Winter 2015 Irish Ayes

Winter 2015 Volume XLII Number 1

FEATURE STORIES

Father Ryan v. Pearl Captures the City The Irish visit the Irish The Arts at Father Ryan w w w. f a t h e r r y a n . o r g

Letters to the Editor

Board of trustees

REMEMBERING INTEGRATION

Executive Committee

I graduated from Father Ryan in June of 1955 and I was present in the 1954 integration of our high school. I remember being very proud of this fact…At the time I was interested in some of the anti-racist battles that were going on throughout the South and some of the national liberation struggles that were happening in Africa. It seemed to be an exciting time to be alive. I still remember with pride the bold move by Father Ryan High School.

Harold Bell ’55, Lodi, CA

Judy Komisky Orr ’75, Chair David Glascoe, Vice-Chair Robert J. Mendes, Finance Committee Chair Betty Lou Burnett, Membership Chair Rev. Mark Beckman

Committee Chairs Brett Wesnofske ’88, Facilities John Siedlecki, Advancement

Ex-Officio Members

PRIDE FOR THE GAME

I wanted to take a moment and wish you great success with the Ryan vs Pearl game.

Because I was on the sidelines as the Student Athletic Trainer/Manager, that night is burned into my memory. In this time of racial strife around the country, I am so proud of my Alma Mater for putting this historical moment out front as an example of social justice and the impact a few can have on an entire region.

I teach Social Psychology this semester and plan on integrating Willie Brown’s story and the Ryan-Pearl game into the course as we discuss racism, prejudice, and what equality really means.

Bob Reese, PhD Associate Professor, Psychology, Jefferson College of Health Sciences Roanoke, VA

The Annual Fund Helps our Students Tell Their Stories…

Everywhere Whether their interests lie in the visual arts or the performing arts, in the science lab or the language lab, on the soccer field or the wrestling mat, in serving at the Chapel or serving the community, Father Ryan students are living and telling special stories. And your support of the Annual Fund makes these stories possible.

You can add your support to this year’s Annual Fund campaign with a tax-deductible gift. Simply go online to www.fatherryan.org/ giving and add your name to those who are making Father Ryan the national standard in Catholic education.

Most Rev. David R. Choby ’65 James A. McIntyre Dr. Therese Williams

Board Members Thomas Bauer David Bohan ’66 Tommy Bradley ’81 Mary Brennan Lee Clark Warner C. Hassell Judith E. Hoover Steven Janicak Rev. Patrick J. Kibby ’73 Dr. Robert Labadie Philip M. Mattingly, Sr. ’69 Robert J. Mendes Patrick J. Nolan, III ’69 Rick Olszewski Jack Polson Ralph J. Schulz, Jr. William R. Stejskal III ’79 David Tehle

Life Trustees Thomas G. Connor, Sr. ’60 William H. Farmer ’65 Edward B. Gore J. Terry Hunter Vincent T. Phillips John C. Shea ’51 William F. Smith Edward A. Stack

Administration James A. McIntyre, President Paul Davis ’81, Principal Sara Hayes, Vice Principal and Academic Dean Michael La Haie, Dean of Students T im Forbes ’93, Dean of Campus Ministry and Student Life Pat Lawson ’93, Athletic Director Connie Steinmetz, Chief Financial Officer

Thank you for your support of Father Ryan. Go Irish!

©2015 FRHS 20740

A Tradition of Faith, Knowledge, Service

CONTENTS

Winter 2015 Volume XLII Number 1

Feature

Cover Photo: Luke Dixon ’15, and Pearl-Cohn’s Jordan Sandifer exchange school keepsakes before the start of the 50th Anniversary game.

See cover story on PAGE 14.

Table of Contents

2} In the News

Technology initiative; Gardening for a difference; Teachers past and present; National Merit honorees.

Athletics 6} Fall season recap; Coach Derrick named to Hall of Fame; Homecoming; Notre Dame visits.

10} Fine Arts

Celebrating student, faculty and alumni achievements; Speech, Acting, and Debate Club

14} The 50th Anniversary of Father Ryan v. Pearl

Game recap; The day at the Library and with the Nashville Sports Council

22} Remembering our Civil Rights Pioneers: Charles Kinnard ’55 and Richard Ordway ’56 25} Legacy Gala 36th Legacy Gala

26} Class Notes, Births,Weddings, & In Memoriam

We continue to celebrate Father Ryan's 90th school year, tracing our legacy back to 1925 and the founding of Nashville Catholic School for Boys. We are celebrating throughout the year and throughout the city. Look for our 90th logo at Father Ryan events and on our materials as we tell the powerful story of this amazing school.

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In The News winter 2015

2:1

TECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE

FATHER RYAN HAS ITS HEAD IN THE CLOUD(S).

Spring 2015 is here, and on January 5, 2014, Father Ryan implemented its school-wide 2:1 Technology Initiative, transitioning students, faculty and staff onto a Microsoft Windows, Cloud-based educational platform.

Designed to both facilitate and augment the educational experience of Father Ryan’s students, faculty, and staff while reducing the school’s paper needs in workbooks and hardbound texts (though online textbooks will not be required until the beginning of the 20152016 school year). The 2:1 Technology Initiative is a school-wide switch to a Microsoft Windows-exclusive program, and the switch has provided a variety of tools and benefits to curriculum, planning, service, and security. Included is access to Microsoft Office 365 and a campus-wide Wi-Fi network, at no extra cost, to all actively-enrolled students and faculty.

and after school. But for those times when a hard copy is both right and proper, students can also connect to a fleet of Microsoft printers.

All students, with the exception of the senior class of 2015, now provide their own Microsoft Windows 8.1 or higherenabled laptops, which they bring to class with them every day. The administration made the call after careful deliberation and polling of the Father Ryan family, with much consideration given to familiarity—83.8% of Father Ryan families indicated that they used Windows over Mac — and affordability — Father Ryan partnered with Dell to ensure that students received a wide variety of Students are now able to implement options that would not break the bank these tools in both organizational and when choosing their laptop. collaborative capacities, gaining access to digital materials and curriculum Father Ryan wants to look out for its course materials standardized to fit the students, and though no transition is Microsoft platform. Students are also without its hiccups, Father Ryan has able to share these materials, as well worked to make the 2:1 Technology as other classwork, instantly with their Initiative launch as smooth as possible. teachers and peers, both before, during, The entire campus is now protected 2

by Microsoft specific anti-virus software, and, at the discretion of each student’s parents, IT personnel will be able to employ scanning/tracking software to help track and find lost or misplaced laptops. And should the unforeseen occur, spare computers are available on a temporary basis to students with lost or damaged devices. Also available to the students is the “Knowledge Bar,” a technology help desk staffed by IT Department personnel, dedicated to helping students troubleshoot any problems they may experience.

This is an exciting time to be part of the Father Ryan community. With the official launch of the 2:1 Technology Initiative and the start of the Spring 2015 semester, Father Ryan once again stands at the ready to lead the way on educational innovation.

To learn more, just go to www.fatherryan.org/technology

HOW WELL DOES HANNAH’S GARDEN GROW

Many of our students perform wonderful acts throughout our community, and often we never hear about it. If it had been left to sophomore Hannah Kimbro, we would not have known about her work Hannah Kimbro shows the garden at the Rochelle Center to a client. at the Rochelle Center, which supports adults with disabilities. Fortunately, Debbie Chadwick, President of The Rochelle Center, wasn’t going to let it stay a secret.

Through the generosity of The Ford Motor Company, Rochelle Center received funding which included a garden. Hannah designed the garden for her Gold Award through Girl Scouts. “I’ve always loved the outdoors, so that was a big inspiration for me to design this garden,” Hannah said. The garden serves as therapy through sight, touch, smell, and even taste as items such as tomatoes and lettuce are grown and served to the residents. Chadwick said that they’ve been able to create a whole curriculum with the garden for their clients, and that’s a tribute to Hannah. “She has designed, and more importantly, loved every inch of this garden. She is an amazing young woman.”

The project involved more than 200 hours for Hannah, but it’s been well worth it. “The residents actually get to go outside to do therapy, and they love it,” she said. “And the therapists love to take their clients outside for therapy. It’s really been great for everyone.”

REFLECTIONS ON CREATION Jonathan McGee ’99 is a member of the theology department at Father Ryan and director of the Irish Service Corps. He shared with Irish Ayes a recent classroom exercise that reminds us of the ever-present role of our faith and God at Father Ryan.

The activity was quite simple, but powerful, if the students surrendered to it. The class had been studying what it means to be made in the image of God. Basically, this boils down to seeing that we are beings who touch (or almost touch) divinity at times in our lives. Actually, a better way of putting it is that we use our free will to let God in.

Besides music, parents, and close friends it is in nature that most teenagers witness God. This is based on research, but also something I have observed since becoming a teacher here.

Being that we are the summit of creation, it is only fitting that

we look at all of creation as source and evidence of God. The class studied St. Thomas Aquinas’ five proofs (arguments) for God’s existence. The last proof is the argument from intelligent design; that this world and the cosmos lack intelligence yet work together denotes that some intelligent being created it to do just that.

So, I introduce the class to the First Principle and Foundation of St. Ignatius of Loyola. It is written as a prayer, but is much more than that. It begins Ignatius’ book on spiritual direction, the Spiritual Exercises. It is also what guides the Jesuits in their spirituality. It is a cyclical prayer as the ending takes us back to the beginning. It also challenges those who take it seriously with the idea of indifference (not to be confused with apathy) to all created things including illness, poverty, and disgrace.

I took the students outside on that day the Lord had made to allow them to more fully enter into the divinity that Ignatius had tapped.

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A LONG LEGACY OF CHRIST THE

Father Ryan’s history is populated with outstanding teachers, people who made a difference in the classroom Irish Ayes introduces a new feature with this issue, focusing on those former teachers and celebrating their c CREATING NEW PATHS: ED JOHNSTON Back before folks knew Ed Johnston as the father of faculty member Amy Johnston ’93, they new him simply as Father. Ordained to the priesthood in 1962, he was assigned to the Cathedral and began teaching at Father Ryan, places where he would leave an indelible mark in the realm of civil rights and service.

For him, it started at Cathedral School.

Johnston was visiting a classroom of 8th Grade Cathedral students in the fall of 1963 when he discovered that the three black students in the class weren’t allowed to play for their school’s Parochial League football team. That didn’t sit

well with him. So he partnered with the school’s coach, who embraced the idea, talked with the pastors at the other parishes, and created his own Civil Rights moment. That fall black and white student-athletes played the parochial league games at St. Edward School.

Teaching mechanical drawing, history, Religion and a myriad of other courses at Father Ryan, he began to look for ways to involve students in the wider world of service. He found it in Haiti, where he traveled each summer with high school students from the Catholic schools to build a school, homes and lives, both those of the Haitians and those of his students.

were able to marry within the Church.

Johnston left Father Ryan in 1972 and found rewarding work as a Patient Advocate in the Department of Health, counseling and helping individuals across the state, continuing to serve those who needed his help. Still visible at many a Father Ryan function, he speaks proudly of his tenure here, and warmly of the students, “This is a special place, and I’m honored to have been able to be a part of it.”

ENCOURAGING EVERYONE: CAROLYN LAVENDER

It was during this time that he met his wife, Sarah, then a religious sister.

Though originally called to different paths, they fell in love, and after two years and dispensation from Rome, they

Carolyn Lavender, who taught History and English at Father Ryan for an incredible 38 years, is finally enjoying a well-earned retirement, but her impact on the school,

TWO NEW TEACHERS CONTINUE THE PRIESTLY PRESENCE Seeing priests in the classroom is a familiar sight. Father Ryan was founded by a priest, Bishop Alphonse Smith. Fr. John Leppert was among its earliest teachers and administrators. For many years, the faculty was entirely priests. And the majority of the school’s principals have worn the collar.

This year, though, for the first time in 13 years, we can use the plural in announcing our faculty priests. With the beginning of the school year, Fr. Gervan Menezes and Father Justin Raines have been regular presences on the campus. Fr. Gervan serves as the school chaplain and is with us throughout every day. Fr. Justin is bringing his knowledge of Scripture to several classes each week. It is a welcome sight and a reminder of the very foundation of the school.

FATHER GERVAN comes to us after having been ordained on July 26th. He graduated in May from Assumption Seminary in San Antonio, Texas, with a Master’s of Divinity, a Baccalaureate of Sacred Theology, and a Master’s in Theology. Originally from Brazil, Fr. Menezes came to Tennessee as an 4

exchange student, staying with a family in Cookeville. He is still very close to his Cookeville family and visits them whenever possible. In addition to serving as the full-time chaplain at Father Ryan, Fr. Gervan is teaching two Theology III classes.

Also, he is providing interesting and thoughtful messages about scripture and the Saints in his “Thought of the Day” emails. He will be assisting at the Cathedral on the weekends.

On Saturday, July 27, 2013, FATHER JUSTIN was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop David R. Choby at the Cathedral of the Incarnation in Nashville. Fr. Raines graduated summa cum laude from Aquinas College in 2007 with a major in Theology and a minor in Philosophy. After graduation, he entered the seminary, studying two years at the Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio, before moving to Rome to attend the Pontifical North American College. Fr. Raines has completed his Baccalaureate of Sacred Theology and this summer received a Licentiate in Sacred Theology.

Fr. Raines serves as the Associate Pastor at Holy Family Parish and is teaching two Scripture classes here at Father Ryan.

E TEACHER

m and in the community. contributions to this school. both as an educator and a role model, is still being felt today.

Mrs. Lavender, a graduate of Pearl High School and the Class of 1972 at Fisk University, came to teach at Father Ryan in 1974. It would be her first and only teaching job, and she made the most of it. She was all about pushing students to reach their full potential. “She never let me coast,” Herasanna Richards ’11 said of her former teacher, and it seems this attitude was by design.

“I used to tell my kids, if they weren’t working hard enough, to go out in their back yard and set fire to their momma and daddy’s money, or bury it, because they were letting it go to waste.”

It was what Mrs. Lavender pushed for outside her regular classes that brought about a significant change, however. Through her role as teacher, first of history and then of English, she saw that a number of her students learned differently—the same book that would capture most of her class was foreign to a few others. Though she wasn’t trained in special education, she had an instinct for teaching and a desire to see all her students succeed. So she adjusted her courses for these children, crafted suitable assignments, picked novels they could read, and helped them in whatever way she could. Thus, the Cooperative Support Program was born.

Though happily retired since leaving the classroom in 2012, Mrs. Lavender says she still misses it, and she relishes the opportunities to visit with colleagues and hear from her students.

“Father Ryan is a wonderful community and such a caring place.” It’s also a place that Carolyn Lavender made better, every single day.

FOUR SENIORS NAMED NATIONAL MERIT FINALISTS Father Ryan seniors Michael Canonico, Catherine Clements, Ryan Herrmann and Grace Quigley have been named National Merit Finalists and Maddie Bellante and Tori Correa have been named Commended Scholars for 2014. The four finalists bring the total number of Father Ryan students honored by National Merit to over 135 since 1998.

GRACE QUIGLEY Grace holds a weighted GPA of over 4.0 at Father Ryan. Her AP courses include: Microeconomics, English Literature, Spanish Literature, Calculus BC, and Statistics, and she has also taken AP courses in Chemistry, Physics, U.S. History, United States Government and Politics, and World History. Grace is Captain of the cross country team, Public Relations Officer of the Speech and Debate Team, and Student Officer of the Science Olympiad team. She is a member of the National Honor Society, was named a Prudential Spirit of Community Nominee, and Voice of Democracy Essay Finalist.

Grace volunteers as a teaching assistant at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church and has tutored Spanish-speaking immigrants working toward their GED’s in Honduras.

RYAN HERRMANN Ryan holds a weighted GPA of over 4.0 at Father Ryan. His AP courses are Microeconomics, English Literature, Statistics, and Calculus BC. Ryan has also taken AP Chemistry, English, Physics, and United States Government and Politics. Ryan is an Eagle Scout, President of the National Honor Society, Junior Class President, Science Olympiad Co-Captain, Leader at SEARCH, and Student Ambassador. He is a member of the cross country team, Forensics team, Purple Masque Players, Student Council, French Club, Mu Alpha Theta, Cum Laude, and Quizbusters.

Ryan is an eager volunteer and has helped out at Relay for Life, GraceWorks Ministries and Mission Trip to Mississippi.

CATHERINE CLEMENTS Catherine holds a weighted GPA of over 4.0 at Father Ryan. She is enrolled in the following AP courses: M i c ro e c o no m i c s , English Literature, Psychology, and Calculus. AP courses she has taken previously include English Language, Physics, Statistics, U.S. History, and World History.

She has been a student ambassador, a member of Mu Alpha Theta and has been on the Academic Dean’s list every quarter of high school. Catherine is President of the Environmental Awareness Club and is the founder of the Gardening Club. Catherine has also volunteered at Blakemore Children’s Center.

MICHAEL CANONICO Michael holds a weighted GPA of over 4.0 at Father Ryan. His AP courses include European History, Microeconomics, English Literature, Psychology, and Calculus BC; he has also taken AP courses in Physics, Statistics, U.S. History, and World History. Michael has been a leader in CYO Youth Leadership Workshop, Student Ambassador, and Student Council. He is a member of the Latin Honor Society, Father Black Honor Society, and National Honor Society. In his spare time Michael is involved in track, Blair School of Music Concert Piano, cross country, and the Latin Club. He also volunteers at the Hands on Nashville Youth Volunteer Corps as an Intern, Christ the King Room in the Inn program, and Hillcrest Methodist Church.

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Athletics winter 2015

A FALL TO REMEMBER That’s another exciting season of Irish Athletics in the history books. With playoff runs and exceptional performances by all, Father Ryan’s fall sports teams gave us plenty to celebrate. Here’s the season in review: ANOTHER CLOSE CALL FOR SOCCER Father Ryan’s Lady Irish soccer team earned the #2 seed in the State tournament after finishing the regular season with an impressive 4-1-1 divisional record, but saw their championship run end with a tough 2-1 loss against Briarcrest in the State semi-finals. With the performance they gave this year, the girls have much of which to be proud. Led by Coach Robin Dieterich ’73, the team rose to a top-10 ranking in the state, which bodes well for a young team with many of its players returning next season.

Ben Weisel, who was named the Metro Cross Country Runner of the Year this season, led the boys’ team with a 2nd place finish in the state meet, finishing in 16:09. The girls’ team entered the meet with a record of 101-62, and was led by Junior Kiernan Callahan’s 18th-place finish with a time of 20:56. Here’s to another excellent season for the Irish Runners!

VOLLEYBALL THRILLER IN THE STATE FINALS

The Lady Irish volleyball team capped off another fantastic season with a 2nd place finish in the State tournament. Coach Jinx Cockerham’s veteran squad jelled early in the season and carried that momentum through the entire regular season, RIGHT ON COURSE Both the boys’ and girls’ cross country teams capped off their finishing with an astonishing 43-9 record (9-3 division). The seasons with strong performances in the State Championship team coasted to the State Championship finals and lost a hardmeet. The boys finished in 5th place and the girls in 8th. Senior fought match against division rival Baylor. Congratulations to the Lady Irish for another fantastic season!

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COACH DERRICK ENTERS HALL OF FAME

GOLF ADVANCES TO STATE The veteran Irish golf team started the season strong, earning top-three finishes in multiple tournaments. After a terrific second-place finish in regionals, the team earned a spot in the State tournament, finishing in 6th place. Representing the Lady Irish golf team in the State tournament, was freshman Liv Cunningham, who finished in 12th place. Junior Griffin Bumpus, finished 7th in the boys championship.

BATTLES ON THE GRIDIRON Injuries plagued the Irish throughout the season, but that didn’t stop the team from fighting its way back into the playoffs. With a depleted offense, the Irish relied on their respected defensive unit and strong senior class of 20 players for leadership. The team produced some memorable games this season, including a home-opening win against Overton, a nail-biting loss against MBA, and a Bishop’s Cup win for the second straight year. They entered the playoffs at 5-5, but lost in a close first round game to Baylor. Friday nights were battles for the Irish, and the Father Ryan community will remember this year’s squad for its heart, determination, and toughness.

The Tennessee Football Coaches Association inducted 46 high school football coaches into the inaugural TFCA Hall of Fame class at the Clarion Hotel in Cookeville on Saturday, December 6, including our own Coach Bill Derrick ’48.

As an outstanding high school and college studentathlete, Coach Derrick pursued a career in education and coaching, beginning his 26-year career at Father Ryan in 1958. Whether coaching on a court, diamond or field, his most memorable moments for his players were the lessons they learned from him in the classroom.

Coach Derrick, with the help of then Principal Father James Hitchcock ’39, was integral in breaking the barrier of segregation in sports in 1963 at Father Ryan and in the South when he integrated the basketball team.

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A HOMECOMING TO REMEMBER

Clockwise from Top Left: Pitmasters compete at Pride in the Pit; Game time at Irish Junior Night; Homecoming Queens past and present gather before the crowd; junior Joe Juan Williams lines up against Stratford.

To welcome back its alumni this fall, Father Ryan hosted a series of events as part of its annual Homecoming celebration, with the highlight of the weekend coming in a well-earned victory for the Irish against a game Stratford team.

The weekend kicked off with the Pride in the Pit Barbecue Contest. Seventeen pitmasters competed in the event, which was hosted on-campus and judged by a panel of celebrity judges, including local news celebrity and WSMV anchor, Rudy Kalis. There was plenty of food and fun to be had throughout the day. The competition, split between two categories, was stiff, but when the grill smoke finally cleared, it was the Fighting Irish Hogs that took home the trophy as the overall winners, while the Irish Smokers won the “Anything Butt” category (best non-pork dish). Everyone turned out winners though, as proceeds from the contest went toward the Father Ryan Mission Trips fund.

and alumni. Serving as honorary captains for the game were the assembled members of Father Ryan’s Class of 1965, who celebrate their ‘Golden Grad’ fiftieth reunion this spring.

Father Ryan also hosted a “Junior Irish Night” for future Irish boys and girls, a night full of “inflatables and fun for the whole family.” Students and children alike had fun with Irish temporary tattoos and a coloring page where they could put their own spin on the Father Ryan crest and display their own version of the Irish Colors. Every kid who took a crack at coloring the crest walked away with a special prize, but a few winners were also chosen and received some Father Ryan Spirit Store items for their contributions.

The football team wasn’t the only party to walk away with a victory on Homecoming night, however. At halftime, senior Kristen Hobbs was crowned as Father Ryan’s Homecoming Queen before a packed audience of Father Ryan faithful. As part of a celebratory new tradition, Queen Kristen was joined on the field by former Homecoming Queens, many from Cathedral High and St. Bernard going back to 1948.

Father Ryan scored early and often, including two separate screen passes from quarterback Cameron Towns to Irish impact player Jay Alexander, for 43 and 70 yards. Both plays resulted in Irish touchdowns, and propelled the Irish to a convincing 35-0 victory. Alexander, who had missed the previous four games due to injury, was just happy to be back in the action. “I’m definitely out of shape,” he said after the game, “I’ve still got a lot of work to do.”

The weekend proved an all-around success, full of food, fun, family, friends, and Father Ryan football, and saw the coming The pinnacle of the weekend, the annual Homecoming foot- together of Father Ryan students past, present, and future. It ball game, didn’t disappoint the gathered crowd of Irish fans was a great night to be Irish!

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Top and bottom left: Notre Dame practices at the Jim Carell Alumni Athletic Complex. Bottom right: Fighting Irish Coach Brian Kelly holds a press conference on-campus.

SOUTH BEND TO SOUTH NASHVILLE: AN IRISH HOME-AWAY-FROM-HOME Father Ryan has for several years now played host to the visiting non-SEC competitor in Nashville’s New Year’s Eve college football bowl game, the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl, but this year Father Ryan’s guest turned out to be something special.

The University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, steeped in national football love and followed by alumni and fans whenever they travel, turned Giacosa Stadium into Irish central for two days in December. The Irish started the year with convincing wins over rivals Michigan and 14th-ranked Stanford before dropping their last four games, losing to #9 Arizona State and arch-nemesis USC to finish 7-5. The Fight-

ing Irish sought a rebound win in the Music City Bowl to turn their year around, but they were set to take on a tough 8-4 LSU Tigers team and the win would not come easy.

Notre Dame won the Music City Bowl over LSU with a lastsecond field goal, in what was a close, exciting (and somewhat controversial) contest. Whether their victory came about in part because of the comfort they drew from their game-week homeaway-from-home, no one will ever know for sure, but Father Ryan was happy to welcome the South Bend team to the Music City and happy to see another Irish victory in Nashville.

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Fine Arts winter 2015

Father Ryan artists express themselves: (clockwise from bottom left) Kim’s art shows hands playing guiter; Erwin’s powerful faces; McCann showcases the superheroes; Fennell’s touch graced the 2014 Christmas card; our five Mid-State vocal honorees. (center) The Father Ryan Dancers.

FATHER RYAN STUDENTS, FACULTY A The performing and visual arts have a long, long legacy at Father Ryan. The Purple Masque Players began in 1927. The band? More than 65 years ago, in 1947. The Singers have been part of the experience at Father Ryan since the 1950s. And whether it was doodling in study hall or painting in art class, visual artists have been part of the landscape for decades. But it seems that the spectrum and enthusiasm for the arts, evidenced by both our students and our alumni, have never been greater.

EXPRESSION THROUGH ART The Father Ryan Fine Arts Department and visual arts courses excel at teaching young artists to develop their skills through a variety of media, both two and three-dimensional, by providing a wide range of students with the experience of expression through art. The program is taught by John Durand, a faculty member of Father Ryan since 1986 and moderator of the Art Club and the Environmental Awareness Club, and Jason Erwin ’87, who is an accomplished mixed media painter whose work can be seen in more than 25 restaurants in the Southeast and through commission art for Bridgestone Arena and Phil Vasser.

The department has had students accepted to Governors School and to a myriad of summer workshops. Advanced Placement (AP) is offered and encouraged for those students who would like to pursue the visual arts in college. From Cecilia Kim ’14 continuing her art while studying pre-med at Vanderbilt to Jim McCann ’92’s career as a writer for TV and film and now as a comic book writer and illustrator for Marvel Comics, Father Ryan’s art students are using the skills they acquire here to thrive in the expressive and varied artistic fields.

Father Ryan is proud of its talented artists, and likes to showcase those talents to the rest of the Irish community. Artwork for Father Ryan’s Christmas Cards has come from John Durand’s class the last several years, and this year’s card features AP Art student Julia Fennell ’16.

RAISING ONE’S VOICE ON STAGE Nowhere has the power of the performing arts been more vibrantly on display than in the vocal and theatre arenas. The work of Julie Cox and Kelli McClendon has resulted in honors for numerous students in regional and national competitions. That recognition begins with the work in the studios and practice rooms at Father Ryan, places that are often graced by professional performers from traveling Broadway shows, teaching students everything from vocal 10

ALUMNI SHOW THEIR CREATIVE SIDES Clarkson and has opened for Reba and Blake Shelton, among others. In 2011, Caroline moved to Nashville after being offered a publishing and artist development deal with Sony/ ATV. She most recently released her debut single, “Money To Me,” on Starstruck Records.

She’s one of many, including Alyssa Bonagura ’08, who is continuing to further her music career here in Nashville, and who points to the opportunities at Father Ryan as key reasons for her success, in school in England and here in Music City.

technique to stage dramatics. As a result they have performed throughout the United States in concert and festival competitions, including Carnegie Hall in New York City, The Tennessee Governor’s Mansion, Saratoga Springs Resort, Disney World and Six Flags Georgia. The choir has received many awards in regional festivals, including the MTVA Choral Festival where they have received many Superior and Excellent Ratings.

Many of our alumni are actors, technicians, writers and producers, and many have shown their skills on college stages and international venues. Jessica Gianonne ’05 has studied at the Old Vic in Bristol, England. Colin Carswell ’14 is now at the prestigious theatre program at Baldwin-Wallace. And Lauren Knoop ’11 is developing skills and contacts through her studies at Belmont.

Some of our students are launching careers while they are in school. Senior Caroline Kole (Kudelko) is making a mark in the country music world. She attended the Women of Country Music Luncheon as the guest of Reba McEntire and Kelly

A quintet of vocalists from Father Ryan were selected this fall for the Tennessee All-State and Mid-State Choirs. Senior Maddie Sampson led the group as an All-State vocalist for the Mixed Choir in addition to her selection to the Mid-State Choir. In addition, freshman Serenity Ogedegbe was selected to sing soprano in the Freshmen Mixed Chorus. Sophomore Jenna Ouzts was selected for first soprano, junior Jackson Dougherty as first bass, and senior Alec Hopkirk as first tenor, all in the Mid-State Mixed Choir, with all three honored as alternates for All-State. The Father Ryan Singers, under the direction of their Grammy Award-nominated director Julie Cox continue to showcase exceptional talent and earn recognition across the region. Congratulations to all of them.

Erin Davie, Class of 1995, is an actress on Broadway. After graduating from Father Ryan, she went to the prestigious Boston Conservatory where she received a BFA in musical theatre.

Erin has appeared in episodes of “Law and Order: Special Victims Unit” and “The Good Wife”; however, Broadway musicals are where she really shines. Her Broadway debut as the young Eddie Beale in “Grey Gardens” (2006-2007), where she acted and sang opposite Tony award winning actresses Christine Ebersole and Mary Louise Wilson, set her stage 11

career in motion. She followed up with “Curtains” (20072008) where she starred opposite David Hyde Pierce, and then in “A Little Night Music” (2009-2011), where her co-stars included Bernadette Peters, Elaine Stritch, Angela Lansbury and Catherine Zeta Jones. Most recently, she starred as Violet Hilton in the musical revival of “Side Show” that just wrapped its run on Broadway in January.

HITTING ALL THE RIGHT NOTES Father Ryan’s drumline program grabs the attention at every competition. Now the drummers are doing it on the national stage.

This year Father Ryan band and drumline codirectors Derek Drumline Members back up Little ’95 and Dustin ’00 Big Town at CMAs Schletzer brought their talents to TV though the CMA and a regional TV commercial.

In late May, CMA Music Producer, Steve Gibson, and Little Big Town Manager, Bobby Simmons, contacted Dustin to arrange and choreograph a drumline routine for Little Big Town’s 2014 CMA performance. After contacting local independent drummers to perform in the 12-man drumline, Dustin and his brother, Derek, worked with Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild and band leader John Thomasson to arrange the original drumline music/ choreography for their new single. In addition to Derek and Dustin, the drumline included, Kevin Jankowski ’06, current drumline staff member, Billy Prosise ’07, Corey Boise, current drumline staff member and John Harvill, current drumline staff member.

And this fall Thompson Machinery, a Caterpillar Inc. dealer, released a new TV commercial featuring a sound track written by Dustin Schletzer on Thompson Machinery’s Facebook page, instantly reaching more than 30,000 followers and was played nearly 4,000 times.

“We knew the commercial was good, mostly because of the amazing drumline written by Dustin,” states Daniel Clark ’00, Director of Marketing at Thompson Machinery, who went to Christ the King and Father Ryan with Dustin. “When we started developing the idea of coupling Caterpillar equipment and college football, I immediately thought of Dustin and the Father Ryan drumline. We knew a good sound track would draw attention.”

The commercial aired this past fall primarily during SEC football games on ABC, CBS, and the SEC Network in Tennessee and Mississippi. You can view it at youtube.

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THE MANY VOICES OF SPEECH, ACTING, & DEBATE This issue’s featured Father Ryan club is the Speech, Acting, and Debate Club, which traveled this fall to Dickson County High School to compete against 18 area schools, including JPII, St. Cecilia, BGA, Brentwood High, Ravenwood, and many more. Led by coach Sarah Kieffner, many of the students excelled in the preliminary rounds, including freshman JACK WRIGHT, who placed 1st and 2nd in the Impromptu event in rounds 2 and 3. Others who placed included junior AUDREY DARKE, who placed 3rd in one of her Prose rounds at her very first tournament; and senior JUAN JOSE RODRIGUEZ, who received a score of five (out of a possible six) on two speeches in Student Congress. Two Father Ryan duo teams—CAMERON WRIGHT and REBEKAH DEBUSE finished 2nd in Duet Acting, and ANNA BOYD and ALEXIS FLORES finished 2nd in Improvisational Duet Acting­. At the end of all competition, four of the nine students who attended for Father Ryan went home with trophies, an impressive accomplishment, considering the Irish were short-staffed due to a Model UN conference and the fall play.

Then, on November 15th the club hosted the Father Ryan Speech and Debate Tournament. A dozen middle schools visited the Father Ryan campus for the tournament, which saw over 250 students competing in a variety of events. There were winners from every school, but the overall winner was Sunset Middle, with Overbrook placing 2nd and St. Bernard placing 3rd. St. Edwards walked away with the coveted Carolyn Baker award.

As part of Father Ryan’s mission to promote the values of faith, knowledge, and service, the Speech, Acting, and Debate Club will host its first ever Drama and Debate camp from July 6-10, 2015, as part of Father Ryan’s summer camp offerings.

Often called Forensics in middle schools, drama and debate camp students will be introduced to THSSDL (Tennessee High School Speech & Drama League) and NSDA (National Speech & Debate Association) events including Prose, Poetry, Impromptu, Duet Acting, Duo Interpretation, Humorous Interpretation, Dramatic Interpretation, Duet Improv, TV Broadcasting, Oratory, Storytelling, Congressional Debate, and Public Forum Debate. Students will watch examples of some of the events and will choose which event to specialize in for the week. The week will culminate in a performance showcase (morning session only) and mock tournament (afternoon session only) at the end of the week.

If you know of a child between grades 1-9 who might be interested, consider signing them up for a fun, drama-filled week at Father Ryan this summer. Visit www.fatherryan.org/camp

VETERANS PRIDE EVENTS HONOR FATHER RYAN HEROES

RELAY FOR LIFE: HOPE HAS NO BORDERS

Left: President Jim McIntyre presents Hero Project Honorary Diploma to Mr. Young in honor of his father. Top right: Alex Melendez recalls the service of his father, Cris Melendez. Bottom Right: Shelby ’09, Allison and Natalie ’15 Davis show off their 5K medals.

The Father Ryan Alumni Association hosted the 10th Annual Veterans Day Breakfast on Friday, November 7. Many alumni and parent veterans, as well as veterans of the extended Father Ryan family, honored for their service to our country.

The speaker at this year’s breakfast was Alex Melendez, parent of alumni Maggie Melendez ’08. Alex shared the story of his father, Cristobal “Cris” Melendez serving in WWII with the 65th Infantry Regiment, nicknamed the “Borinqueneers.” The Borinqueneers was the only active-duty segregated Latino military unit in U.S. history. The group received a Congressional Gold Medal this past June, and Cris received a Bronze Star for his heroism.

Father Ryan also honored the late Robert Vernon Young ’xx, who was officially honored as the school’s newest Hero Project Graduate, the diploma was accepted by Mr. Young’s son Mark. Since 2010, the Hero Project has been an effort to identify former Father Ryan students who left school to serve in WWII and recognize them by presenting them or their families an honorary diploma.

The next day, the Alumni Association hosted its annual Veterans Pride 5K and 1 Mile Fun Run on Saturday, November 8. The festivities began with the 1 Mile Fun Run in Giacosa Stadium, followed by the 5K a half hour later. The 5K course started and finished at Giacosa Stadium and wound through the shady, tree-lined streets in the surrounding Oak Hill neighborhood. The weather was ideal for running, and the Veterans Pride 5K, which is a certified course, is one of the flattest in Nashville, with many participants reporting their fastest time.

Like the breakfast, the race was held in honor of our brave military veterans. Veterans ran for free, and the proceeds from the race benefitted the Father Ryan Alumni Association’s Tuition Assistance Fund.

Father Ryan hosted its annual Relay for Life on Saturday, October 4 from noon until midnight to salute cancer survivors and to raise funds for the American Cancer Society. This has been the nation’s largest student-led Relay for Life each of the last four years. This year, over 800 participants raised $65,000 for the American Cancer Society. Relay for Life celebrated this year with a theme of “Hope Has No Borders”.

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Cover Story winter 2015

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Monday, January 5th saw the triumphant finale of almost two years of planning and preparation, all culminating in a series of events throughout the day to celebrate the Game that Changed the South, the 1965 basketball game between Father Ryan and Pearl High School that was the first athletic event in the region between an integrated team and an all African-American team, and drew a record crowd of over 8,300 to the Municipal Auditorium.

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The hotly-contested game finished 52-51 when then Father Ryan senior Lyn Dempsey ’65 sank a shot at the buzzer to give the Irish the win. But the final score was not what made this game so historic; it was the simple fact that the game was played at all. Now, 50 years and one day later, everyone gathered again in the same place to honor that original game, the players, the coaches, the schools, the entire Nashville community, and its powerful, lasting contribution to the American Civil Rights legacy.

LYN DEMPSEY ’65,

ONE SHOT. THAT'S

Before the game Father Ryan and Pearl High School, in association with the Nashville Sports Council and Comcast Sports Speaker Series, looked back on 50 years of sports equality and the Game that Changed the South with a commemorative luncheon held at the Wildhorse Saloon downtown, sponsored by McDonalds. Mayor Karl Dean of Nashville opened the luncheon speaking on the importance of Nashville’s legacy within the Civil Rights movement and thanking the assembled players and coaches for their contribution to that heritage.

A historic and celebratory event, players from both of the 1965 teams were recognized, including players Perry Wallace, Walter Fisher, and Lyn Dempsey, who headlined a panel discussion on the 1965 Father Ryan v. Pearl game and how it affected, and continues to affect, their lives.

Wallace, Pearl’s former star center, would go on to lead a life of firsts, becoming the Southeastern Conference’s (SEC) first African-American scholarship athlete at Vanderbilt University, once again breaking down barriers right here in the Music City. “It was one game where America was better,” he said, “where Nashville was better.”

Father Ryan’s Dempsey, who substituted into the game late, after his teammate Pat Sanders ’65 fouled out of the game with minutes to go, ended up making the winning shot over the out-stretched arm of Wallace as the final buzzer sounded. His only contribution to the score line was the most important.

“Two points, one shot. That’s all I needed,” he said, and he was right. On the grandest stage, in front of thousands of fans, Dempsey hit the biggest shot of his career and sealed the win for the Irish.

“The auditorium shook,” Walter Fisher, Pearl ’66, recalled.

The Pearl High team, led by Fisher and Wallace, would rebound from this loss in a big way, going undefeated for the next season and a half and winning the first integrated TSSAA basketball State Championship the very next year in 1966.

Without that first game inside the Municipal Auditorium to set a peaceful, while still competitive, precedent, however, the TSSAA might have never decided to give those talented young men the chance to showcase their talents on the state level, and for that, all the former players were, and are, still grateful.

This distinguished panel, moderated by WSMV’s Rudy Kalis, also featured a few special guests who didn’t participate in the game, but have played key roles in the both the origins of the story and its proliferation. Andrew Maraniss, a fellow 16

PERRY WALLACE, P

WAS BETTER, WHE

, “TWO POINTS,

ALL I NEEDED.”

“IT WAS JUST ABOUT BASKETBALL.”

JESSE PORTER ’64.

PEARL ’66, “...ONE GAME WHERE AMERICA

ERE NASHVILLE WAS BETTER.”

WSMV’s Rudy Kalis moderates panel featuring Dempsey, Fisher, Porter, Maraniss and Wallace.

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“THIS EVENT WAS DONE WITH SUBSTANCE. FATHER RYAN HAS ALWAYS BEEN ABOUT S Wallace speaks to the crowd gathered at the Library’s Civil Rights Room.

Vanderbilt graduate, and the author of the acclaimed biography chronicling the historic life and career of Perry Wallace, Strong Inside, accompanied Wallace on the panel and was able to speak further on the significance the game held to Wallace’s career, as well as what it meant for sports in the South.

One of the pioneers of the Civil Rights movement, Father Ryan’s Jesse Porter ’64 also participated in the discussion.

After graduating he went from Father Ryan to Nashville’s Fisk University, and then on to become a celebrated educator in the Washington D.C. public school system, working with mentallyhandicapped youth for over 30 years. Before acquiring any of those accolades, however, Jesse made the Father Ryan basketball team in the fall of his senior year, 1963, and through this profound accomplishment, Porter, along with the late, great Willie Brown ’65, became the first African-Americans to integrate sports in the city, the state, and the region.

Though he’d already graduated by the time Father Ryan and Pearl went head to head in January of 1965, there was perhaps no one more integral than Jesse Porter in helping Nashville turn the corner on sports integration and lay the foundation 18

of progress for those who would come after. “It wouldn’t have been that close, if I was playing,” he joked, but insisted that despite the circumstances, “it was just about basketball.” None of the players, just teenagers at the time, had any concept of the lasting impact their game would have on the state of student athletics in Nashville, Tennessee, and the surrounding South.

The panel was one of thoughtful reflection, but also triumphant celebration, and all involved expressed gratitude at being a part of something so significant in the history of their schools and their city.

Following the luncheon, the party shifted venues to the Civil Rights Room of the Nashville Public Library. There, Father Ryan unveiled an exhibit commemorating the Game that Changed the South and its lasting impact on the Civil Rights movement in both Nashville and the entire South.

Dedicated to preserving the legacy of the American Civil Rights Movement and educating future generations on the importance of both remembering and honoring our past, the Civil Rights branch of the Nashville Public Library opened in

.

SUBSTANCE.” PERRY

WALLACE

2004. Curated by Andrea Blackman, the Civil Rights Room is always looking for new or forgotten stories of Civil Rights heroism and has worked with Father Ryan before. Just last year, the Civil Rights Room, in conjunction with Father Ryan, featured an exhibit recounting the 1954 story of Father Ryan’s first African-American students, the first school in the South to integrate, thanks to the bold and unapologetic decision made by then Nashville Bishop William L. Adrian. This winter they agreed to help Father Ryan continue to tell their pioneering story of educational and recreational integration.

view the exhibit both with their parents and on their own, the new generations who will be stepping into roles as the leaders and voices of future Civil Rights advancement. A Vanderbilt University graduate and current law professor, Wallace knows a thing or two about making smart choices. He spoke specifically to the young men of the Pearl-Cohn basketball team, as he had been in their exact situation 50 years before, “Did I say, ‘be smart’?”

The exhibit officially was open to the public, but there was no time for those involved in the day’s festivities to sit back and rest on their laurels as Father Ryan held its next event, a reception for all the players from the ’65 game and Father Ryan alumni at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium an hour before the games started.

The exhibit’s dedication drew an impressive crowd, including the entire Pearl-Cohn boys’ basketball team. Blackman opened proceedings, speaking about the mission of the Civil Rights Room, and the Room’s importance in showcasing stories like Wallace and Porter, who had already spoken as part of the luncheon panel. They were again asked to say a few words, and Corner Pub catered the reception, and after the players ate both men stressed the importance of keeping these kinds of their fill, they chatted with friends, fans, and fellow alumni, signed posters, books, and game programs, and got the allstories alive and learning from them. around celebrity treatment until it was time to file into the “Be smart, always try to make the smart choice,” Perry Wallace auditorium proper to watch some basketball. said, addressing the many young people who had come to 19

Father Ryan was proud to partner with McDonald’s for the event, and local McDonald’s owner, James Pelletier ’85, made a special presentation congratulating his alma mater on such a successful celebration. First up to take the court that night were the girls’ teams for Father Ryan and Pearl-Cohn.

The girls came ready to compete, taking to the court with pride in their teams and their schools, and they didn’t disappoint. The Father Ryan girls took the lead early in the contest and didn’t look back, winning 39–25.

After the girls’ game concluded, the ’65 players and coaches took the court for their official tribute in front of an enthusiastic Nashville crowd. Many of the players from both teams were there to be formally recognized. From Pearl High School, the men representing the team were Joe Herbert, Charles Moorman, Melvin Smith, Tyrone Fizer, Ted “Hound” McClain, Perry Wallace, Walter Fisher, and their former student manager, William “Bubba” Terrell.

Representing the Irish were Don Craighead, Kenny Crump, Don White, Lyn Dempsey, Robert Forte, Martin Gilmore, Hal “Champ” Hounihan, Pat Sanders, Bill Hill, and representing the late Willie Brown, who would have celebrated his 68th birthday the night of the game, his sister, Ann Brown Beatty.

Not just the players made it out, however. From Pearl, assistant coach Melvin Black and Dorris Armstrong, brother to Pearl assistant coach James Armstrong, attended the celebration.

From Father Ryan, assistant coaches Hosey Holzapfel ’59 and Murray Lynch ’55 were recognized.

Last, and perhaps most important of all, came two of the people who dared to make that night in January, 1965 a reality—Father Ryan Head Coach Bill Derrick ’48 and Mrs. Carolyn Ridley, representing her late husband, the head coach of Pearl High school Cornelius Ridley.

The crowd rose as one, cheering enthusiastically to show their love, gratitude, and appreciation for these two incredible individuals, TSSAA Hall of Famers, Civil Rights pioneers, and men of the highest caliber.

With many Nashville dignitaries and looking on in admiration, all involved, including the current Father Ryan and Pearl-Cohn basketball teams, gathered on the court for an exchange of commemorative gifts.

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The game and the players, past and present were honored and applauded. Old friends widow of Pearl coach, and Coach Derrick, with Father Ryan receiving some special microphone), McDonald’s franchisee who made a special halftime presentation to

“Thank you all for making history 50 years ago, and for continuing to teach us all today,” the announcer said before the assembled crowd of applauding players and spectators, “Your message resounds.”

Finally, Joe Casey, the long-time Metro Nashville police officer and chief of police, and referee of the original 1965 game, was brought onto the court for a ceremonial tip-off between Pearl’s Wallace and Father Ryan’s Hounihan ’65. Then, it was game time.

As the members of the ’65 teams found their seats, the boys’ teams began their warm up, and after a few minutes of drills, everyone was ready to begin, the atmosphere competitive, but good-spirited inside the Municipal Auditorium.

Both teams started strong defensively, and the first quarter was a low-scoring affair, as each team felt the other out, probing for weaknesses.

Toward the end of the first half, though, PearlCohn began to find their rhythm, taking control of a commanding lead at half-time.

Their Pearl High predecessors were unimpressed by their performance, however. “They need to move the ball,” Pearl ’66 alum Tyrone Fizer said, speaking to members of the media, “They’re playing the game too slow right now, but they’ll pick it up in the second half.”

And pick it up, they did. The Pearl-Cohn boys dominated the second half of the game, living up to the long Pearl High legacy as one of the best basketball programs in Tennessee athletic history. Despite a worthy effort from a game Father Ryan squad, Pearl cruised to an impressive 50-25 victory, ensuring that history would not repeat itself, at least on the scorecards.

History did repeat itself, however, in the minds and hearts of all those who had gathered to celebrate the special connection between Father Ryan and Pearl, both on and off the court. The final score of the games turned out to be the least important result of a day filled from start to finish with the celebration of two schools that dared to compete, and in doing so, dared to change the South forever.

To see all the photos from the events, just go to www.fatherryan.org/pearl50

connected across the decades—left, center, Mr. McIntyre greets Carolyn Ridley McDonald’s love, both on the marquee and from James Pelletier ’85 (at right with the schools.

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Top: Honoring the classes of 1955-1958 at the Opening Game: Kinnard, Ken Donnelly ’55, Ordway and Judge Randall Wyatt ’55.

Above: Kinnard and Ordway (top to bottom) in their Father Ryan days.

FATHER RYAN FRIENDS,CIVIL RIGHTS PIONEERS: THE STORY OF CHARLES KINNARD ’56 AND RICHARD ORWAY ’56

On a rainy afternoon in late December, Father Ryan High School, Charles Kinnard ’55 and Richard Ordway ’56 met up to have a discussion about the past, the present, and their place in Father Ryan history. Now in their late 70’s, both men have come a long way since their first days as students of Father Ryan, but through it all, a couple things have remained— their pride in their old school, and their lifelong friendship.

Mr. Kinnard and Mr. Ordway, both native Nashvillians, were two of the first AfricanAmerican students to integrate the classrooms at Father Ryan, Nashville, and consequently the entire South. Together they became pioneers for the U.S. Civil Rights movement, but their story, and their friendship, goes back farther than that, back before Brown v. Board of Education and its ruling on educational integration, to a small Catholic high school in Nashville called Immaculate Mother.

“If you look at it now, it looks like something on Ghost Hunters,” Mr. Kinnard joked, but despite the school’s humble setting, both he 22

and Mr. Ordway insisted that they never wanted for anything during their time at Immaculate Mother, and when then Bishop William L. Adrian unexpectedly closed the school in the early summer of 1954, both men were caught totally off guard.

“It was a shock,” said Mr. Kinnard, when he first heard the news. Charles and Richard, along with their classmates, were now, seemingly, without a school to call their own. Mr. Ordway expressed similar disbelief, saying, “First thing that came to my mind…I guess I’ll be going to Pearl.”

Bishop Adrian wasn’t looking to put anyone out; however, he had bigger plans for the Diocese of Nashville, plans that would put his diocese on the front lines of the burgeoning Civil Rights movement. With the Supreme Court decision only a few days old and still fresh on the minds of the nation, Bishop Adrian decided that, though its schools were private, religious institutions, the Diocese of Nashville would integrate.

“We always praised a Catholic school,” Mr. Kinnard said, speaking on their desire to continue their education within the diocese, “If you asked any of us where we were going to college…Notre Dame.” Mr. Ordway concurred, saying, “My parents told me they’d like me to stay in Catholic school, if I was allowed to go.” And that’s just what they did. When Bishop Adrian announced that Father Ryan would be opening its doors to the young African-American men of the community, both men jumped at the chance.

This turned out to be a much more significant decision than either of them realized at the time. When asked about that first day on Elliston Place, Mr. Kinnard said it was “just like any other day. Just like we were going to Immaculate Mother.”

follow Bishop Adrian’s example and integrate. “I hated that they couldn’t use us… but it’s all come together, said Mr. Kinnard, who didn’t seem bitter in the least over his exclusion.

He seemed more disappointed for his friend—“[Richard] was a heck of a ball player.”

“Taught Ronnie Lawson everything he knew,” Mr. Ordway joked, talking about the former UCLA basketball standout of the late 50’s, who attended Father Ryan briefly before transferring to Pearl High School so that he could play competitively.

“THIS IS THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE,I’M SO PROUD TO BE A PART OF THIS.”

Though already several years removed from the halls of their old school by the time Father Ryan made sports history by becoming the first integrated school to play an African-American school in athletic competition in the South, both Mr. Kinnard and Mr. Ordway attended the festivities surrounding the game’s 50th Anniversary. Most (if not all) of their childhood friends and neighbors will be there to root on Father Ryan’s opponent, Pearl-Cohn Magnet School, but Charles and Richard plan to be front and center for the Irish. “I’m going to buy me a Ryan jacket and wear it to the game,” Mr. Kinnard said, and Mr. Ordway took it a step further, “I might wear a cape!”

RICHARD ORDWAY

“We didn’t realize it was such an historic event,” said Mr. Ordway, “I’m telling you the truth, I didn’t think anything about it. I didn’t realize Father Ryan was the only one.”

It’s not their fault that they thought so little of the extraordinary circumstances; the way Mr. Kinnard and Mr. Ordway tell it, the first days of integration at Father Ryan were remarkable only in their pleasant normality. “Murray came up and said, ‘Hey, I’m Murray Lynch, what’s your name? Charles Kinnard.’ It was just like going to school,” reflected Kinnard.

These two gentlemen were part of a moving salute that kicked off the 2014 Father Ryan football season, a salute honoring the 60th Both men remembered sevAnniversary of integraeral of their favorite teachers tion, which began at Father as well, Father James R. Ryan. Showcased in a lead Hitchcock ’39 in particular. story in The Tennessean, He was only one of the many Mr. Kinnard joined Mr. talented teachers at Father Ordway and a dozen more Ryan at the time, but nine classmates from the classes years later, in the fall of 1963, of 1955 to 1958—the men then Principal Hitchcock “The emotion got to me…I almost lost it.” Kinnard served as who were on campus when honorary captain. would help Father Ryan make Father Ryan integrated—for history once again, as the first a pregame salute. The crowd school in the South to desegregate athletics. Undoubtedly, his was focused on these men, Wyatt and Donnelly and Lynch, experience teaching these brave young men at Father Ryan in but particularly on these two—Kinnard and Ordway—and the 50’s influenced this courageous decision. the applause when they were introduced was enormous. Two of the officiating crew, both African-American, came out to That momentous occasion was still years away; however, shake the hands of the two pioneers and to say “thank you.” during Mr. Kinnard and Mr. Ordway’s tenures at Father Ryan, The events struck these two men powerfully. several aspects of school life were still stuck in the past, not just the athletics. “We knew the prom was off-limits,” said “This is the best day of my life,” Mr. Ordway said, “I’m so Mr. Kinnard, and Mr. Ordway added, “We were never asked proud to be a part of this.” Mr. Kinnard was asked to flip the to any social functions—we were never invited.” coin before the game. Standing on the field with all the fans and players watching, he paused for a brief time before launching the Sports was a similar story. Both men grew up playing neighcoin. “I just about lost it then. I felt the crowd and felt the emoborhood basketball, but never got the chance to test out their tion of these 60 years and just had to gather myself before I went skills on the Father Ryan court, as the TSSAA had yet to on. It was such a special moment,” stated Kinnard.

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Rather than resent the fact that they were a generation too early to participate in Father Ryan athletics, both men seem thankful for the opportunities they did receive, a remarkable attitude, given the circumstances of the day. They know that in life, change is often slow in the coming, even if the intentions are good.

Such intentions, and the good people behind them, have long been on display at Father Ryan, where both students and faculty acted as testaments to the spirit of inclusion that Bishop Adrian was hoping to foster. When asked if they ever experienced anything approaching a racist sentiment during their time at Father Ryan, both Mr. Ordway and Mr. Kinnard were adamant in their assertions that no, they were never targeted or treated unequally. “The white students were brave too. It was probably a bigger shock to them,” Mr. Ordway said. Mr. Kinnard agreed, adding one of his favorite aphorisms,“There’s a saying, if you’re looking for something, you’ll find it. I never looked.”

TSU, and rose within the force to serve as Assistant Chief for 12 years, before retiring in 1991.

As a police officer in the 60’s, Mr. Ordway served during the height of the U.S. Civil Rights movement, and though he didn’t participate personally in the now famous Nashville Sit-ins of 1960, both he and Mr. Kinnard remembered them well, and praised the non-violent efforts of both Nashville protesters and local law enforcement. “We didn’t have all the things they went through in other cities,” Mr. Ordway said, “The police department kept things to a minimum.”

“BY GOING OVER HERE [TO FATHER RYAN], YOU LEARN TO ACCEPT FOLKS.”

RICHARD ORDWAY

“We knew by going to Catholic school that not all [white people] were the same… it’s always just a few who make things bad for everybody else,” said Kinnard.

According to Mr. Kinnard, more conflict actually came from their African-American peers. “I come from a black community… we were poor, but we never wanted for anything. We dressed well. Some kids didn’t like that. We caught heck a lot of times from public school students—they didn’t like us. ‘Oh here come them Catholic school boys, they holier than us,’” Kinnard remembered.

Mr. Kinnard only spent one year at Father Ryan before graduating, but he made the most of it, insisting that he was a dedicated student who always completed his homework early, during study hall. Now a father to six, grandfather to eleven and great-grandfather to six more, Mr. Kinnard left Father Ryan and spent a few more years in Nashville before joining the army in 1958. He served honorably for 21 years, going to Korea twice, then Vietnam, Germany, and Panama (where he met his future wife, Marva Cecilia Kinnard), before retiring with the rank of Sergeant First-Class and returning to Nashville in 1978, where he worked in masonry.

Mr. Ordway, now a father of two and grandfather to four, graduated Father Ryan and went on to begin his studies at Tennessee State University before being drafted in 1960 and serving for two years in Hawaii, Japan, and Korea. Upon leaving the service, he got a job back in Nashville selling insurance, but sales wasn’t Mr. Ordway’s speed, and in 1964 he joined the Nashville Metro Police Department as a uniformed police officer. Mr. Ordway served the city of Nashville for nearly 30 years, completed his degree at Aquinas College and 24

“I think the people here are just different,” Mr. Kinnard said, who followed the events closely, though he was serving in Korea at the time. To this Mr. Ordway replied, “You’re right, but there was a lot of work that went into it.”

Mr. Ordway’s words seem particularly apt, given his professional experience and the current social climate of racial tensions and struggles being debated throughout America today. Recalling the turmoil of the 50’s and 60’s, he reflected on how far the United States has come since he first joined the force over 50 years ago. “A black officer couldn’t arrest a white [person] until 1963, didn’t matter what we saw them do, we had to call a white officer,” he added, “You didn’t know things were going to be like they are now, so you just plain survived… It’s far from what it used to be, but we’re not there yet.” Mr. Ordway remains optimistic, however, saying with confidence that he thought the next generation would be able to figure it out. “They’ll find a way to be okay, without our input,” he said with a smile.

With the Alumni office closing for the night, both men stood up to leave. Mr. Ordway, who these days gets around with the assistance of a walker, needed a hand navigating the front steps and walkway, but his friend Charles Kinnard was right there at his elbow, helping to guide his fellow Immaculate Mother and Father Ryan alumnus to the car.

“By going over here [to Father Ryan], you learned to accept folks,” Mr. Ordway said before he left, when asked what he’d taken away from his time on Elliston Place.

Mr. Kinnard was of a similar mind, “Accepting people, giving people another chance. Going to Father Ryan, going through what we went through, made me change my perspective.

People can be great and you don’t know it.”

“It seems unreal. I feel proud to see this school and know where it came from,” he concluded.

SALUTING THE 90-YEAR TRADITION OF FAITH, KNOWLEDGE, SERVICE

The 36th Annual Legacy Gala won’t beginning at 6:00 p.m., and chaired by have a single honoree this year…it will Father Ryan parents Julie (Shaninger) ’88 have 90 years of them. and Ed Norfleet, the event will feature dinner, silent and live auctions, and a Saluting the traditions that never memorable video showcase of the nine graduate, from the very origins of the decades of Father Ryan’s tradition of school as Nashville Catholic School for Faith, Knowledge, and Service.

Boys to its days on Elliston Place and now Norwood, from the Purple Masque Last year’s Gala was an early sell-out, Players of 1927 to the group today, and and even with more seating planned for from all-boys to coeducation, the Legacy this year’s event, we are encouraging Gala will echo the many sounds and guests to sign up early. reflections of a proud Irish nation.

Information is available online at

Held once again in the Omni Hotel in www.fatherryan.org/gala. downtown Nashville on March 7, 2015, 25

REMEMBERING “THE CITIZEN”:

GEORGE EDWARD BARRETT ’45 George Edward Barrett ’45, a Father Ryan alumnus, and a tireless advocate for civil rights, passed away on August 26, 2014. He was 86.

Mr. Barrett was a native Nashvillian who counted the city’s and the nation’s leaders, as well as all Nashville residents as his friends, and was eager to represent those who could not advocate for themselves. Proudly known as “The Citizen” of Nashville, he was a dogged champion of many important causes and was tireless in pursuing those cases, even if they lasted decades.

Barrett was born and raised in East Nashville. A devout Catholic, he attended both Holy Name and Father Ryan High School. After graduating in 1945, Barrett enlisted in the Coast Guard for WWII. He served three years, was honorably discharged, and enrolled in Spring Hill College in Mobile, AL on the GI Bill. He served as president of the student body and received a BA in History. He then journeyed to Oxford, England, where he studied Philosophy, Politics, and Economics. After Oxford, he backpacked across post-war Europe, instilling a lifelong love of travel.

In 1954, Mr. Barrett was accepted to study law at Vanderbilt University, where he was a member of the famed class of 1957.

In 1957, he married Mary Eloise McBride of Lewisburg, TN. They had three daughters, Lucy, Mary, and Katie. George considered his daughters his greatest treasures, no small thing in a life of notable accomplishments.

In his practice, Citizen Barrett had a heart and love for a good fight for the workingman and the underdog. He championed many unpopular causes because he knew they were just. A tireless worker, his career spanned more than 50 years, working six days a week every week until his death.

Both as a student and an alumnus, he was at home at Father Ryan, returning to talk with students and always challenging them to serve.

Many of his closest friends came from Elliston Place, particularly the recently-deceased John Seigenthaler ‘45, with whom Mr. Barrett stood side by side, both in the classroom and in many a citizen’s cause.

He left us the way he lived—fighting the good fight, and surrounded by his loving family. He is survived by his three daughters, Lucy (Rob) Thomason, Mary (Mark) Brewer, Katie (Joe) Cain, a sister, Sister Mary George Barrett, O.P., eleven grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews.

To each of them, Father Ryan extends its prayers of comfort and celebration, in honor of this outstanding alumnus and exceptional citizen.

May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.

26

Class Notes winter 2015

Cathedral Grade School’s 1964-65 basketball team members (all future Father Ryan students) meet Willie Brown ’65 at the grade school.

Willie’s two sisters graduated from Cathedral High School, Peggy in 1966 and Ann in 1968. The players (from left) are Mike Curley ’69, Tony Marchetti ’70, Pat Nolan ’69, Robert Cobb ’69, Frederick Strobel ’70, Terry Shelton ’69, Tony Resha ’71 (in front) and Gino Marchetti ’69.

1951 MURRAY NICHOLSON wrote his second book, The Story of Nicky, the First 80 Years, an autobiography. It includes

stories and pictures from his childhood through his years at the Naval Academy; four years flying off the USS Intrepid; teaching Spanish at the Naval Academy as well as the Naval Intelligence school; 27 years as pilot/captain with Trans World Airlines; life after TWA flying for Reba McEntire; and many other endeavors. Contact Murray through LinkedIn or murray.nicholson@ comcast.net for a copy.

1953 LOU LAWRENCE published Bailout? Baloney!: Government Spin on Bankruptcy available on amazon.com. The book

is a treatise on the bailout of the automotive industry. It includes a history of the automobile and discusses the reasons for the bankruptcy of General Motors and Chrysler. Lou spent more than 30 years in the auto industry at Ford and as president of two auto suppliers. He generously donated a copy to Father Ryan’s Neuhoff Library.

1960 DR. TIMOTHY J. WHITE (Valedictorian) has been serving as Site Director for the Florida Institute of Technology,

Huntsville, AL site for over seven years and has been an instructor there for over 20 years. Dr. White has assisted this site in establishing a Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) degree to complement the 25+ master’s degrees offered at this site. This is a singular event in that it is the first time that the main campus (Melbourne, FL) has launched a doctoral program anywhere other than its main campus. The Huntsville Site is honored to have accomplished this.

27

1964 DAVID BROWN was appointed in

April as a commissioner by Governor Haslam to serve on the PI & Polygraph Commission of Tennessee.

1968 RON COLES was elected Mayor

of Oak Hill following his overwhelming victory at the polls on June 10th.

Ron was elected to a four-year term on the Oak Hill Board of Commission, garnering more votes than any other candidate in the history of the city. Ron campaigned to maintain the residential character of Oak Hill through an open and responsive city government. His campaign was managed by BILL FARMER ‘65.

Ron, who stood out at Father Ryan on the basketball court and in the classroom, is a professional engineer who has devoted his career to port and economic development projects. He and his wife, Melinda, have lived in Oak Hill for 29 years and have two grown children and five grandchildren.

1969 GINO MARCHETTI, JR. has been

named to the 2014 list of Mid-South Super Lawyers. His primary areas of practice are commercial and business litigation, employment law, bankruptcy and creditors’ rights, and tax-exempt entities. Gino is the Managing Partner at Taylor, Pigue, Marchetti and Blair in Nashville.

1969 JIMMY WILSON was awarded

the Chi Psi’s Distinguished Service Award during Homecoming Weekend at Sewanee. He is an alumnus of The University of the South. Only 151 people have received this honor in the fraternity’s 173-year history.

1970 CHRIS WILLIAMS was named

the Nashville Catholic Business League 2014 Catholic Professional of the Year.

28

An avid volunteer, Williams loves giving back to his community. He is the founder of the Charitable Constructors Outreach Program, an organization that gives free construction labor to those in need.

1979 BILL BREEN was invited to play in the USGA’s U.S. Senior Open in July.

1981 JOE LOFARO, an award winning writer, newspaper editor, sports information director and university editor, has authored his first non-fiction book titled Drafted, When the Elite Rise to Gridiron Glory. The book, published

by Red Streets Media, is about the 12 UT Martin football players drafted into the NFL. He is on a book-signing tour this winter and spring. Drafted is available on Amazon.com. Joe’s second book, based on a true story, We Held Our Helmets High, is due out in August 2015.

1981 KURT PAGE has been chosen

as the 2014 Coach of the Year, GISA Region 4-AA. His team, the Monsignor Donovan Catholic High School (MDCHS) in Athens, GA, is a state semi-finalist in their first official GISA season. Kurt has an overall record of 122-74 during his 18th year as an elite head coach. He was an All-State quarterback at Father Ryan, a record setting QB for the Vanderbilt Commodores, and a former head football coach of Father Ryan. Congratulations, Coach Page!

1983 CHRIS BURNS , his wife, Sharon,

and their two boys, Thomas and Matthew, have recently moved to the Nashville area. Chris was commissioned into the Air Force after graduation from UT Knoxville and served as a pilot, having spent most of his time flying the U-2 Dragon Lady. He retired from the USAF in 2007 and joined Delta Air Lines. The Burns family had an excellent time at their first Ryan football game catching up with friends and watching the Irish defeat JPII to retain the Bishop’s Cup! 1984 BETH DUBOIS is a registered nurse

(BSN), serving at Angel Healthcare Staffing for the past 12 years. She has been a member of the St. Edward’s

choir for 10 years. Beth enjoyed her daughter Shelby’s (2009) college graduation in 2013 and her engagement; her son, Dalton’s freshman band season for the Irish; her daughter Mary Elizabeth’s Scouts, sports and choir at St. Edward; and her own 30th class reunion last summer. Beth also enjoys helping with Father Ryan’s Relay for Life and her Marion and Sacred Heart devotions.

1985 CHRISTIE WILSON has been named CEO of the new PARKS real estate company. The firm is the result of a merger between Bob Parks Realty and The Wilson Group. The combined company had $1.4 billion in sales last year.

PARKS is now jointly owned by Christie and Bob Parks. She has also been named a 2015 Women of Influence award winner in the Inspiration/Mentor category by the Nashville Business Journal.

1987 ELLEN BLIGH TRULEY, vice pres-

ident of corporate relations at SESAC, received a well-deserved award at the Nashville Business Journal’s inaugural Women in Music City Awards. Ellen was honored as one of the local businesswomen who are making a difference in the music industry. The honorees ran the gamut from record label heads, music video producers, writers, talent booking execs as well as bankers, lawyers and various music industry executives, all celebrated for their creativity and impact on the music industry.

1990 STEPHEN ZRALEK has been

included in the Best Lawyers in America 2015 for criminal defense non-white collar and criminal defense white collar, DUI/DWI defense. He is a member of Bone McAllester Norton in Nashville.

1991 KEITH ALBERSTADT appeared on NBC’s “Last Comic Standing Season 8” as one of the “top 100” comedians to perform in the Invitational Round in LA. Unfortunately, he did not advance beyond that stage, but he had an unbelievable experience. Two bits from Keith’s appearance made it on NBC’s special “Last Comic Standing Top 100 Jokes”. Visit www.youtube.com/user/ keithalby to see more of his act.

1996

EUGENIA

"GIGI"

GRAYER 2000 ASHLEY (CRAW) KEAPPROTH

graduated from UT Knoxville College of Law in 2003 with a Juris Doctorate.

She has been in private practice in Davidson County since 2004 where she handles criminal defenses cases and family law including DUI, assault, child support issues, child custody issues, and divorce.

was promoted to counsel at the Washington D.C. office of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP. Ashley practices labor and employment law, primarily defending clients in federal and state wage and hour litigation, representing companies in EEOC investigations, and counseling clients on compliance and pre1997 MATT PIETSCH has been named litigation dispute resolution. She lives a Rising Star by the Mid-South Super in Nokesville, VA with her husband, Lawyers. Pietch practices at Taylor, Nik, and two children.

Pigue, Marchetti and Blair focusing on civil and criminal defense litiga- 2000 JENN SIMS received her PhD in tion, administrative law, and governsociology from the mental investigations.

University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1999 CAITLIN (MCALEESE) August 2014. This FRANKLIN was promoted to Senior fall she joined the Director of Human Resources at faculty of the UniBrookdale Senior Living. She has been versity of Wisconsinwith the company since 2005, most River Falls as an recently as Director of Safety and Associate Lecturer.

Workers Compensation.

2001 BILLY HALEY and MICHAEL 1999 TANYA (STEPHENSON) MULLOY were cheering on their college WILLIS is the Executive Director of

Agape Animal Rescue and has been tirelessly rescuing dogs since 2001.

She founded the organization after finding six puppies dumped in a ditch.

While on the side of the road, Tanya had her God moment, and she knew she was supposed to dedicate her life to speaking for those who have no voice. Agape Animal Rescue has been named the best animal rescue in Middle Tennessee seven years in a row, and Tanya has personally received the Humane Hero award by Nashville Paw magazine. They will be celebrating their 900th pet adoption through the organization soon and look forward to saving more and more every year as they continue to grow.

alma mater at UT’s Neyland Stadium, which was checkered with 102,455 orange and white Vols fans, when they ran into their Ryan classmate BRYAN SCHREIBER , who is a Knoxville police officer.

2001 CHAD MOSS finished his general

surgery residency in June. He joined the Mid South Surgeons in Columbia, TN at Maury Regional. Chad and his wife, Lynne (Mullins) ‘01, live in Thompson’s Station with their three children.

2003 BRITTANY (THOMAS) MULLOY

graduated with honors from Vanderbilt University School of Nursing with a Master of Science in Nursing in August 2014. In September, she became Board Certified as an Adult-Gerontology

FATHER RYAN KICKERS STILL SHOWING PLENTY OF LEG Since 2009, Father Ryan’s Giacosa Stadium has been arguably the home of middle Tennessee kicking. First with NICK POLLARD ’10, the Mr. Football placekicker in 2009, and then JOHN ARNOLD ’12 , the Irish have benefited from kickers whose legs have launched soaring punts, kicked winning field goals and changed the momentum of soccer games with one free kick. These two alumni haven’t stopped that thump, thump, thump since, and both have experienced exceptional seasons and careers on their college fields.

Nick, UT at Chattanooga’s senior kicker/ punter, was named the Southern Conference Special Teams Player of the Week on November 11. He averaged 53 yards on five punts in the Mocs 31-13 SoContitle-clinching win over Wofford on November 8. Nick’s rugby-style punting has yielded a 41.8 career average, the second highest in school history. This is his second career Special Teams weekly honor.

John, a redshirt freshman on the Tennessee Tech football squad, was named OVC Special Teams Player of the Week for his role in the 30-27 Golden Eagle overtime victory against Murray State. His 41-yard field goal with nine seconds left tied the contest and led to an overtime victory. John’s 20-yard kick in overtime sealed the win for TTU. He was also received FCS honors from USA Football as Special Teams Rookie of the Week.

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Acute Care Nurse Practitioner. Since graduating from Aquinas College in 2008, Brittany has worked as an RN in the ICU at St. Thomas West Hospital and plans to continue her career as a Nurse Practitioner with St. Thomas Heart as a part of the Heart Failure and VAD team.

2005 KRISTIN FENOGLIO is co-owner and a personal trainer at J and K Fit in Bellevue. Her mission is to teach clients the correct way to strength train, and Kristin is passionate about preventing injuries or degeneative changes through exercise.

abroad in May 2015 for a three week tour through England and Ireland. This is Jessica’s second appointment as assistant director at MTSU with the first being last year’s fall production of “Woyzeck.”

Lockheed Martin working at the Space Radiation Analysis Group at NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, for the last three years. His work specifically focuses on International Space Station radiation monitoring operations and ionizing radiation analysis of the next generation Orion/Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle spacecraft.

degree in theatre performance. A 2013 First Night Most Promising Actor, Lauren has been building her acting resume while in school. She has appeared as Bodey in Tennessee Williams’ “A Lovely Sunday for Creve Coeur”, Clytemnestra in “The Flies” by Jean Paul Sartre, and Matt Damon in “Matt & Ben” by Mindy Kaling and Brenda Withers, the role she performed in the 2013 Most Promising Actor Showcase. Before graduation in May, she will play Hester Swane from “By the Bog of Cats” by the Irish playwright Marina Carr.

2011 LAUREN KNOOP is a senior at 2005 ANDY WELTON is employed by Belmont University pursuing her BFA

2008 KEVIN BOHLEBER starred as Ponyboy in the Nashville Children’s Theater production of “The Outsiders” in the fall. Kevin took time after one of the shows to talk to Father Ryan’s theatre students about the production.

2014

LUKE STREBEL and JOHN HAGEY completed Basic Cadet Training

2008 DAVID JONES was elected this summer at the U.S. Air Force 2003 Over 6,000 hula hoops manTreasurer of the Knoxville Civitan Club. Academy. In addition to a rigorous milufactured by HAILEY WEBER and

Sunny Becks, of East Nashville-based Hoopsupplies.com, were featured in 118 Nordstrom stores nationwide as a part of their 2015 New Year window displays in January. The hoops were paired with high end fashion designers, including Marc Jacobs, Valentino, and Jimmy Choo among others.

STEPHANIE ELDER received a Master of Music degree with an Instrumental Conducting specialization from Austin Peay State University in May of 2014. She is the music and performing arts teacher at Immaculate Conception School in Clarksville, TN, where she teaches general music to students in grades Kindergarten through Eighth. In addition, she directs the choir, band, and drama programs.

2004

2005 AMANDA CONSIGLIO is engaged to high school sweetheart Josh Robbins.

The bride-to-be holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree from Middle Tennessee State University, and is employed in commercial lending at First Advantage Bank in Nashville. Josh is an attorney at Lowery, Lowery, and Cherry, PLLC, in Lebanon. The wedding is planned for October 2015 in Destin, FL.

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He works as a Financial Advisor at USB itary training regimen, Luke and John Financial Services in Knoxville. will also take a broad academic course load with an extensive core curriculum in 2008 JORDAN TATE is the drummer for engineering, humanities, social sciences, a Chicago-based band named Oshwa. basic sciences, military studies, and physThe band has a solid fan base and were ical education. They will graduate as 2nd featured in an article in the Chicago Lieutenants, Tribune in November. Find out more on in May 2018.

Oshwa’s Facebook page.

Both will be playing sports 2009 SHELBY DUBOIS graduated from while they are Xavier University in 2013 and now there with Luke works as an events manager for Sweaty playing footBands, where she recently traveled to ball and John Disney World for a promotional trip. She wrestling. is engaged to Ryan Baker with a wedding date set for October 24, 2015 at St. Ann’s John was also awarded the Outstanding Cathedral in Cincinnati, OH. Basic Cadet Award for his squadron 2009 KRISTINA LUMM was nominated during basic training at the U.S. Air for Best Actress in a Play for the 2014 Force Academy. Only eight cadets (one in each squad) received this award. John Broadway World Tennessee Awards. is also flight commander of his squadron.

2011 JESSICA GREGORY, a senior theatre major at Middle Tennessee State University, was assistant director and stage manager for MTSU’s fall production of “American Tall Tales.” The show explores the American legends you remember from your childhood. The show will tour regionally in the fall of 2014 and spring of 2015 prior to going

Births winter 2015

Weddings winter 2015 PAIGE FRANCESCON ’05 and RUSTY DENSON ’06 were married on June 14, 2014,

Jenna Kate Anton

Steven Thomas Godfrey

at Christ the King Catholic Church in Nashville, TN. Paige is a fourth grade teacher at Lockeland Design Center, and Rusty is an engineer for Signet Maritime Corporation. The couple lives Paige Francescon ’05 & in Nashville.

Rusty Denson ’06

JAIMIE RAGGHIANTI ’05 and LOWELL GORMAN ’00 were married on July 19, 2014, Marielle Patrice Irvine

Dorothy Day McGee

Julianna Charlotte Nerstad Grace Golden Stockwell

Jenna Kate to JENNIFER (STAFF) and JOEY ANTON, born December 8, 2015.

Dorothy June Clepper to CATHERINE CLEPPER and FRANK EDWARDS, born on April 19, 2014.

Luke Thomas Moss

Olivia Josphine White

Luke Thomas to LYNNE (MULLINS) ’01 and CHAD MOSS ’01, born July 24, 2014. Big sister, Ellie, is 4 and brother Patrick is 2.

Julianna Charlotte to SHONA (BURNS) ’93 and BRIAN NERSTAD, She is the first grandchild for Anne born on November 23, 2013, in and Mike ’70 Clepper. The family St. Albert Canada. She joins big lives in Seattle. sister Elyssa.

Steven Thomas “Tommy” to ANNA BETH (STAFF) and STEVEN GODFREY, born on September 5, 2014.

Marielle Patrice to ABBY (FACULTY) and JARED IRVINE (FORMER FACULTY), born on October 5, 2014. Marielle joins siblings Trevi and Joah who are “crazy about her.”

Grace Golden to KATIE (CALDARULO) ’03 and CHRIS STOCKWELL ’97, born on June 21, 2014. The Stockwells live in Nashville.

Olivia Josephine to

JASON and ANNA (WILLIAMS) WHITE (STAFF),

born on September 13, 2014.

Proud grandparents are Mary and Joe ’69 Williams.

Dorothy Day “Dede” to KATE (FACULTY) and JONATHAN ’99 (FACULTY) MCGEE, born on November 7, 2014.

at Christ the King Catholic Church in Nashville.

After reconnecting at their Class of 1984 25th reunion and dating long distance for five years, LISA KRUSE CARTER ’84 and ERIC LINK ’84 finally tied the knot on August 30, 2014, at St Henry Catholic Church in Nashville. After their amazing 10-day honeymoon sailing around the British Virgin Islands on a chartered boat, they have settled in Nashville where Eric is the Lisa Kruse Carter ’84 & CEO and owner of Eric Link ’84 LabtronX, and Lisa has her own photography business.

RACHEL D. SMITH and EVAN T. MCALEER ’08

were married on January 2, 2015, in Vicksburg and are now living in Baton Rouge.

SARA JO HOUGHLAND and RYAN WALKER ’01 were married on October 4, 2014, at her

family's horse farm in Brentwood. He is the owner of two Premier Age Management and Medical Weight Loss centers and of Helping Hand Transportation Services, while she is director of government affairs and PR for Comcast in Middle Tennessee and North Alabama.

They live in Green Hills.

MORGAN SADLER and MILLER WILLIAMS ’09 were married on July 12, 2014, at St. Ann

Catholic Church in Nashville.

CORRECTION: the previous issue of the Irish Ayes printed a mistake in William Nicholas Green’s birth announcement. Below is the correct information. We regret the error.

William Nicholas to ALLISON (HAGAN) GREEN ’90 (STAFF) and WESLEY GREEN , born January 13, 2014.

31

In Memoriam winter 2015

LOBELLE SAWYERS ATWOOD:

Mother of

JOAN COWAN:

Mother of Charisse

Martin “Jay” Lunn ’75.

Boyd ’78.

RONALD W. AUGUSTINE ’61.

JOYCE DICKMAN:

GEORGE E. BARRETT ’45.

JUDY

BOEYINGA:

Mother

of

Nick

Naughton ’15.

SHEWANNA

CONNER

BUCHANA

’89:

Sister of Tiffany Conner ’00.

JOAN BYRD: Mother of Jennifer Whitford

(Faculty).

OSCAR ACOSTA:

Father of Laura Beasley

(Faculty).

Wife of Tom Cannon ’70 and sister of the late Richard ’67 and David Ward ’80.

CAROL WARD CANNON ’74:

MARY MCGEE CHAFFIN:

Mother of the

late Jeff Chaffin ’89.

FRANK CHYTIL: Father of Frank Chytil ’18.

GEORGE J. CLARK, JR. ’52.

CHARLES P. CLINARD, SR.: Father of Phillip ’81 and Tom ’88 Clinard.

Mother of Steve ’72 and Samuel Corkran, Constance Pitts and Cathy Armstrong.

COLETA E. CORKRAN:

Wife of Raymond

Dickman ’56.

ELMER C. DUKE, JR. ’41: Father of Joey ’75, Bill ’77,Margaret ’80 and John ’82 Duke and brother of James ’47 and John ’50 Duke.

Mother of Joey ’75, Bill ’77, Margaret ’80 and John ’82 Duke.

HELEN DUKE:

SUE M. FERRIMAN: Mother of Kim Robertson ’00 and Kevin Ferriman ’05.

A. RONALD GREENE, JR. ’49: Brother of the Clarence ’49 (deceased), Alan ’50 and Marcia Greene.

Brother of Carole Reed, Francis Guess, Harry Guess ’68, Ann Nga ’77 and Tina Guess ’81.

WILLIAM O. GUESS ’73:

JOSEPH R. HAAS ’46: Father of Joe Haas ’73, Max Haas, Barbie McEwen ’74, Christine Bowman and Margaret Haas ’83; brother of the late Father Paul Haas ’51.

MARGARET “MAGGIE” K. HARDISON ’02.

MARY K. FRANKLIN: Mother of Bill ’65 and Charles Franklin and Mary Flott.

MARY GLADYS KNIES HART:

Husband of Theresa Nichols Furlong ’04.

SAMUAEL F. HATFIELD, SR.:

BRYAN J. FURLONG:

JOSEPH V. “JOE” GARR ’67: Brother of Tony ’64, Chris ’66, Greg ’69, Roy ’71, Steve ’73, Don ’76, Jeff ’77 and Pat Garr and Nancy Schwartz, Deborah Varallo, Cindy Winter ’78 and Joan Hamrick ’80.

Mother of Claudia, Leslie, Donna, Nicolette, Mark ’75, Noel and Sheila Gicewicz.

MARGARET MARY GICEWICZ:

Mother of

Sallie and Tommy ’66 Hart.

Father of Stacey Hatfield ’86 and Sam F. Hatfield, Jr. Father of Kelly ’93, Chris ’95 and Marshall ’97 Herndon.

ALBERT B. “SKIP” HERNDON III:

LOUIS W. JUMONVILLE, JR.: Father of Michael ’69 and Lyle ’76 Jumonville and Jane Jenkins ’82.

JOSEPH KEUCHEL:

Father of Linda

Nelson (Faculty).

A CHEESEBURGER IN HEAVEN One of the Father Ryan family has its fair share of stars, including Jimmy Buffett (“Cheeseburger passed. in Paradise,” anyone?), Keith Urban, Miranda Lambert, Martina McBride, and Robin Williams.

Evelyn Rotier, founding owner of the famous Rotier’s restaurant in down- Before the school’s move in the early 90’s, Rotier’s was practitown Nashville, Tennessee, passed cally a Father Ryan institution, with generations of Irish stuaway on Saturday, November 22, at dents packing the small restaurant’s booths every weekday afthe age of 94. ter school, and as its matriarch, Mrs. Mrs. Rotier Rotier was “beloved, and sometimes is preceded in feared,” for over half a century by the death by her Father Ryan faithful. Evelyn retired husband, John from management of the restaurant in Rotier, and her son, John, Jr., who 1996, but remained a regular presence passed in 1981 and 1999, respectively. until the end, often dropping by for lunch to enjoy one of her own worldMrs. Rotier opened Rotier’s Restaufamous burgers. Though she is now rant on Elliston Place with her late husgone, her legacy to the Nashville and band after World War II, and though Father Ryan communities endures as humble in both look and feel, over its one of delicious burgers, keen friendlong tenure Rotier’s has seen more than ship, generous service.

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Father of Ken ’82 and Matthew ’87 Krogman.

GERALD J. KROGMAN:

ROSEMARY SNYDER: Mother of Charles ’72, Tony ’75, Steve ’78, and Danny ’82 Snyder.

MICHAEL J. MILLER: Father of Michael Miller, Jr. ’95, Katherine Robinson ’97, Tom Miller ’04 and Betsy Knox ’06; and former Board of Trust.

MIRIAM BREW STEELE: Wife of Howard Steele ’39 and mother of Larry ’65, Michael and Howard Steele III.

MARGARET “MARGIE” E. MORGAN ’74:

EDNA STEPHENS:

Sister of Lamar ’75, Tom ’77, Jim ’79, John ’82 (deceased) and Fred (deceased) Morgan and Mary Lou Loos ’81 and Cathy Turnmyre ’84.

TRACY H. STROBEL: Wife

JANET A. MYERS: Mother of John Myers II ’88 and Jennifer Morris ’90 and wife of Jack Myers (former Academic Dean).

WILLIAM B. “BILL” SUTTER: Husband of Eddie Sutter (former Faculty)

Father of Chuck ’78 and Joe ’82 Natcher (deceased) and Christy Williams ’81.

CHARLES M. NATCHER, SR. ’50:

SISTER AGNES POWER:

Sister of John

Frazier Power ’39.

WALTER S. REESE ’39.

JUDITH ANN RULE:

Sister of Jackie Rule

(Faculty).

Mother of Stephen ’82 and Sean ’85 Sabin.

PATRICIA L. “PATTI” SABIN:

ANNIE M. SCHUTT:

Mother of Tracie

Gulas ’87.

Wife of John Stephens, Sr. ’48; and mother of John ’74, Father Tim ’75 and Rita ’78 Stephens. of Peter Strobel

’77.

SAMUEL H. THOMPSON:

Father of Becky

Teasley ’93.

F.

“NEIL”

SEIGENTHALER:

Son of the late Connie B. Seigenthaler ’50.

MARY CLARK SEMMES:

Mother of Joseph

Semmes, Jr. ’62.

J.

ERIC K. WOOD, SR. ’72:

Father of Thomas

Mother of Anthony Tucker, Teresa Yates ’78, Pam Drews, Stephanie Aldabet ’80, Denise Tucker ’83, Kimberly Dawn Tucker and Tracy Tucker.

VIVIAN M. TUCKER:

SUE PHILBIN WALSH: Wife of Jim F. Walsh, Jr. ’49; mother of Joanie Read, Colleen Shelburne, Kathleen Catasus and Jimmy Walsh ’89; and sister of Jeff Philbin ’60 and Mike Philbin ’64.

JAMES F. WARNER ’47.

Wife of the late John B. Warner, Sr. ’43 and mother of Brady ’70, Tony ’74 and Billy ’79 Warner and Sharyn Curbo, Dedie Rice and Patty Self.

WILLIAM “GARY” WOOD:

Father of Billy

’05 and Brian ’07 Wood.

MARY CATHERINE E. WOOD: Mother of Terri, Mark Wood ’82, William Wood, Eric Wood ’92, Marianne Raynes, Joni Sain, James Haygood, Jessica Pepper and Ida Jean Richey.

Father of Tony ’83 and George ’85 Zimmerman and Cathy Simpson ’87.

ANTHONY J. ZIMMERMANN:

LINDA ZRALEK: Mother of Stephen ’90 and Brian ’92 Zralek and wife of Jim Zralek (former Faculty).

MARIE WEBB: Mother of Christopher (deceased), Kathy, Philip, Ernest ’69 and Larry ’71 Felts.

JEAN

GLENN A. SEXTON: Father of Kathy Wirth ’82 and Glenda Dahlhauser ’85.

ABRAHAM

Wife of Steve Wilson ’79; mother of Jake ’05, Joe ’07, Nick ’09, Jim ’12, Mary Grace ’14 and Isabel ’18 Wilson; sister of John, Bill ’68, Edward ’71, Mike ’74 and Joe ’83 Hooker and Laureen Moyer, Teresa Parrish, Marie Wahler, Janet Roberts ’76, Joyce Piscitelli and Mary Jo Allen ’84.

SARAH HOOKER WILSON ’79:

Wood ’07.

PATRICIA “PATSY” WARNER:

CORNELIUS

Father of Harriet Stewart and Robert ’72, Michael ’75, Joseph ’77, Walter ’78 and Stanley ’81 Weglarz and step-father of Marilyn Render, Irene Schmidt, Robert Young, Jr. ’69, Thomas Young (deceased), Jane Craig and Carol Boles.

STANLEY V. WEGLARZ:

“ABIE”

SHARBEL

’49:

Brother of Louis ’36 (deceased), Kelly ’42 (deceased), Nolan, Pat ’56 and Helen Sharbel and Louise Harmon, Barbara Douglas, Margaret Del Cotto, Catherine Francis, Lorease Stangline, Noleen Sullivan and Josephine Hendry.

JOHNNY G. SMITH ’73: Husband of Melinda (Deckbar) Smith ’76 and father of Dustin ’04, Shea ’15 and Max ’17 Smith.

Sister of Bishop James ’37 (deceased), John (deceased), Edward (deceased), and Frank (deceased) Niedergeses and Roberta Vernon and Louise Fleeman.

MARTHA M. NIEDERGESES WEBB:

IRENE

“RENEE”

YOUNG

WEGLARZ:

Mother of Marilyn Render, Irene Schmidt, Robert R. Young, Jr. ’69, Thomas R. Young (deceased), Jane Craig and Carol Boles; step-mother of Harriet Stewart and Robert ’72, Michael ’75, Joseph ’77, Walter ’78 and Stanley ’81 Weglarz.

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PAID

NASHVILLE, TN Permit No. 22

770 Norwood Drive Nashville, TN 37204 ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

Hundreds of Reasons to Come Back for Reunions 2015

June 5-7, 2015

You may want to see what your classmates are up to. They may want to find out the same about you. But whether it’s seeing old friends or celebrating our Irish traditions, Reunion 2015 gives you plenty of reasons to return.

Check out all the changes to the campus. Talk to a favorite teacher. Meet U.S. Open Champion Lou Graham ’56 at his annual golf tournament. And celebrate the Class of 1965 as they join the ranks of Golden Grads.

Look for details coming soon. And save the date for a weekend of Irish pride.