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Alumni Activities
AlumniActivities
Soccer and Basketball Alumni Events
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Every fall has several traditions that bring us back home. Home to each of us can mean many different things - coming back to see your family, your friends, the home you grew up in, or coming back to campus to where you spent your most formidable years. This year might have been a little extra special with everything the pandemic has affected, these last two years, as a record number of alumni came back to campus to compete on the pitch and in the gym. The De La Salle Alumni soccer game was played to a 6-6 tie going into a shootout, and our 2022 varsity soccer team prevailed over an allstar alumni squad. Players and fans from both sides enjoyed some off-site hospitality hosted by the Alumni Association. The alumni basketball game has outgrown our usual format of alumni competing against our current varsity team and has now become an alumni versus alumni basketball game. Odd years, even years, a balance of young, and not so young, alumni played hard, competed, and naturally, the alumni won. Current Spartan basketball players stayed to meet and greet our alumni and their families at the Alumni Association Reception in the Ladouceur Athletic Performance Center and Hall of Fame Lobby. It was great to see this fall tradition continue and grow each year. Looking forward to seeing you all again in fall 2022.
The Mark Halvorson Endowment Fund will be established as a lasting tribute to Mark’s legacy on the De La Salle campus. This endowment fund will provide tuition assistance to a Spartan student that demonstrates financial need, while also being a leader in the classroom and in the community. Preference will be given to a student in need of financial aid who is participating in wrestling.
Not only did Mark build an outstanding and winning wrestling program at De La Salle, but he was a globally renowned wrestling coach who unexpectedly passed away in February of 2021 at the age of 57. He coached the varsity wrestling team at De La Salle for 22 years, leading the Spartans to 11 North Coast Section championships. He coached nearly 100 student-athletes to state meets, claiming 23 medals and two individual championships. Mark also coached for Team USA Wrestling, where he was a volunteer coach for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Mark’s care for others, unselfishness, work ethic, passion for his sport, and life lessons he taught the student-athletes will make him unforgettable on the De La Salle campus. On Saturday, May 14, the school will host the inaugural Coach Mark Halvorson Takedown Poker Tournament in the Hofmann Student Center. The Mark Halvorson Takedown will be a full-blown, professionally-run poker tournament, and all proceeds from this event will be used to establish the Mark Halvorson Endowment Fund.
Visit dlshs.org/alumni for more information or to sign-up for the tournament.
Spartan Night at the Colombo Club Returns in 2022
Ten years ago, the De La Salle Alumni Association wanted to come up with an event to build community and continue the Spartan legacy over a good meal. Thus, the Alumni Colombo Club mixer was formed. We don’t think about it often, but our parents are left with a void, same as alumni when we graduate and move on from De La Salle. Sharing a meal is a staple for a family to spend quality time together, slow down, and talk with intent.
What better place for De La Salle alums to do this than the oldest Italian American club in the United States, the Colombo Club in Oakland. Alumni from all around the Bay Area came to the annual dinner, with many of them bringing their fathers. The topic of conversation at any given table was all things De La Salle, including updates from campus life. Long-time math teacher Steve Guthrie and President David Holquin shared the process and results of our 18-month Western Catholic Education Association (WCEA) accreditation.
Over the years, we have seen this event grow. This year we had our first threegeneration table with a former dad, an alumni dad, and recent graduate joining the camaraderie. The hospitality from the Colombo Club staff sets the tone with passed focaccia bread, oldschool bartenders, and a plated meat and cheese dish. Roasted potatoes, veggies, roasted chicken, and Frances’ world-famous ravioli with table wine are enough to quiet down any room for a few minutes. Prayer, some introductions, and a quick state of the school were enjoyed by all.
