SHA Alumnae Virtual Weekend
ALUMNAE VIRTUAL GATHERINGS The pandemic dictated that we come up with creative ways to stay in touch with our alumnae last year. We kicked off a series of virtual gatherings that began with a well attended Overbrook Tea. Next, regional gatherings were set up to connect alums from various parts of the country including CA, the Midwest and several different groups from the east coast. Finally, a Virtual Alumnae weekend took place in April. Thank you to all the attendees! We appreciated the chance to gather, share stories and check in with one another during this challenging year.
HEAD OF SCHOOL WELCOME ADDRESS Alumnae Board member and Heartcoming chair, Gina Bevlock Hagan ’09, shared that the Alumnae Virtual Weekend started off with a warm welcome from the Head of School, Deirdre Cryor ’84 (SR). Miss Cryor updated the community on how the school is thriving during the pandemic. “Students have been learning in person, on campus all year. Teachers have been going above and beyond to educate all their students. Despite the COVID-19 state guidelines, teacher’s and student’s talents are not masked, just their faces. In addition to the success in the classroom, the school’s sports teams have also been excelling. Sacred Heart athletic programs were able to compete in three seasons. A big congratulations to the volleyball team who are the PIAA District One Champions and PIAA State Semifinalists! The basketball team also claimed the District 1 AA Title for the fifth year in a row! Way to go SHoops! While things on campus may look a little different this year, the school is still honoring the special moments that we all hold near and dear to our hearts. Students will be able to experience field day, Prize Day, the Ring Mass and Ceremony, Prom, the spring musical and of course, Baccalaureate and graduation. Miss Cryor announced that the 2021 Heartcoming will be held in person on September 24 and 25. The Alumnae Board has already started planning and guarantees a weekend filled with fun activities. We look forward to seeing you!” – Deirdre Cryor, Head of School MIXOLOGY Kyle Darrow, General Manager of the recently renovated Towne House Restaurants in Media, hosted the Friday afternoon Happy Hour with a Mixology class. Participants learned about the art of making three cocktails; an Old Fashion, a daiquiri and a Moscow Mule. Several alums arrived prepared with all the ingredients needed to enjoy Happy Hour with old friends and classmates. APRIL SHOWERS BRING MAY FLOWERS…. Beloved SHA art teacher, Annette Markowtiz, mailed all participants the supplies to create beautiful floral watercolors during the Friday evening painting class. Apparently the group stayed online well after the class ended and enjoyed a lively conversation. SOUL CORE Saturday morning was a time for exercise and prayer. Nicky Verna P ’20, ’22 led a Sole Core class. Soul Core is a movement that pairs core strengthening, stretching and functional movement with prayer.Participants enjoyed a morning of relaxation and prayerful rejuvenation.
ZUMBA Tianna Jone’ 02 picked up the pace with a Zumba class for the alumnae. Tianna has started her own business Reckless Movement and was excited to share her talents with fellow alumnae. TEXTBREAKERS TRIVIA Bridget O’Donnell Thompson ’02, P’33, Alumnae Board President, made arrangements for alumnae to enjoy an evening of trivia featuring both SHA and pop culture themes. The hour-long session was filled with lots of laughter. A CROOKED TREE BOOK TALK Una Mannion, sister of Grainne Mannion Pergolini ’77, aunt of Julia Piergolini ’05 and Kate Pergolini Gionta ’11, led an interesting and lively discussion about her debut novel, A Crooked Tree, that was published this year by Harper Collins in the US and Faber & Faber in the UK and Ireland. She has won numerous prizes for her work including the Hennessy Emerging Poetry Award and the Doolin, Cúirt, Allingham, and Ambit short-story prizes. Her work has been published in numerous journals and anthologies. She edits The Cormorant, a broadsheet of poetry and prose. Una and husband Michael have three children and live in County Sligo, Ireland. A CONVERSATION WITH MALIKA ANDREWS, ESPN REPORTER The Alumnae Virtual Weekend wrapped up with a conversation led by ESPN and NBA reporter Malika Andrews. She shared her path from college at the University of Portland, OR ’17, where she was editor-in-chief of the university’s student newspaper, completing a fellowship at The New York Times, and reporting for The Chicago Tribune. Malika joined ESPN as an online NBA writer and the network’s only Black female NBA reporter. In 2020, she was a lead reporter inside the NBA’s Orlando, Florida Bubble – residing in the Bubble for over three months – and for the 2020 NBA Draft telecast. She appears frequently on shows like SportsCenter, Get Up, NBA Countdown, Around the Horn and The Jump. Malkia was named one of the Forbes 30 Under 30 in the sports industry for 2021, which cited her work to advocate internally at ESPN for more nuanced coverage of race and gender topics. We are hoping to convince her to join us on campus next year to talk to our students.
SACRED HEART ACADEMY BRYN MAWR 21
