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The St. Rita of Cascia High School Alumni MagazineTolle Lege! “Take Up
and Read”
SPRING 2008
Valentine’s at the Ritz:Dinner Dance Success Once Again
IN THIS ISSUE1
ValENTINE DINNER DaNcE
2lETTER fRom THE PRINcIPal
3 - 5mUSTaNgS IN THE NEwS
6 -7 wINTER SPoRTS REcaP
8 - 9 aDVaNcEmENT
10 KEEPINg TRacK
11 IN mEmoRIam
What do you think of our neW look?
Email comments to [email protected]
1VEritas † Unitas † Caritas
It was a cold February night in down-town Chicago, but the Grand Ballroom at the Ritz-Carlton was warmed by the
conviviality and fraternity of alumni, sup-porters, and friends of St. Rita of Cascia High School as they gathered for the 19th Annual Valentine Dinner Dance.
A gourmet dinner from the hotel, along with great music from The Con-nexion (www.connexionband.com), set the scene for a night of ‘oohing’ and ‘ah-
hing’ at the amazing selection of silent auction items. Some highlights included guitars signed by The Eagles and Pink Floyd, collections of fine liquors, and a variety of autographed sports memora-bilia. Along with the silent auction, Keith Jones of Sayre and Jones Auctioneers ran a fast-paced live auction with his crew to gather bids on a guitar signed by the Rolling Stones, tickets to the Oprah show, resort getaways, and a special “fund-a-cause” to raise money for new science labs at St. Rita.
It was not all frenzied bid-watching, however. The true prizes of the night came from the awards presentation. Dr. John Donahue was honored with the 2008 Tolle Lege Community Ser-vice Award. Donahue has served as the Chairman of the newly formed Board of Directors of St. Rita of Cascia High School since its inception in 2006. The 2008 Cou-ple of the Year Award was presented to Mike and Jacqui Zunica. Mike has been with St. Rita in the Office of Institutional
Advancement since 1997 as Director of Development and Special Projects, and has also led the baseball team to many championships as head coach during that time. His hard work over the years has helped the Valentine Dance grow to its current level of success. His wife Jac-qui is constantly behind him, supporting him and their children. The awards were preceded by an incredible speech from senior student Andrew Smialek, which visibly illustrated the strength of the St. Rita family.
The Dinner Dance, a perennial ma-jor fundraiser for the school, brought in $230,000 this year. The all-time total is now over $2.5 million. Deep thanks to all of those who attended. Your support and commitment to Catholic Augustin-ian education at St. Rita is paramount to our continued success.
Fr. Tom McCarthy, O.S.A. ‘83 (left) with Tolle Lege Community Service Award winner Dr. John Donahue and Couple of the Year Jacqui and Mike Zunica. View the full photo gallery at www.stritahs.com.
12 Ritamen clean up well as they help with the auc-tion at the Dinner Dance.
fRom THE DESK of THE PRINcIPalTolle Lege! is a publication of
the St. Rita of Cascia High School
Office of Institutional Advancement
7740 S. Western Ave., Chicago, IL 60620
St. Rita is sponsored by the
Augustinian Order and has been serving
the Chicago area since 1905.
Telephone: 773-925-5029
E-mail: [email protected]
AdministrationRev. Thomas McCarthy, O.S.A. ‘83
President
Mrs. Sally Deenihan
Principal
Rev. Walter McNicholas, O.S.A. ‘44
Alumni Chaplain
Bro. Gary Hresil, O.S.A. ‘86
Alumni Moderator
Office of Institutional AdvancementMike Brennan - Director of Advancement
Michael Zunica - Advancement Officer
Craig Ferguson - Director of Admissions
John Schmitt ‘84 - Director of Annual Appeal
Michael Maione ‘56 - Director of Alumni
Adam McGrath - Director of Public Relations
Trish Harrington - Asst. Director of Annual Appeal
Javier Solorio II ’02 - Director of Graphic Design
Alumni Association OfficersNicholas Calarco ‘73 - President
Sye Majka ‘64 - 1st Vice-President
William Lynch ‘91 - 2nd Vice-President
Patrick O’Malley ‘77 - Secretary
Sean Carney ‘74 - Treasurer
Board of DirectorsRonald Abramowicz ‘60
Anthony Colosimo ‘63
Dr. John Donahue, Chairman
Michael T. Georgopulos ‘72
Patrick M. Graber
Thomas M. Harrington ‘74
Bro. Gary Hresil, O.S.A. ‘86
Gregory Jania ‘89
Mark A. Kelly ‘84
Very Rev. William Lego, O.S.A.
Timothy McArdle (Hon.)
Rev. Thomas R. McCarthy, O.S.A. ‘83
Ernest Mrozek ‘71
Bryan O’Connor ‘70
The Honorable Noreen Daly Reilly
Edward J. Schmit, Jr. ‘63
Rev. Bernard Scianna, O.S.A. ‘83
Terrance R. Stefanski
Emeriti Members of the Board of DirectorsPatrick E. Mahoney ‘54
Michael McArdle ‘54
James Miller ‘47
Donald A. Petkus ‘58
Michael Schneider ‘46
Arthur R. Velasquez, ‘56
Secretary to the BoardSr. Ardis Cloutier, O.S.F
calendar
april 17 & 19 The St. Rita of Cascia Theater Group Presents Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead | 7:00 p.m. • 3:00 p.m.
april 18 Alumni Banquet “Coming Home” | 6:00 p.m.
may 1 Perpetual Novena to St. Rita | 7:00 p.m.
may 13 - 21 Nine Day Solemn Novena | 7:00 p.m.
may 18 Commencement | All Day
may 22 St. Rita Feast Day Mass | 7:00 p.m.
Dear Ritamen, Families & Friends:
We are just completing the third quarter of the school year, and are reaping the results of the hard work and efforts put forth by both faculty and students during the academic year thus far. I am pleased to be able to tell you that our seniors have earned over $5 million in scholarships to college, and it is only mid-March! We anticipate that this amount will grow to $7 million by the end of the school year.
In the athletic area we have also excelled. Steve Zimmerman won a first place medal in the individual state finals for wrestling. Kevin Galeher, John Majka, and Taylor Osborn also placed. Coach Craig Ferguson and our skating Mustangs have won the prestigious Kennedy Cup in hockey for the first time since 1992. Jamere Walton won the state 3-point shoot-out, defeating three other class winners in the King of the Hill finale. Our football team was honored at the March meeting of the Chicago City Council for their victory in the Prep Bowl at the conclusion of their season, and we are looking forward to great seasons for all our spring athletes.
All of these accomplishments would not be possible without the com-mitment of everyone involved, including our alumni and friends who so generously donate to St. Rita High School. Without our benefactors, we would never be able to place before our students the opportunities to develop and excel which are currently available to them. Thank you, to each and every person, who has donated services and/or monetary contributions to this great community. Each one of you shares in the credit and honors our students bring home to St. Rita of Cascia High School.
Sincerely yours,
Sally E. Deenihan Principal
March 2008
2 tollE lEgE! spring 2008
It was the realization of years of hard work for St. Rita of Cascia High School senior John Majka when he opened the
official-looking letter from the Superin-tendent of the United States Naval Acad-emy, which told him he was selected to the Academy’s Class of 2012. The selec-tion comes with a $300,000 scholarship.
Majka, who lives in Beverly and at-tended St. Cajetan Elementary School, has been a consistent honors student at St. Rita, making the Gold Honor Roll each of his first seven semesters, which requires a 4.00 GPA or higher. He also earned the Heeney Award for Fall 2007, with straight A’s for the semester. He was inducted into the National Honor Society in November, which requires not only ex-cellent grades but fosters an attitude of service as well.
Majka just finished his fourth year as a Varsity wrestler, and took home 3rd place in the individual state championships this year at 135 lbs., improving from his fourth place finish in the 125 lb. weight class last year. He also won his second consecutive Catholic League Title this season.
When he was initially considering applying to colleges this year, Majka was leaning toward the University of Iowa or University of Wisconsin-Madison, largely because of their wrestling programs. But when former St. Rita Wrestling Coach Ryan
John majka appointed to Naval academy
Recently, members of the St. Rita Chapter of the National Honor Soci-ety teamed up with Rebound Sports
for a week-long collection of used inflat-able sports balls. Wes Benak '81, Assis-tant Principal and NHS moderator at St. Rita, heard about the charitable organi-zation founded just a year ago by Mount Prospect resident Victor LaPorte.
“I saw the Rebound Sports story on my local news,” said Benak, “and thought this was a cause the boys at St. Rita could really get behind. I knew we had a good chance to make a big difference for children who do not have any sports equipment.”
And a big difference it will be, with the St. Rita community donating 425 used and new sports balls over the week-long drive. Included were basketballs, footballs, soccer balls, vol-leyballs, water polo balls, and a range of other balls that will be given new life in the playgrounds of under-privileged children.
LaPorte and Rebound Sports have formed a part-nership with MotoDiscov-ery, an outfit that leads mo-
NHS Teams Up with Rebound Sports to Help Kids Play Ball
Mustangs Making news
John Majka (Chicago - Beverly) will be attending the United States Naval Academy next year. He has been on the Gold Honor Roll each of his seven semesters at St. Rita of Cascia High School, and won his second Catholic League Title in Wrestling this year.
Five St. Rita High School juniors, members of the National Honor Society, help collect and deflate the 425 sports balls they collected during a week-long drive for Rebound Sports. Standing (from left): Kyel White (Chicago-Ashburn), Dave Fashingbauer (Chicago-Beverly), Pat Hogan (Chicago-Beverly), and Mr. Wes Benak '81. Kneeling: David Huang (Chicago-Bridgeport) and Ben Richardson (Oak Park).
Egan told Majka that he roomed with the Naval Academy’s Assistant Coach, Scott Owen, at Northern Illinois, that opened the door for the move to Annapolis.
The application process for the Na-val Academy is more intensive than other universities, as it requires a physical test, medical examination, and a nomination from a Congressman or Senator. Majka was nominated by U.S. Representative Daniel Lipinski of the 3rd Congressional District of Illinois. Letters of recommen-dation from his Math and English teach-
ers were also required. John said of his acceptance, “I am
very excited to have been accepted into the Naval Academy. Once I visited, I knew it was the right place for me. I’ve never lived on the East Coast before, so it will be an adjustment, but I’m looking forward to the change and experienc-ing new things. It won’t be easy, but I’m ready to accept the challenge.”
The St. Rita community is very proud of John’s accomplishments, and wishes him the best in Annapolis.
torcycle tours through Mexico, Central America, and South America, where small villages have been identified for the initial phase of this project. Often the children in these remote areas have little more than an empty water bottle to play with. The difference is instantaneous once the joyful delivery is made.
Junior Dave Fashingbauer said, “I’m
continued on page 4...
MUSTANG NEWS
3VEritas † Unitas † Caritas
african american Heritage mass
...continued from Page 3
Students from St. Rita High School attended and participated in the 30th Annual African American Heritage Mass at Holy Name Cathedral on February 5th. Pictured (left to right): Kyel White (Chicago-Ashburn), Christopher Simms (Chicago-Morgan Park), Mike Haas (Chicago-Mt. Greenwood), Ben Richardson (Oak Park), Damon Waddy (Chicago-Brainerd), Chris Chaney (Chicago-Ashburn), Nick Ardolino (Oak Lawn), Joe Campagna (Chicago-Mt. Greenwood), Mr. Ray Knight. Kneeling: Rashad Spells (Chicago-Morgan Park), Melvin Shaw (Chicago-Ashburn), Mike Basic (Chicago-Midway), Dan Dillon (Evergreen Park).
Pictured (left to right): Mike Gallagher, Chief Financial Officer; Adam McGrath, Director of Public Relations; Fr. Tom McCarthy, O.S.A. '83, President; Jerry Pazin '90, History Teacher and As-sistant Dean; and Javier Solorio II '02, Director of Graphic Design.
glad we did so well with this collection. With all the athletics in our school and in our country, it’s easy to take for granted something as simple as playing with a ball.”
Rebound Sports is looking to expand to collect-ing all types of sports equipment, but for now the ef-forts are focused on collecting inflatable sports balls, which can be deflated for more efficient shipping. If you have questions or would like to volunteer for this worthy cause, visit www.reboundsports.org.
the third principle of Kwan-zaa. Ujima refers to “collec-tive work and responsibil-ity,” and this idea permeated the speeches in the celebra-tion, including the remarks of celebrant Rev. David Jones, Pastor of St. Bene-dict the African, and hom-ilist Rev. Roy Lee, of Atlanta, GA. The general interces-sions were also tied into the other principles of Kwanzaa. They encouraged all those in attendance to continue to build community and rely on each other to make progress for themselves and those around them.
The Rita students, along with hundreds of others
On Tuesday, February 5, 12 students from St. Rita of Cascia High
School, along with Brother Jerome Sysko, O.S.A and Mr. Ray Knight, of the Campus Ministry Department, at-tended the African Ameri-can Heritage Mass, celebrat-ed at Holy Name Cathedral at 735 N. State St. The Mass has enjoyed a 30 year tradi-tion within the Archdiocese as a way to celebrate Black History Month, and the role of Black Catholics in the Church, as mentioned by Cardinal Francis George in his welcoming letter.
The theme of this year’s Mass was “Ujima,” which is
from Archdiocesan elemen-tary and high schools, were moved by the passionate display of community, and delighted in the celebration of African culture through music, song and dance, pro-vided by a special choir and a local dance group.
Three St. Rita students – senior Rashad Spells, and sophomores Dan Dillon and Christopher Simms – actu-ally participated in the Mass as altar servers. It was the second year in a row doing so for Simms. A parishioner at St. Walter Parish, Chris is
an active Ritaman, having been involved in the service fraternity Knights of Augus-tine, Student Government, Football and the Hispanic Club. He said of the expe-rience, “I really like being a part of this Mass. It is a great way to highlight the posi-tives of the African Ameri-can community, instead of some of the headlines we usually see. The Mass was a fun and enlightening expe-rience that can help inspire people to work together to better our communities.”
augustinian Values Institute
4 tollE lEgE! spring 2008
In late January, several St. Rita faculty and staff mem-bers attended the 5th An-
nual Augustinian Values In-stitute, hosted this year by St. Augustine High School in San Diego, CA. 29 members of St. Rita’s community have now completed this weekend workshop that offers teach-ers and staff from Augustin-ian high schools all over the world an opportunity to meet and discuss ways to apply the
Augustinian values of Truth, Unity, and Love in their own schools. Many great ideas have been generated at this Institute.
2008 SUMMER CAMPS
For Full Schedules, Questions, and to Register, CallDirector of Admissions
Craig Ferguson at (773) 925-7482 or Register Online at www. stritahs.com
BandBaseball
BasketballFootball
LacrosseRecreation
SoccerVolleyball
Perpetual Novena to St. RitaWife, Mother, Widow, Augustinian Nun, Peacemaker
Solemn Nine Day NovenaTuesday, May 13 - Wednesday, May 21
Feast Day Mass� ursday, May 22nd
All Masses Start at 7:00 p.m. | Confessions 6:00 p.m.Blessed Roses Will Be Distributed at Feast Day Mass
St. Rita of Cascia Shrine Chapel
On Saturday, January 19, four students and one teacher from St. Rita of Cascia High School attended the open-ing ceremony for the new Berlin Wall Exhibit at the West-
ern Avenue Brown Line Station, in the Lincoln Square neighbor-hood on the north side of Chicago.
The students were invited by Mayor Daley because all of them participated as host students in St. Rita’s first ever Inter-national Exchange Program in the fall of 2007, during which
12 German students from Emilie Wüstenfeld Gymna-sium in Hamburg visited Chicago for three weeks. The Ritamen will go to Ger-many in June 2008, and will make a special visit to Berlin.
On this bitterly cold Saturday, hundreds of Ger-man-Americans were pres-ent as an indelible symbol of the Cold War was put on permanent display at the Western Avenue ‘L’ Station. The Lincoln Square neigh-borhood was once known as ‘Germantown’.
47th Ward Alderman Gene Schulter worked with
German leaders, including Consul General Wolfgang Drautz, as well as the Chicago Transit Authority and the McCormick Tribune Freedom Museum to help bring this three-ton, grafitti-marked section of the Berlin Wall to Chicago.
Schulter was quoted as saying, “The Berlin Wall exhibit will help connect thousands of transit riders to this important sym-bol of the 20th Century.”
Brian Allen, a junior at St. Rita, said of the experience, “The unveiling of the Berlin Wall Exhibit was very interesting. Being able to see all of the German-Americans have so much pride and patriotism towards Germany and Berlin excited me even
Exchange Program members attend opening of Berlin wall Exhibit
Four student participants in St. Rita High School’s International Exchange Program, who will be spending three weeks in Germany this June, attended the unveiling ceremony of the Berlin Wall Exhibit in the Lincoln Square neighborhood of Chicago. Pictured (left to right) are: Rich Qualter (Ev-ergreen Park), Pat Boline (Mt. Greenwood), Brian Allen (Palos Heights) and Tom Qualter (Evergreen Park).
more for my trip to the country in June. It was definitely a great idea to bring that piece of our, and more importantly, their his-tory to Chicago for everyone to see.”
After the ceremony, the students were treated to an au-thentic German lunch at the nearby Brauhuas, where they were immersed in the culture they will be experiencing at the begin-ning of the summer.
5VEritas † Unitas † Caritas
Schools in attendance 2008:
Malvern preparatory school Malvern, pa 1842providence Catholic High school new lenox, il 1918st. augustine High school san Diego, Ca 1922Villanova preparatory school ojai, Ca 1924Cascia Hall preparatory tulsa, oK 1926Monsignor Bonner High school Upper Darby, pa 1953st. augustine College prep school richland, nJ 1959
Villanova College King City, on Canada 1999st. augustine’s College sydney, australia 1956st. augustine’s College Dungarvan, irelan d 1874good Counsel College new ross, ireland 1890st. Monica’s school Carlisle, England 1985
Five members of the Fighting Mustangs, st. rita of Cascia High school’s football team, signed national letters of intent on Wednesday, February 6. these ritamen have the distinc-tion of being members of only the second team in school his-tory to have earned both a state Championship (2006) and a City prep Bowl ring (2007). the players’ family members were present for the signing, along with Head Football Coach todd Kuska, athletic Director Bob Conlon, and principal sally Deenihan.
Darius Fleming (DE) - University of notre Dame Kevin galeher (rt) - Western Michigan University Drew Mcgowan (tE/Dl) - Cornell University Dan smith (lt) - University of st. Francis Kenny stoklosa (ilB) - Kentucky Wesleyan College
Five members of the Fighting Mustangs, St. Rita of Cascia High School’s football team, signed national letters of intent on Wednesday, February 6. Pictured (stand-ing, left to right): Athletic Director Bob Conlon, Dan Smith, Darius Fleming, Principal Sally Deenihan, Head Football Coach Todd Kuska. (Seated): Drew McGowan, Kenny Stoklosa, Kevin Galeher.
Swimmingthe swimming Mustangs had a rather up-and-down season this year, and they finished with an even 5-5 record. Combating their underdog status, the team had big wins against rival Mt. Carmel and the latin school, for only the second time in school history. the team finished 4th in the Evergreen park invitational, 8th in the Catholic league competition and 5th in sectionals. the team looks to continue to build with younger swimmers moving up next year.
wrestlingin Head Coach Dan Carroll’s final season with the st. rita Wrestling team, the grappling Mustangs did him proud with a strong season. nine wrestlers quali-fied for the individual state Championships at the University of illinois Urba-na-Champaign. steve Zimmerman won the state Championship in the 152 lb. class. He will be wrestling next year at northern illinois University, which he chose over other schools because of his interest in their great accounting program. Kevin galeher was runner-up in the heavyweight class, and John Majka and taylor osborn took third places in the 135 lb. and 160 lb. classes, respectively. the team did advance to state as well after great performances over Mr. Carmel and lane tech in the sectional round hosted at st. rita, but fell in Moline in the first round. thanks to Coach Carroll, the entire staff and team for a great run!
Bowlingthe Bowling team was reunited with a familiar face this year, as Head Coach Katie Curran returned to the team after a two-year hiatus. Her experience and determination helped inspire some great performances throughout the season, while allowing for plenty of fun on the lanes. senior Vernell gaines earned a trip to the individual state Championships this year, though unable to advance past the first round. senior Darius Fleming proved he is a dual-sport athlete by winning the Chicago Catholic league lawless award.
Winter SportS recap
Steve Zimmerman won the State Championship
Brian Moore flies down the lane in the butterfly
7
Swimmingthe swimming Mustangs had a rather up-and-down season this year, and they finished with an even 5-5 record. Combating their underdog status, the team had big wins against rival Mt. Carmel and the latin school, for only the second time in school history. the team finished 4th in the Evergreen park invitational, 8th in the Catholic league competition and 5th in sectionals. the team looks to continue to build with younger swimmers moving up next year.
Basketball the Basketball team, in its second year under Head Coach rob sarmiento and asst. Coach Mike Brennan, looked to improve on last year’s record and make some noise in the Catholic league. they started out the year strong, with a 3-1 record in the Mcgovern Classic, hosted at st. rita. they also did well in the augustinian tournament over Christmas, going 2-1 on their trip to new Jersey, playing against several other augustinian High schools. the season was characterized by all-Conference players terry Johnson and roshawn russell, outside shooters tony rappold and steve Dudek, and Conference Honorable Mention Marcell portwood working together toward a 16-10 overall record, 4-3 in the conference. the highlight of the season came in the final home
game, on senior night, when the Mustangs pushed Mt. Carmel to a thrilling 4 overtime defeat, 97-94. Unfortunately, the team was eliminated by Morgan park in the playoffs, but anticipates
greatness next year, with much talent returning.
Hockey the skating Mustangs, under Head Coach Craig Ferguson, had an unbelievable 2007-08 season, finishing with an overall record of 46-14-2. they set a new precedent for the Catholic league by going undefeated in the regular season, an amazing feat. the team made it to the state semi-Finals, finally falling to glenbrook north. the result was better for the Kennedy Cup playoffs though, where the Mustangs took out Marist in a heated three-game series, and then handled Fenwick in three games as well, bringing home the Kennedy Cup for the first time since 1992. all Conference Honors were given to Chris Cimoch, p. J. gross, ryan Carroll, Charlie longo, and Kevin Mcgovern, with Cimoch and gross being named to the all state team as well. the Kennedy Cup MVp was Jack McDonnell.
cHEcK oUT SPRINg ScHEDUlES
oN THE wEB! www.stritahs.com/athletics.htm
Winter SportS recap
Bandthe st. rita Competition Band participated in two events during the month of February. the first was the state of the art Catholic High school competi-tion, which places bands according to the difficulty of their selections. the Mustangs have consistently placed in the top 3 since becoming involved in the very first year of this contest 27 years ago. the second event for the band was the Midwest Music Festival hosted at lemont High school. this competition is based on individual ability, and the Mustangs received a 2nd place rating in this contest of almost 50 schools. look for the band to per-form at the alumni Banquet on april 18.
Vernell Gaines qualified for State
alumni basketball players were invited to the Senior night game for a reception and special half-time dedication to Coach Barney Badke.
ilinois Player of the year Chris Cimoch
8
ADVANCEMENTIt’s never too early to start giving back.
When Jonathan Rendak of the class of 2005 heard about the “Fabric of America”
program introduced by BP this year, which allows most employees of BP America to re-quest a company donation of up to $500 for a deserving organization of their choice, he immediately thought of his alma mater, St. Rita of Cascia High School.
Rendak, originally of the Garfield-Ridge area of Chicago, is currently a Junior at Pur-due University, majoring in Chemical Engi-neering. While at St. Rita, he was an 8-time Heeney Award winner, meaning he had straight A’s all through high school.
Rendak said, “I’ve had an internship with BP for two semesters now, and they made us aware of this fall’s initiation of the Fabric of America Fund, and I started to think about who I could recommend for this $500 donation. It didn’t take long for me to real-ize that St. Rita would be a great place for BP to give back to. I wanted to help ensure that current students got the same great educa-tion that I did.”
Tapping the well: BP’s ‘Fabric of America’ Program
Jonathan Rendak ‘05 (right) is one of two Ritamen to take advantage of BP’s ‘Fabric of America’ Program, in which the energy company will honor an employee’s request to donate up to $500 to a charity of their recommendation.
One of the well-known things about St. Rita is its strong Alumni sup-port. Many alums feel they can give
back to their school by donating money or equipment. For John O’Neill of the class of 1979, father of current Ritamen Dan ‘09 and Michael ‘11, it was no different. With the help of IBM, Mr. O’Neill recently donated several computers to the Ritan, St. Rita’s school newspaper.
The computers were placed in the Mel Schreier Ritan Office, or room 214 ¾, as its affectionately called by moderator Mr. Michael Allocca. O’Neill’s generosity was greatly appreciated by the entire staff, and we put the machines to work right away by
John o’Neill ‘79 Upgrades the Ritan office with the Help of IBm
Mr. John O’Neill ‘79 (left) recently used a matching grant program from his employer, IBM, to donate much-needed computer equipment for direct use by the Ritan, St. Rita’s school newspaper. He is seen here receiving thanks from staff members Juan Barrios, Marty Malone, Joe Carey, Mike Herbst, and Luke Bentley.
Do You Know Your Company’s Matching Gift Policy?
We can help you find out. Mike Brennan | [email protected]
So, at the beginning of his winter break, Rendak showed up on campus with a $500 check and asked to see Fr. Tom Mc-Carthy. Imagine his pleasant surprise when he heard about what Rendak had arranged with his employer.
“Jonathan was always a great student and an involved member of the commu-nity while he was here,” Fr. Tom said, “and it’s wonderful to see that he is still a true Ri-taman, who takes the time to think of the school and its mission.”
We'd also like to thank Mr. Brad Boko-ski, father of Matt '09, for making this same gift. While BP’s Fabric of America program is unique, many companies offer matching gifts when their employees donate to the charity of their choice.
interviewing him. When asked how this gift came about,
O’Neill replied, “These computers were pur-chased as part of the IBM Company match-ing grants program. This program allows IBM employees to make donations of IBM computers and peripherals (e.g. laser print-ers) rather than dollars to schools or organi-zations of their choice.”
John O’Neill worked for FileNet Cor-poration for seven years until they were purchased by IBM in November of 2005. He recognized that “computer equipment is always in need, but oftentimes is not a high priority in an organization’s budget. I’m glad I was able to identify the Ritan as a worthy recipient of this kind of aid.”
Mr. Allocca expressed his gratitude as well: “For the last few years, we hadn’t been able to use the office for much besides stor-age, for lack of the computer equipment needed to run our layout software and sub-mit electronic copy to our printer. Much thanks to Mr. Paul Harrington and the rest of the IT staff for accommodating us on other
By Ritan Reporter Luke Bentley ‘09
equipment, but now with Mr. O’Neill’s gift we can do all our work on our own ‘turf’.”
Senior Editor Mike Herbst said, “It is nice to have a place of our own to do work as a staff, and to produce the Ritan on up-to-date technology.”
aDVanCeMent
tollE lEgE! spring 2008
9
ADVANCEMENT The Fine Arts are alive and well at St. Rita of Cascia High School, as evi-denced recently when three fledg-
ling Van Goghs were awarded the Joseph J. Jasica Art Scholarship. The program, now in its second year, was founded by Raymond Jasica, a 1955 graduate of St. Rita, in memory of his brother, Joseph, who was a 1953 graduate. “Joseph was always a lover of art,” said Raymond, “and I wanted to do something that would honor that memory as well as benefit the current Rita students.” Each winner was awarded a $500 prize that goes toward the current school year’s tuition.
The Joseph J. Jasica Art Scholarship Competition encourages students in Art classes as well as the entire student body to create a piece of art that reflects their personal perspective on the history of St. Rita High School, or on the lives of one of the saints, such as Rita or Augustine.
There were a wide range of entries, and though only two paintings were sup-posed to be chosen, the judges – Ray Jasi-
Jasica art Scholarship fosters creativity, Spirituality
Three students at St. Rita High School were chosen as winners of the Joseph J. Jasica Art Scholarship Compe-tition, and were awarded $500 off the current year’s tuition. The program, in its second year, was founded by Raymond Jasica, a 1955 Rita graduate, in memory of his brother Joseph, a 1953 graduate. Seen here (left to right) are: Raymond Jasica ‘55, Karen Omastiak, Jeanine Jasica, Brandon Parkison ‘08, Jesus Alvarado ‘08, Augustine Esterhammer-Fic ’09, and Art Instructor Robyn Kurnat.
Principal Sally Deenihan, of St. Rita of Cas-cia High School, recently announced that Kevin Yerkes, a sophomore, was awarded
the Donald A. Petkus Science and Engineering Scholarship, in the amount of $1,500 towards his school tuition.
The Petkus Science and Engineering Scholarship, which is coordinated and distrib-uted through the Big Shoulders Fund, is made possible through the generosity of St. Rita alumnus Donald A. Petkus, class of 1958. Very involved with his alma mater, Mr. Petkus want-ed to provide aid for a current Rita student who not only had outstanding academic, athletic and extracurricular involvement in the school, but who also showed an aptitude and interest in a career in engineering and the sciences.
After being nominated by Honors Chem-istry teacher Sue Krystof and completing the application process, Kevin Yerkes was chosen by the scholarship committee as an ideal can-didate to receive the inaugural installment of this award. Though only in his second year at St. Rita, Kevin has maintained Gold Honor Roll status for each of his first three semesters, hold-ing a GPA above 4.0 while being enrolled in several honors courses. Kevin is a member of Queen of the Universe Parish, and attended the Ted Lenart Regional Gifted Center. He hopes to pursue studies in the sciences at University of
Sophomore Kevin Yerkes wins Petkus Science and Engineering Scholarship
Mr. Donald A. Petkus '58 (right), Board Member Emeri-tus of St. Rita of Cascia High School, presents a $1500 scholarship award to Kevin Yerkes '10 (Chicago-West Lawn), in the inaugural installment of the Petkus Sci-ence and Engineering Scholarship, created to aid those students who not only have outstanding academics and extracurricular involvement, but who also show an interest in pursuing a career in the sciences.
What is your favorite cause at St. Rita? Will your picture and story
be here next?
Contact the advancement office773.925.5029
ca, his wife Jeanine, and Karen Omastiak, daughter of Joseph and mother to two current Ritamen, Mark ‘08 and Brian ‘11 – were so taken with a third piece that they
declared three winners at the January all-school Mass. Art teacher Robyn Kurnat, who helped coordinate the competition, and Principal Sally Deenihan were on hand to congratulate the winners.
Brandon Parkison ‘08 was chosen for his painting of a blood-red sunset with a single bird perched in the foreground, representing the need to remember the natural world in our daily life. Jesus Alva-rado ‘08 was chosen for his vividly colorful representation of the school’s Dia de los Muertos altar, which has been a staple for the Hispanic Club in recent years, and em-phasizes the multicultural heritage that is found at St. Rita. Augustine Esterham-mer-Fic ‘09 was chosen for his portrait of a young friar accepting the flaming heart of St. Augustine, which represents his teach-ings and the restless nature of man’s soul until it comes home to God. Each of the three paintings was beautifully framed and is on display in the school’s main hall-way. They will become part of St. Rita’s permanent collection.
Illinois or Marquette University. At St. Rita, Kevin is also involved in football, volleyball, and the service fraternity Knights of Augustine.
Upon receiving the news that he was cho-sen for the Petkus scholarship, Kevin said, “It is a great honor to receive this award. I’m grateful for Mr. Petkus’ generosity, and I look forward to continuing my studies at St. Rita.”
Donald Petkus ‘58 was born and raised on the south side, and attended St. Brendan’s grammar school. After graduating from St. Rita, he followed his interest in the sciences to Marquette University’s College of Engineering, from which he graduated in 1962 with a BSME. He would later go on to matriculate from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwest-ern in 1968 and again in 1980 as part of the first class in the Advanced Executive program.
During his 36-year ComEd career, he ex-panded his technical interest to include suc-cesses in advertising, public relations, and man-agement. He then launched DAMP Associates, Inc., a multi-dimensional consulting company. Through his careers, Mr. Petkus has given back to the community through involvement in many not-for-profit boards, some of which in-clude WTTW, Museum of Contemporary Art, and Cancer Society. He now focuses much of his efforts on education, remaining a member of Marquette University’s College of Engineer-
ing Advisory Council, the Kellogg School of Management’s Alumni Advisory Board, the Big Shoulders Fund Board, and an Emeritus mem-ber of the St. Rita Board.
VEritas † Unitas † Caritas
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KEEPING TRACK Bill Ruzgis ‘57Bill Ruzgis and his wife Trudy recently returned from a week of skiing with their ski club in Whistler, Canada.
Pat Flanagan ‘59Loras College dedicated the Pat “Flash” Flana-gan wrestling room in the Graber Sports Center on Thursday, February 7, 2008 before the final Loras wrestling meet of the year.
Flanagan, a 1959 graduate of St. Rita of Cascia High School and a 1963 graduate of Loras, served the college in various capacities throughout his employment with the institu-tion, including: professor of physical educa-tion, wrestling coach, director of intramurals, women’s tennis coach, and men’s tennis coach. Flanagan was also inducted into the Loras Varsity Hall of Fame in 1996, received the Fr. John Nauman Award in 2001 and was a Loras College Distinguished Alumni Award recipient in 2006.
Gregory Price ‘67Gregory Price retired from the Chicago Police Department in 2001, after 32 years of service.
He graduated from the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago with a Master’s Degree in Divinity and was ordained a Deacon in the Catholic Church in 1998.
After his retirement, he and his wife relocated to a semi-rural area about 30 miles west of Milwaukee, where they bought a 10 acre “farmette” to raise horses.
Greg has been employed full-time as a pastoral associate in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee for the past six years, and is currently assigned to
Bill Bosch and Jerry O’Sullivan, Ritamen from the class of 1961, paid a special visit earlier this week to Fr.
Tom McCarthy, O.S.A. ‘83, President of St. Rita of Cascia High School. Bosch, while sorting through some of his father’s things, dug up a buried treasure from St. Rita’s past: a pair of coveralls from St. Rita’s Auto Shop class.
“My mouth dropped open when I saw them. I was looking through some of my father’s things, as he passed in October 2007, and I can’t believe he kept these coveralls for 50 years. I was so surprised. I thought they should belong at St. Rita, in order to keep a unique piece of the old campus alive.”
Bosch and O’Sullivan were in Auto Shop class as freshmen in 1958, which was taught by Mr. Charles Rhienschmidt. It was one of many technical courses from that era, when hands-on learning and mechanical aptitude comprised a major component of St. Rita’s excellent education. While those classes may have been phased out, the core of the school’s Catholic education remains, and the fact that Bill Bosch would think to donate his Auto Shop coveralls to the new campus demonstrates the strong tradition of a true Ritaman.
class of ‘61 alums Donate Piece of Rita History
george Strnad ‘46 Inducted into
East Suburban catholic conference
Hall of fameGeorge Strnad was one of 11 in-
ductees in the third Hall of Fame class for the East Suburban Catholic Conference. George was a coach at St. Joseph High School in Westchester for almost 30 years (1979-2007), and Athletic Director for 13 of those. He was a former college football player (U of I), head coach (U of C), and a WWII veteran. A teacher, coach, mentor, and friend to many, George truly deserves this honor, and is seen here celebrating with family and friends.
Queen of Apostles Parish in Pewaukee, WI.
He says, “I must say, the education and spiritual development I received at St. Rita was instrumental in my vocation as a Deacon, and I extend an open invitation to any Ritamen who would like to come north and sample ‘farm life’.”
David Radtke ‘68David Radtke retired in 2006 from Chicago Public Schools after teaching Spanish and E.S.L. for 34 years. He currently lives on the East side of the Big Island of Hawaii with his wife, Diane. He teaches Spanish part-time at St. Joseph High School, Hilo.
Mike Carey ‘90Mike Carey has fallen on some hard times and asks for your thoughts and prayers.
Joseph Keblusek ‘95Joseph Keblusek recently celebrated the birth of his second son, Patrick James.
Sean Janda ‘01Sean Janda is working as a Human Re-source Assistant for a nationwide recycling
company. He has also been a member of a professional theater company, ‘Night Blue Theater’, for 3 years, where he performs in several musicals, plays and showcases in the south suburbs as well as downtown Chicago.
Brandon Williams ‘05Morton College’s Brandon Williams was the NJCAA Region IV Men’s Basketball Player of the Week in Division II District B for the period ending January 22.
The 6-4 sophomore forward from Chi-cago’s St. Rita High School made game-winning free throws in Panther victories over Prairie State and the University of St. Francis’ junior varsity. The two-year start-er, who scored 55 points in three Morton College games last week, is shooting 82 percent (81 of 99) from the free-throw line this season.
He is the first Morton College men’s basketball player to be honored during the 2007-2008 season. Region IV’s District B includes eight community colleges from Illinois.
STAY CONNECTEDWe want to hear from you!
Letters: Office of Institutional Advancement
Emails: [email protected]
tollE lEgE! spring 2008
11
IN MEMORIAM
correctionsThe following Alumni and / or family members should have been included in the December 2007 Tolle Lege! Our apologies for the omissions.
George k. Witry - 1950 Brother of Jack Witry ‘53 Grandfather of Michael Patrick ‘06 and daniel Patrick ‘08Zora Chuick - Mother of Julie Chuick (Mustang Store) Grandmother of doug Chuick ‘01 and Martin Chuick ‘05
All attempts at accuracy are made prior to publication. If there is an error with a listing or an omission, please contact the Office of Institutional Advancement at (773) 925-5029.
Mary akel – grandmother of Maxx akel ‘11
Christine anderson – Mother of Connor, Brendan ‘07 and Colin ‘09
Mrs. Bickart – Wife of Joseph ‘55
Donna Bochenek – grandmother of Mike Kolecki ‘05
William J. Bosch – Father of Bill ‘61
peter Brackin – Uncle of Brendan ‘11 and Connor ‘06
roy Darling – grandfather of Dan ‘11
tommy Finnegan – son of Brian Finnegan ‘81 and Brother of Brendan ‘11
Janet gallagher – Mother-in-law of Craig Ferguson
irene garson – aunt of the garcia Brothers
Jim Hayes – Friend of the Quinn Family
Don Jakubowski – st. rita Maintenance staff
irene M. Kaczorowski – Mother of ronald ‘64, Mother-in-law of Charles Junkroski ‘57
Cal Kurek – son of rich Kurek ‘99
Joseph Kuska – grandfather of Coach todd Kuska
Howard landstrom – Father-in-law of Counselor terry landstrom
William larman – grandfather of Jim and Dan Kerr
Mildred lowe – grandmother of Charlie longo ‘08
anthony Manzella – Uncle of Dan ‘03
Florence McCain – grandmother of Mike parker ‘10
andrew J. Mcgann
Matt Mcpharland – Uncle of Mike Burke ‘11
sophie Murawski – Mother of Dennis ‘71 and ronald ‘73
samuel Mostardi – Father of Fr. Joe Mostardi, o.s.a., augustinian Volunteer Director
Marion o’Brien – Mother of tom ‘64
Eileen o’ryan
Carol polehouki – great aunt of Joe Enright ‘11
lauren ryan – Daughter of Joe putz ‘50
Daniel sobczak – grandfather of ryan Foley ‘06
Martha spells – grandmother of rashad spells ‘08
Elnora spratte – grandmother of tom spratte '06
Jack standring – Father of Coach Jay, Father-in-law of Julie, grandfather of J.J. ‘97 and paul ‘03
Julie tracy – Widow of george '30, Mother of george ‘65, grandmother of Mike ’90 and Joe ‘96
Charles Walsh – Brother of John ‘47
Margaret Witowski – Mother of John Frankovich ‘59
Bill Hillmert – 1924
William Walsh – 1931
John Dunn – 1937
arthur Bastian – 1940
John Cullinane – 1940
al steffek – 1940
robert Miles – 1941
James powers – 1941
William putzbach – 1944
robert Bona – 1940
Dr. Jerome Bona – 1946 Brothers of adolph Bona ‘44
Ed gedraitis – 1946
robert Hyhanek – 1946
thomas ries – 1946
John Marketak – 1948
Frank perrino – 1948
Eugene Chovanec – 1949
Kenneth York – 1949
James Beranek – 1950
James Cliff – 1950
John lang – 1950
John rowland, Jr. – 1950
Joseph tobin – 1952
russell soch – 1953
ronald litoborski – 1954
Jerome szott – 1954
patrick John Kenelly – 1955 Brother of Ed Kenelly ‘52
Joseph Doyle – 1957
James Dziedzic – 1958 Brother of robert Dziedzic ‘56
Father of Daniel Dziedic ‘89
John neblo – 1958
raymond sullivan – 1959
Dennis Zvinakis – 1961 Brother of al Zvinakis ‘58
James gibbons – 1963
Joseph perveneckis – 1964
ralph Basile – 1965
anthony Melilli – 1976
raymond lukas – 1983
robert gikas – 1987
The St. Rita Alumni Office has been notified of the following deaths of
Alumni and / or family members for the period January 1, 2008 - March
10, 2008. Sympathies are expressed to the families of the following:
VEritas † Unitas † Caritas
Tel: 773.925.5029 | www.stritahs.com
St. Rita of CaSCia HigH SCHool7740 S. western avenue
chicago Il 60620
Do You Know the Difference You can make By leaving a gift?
Two men - Frank Kosik ‘44 and Bob Fennell ‘53 - made lasting impressions by remembering St. Rita High School in their wills. Their contributions, totaling $1.8 million, are of paramount importance to the growth and success of St. Rita. The generosity of alumni keeps pride and tradition alive.
Above: Bob Fennell ‘53, (first row left) is seen with many of his fellow Ritamen at his class’s 50 Year Anniversary during the 2003 Alumni Banquet. He was an active alumnus, and his unrestricted gift to the school enables St. Rita to continue to offer an excellent Catholic Augustinian education.
Left: The 100 Year Museum in the front entrance of the school was dedicated in October in memory of Frank Kosik, class of 1944. His gift made the construction of the museum possible. Present at the dedication was Tom Zielinski, nephew of Frank Kosik, and he expressed his gratitude to St. Rita President Tom McCarthy, O.S.A and those gathered for remembering his uncle. Mr. Kosik’s niece, Joanne Michalski, could not be present that evening.
In February of 2008, Fr. Tom McCarthy and other Augustinians, along with Cardinal Adam Maida, the Archbishop of Detroit, broke ground on a future Augustinian high school, Austin Catholic Academy, in Macomb, Michigan, due to open in 2009.
To become an inaugural member of the 1905 Guild or for more information about making a planned gift
Contact Mike Brennan
773.925.5029 [email protected]
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SaVE THE DaTE | 33rd Annual Alumni Golf Outing | green garden country club | Friday, August 1 , 2008
Bob fennell
Tom Zielinksi
