Years?”
Osborne: The perspective on the piece was the main obstacle. I
had to continuously adjust the perspective to make sure that the
stairs leading up to the doors looked believable and not skewed. I
like to break the rules just a little bit, but I needed to make sure it
was right. Overall, it was a pretty enjoyable piece to paint. And I
was happy to have worked with Jesuit. The partnership was great
and I look forward to participating in many more Celebrations. n
Lithographs of “Star of Our Youthful Years” are available for purchase
from Jesuit’s Online Boutique: http://www.jesuitnola.org/about/
NEW_PAGE_2006-11-8_17640.htm.
Fall/Winter 2010 – 11 27
T H E JTITLE
O E S CHHERE
E S U ITG TEA
ER TE S TI M O N IAL
At a 1994 ceremony inducting him into Jesuit High School’s Hall of Honors, Col. Quinn
received a plaque presented by Fr. McGinn to commemorate the rare honor.
There are many people who had a positive influence on me
and changed my life while I was a student at Jesuit. My
essay is about Col. James W. Quinn, U.S.M.C. Ret., who
was the first and probably the most influential to make a
significant difference in my life.
How Col.
Quinn Changed My Life
by Christopher Cola ’93
When I was an eighth grade student at Jesuit
High School in 1988-89, Col. Quinn taught
our class theology. I remember that during
the year, he experienced heart trouble and was
forced to spend some time in the hospital. I do
not remember how long he was there, but it
was at least a few weeks. He eventually came
back to school and finished out the year.
On that first day back from his extended sick leave, he
resumed teaching our theology class. When the class ended and
everyone was hustling to their next one, Col. Quinn called me
over to see him. He pulled out a wrinkled sheet of paper and the
writing on it was barely legible. Col. Quinn proceeded to tell
me that before he took medical leave, he wrote a brief note to
me which I was to receive in the event he never came back. As
any pre-freshman would have experienced, I felt nonplussed and
embarrassed. And to my complete surprise, he read the note to me.
I can’t recall it word for word, but in short, Col. Quinn said that
he felt that I was a natural leader, but I was not doing the things
that leaders should be doing. However, he was confident that I will
accomplish some great things and that people will lookup to me,
but before that would happen, I had to make difficult choices as to
the direction in which I wanted to take my life.
I walked out of the classroom wondering, as any 13-yearold would, what was wrong with this guy. For the next few days, I
could not stop thinking about what Col. Quinn told me. It began
to slowly dawn on me that this teacher was very special. Here
was a man who could easily have been on his deathbed, and he
thought enough of me and my future to take the time to write a
personal note encouraging me to be a leader and to live a life that
would make him proud.
28 JAYNotes
I went on to become the first, and unfortunately (as far as
I know), the only black Blue Jay elected to a high office in the
Student Council since the founding of our great school in 1847. My
fellow Blue Jays bestowed a great honor on me when they elected
me vice president of the Student Council for my senior year.
Since my graduation from Jesuit, I have tried to live up to the
high standards Col. Quinn thought I was capable of achieving in
life.
Everyday, I think about that conversation with Col. Quinn.
I have but two regrets — I never thanked him for thinking of me
and I do not have the letter that he had written to me. However, I
have the memory of our conversation and that is something that I
will always cherish.
Leadership is not a trait that most of us exhibit naturally.
When a hero like Col. Quinn looks at a chunky, 13-year-old smart
aleck kid like me and tells me that I am a leader, well, that means
something. And it is something that I try to live up to everyday of
my life.
Thanks, Col. Quinn! You will always be on my mind and
in my heart. I will always try to be a Man for Others and live my
life to the high expectations that you displayed in that theology
classroom 23 years ago. n
Christopher W. Cola ’93 is an accountant
with Calpine Corporation in Houston.
James W. Quinn was a Colonel in the
United States Marine Corps who spent
more than 25 years in the military before
his retirement in 1975, when he joined
the faculty at Jesuit. During his tenure at
Jesuit, he served as an instructor for the
school’s Junior Marine ROTC program,
prefect of discipline, and a theology instructor. His photo was placed
in Jesuit’s Hall of Honors, located on the second floor of the school, on
December 8, 1994. Colonel Quinn died in 1996.
J E S U IT T O D AY
In Capturing the Quiz Bowl State Title,
Blue Jays Have All the
Right Answers
Jesuit’s varsity quiz bowl team consistently
and quickly supplied the right answers
to emerge undefeated, bringing home
its third consecutive state and district
championships from the Louisiana State
Quiz Bowl Competition, which was
held at Northwestern State University in
Natchitoches.
The 13-member 2010-11 varsity team
is under the expert tutorage of Jesuit’s
longtime history teacher Ron Rossi, whose
association with quiz bowls began in 1985,
the year he joined Jesuit’s social studies
department. Mr. Rossi’s quintet of senior
aces was victorious in each of its matches
played in Natchitoches, scoring 2,165
points while holding opponents to 1,200
points. The Jays “out-buzzed” stellar teams
from Central High, Sulphur, Pineville,
and West Monroe to take the Division
I title. The Jesuit team then went on to
defeat the two winners of their respective
divisions — Archbishop Shaw and Haynes
(Metairie) — to be crowned state champs.
The victory in Natchitoches was the
sixth state title in the past 20 years for
Jesuit’s quiz bowl team. It was also the
team’s third consecutive division title
and its 11th such win in the past 20 years.
Until recently, the team that won the state
championship tournament represented
Louisiana at a national quiz bowl
competition that was held in early summer
at Disney World in Orlando. Unfortunately
for the Blue Jays, the Orlando tournament
has been scrubbed for two straight years
because the company that organizes the
event has experienced financial problems.
But in the flexible world of quiz bowl
mania, the Jays soon will be able to strut
their stuff — in front of a large contingency
of family and friends — when the National
Academic Championship (NAC) takes
place in New Orleans the weekend of
May 28-30 at Loyola University. Of
course, Jesuit will be well represented
at the upcoming NAC quiz bowl event.
While most eyes will be on Mr. Rossi’s ace
varsity quintet, Jesuit intends to enter three
additional teams in the NAC tournament,
including two junior varsity squads and an
all-eighth grade team. The junior varsity
teams are coached and moderated by Jesuit
Latin teacher Joe Knight, who is chairman
of the school’s classics department.
“Jesuit has fielded a quiz bowl team
as far back as the early ’70s, and possibly
the late ’60s,” says Mr. Rossi. “It is a cocurricular that attracts highly motivated
and dedicated Blue Jays who think
strategically and embrace working together
as a team. Our quiz bowl players have fun
while spending a lot of time practicing. I
submit that their consistent successes are
the result of hard work and team work.”
Jesuit’s varsity quiz bowl team also
competes in the “Knowledge Master
Open” (KMO), which is a worldwide
computer-based version of traditional quiz
bowl contests. Jesuit’s quiz bowl team
participated in the KMO in December
2010 along with 600 other schools.
The Jays finished in fifth place with a
score of 1,728 points! Only 36 points
separated the Blue Jays from the first place
team — Bellarmine College Prep, a Jesuit
high school in San Jose, CA.
It is a simple twist of fate that the
Bellarmine team happens to be coached
by Blue Jay alumnus Chris Fleitas ’99,
Jesuit’s varsity quiz bowl team recently
won its third consecutive state
championship. Seniors on the 2010 - 11
varsity quiz bowl team include, from left,
Barron Burmaster, Scott Tilton, James
Burvant, Daniel Cooper, and Jon Richards.
Mr. Ron Rossi has served as coach and
moderator of Jesuit’s varsity quiz bowl
teams for the past 25 years.
who works as a college guidance counselor
at the high school. As a Blue Jay, Fleitas
was a member of Mr. Rossi’s quiz bowl
teams, and in his senior year served as
captain, leading Jesuit to state and division
championships in 1999.
Mr. Rossi is proud of Jesuit’s fifth
place finish in the December KMO event.
He also was delighted upon learning that
the coach of the Bellarmine team is one
of his former star quiz bowl players at
Carrollton and Banks. It would not be
an understatement to suggest that Fleitas
learned almost everything there is to know
about quiz bowls from a master himself,
whose second floor history classroom is a
shrine to Jesuit’s quiz bowl teams, past and
present. n
Check out the Quiz Bowl Team’s home page
under the Clubs listings on Jesuit’s web site:
http://www.jesuitnola.org/extra/quizbowl.
htm.
Nine Teachers Joined Faculty in 2010-11
Jesuit High School welcomed nine faculty members, including three Blue Jay alumni, for
the 2010–11 academic year. Seated, from left, are Kate Arthurs (speech, director of
the Philelectic Society, conductor of Jesuit’s chorus); Pam Catalano (physical science);
Megan Klein (chemistry); and Nilda Rivera (Spanish, moderator of the National Spanish
Honor Society); standing, from left, are Billy Dwyer ’94 (guidance counselor, head
coach of the tennis team); Andy Dykema (Spanish, moderator of the Spanish Club);
Greg Ernst ’83 (part time faculty member who teaches law studies); Major Gorgone
(science, physical education, assistant basketball coach); and, Eric Leefe ’03 (algebra,
co-moderator of the student council).
Fall/Winter 2010 – 11 29
T HEED ALLI
M
TITLE
O NG S
O TE O
S RIE
H ERE
S
Blue Jays attending Jesuit High School today were not even born when one
of the most gruesome crimes occurred in the midst of the civil war that
was tearing apart El Salvador in the 1980s. Six Jesuit priests, among them
Father Ignacio Martín-Baró, S.J., were savagely murdered in 1989. Their
assassinations were widely condemned and sparked international outrage by
human rights groups. The brutal murders silenced Father Martín-Baró and his
colleagues, but Catherine M. Mifsud, who serves as director of campus
ministry at Jesuit High School and also teaches theology, writes that “by
remembering these modern martyrs we can create in our students an
awareness of how they must also strive to work for justice.”
Ignacio Martín-Baró, S.J. (1942-1989)
by Catherine M. Mifsud, M.A.
In the spring of 1998, I sat in a classroom on the
fourth floor of Campion Hall on the campus of the University
of San Francisco. I was a freshman in college and enrolled in a
Christology course. As part of our class requirements we read from
Jesuit priest, Jon Sobrino’s work Jesus in Latin America. It was my
first introduction to liberation theology and the civil war that had
raged in El Salvador in the 1980s and early 90s. However, it would
not be until about 18 months later that I would “meet” Ignacio
Martín-Baró, S.J.
In my senior year at USF, I sat in Saint Ignatius Church on a
typical foggy San Francisco November evening. For our student
Mass that night, we concluded our liturgy with a procession up
to the small garden created in memory of Father Martín-Baró.
On that night we would remember the 11th anniversary of the
brutal killings that took place in San Salvador. On that night with
candles, crosses, and black and white photographs of these men
and women, we would pray for a greater understanding of how we
could be instruments of peace and work for justice. On that night
we would remember their life’s works that eventually led to their
deaths.
I believe that during that candle light prayer service, I along
with my classmates realized that our Jesuit education was more
than just papers and requirements. Our Jesuit education made us
responsible for continuing the mission of these men. I know that
it made me acknowledge the duty I have to seek out the injustices
present in our world and work, in my own way, to give voice to the
voiceless. Today, through my work as director of campus ministry
at Jesuit High School, I believe that by remembering these modern
martyrs we can create in our students an awareness of how they
must also strive to work for justice.
30 JAYNotes
In the profile of our graduate, the Jesuit Secondary Education
Association (JSEA) has also recognized the importance of looking
more deeply into the oppression that can be present in our local
communities as well as globally. The Committed to Doing Justice
tenet of the Grad at Graduation states that as a graduate of a
Jesuit High School, the student “has an awareness of the global
nature of many social problems such as human rights, population
displacement, resource distribution, war/terrorism, etc., and their
impact on human communities.”
The inclusion of Ignacio Martín-Baró on a stone medallion
overlooking the Traditions Courtyard is a physical reminder of
my obligation to educate my students in the roots of injustice
and, throughout their four or five years as Blue Jays, present them
with opportunities to experience in solidarity the marginalized
members of society. But first, why was Fr. Martín-Baró chosen for
inclusion on a medallion in our school’s courtyard?
In the pre-dawn hours on November 16, 1989, approximately
30 armed men dressed in military uniforms invaded a one-story
dormitory at the Jose Simeon Canas University of Central America
on the outskirts of the capital. According to The New York Times
account published the next day, the intruders tossed a bomb into
the stucco building, and shot two of the priests in their sleeping
cubicles. The attackers dragged the remaining three priests
from their beds to a small home next door where Father Ignacio
Ellacuria Beas Coechea, S.J., the rector of the university, was
sleeping. The four priests were shot and killed with high-powered
rifles. In addition to Fathers Martín-Baró and Ignacio Ellacuria,
the other priests murdered were Segundo Montes (the dean of the
school’s department of social sciences), Joaquin Lopez y Lopez,
J E S U IT T O D AY
Amando Lopez, and Juan Ramon Moreno.
The Jesuit’s cook, Julia Elba Ramos and
her daughter, Celina, were also shot and
killed that night. Nearly two years after the
massacre, a Salvadoran Army colonel was
found guilty of murder and terrorism for
having ordered the assassinations. His trial
left unanswered whether a cover-up was
successful in protecting higher-ups in the
military who were thought to be involved.
The Jesuits had been declared
subversives by the Salvadoran Government
for their outspoken approach against the
oppressive nature of Salvadoran society.
They defended the rights of the poor and,
as a result of their unwavering dedication
to the oppressed of El Salvador, the
Salvadoran Government permanently
silenced them by assassination. Perhaps
this is too simplistic of a description of the
political events that led up to the killings
of Father Martín-Baró and his colleagues.
However, in sifting through the decades of political unrest, it
becomes clear that their murders were the direct result of their
speaking publicly on the beliefs they espoused, beliefs rooted in
our Catholic faith, in the dignity of the human person, and care
for the least.
Born in Spain in 1942, Ignacio Martín-Baró entered the
novitiate of the Society of Jesus in 1959. Shortly after he entered
the Jesuits, he was sent to Central America. In 1967 he began
teaching psychology courses at the university level. Some seven
years later, his schooling would bring him to the United States,
specifically to the University of Chicago where he earned a masters
degree in social sciences as well as his Ph.D. in organizational
psychology. His dissertation focused on the social attitudes and
conflicts of El Salvador and the relationship these conflicts had
with the disproportion of wealth in the country. Upon completion
of his doctoral degree, he returned to San Salvador to teach
psychology, and by 1981, he held the position of academic vicerector at the University of Central America. He was considered a
leading expert on Salvadoran public opinion.
In a 1985 interview, Father Martín-Baró, when asked what led
him to choosing a career in education, responded: “Well, I think
it is an important field to improve the condition of the population,
so I think it’s a field which provides you with an opportunity to
contribute, to cooperate in the shaping of the future of society and
particularly those societies which have so many needs.”
It was this desire to improve society that led him to write
several articles challenging the socio-economic climate of El
Salvador. Additionally, he sought to create solutions for the mental
health problems experienced by the oppressed people of that
country. Father Martín-Baró well understood the risk he took
in speaking out against the government of El Salvador. He once
remarked to a North American colleague: “In your country, it is
publish or perish. In ours (El Salvador) it’s publish and perish.”
The threat of emotional and physical harm posed by the
government did not curb Father Martín-Baró’s keen desire to
effect change. In the 1985 interview, he commented on the
difficulty of running a university in a country that was in the
midst of civil war: “We have been fighting very hard just to keep
the university not only open but effectively working, doing what we
consider under those conditions very significant academic work, in
favor of a solution, looking for a solution to those terrible problems of
our country.”
Father Martín-Baró and his five fellow Jesuits, along with
their cook and her daughter, were only eight of more than 70,000
victims who died in El Salvador’s civil war. The deaths of the
Jesuits outraged the international community, resulted in public
condemnation of the Salvadoran Government, and contributed to
the mounting pressure placed upon the government to negotiate
an end to the brutal civil war.
Understanding the message of Jesus in the Gospel,
Father Martín-Baró’s life serves as a reminder to us all to
the commitment we have as children of God to work for the
marginalized of our community. May we seek out the child, the
widow, the poor, those unloved, bullied, and forgotten, and may
Father Martín-Baró intercede on our behalf to work for God’s
Kingdom here on Earth. n
Catherine M. Mifsud, M.A. serves as
full time director of campus ministry
at Jesuit High School and also teaches
two theology classes. Originally from
Hollister, CA, she joined Jesuit’s
faculty at the start of the 2009-10
school year. Ms. Mifsud received her
B.A in communication studies from
the University of San Francisco and
earned a masters degree in theology and
historical theology from Boston College.
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Picked to Go Nowhere,
Jesuit’s Football Team Had Other Ideas.
Blue Jays Advance to State Quarterfinals
Before Taking It on the Chin
The 2010 Jesuit varsity football team was picked to go nowhere fast by
football pundits, casual observers, high school forum addicts, and blog
prognosticators. How wrong they all were! How surprised, even shocked,
they must have been when Jesuit’s season came to an end 13 weeks
after it began with a lopsided 64-14 jamboree win over Lakeshore.
Throughout the season, Jesuit showed its opponents they were a
team to be reckoned with, displaying an offense capable of scoring
at will and fielding a tough, hard-nosed defense. Through the
first four games, Jesuit scored 179 points to 93 points for their
opponents. In all 13 games for the 2010 season, including the
three rounds of the Class 5A state playoffs, the Jays put up a total
of 413 points while holding opponents to 242 points.
When the Blue Jays encountered the disappointing finale
of their magical season — on a bitterly cold night up in West
Monroe on November 26, the day after Thanksgiving — they
had already beaten 10 other teams and showed them how
to play Jesuit-style football. Those three teams that
defeated the Jays? Two of those three games Jesuit
lost by a scant four points.
In the final district game of the season,
the Jays let one slip away to Brother
Martin, 28-27. Both teams, however,
ended up sharing the last Catholic
League district championship. It
was only the second loss of the
season for the Jays, who dropped
a heartbreaker to a strong Karr
team, 34-31, earlier in week five.
The third loss, which also
spelled the end of the
season and made for
a long ride back
home, was
delivered by
those Rebels
from West
Monroe. The
32 JAYNotes
game coulda and shoulda been closer than the 28-11 final score,
but it was one of those nights when the Jays left most of their
breaks at Carollton and Banks.
Entering the state playoffs, those prognosticators and bloggers
had finally taken notice and seeded the Jays a strong fifth. In the
bi-district playoff game at Tad Gormley Stadium, Jesuit sent the
Golden Tornadoes from Sulphur twisting back home,
37-13. With home field advantage again for the
following week’s regional playoff game against the
Terrebonne Tigers, the Jays played a good team.
But the Jays were better than the 12th seeded
Tigers and Jesuit pulled out a 17-13 victory
to advance to the quarterfinals against West
Monroe. It was the first time in many years that
a Jesuit football team was advancing to the third,
quarterfinal round of the state playoffs.
Game day was the Friday after a big holiday,
the Jays endured a long bus ride upstate, uncomfortably
cold weather had settled over that corner of the
state, and playing on a field belonging to a football
powerhouse — well, it is understandable that the Blue and
White came down with a case of the jitters that dulled
their usually sharp performances on offense and defense.
It was the first time the Jays appeared unfocused.
It didn’t help that the Rebels were at their “methodical,
relentless, and unflappable best,” as sports writer Mike
Strom wrote in his account of the game in The TimesPicayune, adding, “Any hope for a Blue Jay victory
seemingly ended in the final minute of the first half.”
With the Rebels leading 14-0, Jesuit’s drive
stalled and junior Ralphie Freibert kicked a 29yard field goal to put the Jays on the scoreboard.
J E S U IT T O D AY
Opposite page: Senior quarterback Connor McMahon looks downfield. Senior running back Dylan Richard (inset)
anchored the Blue Jays’ running attack. Below, junior linebacker Travis Noto (55), senior wide receiver Garred Koch
(11), and junior kicker-punter Ralphie Freibert (21) join the rest of the team and Blue Jay fans in the ritual after
every game, win or lose, of singing the Alma Mater.
But disaster struck on
the ensuing kickoff
when West Monroe
took it 98 yards all
the way into the Jesuit
end zone, giving
the Rebels a 21-3
halftime lead, which
increased to 28-3 near
the end of the third
Wayde Keiser ’78 was selected by
the New Orleans Saints and the NFL
quarter. The Jays
as the 2010 Prep Football Coach of
finally scored again
the Year.
when West Monroe
took an intentional
safety. But it wasn’t until the clock showed 49 seconds remaining
in the game when Jesuit scored its only touchdown — senior
quarterback Connor McMahon connected with senior Garred
Koch on a 12-yard pass. The extra point by Freibert was blocked.
It was little comfort to the Blue Jays when West Monroe
advanced to the state championship game and lost, 21-14, to
Acadiana, a team seeded 27th.
Jesuit went as far as the quarterfinals of the state playoffs
because the Blue Jays were a talented, disciplined, and determined
team that took to the field and played like a team. That the Jays
were also well-coached by a dedicated staff cannot be overlooked.
“It was an outstanding season due to our kids’ work ethic and
desire,” reflected head coach Wayde Keiser ’78, who was honored
post-season as the “2010 Prep Football Coach of the Year” by the
New Orleans Saints and the National Football League.
“We were not really the largest or most athletic team,” he added,
“but our kids played hard week in and week out, which showed in
some of those close games. While our kids played well, we also had
the ball bounce our way a few times and that always helps. We were
able to run the ball very well with the depth we had at running back
and an experienced offensive line. And our defense got better each
week. We were very steady in our kicking game which led to some
big plays and those helped us to a couple of wins.”
Jesuit congratulates three Blue Jays who were named to the
Louisiana Sportswriters’ 5A All-State Team: senior defensive back
Bobby Dunn, junior kicker and punter Ralphie Freibert, and
junior linebacker Debo Jones. Senior offensive lineman Patrick
DeVun received an honorable mention from the association.
Jesuit High School and Jaynotes salute the entire football program
for a great 2010 season. n
Look back at the stories and photo galleries of the 2010 Jesuit football
season on Jesuit’s web site: http://www.jesuitnola.org/athletics/
football.htm.
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Run, Phil, Run!
Jesuit’s Cross Country Team Crowned 2010 State Champs
Aucoin is only the second Jesuit sprinter to win an individual
state title. Brett Guidry ’06 was the first Blue Jay cross country
runner to capture an individual state championship, and he
certainly stands alone in accomplishing this difficult feat not
once, but twice — initially in 2003 when he was a sophomore
and as a senior in 2005.
“The 2010 cross country season exceeded all expectations and was
quite possibly the best ever,” says head coach Peter Kernion ’90 (below). “The
varsity team won five invitational events and its eighth consecutive district
championship. And, of course, after placing second in the 2007, 2008, and
2009 state tournaments, it was great for our guys to bring home the 2010 state
championship trophy.”
The cross country team won the
district championship with a perfect score,
which happens when the first five runners who
cross the finish line are all Blue Jays. During
this remarkable season, four Blue Jays ran a
5K race in spectacular times below 16 minutes.
Aucoin’s best 5K was 15:06 at the Walker High
Shootout in October (in the district meet, he ran first
with a time of 15:10); sophomore twins Neal and Sean
Fitzpatrick were clocked at 15:20 and 15:37, respectively;
and, yet a third fleet-footed sophomore, Andrew Pettus,
posted a 15:59.
“Although our three sophomores played key roles in the
team’s overall success, it was the seniors who inspired and led
the team to victory,” says Kernion. “Philip Aucoin had a couple of
third place finishes early on, but as the season progressed, he began
to consistently cross the finish line first. There’s no doubt he led the
way throughout the season. As a first time runner, senior Jake Wilkinson
34 JAYNotes
Cross country and swimming photos by Greg Pearson
Senior Philip Aucoin (left) doesn’t like running all that
much. And that makes his first place finish at the LHSAA
Cross Country State Championship on November 16,
2010 all the more improbable, even amazing. Breaking
loose from a pack of 301 other runners, Aucoin galloped
first across the finish line of the three-mile race in
Natchitoches with a time of 15:40. In doing so,
Aucoin helped lift the Blue Jay cross country team
to another state title, its fifth one in the past nine
years.
ate
J E S U IT T O D AY
consistently finished in the team’s top five and helped the Jays to
several victories, especially at the state meet. The junior varsity
and junior high teams also had outstanding seasons with each
winning the district and city championships.”
At the state meet, Aucoin’s average mile was 5:13. Neal
Fitzpatrick crossed the finish line third with a time of 15:56, some
16 seconds behind Aucoin, and less than seven seconds behind
the second place runner from Catholic High. Sean Fitzpatrick
made the top ten by placing ninth with a time of 16:18; Andrew
Pettus was 16th with a time of 16:38. Jesuit’s fifth runner was Jake
Wilkinson, who came in 30th at 16:59. Running well but out of
contention were senior Jonathan Prindle, who finished 35th
(17:03), and junior Scot Pilie, who was the 52nd runner to cross
the finish line (17:26).
Only the five lowest scores count and Jesuit’s 59 had first
place written all over it. The Jays edged out second place Catholic
High whose runners scored 62. St. Paul’s placed third with a
score of 104.
Aucoin and the Fitzpatrick brothers were named to the 2010
LHSAA cross country state championship team, a significant
achievement and honor for a couple of deserving sophomores and
a reluctant senior running champion.
Jesuit High School and Jaynotes congratulate the 2010 cross
country team for winning the state championship. n
Check out Jesuit’s cross country championship season, the photo galleries
of Blue Jays running, along with archives going back to the 2005-06
season: http://www.jesuitnola.org/athletics/crosscountry.htm.
Jesuit’s 2010 cross country team with its championship trophy;
below, Blue Jay cross country runners never stayed with the
rest of the pack very long and quickly distanced themselves
from the herd.
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Eking Out a One-Point State Championship
5th Consecutive State Title for Blue Jay Swimming Powerhouse
The 2010 Jesuit swimming team won the state championship. No surprise there. But an astonishing
one-point margin of victory over the second place Bulldogs of Fontainebleau? Let’s just say that inside
the SPAR Aquatic Center in Sulphur, there were plenty of anxious Blue Jay swimmers biting their nails, at
least those who still had nails at this point.
Among the legion of Jesuit spectators were equally nervous parents,
some of whom were busily punching their own calculations on
I-Phones. Meanwhile, a bevy of judges were totaling the points, a
process that seemed to take an entire week. The judges confirmed
their math several times before an LHSAA official intoned the
official results for Division I — Jesuit – 307, Fontainebleau – 306.
For a team that started the season back in September with
the unofficial motto “Refuse to Lose,” the one-point margin
was akin to cutting the wake a little
too close. It
may be
the slimmest margin
of victory of the 27 state titles
Jesuit has racked up in the past 29 years.
Yet, why dwell on it? A win is a win. The past is the past.
Let the record reflect that the Blue Jay swimming team left
Sulphur on November 20, 2010 with another state championship
trophy. They managed to win it all while placing first in a lone
event — the 200-yard freestyle relay. In that event, the all-junior
team of Grant McClure, John Rubadue, Patrick Abry, and
Brennan Dorsey touched the wall first in 1:28.98.
The meet came down to the very last race, the 400-yard
freestyle relay. Swimming into this event, the Blue Jays held a ninepoint lead over the Bulldogs, but needed — absolutely, positively
needed — to finish in one of the top three positions. The Jesuit
team of Dorsey, Rubadue, McClure, and senior Daniel Dupre felt
confident because they placed first in the preliminaries with a time
of 3:20.70, followed by the second place Bulldogs and third place
Bears from Catholic High. But in any finals event, all swimmers
know they need to shave as many seconds as possible off their
preliminary results.
Strange that in this last race, the Jays’ were up against the only
pair of rivals to have won a Division I state swimming title when
Jesuit did not over the stretch of 24 years. The Bulldogs have won
state four times. The Bears captured the title in the Katrina year,
in the process snapping Jesuit’s 18 consecutive state championship
winning streak, an LHSAA record that may stand up for all of
time.
This last race would be the toughest, physically and
psychologically, because everyone knew — especially the Jesuit,
Fontainebleau, and Catholic High swimmers — that it would go
down to the wire in scant millisecond margins.
When the starting gun sounded for this final race of the meet
and the season itself, time seemed to stand still. Halfway through
the event, the Jays were in the lead, but as the anchors turned
to begin their last lap, the Bulldog swimmer put on his flippers
36 JAYNotes
and surged ahead in the last few yards, touching the wall first
in 3:15.47. Next were the Bears who finished 28/100 of a second
behind the Bulldogs with a time of 3:15.75. The anchor for team
Jesuit, Daniel Dupre, touched the wall 1:01 seconds after the Bear
swimmer, giving the Blue Jays a solid third place finish with a total
time of 3:16.76.
Bret Hanemann ’85, head coach of Jesuit’s swimming team,
recounted that fretful finale of a race to the The Times-Picayune
reporter covering the meet: “We knew that we had to be top-three.
I was really expecting to be one or two there, but we got third… It
was incredible. We knew that it was going to be a tough year and
a dogfight all the way down to the end. Every single one of these
guys stepped up and did what they had to do. Talk about a true
team effort for this victory.”
When the results of the meet were officially announced,
the Jesuit swimmers and their gallery of parents,
alumni, and friends allowed the ruckus to begin.
Swimmers promptly engaged in the ritualistic
tradition of tossing their coach into the pool.
The celebratory dunking was all the more
special because Jesuit entered the state meet unaccustomed to
being tagged as the second seeded team. A Jesuit swim team seeded
second? Didn’t they get the memo? These Blue Jay swimmers
simply refused to lose.
Jesuit High School and Jaynotes congratulate the 2010 Blue Jay
swimming team for an outstanding season and for bringing home
another championship trophy. Additionally, kudos to senior Daniel
Dupre, whose 3.8 grade point average landed him on the 2010
LHSAA Academic All-State Boys’ Swimming Composite Team. n
Check out the swimming home page to view the team’s photo galleries
and archives: http://www.jesuitnola.org/athletics/swimming.htm.
Number one by one point: the 2010 Jesuit swimming team with
a hard-earned state championship trophy.
Home Field Advantage Campaign
Naming Opportunities and Sponsorship Levels
Donate or Pledge Online on Jesuit’s Home Page — Look for the HFA Online Campaign in the Upper Left Corner
Available Naming Opportunities and Sponsorship Levels:
PAVILION $100,000
BATTING CAGE $75,000
BLUE JAY SHOP & CONCESSIONS $75,000
DIAMOND CLUB $50,000 (10 Positions)
The following Diamond Club “Players” Already
Hold Down Five Positions:
Catcher
Shortstop
Anonymous Anonymous In Honor of Stephen P. Riley ’80
In Honor of Milton J. Retif, Sr. ’51
1st Base
George F. Sins III ’94
Right Field
Michael D. Kopfler ’85
Commitments have been secured
for the following
naming opportunities:
JOHN RYAN STADIUM
$1,000,000
Mr. & Mrs. John F. Ryan III ’70 Designated Hitter
Michael H. Rodrigue, Jr. ’71
Positions currently available include:
Pitcher, 2nd Base, 3rd Base, Left Field, and Center Field
CHAMPIONS’ CLUB $25,000
ALL-STATE $15,000
First NBC Scoreboard
$150,000
BLUE JAY Press Box
ALUMNI FIELD $10,000 (100 Jesuit Alumni)
$100,000
Stanley Ray Trust
ALL-DISTRICT $5,000
BLUE JAY Dugout
LETTERMAN $1,000
$100,000
Mr. David W. Vignes ’76
VARSITY PLAYER $500
Details about the amenities offered for each sponsorship level are listed
on the Home Field Advantage home page:
http://www.jesuitnola.org/about/HFA_Main_Draft1_071810.htm.
All Naming Opportunities are subject to approval by Jesuit High School. Jesuit
reserves the right to adjust amounts of sponsorships and amenities offered.
Questions about available naming opportunities or amenities offered for the various
sponsorships should be directed to Tom Bagwill, Jesuit’s director of institutional
advancement, at (504) 483-3841, or email: [email protected].
*The Donor Recognition Wall will include the names of benefactors who have
committed to donating a minimum of $10,000 to the Home Field Advantage
campaign. (Note: Benefactors may not receive recognition on the Donor Wall if their
pledges are received after December 31, 2011.)
Visitor’s Dugout
$100,000
Dominion Gas, LLC
Mr. Lucien J. Tujague, Jr. ’76
In Memory of
Mr. Andrew E. Hillery ’79
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As a junior in 1969, John Ryan displayed a
multi-faceted pitching portfolio that included
throwing his specialty — a “cutter,” essentially
a near 90 m.p.h. fastball that breaks late.
Jesuit’s new athletic facility currently under
construction will carry the name John Ryan Stadium
in appreciation for the generosity of this Blue Jay
alumnus from the Class of 1970.
One Million Dollar Gift
Is a Grand Slam for Jesuit’s
John and his wife, Janet, have committed
a gift of $1 million to Jesuit’s Home Field
Advantage capital campaign, the goal of
which is to raise $6 million for the project
from alumni, parents, and friends. As of
March 2011, Jesuit had secured pledges
from approximately 500 benefactors
totaling $4 million.
John Ryan Stadium will be a five
minute bus ride from Jesuit’s Mid-City
campus. The facility will be located off
Airline Drive in LaBarre Business Park, just
on the other side of the Orleans-Jefferson
Parish line. Scheduled for completion in
fall 2011, John Ryan Stadium will feature
a covered grandstand overlooking home
plate that can accommodate 650 fans.
Bleachers straddling third base and left field
can hold 650 fans. The parking lot will
accommodate several busses and 230 cars.
A pavilion near the main entrance will be
a central gathering spot and a place to hold
reunions and tailgate events.
The multi-purpose field in John Ryan
Stadium will sport artificial turf. While the
facility will be used primarily to showcase
Blue Jay varsity baseball, the varsity teams
for soccer, rugby, and lacrosse, along with
the various sub-varsity athletic teams, will
also utilize the field for practices, matches,
and games. The varsity football team will
38 JAYNotes
use the new field for practice only and
continue to play its games at Tad Gormley
Stadium and other large facilities that are
better able to accommodate large crowds.
“John was one of the finest pitchers
in the history of Blue Jay baseball and it
is a fitting tribute to name this stadium
in his honor,” Fr. Anthony McGinn, S.J.
’66, president of Jesuit High School, told a
crowd of supportive and enthusiastic Blue
Jay benefactors who had gathered at the
stadium site for a formal groundbreaking
ceremony last December. “I very much
appreciate and thank John and Janet for
their very generous gift to the stadium
project which will benefit our current
students as well as future generations of
Blue Jays.”
While a student at Jesuit, John Ryan
played defensive end on the 1968 and 1969
football teams. But the sport he has always
loved, and still does, was baseball. Ryan
was a superb pitcher on the 1969 and 1970
Blue Jay baseball teams that were then
coached by Frank Misuraca. In Ryan’s
senior year, he set a Jesuit record for strike
outs that stands to this day. His special
pitches were wicked, hard-to-hit curves and
sinkers. The speed of his pitches clocked in
around 85-90 m.p.h. Ryan’s talent on the
mound attracted the eye of another Blue Jay
— Milton Retif (’51), who at the time was
head coach of Tulane’s Green Wave baseball
team.
As Ryan recalls all those years ago:
“I was fortunate to have been recruited by
several universities, obviously because of
baseball, and not my grade point average
at Jesuit. One night Coach Retif came to
my parents’ house to recruit me for Tulane
University. He sold my parents and me, a
17-year-old kid at the time, on the fact that
‘You go to school in the town where you are
going to make your living.’ This made a lot
of sense to me and my parents. I signed with
Tulane and stayed in New Orleans. My grade
point average at Tulane far exceeded my Jesuit
GPA — Jesuit was hard, college was easy.”
Ryan played four years of baseball
for the Green Wave while majoring in
education, with a minor in physical
education. Ryan graduated from Tulane
in 1974 and, much to his own surprise,
abruptly left New Orleans to work in
Houston at Alexander Industries, which
supplied safety equipment to the offshore
oil and gas industry. In 1976, he married
Janet Gray, his “Dominican girl.” They
have two sons, John, who is 31 and a
captain for Continental Express. Jason is 28
and works at the family business owned by
his parents. For many years, the Ryans have
J E S U IT T O D AY
Janet and John Ryan were in town a few weeks ago and had a chance to visit the
construction site. Since their visit, construction has steadily moved forward.
JOHN
RYAN STADIUM
made their home in Spring, TX, just
south of the Woodlands.
John had been with Alexander for
16 years and helped build it into a very
profitable business. In 1990, he and Janet
bought Alexander Industries with a loan
from the Small Business Administration.
A few years later, they changed the name
to Alexander/Ryan Marine & Safety
Company. It is still headquartered in
Houston and known as Alexander/Ryan.
Today, the company has three satellite
offices — two in Louisiana (New Iberia
and St. Rose) — and one overseas in
England.
Alexander/Ryan supplies a complete
line of marine safety and fire protection
products to energy companies, engineering
firms, drilling contractors, and shipyards
with a customer base that extends to
Korea, Singapore, China, Europe, Brazil,
and many other locations. Among the
company’s products are enclosed lifeboats
and inflatable life rafts that can hold
up to 100 people and can be found on
numerous offshore drilling rigs and
Jaynotes: It is not often that someone commits one million
dollars to help Jesuit. How did it all come about?
Ryan: I had heard about the Home Field Advantage project, but
didn’t know any of the details. As I learned about the magnitude
of the multi-purpose stadium, I was intrigued. Fr. McGinn
approached me some time ago and I told him that I would
contribute. I just didn’t know the amount or when the timing
would be right.
Jaynotes: What sort of homework did you do before committing
to the project?
Ryan: Kevin Heigle (’69), a longtime friend (who also served as
Jesuit’s attorney for the acquisition of the stadium property in
2009) sent me an architect rendering of the stadium. I then flew
to New Orleans to have lunch with Kevin, Fr. McGinn, Tom
production platforms. The company also
sells engineered products that include water
makers, sewage treatment units, aluminum
heliports, and oily water separators.
Charming, unassuming, and
unpretentious, the Ryans are grateful to
be able to support several philanthropic
endeavors in Houston and New Orleans.
Jaynotes recently threw several fast
questions to John Ryan, who was kind
enough to swat the answers out of the
proverbial ball park.
Bagwill (Jesuit’s director of institutional advancement), Coach
Misuraca and several other coaches, Dave Moreau (Jesuit’s athletic
director), a few players from the current baseball team, and my
close friend Mike Levy (’70). After lunch, I was given a walking
tour of the school by Fr. McGinn. I had not been back to the
campus for many years, and the tour was very eye opening to
me. I then started to think seriously about what I wanted to do
regarding the new athletic facility.
Jaynotes: Was there a “eureka” moment that led to your
decision to support the project with a $1 million gift?
Ryan: No, there wasn’t really a “eureka” moment, rather a deep
desire to leave something that would last beyond me — a legacy
for my family, for Jesuit, and all of the players and fans that will
be using the facility. I also have twin nephews who are currently
sophomores at Jesuit. They will see the benefits of this stadium
Fall/Winter 2010 – 11 39
TH
H
O EM ETITLE
FIEL D
G OAEDSV A
HN
ERE
TA G E
Construction of Jesuit’s new
athletic stadium and field is
progressing and this spring work
had begun on the foundation of
the grandstand.
Opposite page: At the
groundbreaking ceremony held
December 2, 2010, a lot of
supportive Blue Jays were on
hand to celebrate the official
announcement that Jesuit was
undertaking this project.
and that in itself makes my involvement more than worthwhile.
Jaynotes: You paid no attention to Coach Retif when you
graduated from Tulane because you immediately left New
Orleans for Houston. Did you have any idea what you were
doing?
Ryan: Looking back — how do you really know what you want
to do at age 17 or 18? When I was at Tulane, I thought about
becoming a teacher and a baseball coach. Right after graduating
from Tulane, my cousin offered me the opportunity to go
to Houston to start a branch office to sell equipment to the
developing marine and offshore drilling markets. At the time,
he was president of the company. I knew no one in Houston and
it was a challenge for this “New Orleans-bred” boy. My cousin
became the black sheep of our family for taking me out of the
New Orleans area. I accepted the job on a Friday and went to
work on Monday filling out paperwork. On Tuesday, I was
learning my job. At the time, it made no sense at all. As it turned
out, it was probably one of the best things that ever happened to
me. Go figure, I own and run a multi-million dollar company,
and along the way, have learned the accounting, marketing, and
human resource aspects of the business. Life is funny, isn’t it?
Jaynotes: You never thought about playing major league ball?
Ryan: I’ll tell you a funny story. On my first Tuesday night in
Houston, the Atlanta Braves called my parents home in Airline
Park looking for me. They wanted to fly me to Atlanta to try out
for the team. This was due in part to another cousin of mine,
Connie Ryan, who was an excellent baseball player while a student
at Jesuit. He graduated in 1938, played for LSU, and then turned
pro, playing second and third base for five different teams. By the
time I graduated from Tulane, Connie was the third base coach for
the Braves. But I declined the Atlanta offer after very little thought.
I figured that baseball allowed me to get a Tulane education, and
a free one, too. My parents could not have come close to affording
the tuition at Tulane. That’s all I wanted from baseball — an
education. Besides, I knew that at that next level, players hit the
curve ball really well. That also made my decision easy.
Jaynotes: Who were some of your teachers at Jesuit?
Ryan: I still have fond memories of my teachers — Coach (Ray)
Coates (’44), Fr. J.B. Leininger, (S.J. ’40), Joe Dover (’56), Jim
LeBeau (’60), Br. (Casey) Ferlita, (S.J.), Easton Roth, Henry
Rando, Fr. (Gregory) Curtin, (S.J.), Br. (Billy) Dardis, (S.J. ’58),
Willie Brown (’29), and (R.O.T.C. instructors) Col. (Harold)
Boehm and Sgt. (Aaron) Cappel. Pat Screen (’61) even taught
40 JAYNotes
civics to my freshmen class. I was a typical “C” student, with an
occasional “B” and even a “D.” Like a lot of Jesuit kids did who
played sports, I worried about maintaining my grades in order to
stay eligible for football and baseball.
Jaynotes: What comes to mind about playing on the Jesuit
teams back then?
Ryan: On the football field, we experienced two tough losses. I
was a junior and we lost to Holy Cross and Rummel by a total
of eight points. In my senior year, we lost to DeLaSalle and Holy
Cross by a total of five points.
Jaynotes: I trust you have fonder memories when it comes to
baseball?
Ryan: In my senior year, the baseball team surprised everyone,
including Coach Misuraca, by finishing 6-1 in the first round of
district play, setting up the championship game for that round
against Rummel. My close friend and teammate Emile Zinser
(’70) and I both lived in Metairie, not far from Rummel. Emile
and I were always given much grief for becoming Blue Jays and
not Raiders. We each had run scoring hits and I pitched a shutout
to clinch the first round title. It was a very gratifying victory for
both of us and our team.
Jaynotes: How did the baseball team do in the second round?
Ryan: We went 1-6. It got really bad. We couldn’t buy a timely
hit or get an out when we needed it. One day before practice,
Coach Misuraca ordered Kurt Forshag (’70) and I to collect all
the Coke bottle caps that we could find in the vending machine at
the gas station on the corner (of Carrollton and Banks) and in the
gutters along Banks Street. Kurt and I came back to the gym with
a bunch of these caps and Coach was busy sawing the handles off
of broomsticks. Coach told everyone on the team to leave their
gloves in the gym and get on the bus. We all began to think he
was going to make us RUN the entire practice. When we got to
City Park, he sure surprised us. Coach had me sail the Coke caps
to the batters who tried to hit them with the broom sticks. It was
old-fashioned stick ball with the objective to keep our eyes on the
ball when batting. It didn’t do any good because we lost our next
game.
Jaynotes: Is there a significant experience playing Jesuit
baseball that is forever etched in your memory?
Ryan: Memories, such a great thing. The absolute best was in my
senior year when I pitched against Holy Cross and St. Augustine.
They were back to back games four days apart on a Thursday and
J E S U IT T O D AY
Monday. In the Holy Cross game, I gave up an opening double
then struck out 16 out of the next 21 batters. In the St. Aug game,
I struck out 18 of 21 batters. These two games helped me reach
118 strikeouts for the season, which set a Jesuit record that has
stood up for 40 years. What I really didn’t know at the time was
the consecutive scoreless inning streak I had going. It wasn’t until
we lost to Rummel in the second round that someone told me that
I had pitched 30 and 1/3 consecutive scoreless innings. Something
else sticks out in my mind at those two games. Every time I got
two strikes on a batter, (Jesuit alumnus) Buddy Lazare (’43) would
shout, “LIGHTS OUT!” (Lazare is the father of Bryan Lazare ’71,
who served as student manager for several of the Jesuit baseball
teams, including the 1970 squad. The elder Lazare remains a
dedicated Blue Jay baseball fan with a powerful set of lungs.)
Jaynotes: Did that charm the Jays displayed in the first round
return in the playoffs?
Ryan: The final game for the district championship was another
fond memory. We lost to Brother Martin in the first and second
rounds, and we faced them for a third time that season for the
district championship. There was standing room only at Kirsch
Rooney Stadium. We were winning, 2-0, in the bottom of the 7th
with two outs, but the Crusaders had the tying runners on first
and third bases. I got two quick strikes on the next batter, and
started to throw protectively around the plate, trying to get him to
swing at something out of the strike zone. The count was 2-2 and
he fouled off several pitches. The tension mounted in the stands
and on the field. Our catcher, Steve Pumilia (’72), called for a
pitch and I remember throwing one of my hardest pitches ever.
The batter swung and missed, but the ball got past Steve all the
way to the backstop. Steve ran after it and threw the batter out at
first base. We were off to the State Championship Tournament at
LSU.
Jaynotes: How did we do in the tournament?
Ryan: We won the first two games which got us to the State
Championship game. But we lost to Fair Park (Shreveport), 2-1,
in a drizzling rain. Jesuit was state runner-up — not too bad
for a team that won half their games while batting .185. Call it
“that Jesuit Luck,” but we played as a “Team.” Coach Misuraca
was named Coach of the Year and I was selected as the city’s Most
Valuable Player, which, indeed, was an honor.
Jaynotes: It’s your money, so you had the honor of naming the
stadium. Did you agonize over it?
Ryan: The name of the stadium was an interesting dilemma!
I thought it would be very easy, but I started second guessing
myself. What about naming it after Frank Misuraca and Milton
Retif, two individuals who I’ve had the great fortune to call
“Coach” and “close friends” at different times of my life. Other
than my father, I respect these two men the most — for what they
have accomplished, for what they give back, and how they live
their lives. I also thought it would be neat to simply call it “Blue
Jay Stadium!” After I consulted some close friends — and they
know who they are — I decided to name it John Ryan Stadium. I
hope that I have earned the athletic and business credentials that
have allowed me to gain the respect of my fellow Blue Jays who
also are contributing to this great project.
Jaynotes: Since becoming involved in the stadium project,
what has been the feedback from your Jesuit classmates and
teammates?
Ryan: Ironically, only a few of my close friends from Jesuit know
I am doing this. Some of my other closest friends and fellow ball
players probably won’t know until they read this interview in
Jaynotes. It will be interesting to see their reactions.
Jaynotes: What sage advice did your wife Janet provide?
Ryan: Janet and I were sitting down at home one night when I
explained to her that I wanted to “do something” regarding the
stadium. It stayed that way for some time because we never decided
what “do something” meant. After awhile, I got enough courage
to tell her what I really wanted to do, which meant a commitment
on a much higher level. Janet asked if we could really afford a one
million dollar donation, even if it is spread out over the next five
years. Our CPA blessed it and gave us the green light, and that’s
when reality set in. “My Dominican girl” and wife of 35 years came
to fully understand “THAT JESUIT THING,” as Kevin Heigle so
eloquently stated in his (2009) Alumnus of the Year speech. I think
it is wonderful that Janet understands how much it means to me to
be able to do this for Jesuit High School. n
View a 24-hour live picture of John Ryan Stadium as construction
progresses through the “eye” of a camera that overlooks the site and is
mounted on our neighbor’s building. Go to Jesuit’s web site, www.
jesuitnola.org and look for the link John Ryan Stadium Web Cam.
Online pledges and donations may be made to the Home Field
Advantage campaign. Go to Jesuit’s home page, www.jesuitnola.org ,
and look in the upper left corner for “Donate Online to Jesuit.”
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Star of Our Youthful Years
Visit Jesuit’s Online Boutique and place your order today for a lithograph of “Star of Our Youthful Years.”
A lithograph signed by artist Terrance Osborne is $75; an unsigned one is $40.
Get all the details when you visit the Blue Jay Online Boutique: www.jesuitnola.org. Look for the link under Parents’ News.