Gilmour Magazine Fall/Winter 2015

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Gilmour Looking Forward with New Head of School Kathy Kenny PAGE

INSIDE 10

Gilmour Mergers reflect on how their stories began

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2015 Commencement

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Honor Roll of Donors

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Gilmour Momentum. Energy. Collaboration.

Walk into a physics class, a cross country practice, an admission meeting or an a capella performance on campus and you’ll feel it. These are exciting times at the Academy and you can sense it as soon as you’re here.

In her new role as Head of School, Kathy Kenny is utilizing Appreciative Inquiry, a research-based model for organizational leadership that encourages appreciating the best of what is, envisioning what might be, engaging in dialogue about what should be and then innovating what will be. As she looks to the future of the school she loves, she is energized by its many opportunities. Equally inspiring are the smart, dedicated and accomplished faculty and staff members she has working alongside her to bring those possibilities to life in the days, months and years ahead.

It is a great time to be a Lancer.

STAFF MANAGING EDITOR

Amy Boyle EDITOR

Beth Geraci ’90

DIRECTOR OF ADMISSION, MARKETING AND COMMUNICATION

Beth Titas Lazzaro DIRECTOR OF ADVANCEMENT

Mary Kate Farrar Vega ’93 Sponsored by the Congregation of Holy Cross, Notre Dame, Indiana

DESIGN/PRODUCTION

markey creative PRINTING

Oliver Printing

PHOTOGRAPHY

John Bashian ’78 Kaupo Kikkas Megan Mlacker Photography Matt Lobe Michael Spear Terra Sol Studio Jim Venditti Photography

Editor’s Correction: In the spring issue of Gilmour Magazine, we reported that Sheila O’Toole Gallagher had received the Holy Cross Br. Andre Bessette, C.S.C.Volunteerism Award for her 10 years of service at St. Ed’s. Actually, Gallagher received two awards – the Holy Cross Br. Andre Bessette, C.S.C.Volunteerism Award and an award from St. Ed’s for her 10 years of service as an employee of the school. Congratulations, Sheila!

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Wһat’s Inside Looking Forward Kathy Kenny discusses her new role as Head of School.

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Gilmour Mergers

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2015 Commencement

Follow the stories of six alums whose Gilmour connection is truly lifelong.

Enjoy highlights of 2015 Commencement.

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Students shown: Maria Ambrosia ’29, Giovanna Piedmonte ’22 and Brian Allen ’19

20 Contents 4

THE VOICE

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MAKING A DIFFERENCE

32 AROUND CAMPUS

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CHAPEL 20 TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

42 ALUM NEWS 56

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HONOR ROLL OF DONORS

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MEMORIALS

LANCER ATHLETICS

Dear Parents, We send this magazine to college-aged graduates at their parents’ homes. Please forward this to keep your son or daughter informed about GA.

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In anticipation of Gilmour’s 70th anniversary celebration next year, we are working to build and organize our archives collection. If you have any memorabilia from your Gilmour days (letter jackets, trophies, etc.) that you’d be willing to donate, we would love to have it. Please contact our campus archivist SHARE YOUR STORIES WITH US. Send your memories and photos to: Email: gilmourvoice@gilmour.org

Phone: (440) 473-8011

Mail: Gilmour Academy Attn: Gilmour Voice 34001 Cedar Road Gates Mills, OH 44040

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Br. Ken Kane, C.S.C. at kanek@gilmour.org about any donations. Thanks!

THE GILMOUR VOICE

Where is She Now?

Emily Stay

In her 20 years on staff at Gilmour, Emily Stay’s reach extended into all aspects of fine arts education at the school.

By the time Mrs. Stay retired in 2007, she had served as the longtime fine arts chair (1992-2007), taught music and been counted among Gilmour’s most preeminent photography teachers. After she retired, she returned to Gilmour as a substitute teacher for seven more years. She stops to reflect on her time at Gilmour and tell us what she’s up to now.

Q: What were your early days on campus like?

and I own it now. I spend about five months of the year there.

A: I began at Gilmour as a substitute teacher in 1986. When Mrs. Duval left that year, Br. Robert asked me to take over her two photo classes. I kept growing the program, and my role at Gilmour grew quickly, too.

Q: Which do you prefer, music or photography?

Q: We mentioned all your roles at Gilmour. How did you juggle it all?

Q: What did you love about teaching?

A: When my son Allen ’87 started at Gilmour in 1982, it was a really hard time for me because it involved a lot of death in my family. And those Brothers held out a proverbial hand to me – Br. Michael Flanagan, Br. Robert Lavelle, also Gay Janis and Nickie Emerson.

I don’t know where I would be without those four people at the school, so there is never enough that I can do for Gilmour.

Q: It sounds like Gilmour means a lot to you.

A: When I look back on my Gilmour years, I loved it. It was the hardest thing I ever did to retire. I loved the people.

I loved the faculty members. I loved the kids. I loved the campus. I loved the administration. I was comfortable. I was appreciated. There were only two places in my life that I felt that way, where I was accepted for me, at face value. One was at Gilmour and the other was Converse College.

A: With music, I never had a choice.

That’s who I am. Photography I chose, as something different to do.

A: The sheer enjoyment of watching kids get it. I loved to see other people love and appreciate the things I love and appreciate, and if I can help them do that, so much the better. You never know what it is you’re saying that’s going to make it better for someone.

Q: How do you spend your time these days?

A: This is my 15th year being Class of ’63 representative for Petrie School of Music at Converse College in Spartanburg, S.C. I am very active with my alma mater. I also still play the piano. I performed at my 50th college reunion.

It was exactly 50 years and 20 hours since I last performed in a large venue – and that was at my senior recital on April 12, 1963. I figured I’d come full circle. Quilting is fun, too. I took that up in retirement. I can listen to music.

And when I smell popcorn I know I have to go down and fix dinner.

My husband doesn’t cook.

Q: Why did you retire?

A: I could not manage the school calendar much more. I had to be in the mountains of North Carolina. I spent the first six years of my life in North Carolina, so that’s home for me. My grandfather built a house there in 1940,

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LOOKING FORWARD

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The Courage to Lead As Kathy Kenny takes the helm as Head of School, she lays out a bold vision for a united Gilmour. All the while, she draws on the Holy Cross mission, using it to inspire her own.

It’s just a stone’s throw from the quaint confines of the Reading Cottage to the fabled halls of Tudor House, but for new Head of School Kathleen Coffey Kenny, it was a journey 37 years in the making.

knowledge runs deep, and it informs her decision making now.

Gilmour’s new Head of School brings to Tudor House her own plans for a bright future for Gilmour. It’s an Academy she has helped shepherd and shape in countless ways since her arrival here in 1978.

Look back at Gilmour over the last 37 years, and you’ll see the fingerprints of Kenny’s steadfast efforts everywhere. It’s in scholarships and new construction, service projects and publications. It’s

Gilmour’s New Head of School Kathy Kenny “My dad always said, ‘Remember from whence you came,’” says Kenny.

in relationships with trustees, donors, parents, faculty, staff and alumni.

At Gilmour, it was the Reading Cottage that gave Kenny her start, her first chance to show what she, a recent college grad, could do.

Most of all, it’s in her students. And as Kenny takes up the mantle of Head of School and lays Gilmour’s foundation according to her own vision, it’s her 34 years in the classroom she uses as her compass most.

“The Reading Cottage was my first classroom, and I spent many good years there, teaching Greek Mythology and English, and tutoring students who had some learning challenges,” Kenny says.

“Will seeing the Reading Cottage every day keep me grounded? Absolutely.”

‘Teacher at Heart’ With her strong Gilmour roots, longtime passion for the school’s mission, and compassion for its students, Kenny makes for a unique leader. Her institutional

“I began as a teacher, and like so many heads of schools, I am a teacher at heart,” she says. “Teaching is not a job, it is a vocation, a profession that is inspired by the energy and commitment to help children and adolescents develop academically, emotionally, spiritually and socially.”

In the classroom, Kenny gleaned an understanding of students’ needs and

an appreciation for her colleagues. She helped redesign curriculum and lived the Holy Cross mission. All of these things “will guide and inform her decisions as Head of School,” she says.

We Are GA Being Head of School is a responsibility Kenny embraces, for all its challenges and rewards.

“The biggest challenge is balancing the demands of the day, trying to be in so many places at the exact same time. I have not yet figured this all out. But I will!”

Kenny says.

She says it with the confidence of one who long has learned by doing. But as the Gilmour community welcomes Kenny to Tudor House, some people wonder what they can expect from the school’s first female, lay leader.

Three areas have emerged as initial priorities under Kenny’s direction: establishing a community of excellence, promoting a philosophy of shared leadership and maintaining a positive school culture.

“I kept returning to these three facets each time I reflected – before, during and after the application process,” she says of their staying power. “These tenets are the foundation I believe are most important and applicable to our academic focus and our Holy Cross mission.”

For Gilmour to reach its maximum potential, Kenny can’t do it alone. Far from it. “Many must join together in taking ownership and sharing leadership,” Kenny says. That includes everyone on campus, from trustees and administrators to hourly staff and faculty. And it includes the Gilmour community off campus –

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families, alumni and donors. “Together, we all represent Gilmour, and together we can all raise the level of excellence for our students and families,” she says.

The school has a different look now, no doubt, she says, than it did in earlier days on campus when men and Brothers were the dominant presence here.Yet while she brings a new perspective (and a new gender) to Tudor House, there is one important constant: Gilmour’s leaders today “are passionate advocates of a

onward, is most impacted by the Holy Cross charisms of hospitality, inclusiveness, zeal and service to the poor. “Those charisms drive me,” she says. “They inspire my approach to students, families, and our wider Gilmour community.”

Appreciate That...

In assembling her leadership team, Kenny strove to “hire smart, really smart,” as alumni parent Jenniffer Deckard wisely advised her.

“Teaching is not a job, it is a vocation, a profession that is inspired by the energy and commitment to help children and adolescents develop academically, emotionally, spiritually and socially.”

Catholic, Holy Cross foundation,” just as they always have been, she emphasizes. “Our mission remains to provide students with the competence to see and the courage to lead.”

To do that, Kenny draws on her experience as a student advisor in days past. “I would always explain our mission anecdotally to my students. It involves the competence to see what is right and just and the courage to bring about that justice,” she says. “They had so many questions. How? Why? All the what ifs. It reminds me to personalize my approach with students and faculty. Nothing resonates more clearly than a story of a current student or an alum who is truly living our Gilmour mission.”

Kenny, who herself was educated in Catholic schools from elementary school 8

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only focus on problem solving, it looks at the ‘positive core,’ those components that give vitality and life to an effective organization.”

Ultimately, it will help Gilmour leaders build on current strengths, envision possibilities and innovate accordingly.

Bringing the past to the present From the Reading Cottage to her current office in Tudor House, Kenny’s rise through the ranks over three decades reflects her commitment to the students and alumni and her vision for Gilmour’s future. The fact that she stands strongly before the Gilmour community now as Head of School can be perceived as an affirmation of her dedication to Gilmour’s students, its academic programs and the growth of the community.

“The leadership team is awesome.

They are out-of-the-box thinkers, energetic and impassioned,” Kenny says.

“I am motivated by them and truly believe God put them in my path on behalf of Gilmour.”

To put Gilmour on strong footing for the future, Kenny’s leadership team is following “a strength-based approach that explores the root causes of success,” Kenny says. It’s a research-based model for organizational change championed

by David Cooperrider of Case Western Reserve University.

At its core, Appreciative Inquiry, as it is called, provides solutions through asking important questions.

“How do we build on what we do really well?” Kenny says. “Rather than

From the humble surrounds of the Reading Cottage to the august setting of Tudor House, what occurred in the cottage all those years ago embodies the essence of Gilmour, a devotion to students as individuals and a relentless drive to help every last one of them succeed and live the Holy Cross mission.

THE JOURNEY 37 YEARS IN THE MAKING

Kathy with loyal Lancers Bob Heltzel ’65 and Ray Murphy ’65

2015

Br. Chester Freel, C.S.C. congratulating Kathy at her Installation Mass

the Kenny family Kathy with her last class of students – AP Language and Composition – in May 2013

Kathy pinning on one of countless Commencement corsages

Kathy with former Gilmour teachers Lisa Forino, Dorothy Coerdt and Bonnie DiCillo

Kathy and an alum heading out to deliver food baskets during the 2005 Thanksgiving food drive

Celebrating the medical school graduation of Billy Navarre ’02 with trustee and close friend, Kathy Pender

Kathy and her mom, Bernadette Coffee, another longtime Gilmour employee, with Michaela ’05, Mary Kate ’07 and Maureen ’10 Kenny

Kathy at one of the many alumni weddings she has attended through the years

Kathy and fellow Gilmour legend Vern Weber

The Reading Cottage

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To Have and to Hold...

Together they made their way from the Senior Prom to the church on time. Now these Gilmour lovebirds are proving once and for all that Lancers can give love a good name.

They flirted in class, smooched in the Gilmour parking lot and kindled a spark at the Homecoming dance. They dated throughout college or reconnected over cocktails.

Their circumstances are all different, but these six couples (along with countless other Gilmour mergers) have one thing in common: They met as students at Gilmour and married as adults. And whether they dated consistently right from high school or hit it off by chance years later, they’re showing that the Gilmour bond is built to last.

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Mike ’86 and Dana (Randazzo) Snelling ’87

Mike: We were one of the first in our class to get married. Asking the Randazzos for Dana’s hand was one of the toughest things I’ve ever done. They had just finished paying for her education, and there I was asking their permission to marry her.

You were friends in high school. How did you reconnect after Gilmour?

Dana: I was home for Spring Break my freshman year from American University.

My brother was having people over for St. Patrick’s Day. Mike had just transferred to John Carroll from Loyola University, so my brother said, “Why don’t you ask Mike Snelling over?” And I said, “That’s a good idea.”

So Mike went over and you hung out?

Now you’ve been married 22 years and have five kids (Jena ’15, Maria ’16, Anna ’18, Michael and Charlie). How would you describe each other as parents?

Dana: We actually went to The Colony instead. And of course he knew everybody there.

Mike: Dana has more patience than I could ever imagine having when it comes to our kids.

Mike: When I was a senior at Gilmour I wanted to ask Dana out, but she was dating somebody at the time. But on this night, it just clicked. We talked for hours and hours and hours. And I had the opportunity to kiss her goodnight, so I did. We went out every night that week until Dana went back to school.

Did you keep in touch?

Mike: We talked on the phone and wrote letters to each other until she came home for the summer.

Dana:Yes, can you believe it?

Handwritten letters. We kept all the letters we wrote to each other, which is probably crazy. We were in a longdistance relationship until we married.

When did you know that you wanted to marry each other?

Dana: After I graduated from American, I made the decision to stay in D.C., but I knew then that Mike was the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.

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Mike: I moved to D.C. in January of ’91.

That was the first time we were together for more than three months.

Mike, you got a job selling copiers for Ricoh there, and things were going well.What happened?

Mike: After seven months on the job, I became the top sales rep in my division.

As soon as that happened, my dad called and said, “I have a job for you in Chicago.” Four weeks later, I was gone.

That drive to Chicago was really long.

It was tough. That’s when I knew being apart from Dana wasn’t going to work. I finally broke down and bought a ring and asked her to marry me on Dec. 12, 1991.

You got married young.

Dana: Michael was 25 and I was 23. We were married Jan. 2, 1993.

We had friends from Chicago, Washington, D.C., Charlotte, N.C., and of course Cleveland. It was an amazing night!

Dana: Mike traveled a great deal for the first 19 years of our marriage. When he was home, he didn’t want to miss anything. We would have our family time and he wanted to hear from each child everything that was going on. He loves being home with them.

How do you feel about each other today?

Mike: I love her as my bride, but I still really like her as my friend. She’s my best friend.

Dana:Yeah, we balance each other very well.

Tom and Tawnya (Santoiemmo) Zucker ’87

When did you start dating?

Tom: In 1986, January of our junior year.

Our first date, we went out to dinner with a group of friends. That’s the thing, we were friends first. Our class got along so well. We all went to parties and hung out together.

Tom: Tawnya is one of the kindest and most generous people I’ve ever met.

She’s always had a good heart.

What did you do about your relationship after Gilmour graduation?

Tom: I went away to Boston College but transferred to Case Western Reserve University after one semester. It might have had something to do with the fact that Tawnya went to John Carroll University, but I’m not going to admit it.

Tom, how did you propose?

Tom: We were 21 and 22 years old. We went to Disney World. Tawnya was there on vacation with her family, and I flew down and surprised her. I proposed at the Grand Floridian Resort.

Tawnya: It was always easy being around Tom, even in the very beginning. We were always comfortable around each other. We just had a lot of fun.

What was your favorite dance together?

Tawnya: Senior prom sticks out. It was kind of the culmination of our high school time.We went with John Popovich ’87 and Wendy Kline ’87 and met up with everybody else at the dance.

What traits did you like in each other in the early days?

Tawnya: For me, Tom was an excellent listener and always helped me think through and solve things. He was very easy to talk to.

Tawnya: I was shocked, because he was originally supposed to vacation with us, then he said he had to work. We went back to the hotel and celebrated with my family.

You have three kids (son Colin ’14 and daughters McKenzie ’16 and Gianna ’18).What do you try to instill in them?

Tom: Hard work and honesty.

Tawnya: And also a kind heart and good morals and values.

You’ve been married now for 23 years. How do you feel about each other today?

Tom: We’re a lot closer today than we ever were.

Tawnya: I agree. It’s gone so fast. It all changes once you become parents, because everything is centered around your kids.

So you have to be extremely supportive of each other in the face of that.

Tom: I think the key to our longevity is just honesty in everything we do.

Tawnya: And being supportive of each other.

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Mark and Karen (Manfredonia) Wickett ’90 What was your first date?

Karen: It wasn’t officially a date because he still wanted to fix me up with his friend. We went to Duke of Perth and Jake’s Pub in Chicago. We were out and he said, “Don’t you want to go out with my friend?” And I said, “No, I want to go out with you!” He was like, “Well, OK.”

You didn’t date in high school, but you were friends.What was your impression of each other?

Mark: That she was a really nice, intelligent person. She was always friendly to everybody. I used to joke around with her in Mr. Littlefield’s sophomore biology class. I considered her out of my league.

Karen: My first memory of him was sitting behind me in Mr. Littlefield’s class talking to me when he wasn’t supposed to. Mark was just cool. He was a little bit of a mystery, a bit of a charmer.

How did you reconnect after high school?

Karen: In 1994 I was at a Dayton party in Chicago. I tagged along with my friend.

I didn’t know anybody at the party. Then I saw Mark and I said, “I know that guy, how do I know that guy?” I hadn’t seen him since high school. He tried to fix me up with his roommate that night.

Mark: I was dating somebody at the time.

I didn’t want to go from one relationship to the other. I did anyway, though (laughs).

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Mark: I knew that Karen was the one for me. I had a weird feeling that first night when we saw each other at the party.

Right from the get-go I knew it was going to happen, I did.

What got your attention about each other when you were dating?

Mark: I always thought Karen had a wonderful heart, a beautiful smile. She’s fun to be around. She is someone who impresses with what she’s able to do with her life in several facets. She can seamlessly manage things in her life. She’s really good at it all.

Karen: Mark was always very thoughtful and well spoken. I thought he was so smart. I would think, “I’m going to go home and look that word up.”

How did Mark propose?

Karen: We went out to a bunch of bars that were special to us. We went to Duke of Perth, Jake’s Pub and Kelly’s on the Green (the site of our first kiss). When we left there Mark proposed on the sidewalk just walking down the street going to get a cab.

Mark: I was nervous as hell. I retraced the steps of all our favorite places over the years, the fabric of those milestone

moments. That’s what I wanted. I didn’t want to do some flashy thing. It was a cool way to have a special night together.

You were married in September 1999.

What’s life been like for you since then?

Karen: It’s gone by super fast. We just moved to Minneapolis for my job with Room & Board. We have three sons, Colin, 6, and twins Cameron and Henry, 4. I say I have four kids because Mark plays right alongside them all the time.

As a husband, he’s very supportive of everything I do, always has been.

Mark: She’s extremely supportive and tremendously giving. She puts others around her before herself. She makes our home a good place to be, for all of us.

I wouldn’t change a minute of our life together.

Mel (Deogracias) and Ray Fernando ’88 Mel (laughing): Our second date was at Red Lobster. I was so nervous I wore my skirt backwards.

Ray:Yeah, she wore her skirt backwards.

Where was your first kiss?

Mel: The Gilmour parking lot.

What was your first dance together?

Ray: The winter formal senior year.

Mel, you transfered into Gilmour sophomore year. How did you and Ray start dating?

Mel: We started out as friends. I thought he was hilarious. He seemed genuine.

Junior year, I started liking him. But Ray started asking me advice about another girl in the class.

Ray: I thought Mel was dating Dino Peralta ’87, who was a year ahead of us.

Dino was always driving Mel around in a Saab convertible on campus. I couldn’t compete with that! I didn’t realize they were just good friends.

Mel: My parents were so strict, you have no idea. They sat Ray down in the living room. We were both so nervous.

Ray: My heart was pounding out of my chest.

Did you date in college?

Ray: We dated about 75 percent of our college years. Mel went to Loyola University in Chicago and I went to Marquette University in Milwaukee. That was before cell phones. We had about $300 in phone bills every month.

Ray: On Christmas Day, I had asked her parents for their blessing, so once I had it, I didn’t want to wait too much longer.

Ray: Roz came up to me in Br. Kane’s physics class and said, “I know who likes you!” and made me guess. So, if it wasn’t for her, we might not be sitting here right now. I went up to Mel that day and asked for her number.

Mel: Too much longer? Ray proposed the very next day! While at his mom’s house, I turned around and he was on his knee, and I said, ‘”Can you just get up, let’s go!” And then he started talking about how much he loved me over the years and he pulls this ring out. I was shocked!

Ray: It was Oct. 2, 1987. We went to TGI Friday’s at Golden Gate.

Ray: Mel is so structured as a parent.

You have every conceivable activity on the kids’ plates. Mel balances all their schedules. How do you manage all that? It’s remarkable. Mel also is also the kindest person I know. She is an oncology nurse. I am so proud of the impact she has on people.

Any closing thoughts?

Ray: We’re still kids at heart. When you start off a relationship at such an early point in your life you get to share so many memories and early feelings together for the first time. That was unique. We never lost those feelings.

At Gilmour, you were voted Most Likely to Get Married, and you did, in May 1998. Ray, how did you propose?

Mel: Fall of senior year I told my roommate Roz Seigal I had a crush on Ray and swore her to secrecy.

When was your first date?

level. He coached Alexis in soccer and basketball up until last year.

He is like a giant kid. The kids can really relate to him.

What are you like as parents?

Mel: We have two kids, Alexis, 13, and Elyse, 10. I like the fact that Ray is able to get down on the kids’

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How did you meet?

Marilyn (Havel) and Alex Somers ’01

Marilyn: I transfered to Gilmour sophomore year. We had a few classes together, but we didn’t know each other that well. Then senior year we just started talking. We went to the Senior Homecoming separately with friends but ended up connecting at the dance.

Marilyn, when did you know Alex was the one for you?

I think it was when we were studying at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland, our junior year of college and I thought he was a good travel companion.You get to know someone well when you travel with them.

When did you start dating?

Did you date throughout college then?

Marilyn: Senior year Homecoming was our first “date” and our first kiss. On Homecoming night, he asked me to senior prom.That impressed me. His confidence stood out. I said, “Are you sure?”

Alex:Yes, I went to college at Tulane University in New Orleans. Marilyn started out at a college in Ohio, then transferred to Loyola of New Orleans, right next to Tulane.

Alex: I knew all along she was the one. I knew immediately. When you know, you know. This July we’ll have been married nine years, Marilyn: But we’ll have been together for 15 years.

Marilyn: No. I like to tell my friends I’ve never had my heart broken.

Alex: I planned for us to go on a surprise trip to Anguilla in the Caribbean but

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Marilyn: I was shocked. I really was. I didn’t think he was going to propose.

He’s very good at planning surprises.

What can you say about each other today?

Alex: I feel like I married my best friend.

It’s kind of impossible to imagine a world without us together. She also is a fantastic mother to our two boys, Tripp, 5, and Charles, 3.

Did you ever date anyone else besides each other?

Alex, how did you propose?

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before that, I had to go back to Ohio to ask for her parents’ permission. Her dad said yes, which was good, and he handed me Marilyn’s passport. I took her to the airport and didn’t tell her where we were going. I proposed on the beach at sunset.

Marilyn: He’s a wonderful father.

He makes time for the boys. He hasn’t changed much, either. He’s still always thinking about the future. And he’s still making me laugh.

How did you meet?

Kaitlin (Gill) and Ryan Teknipp ’09

Kaitlin: I went to the first football game freshman year. He was really good at football, so he got my attention. I asked him if I could wear his jersey to the football games. It didn’t matter how cold or snowy it was, I sat in the stands.

Ryan: I loved coming out of the locker room after the games. She was always there waiting for me. Football played a big role in our relationship.

When did you start dating?

Kaitlin: We dated a little bit freshman year and then broke up. At the beginning of senior year we started dating again.

Ryan: I was pretty persistent. I always had a little bit of hope. Finally, senior year I asked her to Homecoming with me. I definitely wanted to pursue it further after the Homecoming dance.

Kaitlin: On the way to the dance, we were talking about colleges. Ryan was talking about colleges in Georgia and Colorado, and I remember thinking I didn’t want him to go that far.

What did you like about each other?

Ryan: She was really cute. She had that smile that brightened up the room. I was very attracted to that.

Kaitlin: He was fun to be around. He was somebody everybody wanted to be around, and I wanted to be around him too.

When was your first kiss?

Kaitlin: Freshman year, one day before class we met in one of the tunnels under

Tudor House before school and I just decided to kiss him.

Did you date through college?

Kaitlin: We’re more like one instead of two. We’ve achieved a lot already, and it can be attributed to the support we give each other.

Kaitlin:Yes, we both went to college at John Carroll. We hadn’t talked about going to the same school, but by the end of senior year at Gilmour we were pretty serious and thinking very long-term.

We knew by end of senior year that we wanted to be together.

Ryan: We heard all the stories, everybody says don’t pick your college based on your girlfriend or boyfriend. But I really liked the football coaches at John Carroll.

Kaitlin: It was pretty much like,“This is it.”

Where did you get engaged?

Ryan: We went to Hocking Hills for the weekend.

Kaitlin: We went there for our six-year dating anniversary. He proposed to me while we were hiking.

Ryan: I tried to find a place that was secluded. I told her to stand up on the rock and pretended I was going to take her picture. Then I popped the question.

You recently got married, on September 5.

Kaitlin: We had 100 people at the wedding. It was in Cleveland, just immediate family from both sides.

Ryan: It was the beginning of a journey.

For seven years, it has been a journey together, but now we’re starting a new path in our journey together.

What’s it been like being together all this time?

Ryan: There’s never a dull moment. It’s always fun to go out with her, to be around her.

Kaitlin: We were just kids when we started dating. It’s really neat to go from dating as kids to growing into adulthood together. We’ve always grown together, never apart.

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making

a DIFFERENCE Martha Ligas ’09 is working toward her master’s in theology and ministry at Boston College’s School of Theology. Through the program, she spent eight weeks teaching in Rwanda this summer.

The transformative experience shaped Ligas’s views on what it means to be part of a diverse, global world. It required her to reach outside her comfort zone to grow in lasting, meaningful ways. And it showed her, quite clearly, what forgiveness and reconciliation look like.

Q: What were you teaching in Rwanda?

I was teaching third-, fourth- and fifthgrade English and fourth-grade religion at Ecole Notre Dame des Anges (School of Our Lady of the Angels). The national language of the country used to be French and just switched to (British) English about 10 years ago.

Q: You kept a blog over there.

What does the name of your blog, “Finding Amahoro,” mean?

It’s the Kinyarwanda word for peace.

It was the first word I learned in Rwanda’s native language. I thought it was an appropriate name for my blog, because Rwandans are seeking and striving to live in peace.

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Q: On your blog, you spoke of wealthy tourists. My white skin, then, the affection of the Rwandan implied my wealth and privilege to these children – a girl who held your children. Knowing that the little money hand in church, kids who greeted I had couldn’t make a lasting impact on you on the street. What impact their lives, I chose instead to help them did these gestures have on you? understand that at the end of the day, With the kids in Rwanda, there was we’re more similar than we are different. a common humanity between us.

Q: What do you want people to They were intrigued by the fact that know about Rwandans?

I was different, but it was a curiosity and excitement. We built a very strong The world as a whole can learn a lot connection. Through my interactions from Rwanda. In the genocide of 1994, with them, I was able to see how similar 800,000 people were killed, and just I am to people in Rwanda despite the 21 years later there’s new infrastructure, differences in geography and culture. there’s life again. To see people living alongside each other in peace, I think it’s Q: When asked for money, you really important for us to look at Rwanda made a point of giving the kids and see we can forgive each other. a smile instead of francs. Why? The only exposure most Rwandan children have to white skin is that of

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The Gilmour campus aglow with the colors of the season

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2015 20

Gilmour Academy

Commencement

FALL / WINTER 2015

MAY 24, 2015 ~ COMMENCEMENT

Salutatorian

Head of the Upper School Jon Wanders introduced salutatorian Alyssa Solano ’15. In speaking of her, he referenced the many accolades she earned at the end-of-year Senior Awards ceremony, where she was recognized as a National Merit Finalist, a Phi Beta Kappa award winner, and a PEO STAR scholarship recipient, as well as for her diverse and tremendous achievements in Speech and Debate, English, science and social studies. Wanders said, “Alyssa Solano is among the brightest students I have ever known.” He continued, “While I’ve noted Alyssa’s capacity for academic work, what I’m more pleased to share about are the myriad, important ways she directs her aptitudes and gifts.” He finished, “In a day and age when it is easy and, frankly, sad, to get caught up in a culture that can champion resumé building, over-specialization, and one-upsmanship among our young people, I take solace in knowing that Alyssa, one of our finest scholars, identifies her greatest achievement in high school as establishing and maintaining healthy relationships with her peers.”

In her salutatory address, Solano talked about all that she and her classmates experienced together, saying, “We’ve done a lot during our time here, much more than just attending classes and earning grades.” She continued, “We’re stars on the athletic fields and on the stage, amazing artists and musicians, inspiring leaders and passionate volunteers committed to making our world a better place. We’ve made it through some tough times and overcome a lot of challenges (yes, I’m looking at you, Praxis project), but we all kept going, putting one foot in front of the other until we ended up here today.”

Solano is now attending the University of Cincinnati, where she is majoring in biochemistry.

Valedictorian

In introducing valedictorian James Venzor ’15, Wanders talked about the fact that Venzor stumped him with a vocabulary word – ken, which, ironically, denotes awareness, vision, understanding, grasp, knowledge - in one of his AP English Language and Composition essays. He shared that Venzor has accumulated a GPA of 4.346 with a course load that included 11 AP classes, noting that he earned an A+ in eight of those AP classes. He added, though, “What is both cool and telling to me amid this picture of sterling excellence is that James notes how AP US History was perhaps his most influential academic experience as a student at Gilmour.

This is a course that does not overtly align with his intended college major – engineering – and one in which James earned grades that are among his lowest.” Wanders said, “His reflection communicates to me that James gets it; he sees the forest, not just the trees, and he has progressed to subordinate grades to communicating, thinking, learning and collaborating.”

In his valedictory address, Venzor spoke about what his Gilmour experience has meant to him. He stated, “Personally, my experience at Gilmour has challenged me to extend myself beyond boundaries I never believed possible, and has left me with a set of values that I look forward to applying in my college career.”

That college career will be at the University of Notre Dame, where Venzor is studying engineering.

Commencement Speaker

The Class of 2015, their families and guests heard from Commencement speaker Thomas Usher, former president, CEO and board chair of U.S. Steel. Usher has been credited with turning U.S. Steel around as he led the company through a difficult period for the steel industry. In 2003, Colin Powell presented him with the U.S. Department of State’s Award for Corporate Excellence in recognition of U.S. Steel’s activities in the Slovak Republic.

Usher and his wife, Sandra, support the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Engineering’s Industrial Engineering Learning Center, the endowed position of U.S. Steel Dean of Engineering, the John Kirkwood Research Fund at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute and, recently, created the Sandra and Thomas Usher Endowed Chair in Melanoma.

Gilmour Academy has been the beneficiary of Usher’s philanthropy as well, through a generous contribution by the Thomas J. and Sandra L. Usher Charitable Foundation to the Thomas O. Callaghan ’65 Scholarship fund, which specifically provides support for students applying to Gilmour from parochial, public, charter or breakthrough schools in the inner city of Cleveland.

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2015

Congratulations to tһis year’s Graduates

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MAY 24, 2015 ~ COMMENCEMENT

Ashtar Reem Abboud

Rebecca Christine Graham

Madison Morgan McDowell *

Mary Josephine Sheehan

Nicholas Joseph Abdallah *

Oona Li Haffey

Sean Kenneth McLennan

Christian Price Sheffler

Alexander Michael Althans

Kevin Scott Hale

Seamus P. Meaney

Yevgeniy Y. Slissenko

Omar Mohamed Azem *

Justin Richard Hallal

Carolyn Virginia Menges

Ian Christopher Socrates

Grant Timothy Bent

CĂŠdric Mathias Hansen

John Michael Migliore

Sarah Elizabeth Socrates

Ryan Charles Berger

Sarah Elizabeth Harmon

David Gregory Miller

Alyssa Frances Solano

Calvin Jennings Bleick

James Vernon Herten *

Maribelle Norma Moufawad

Christopher Edward Sommer

Lauren Terese Brenkus *

Hyun Seo Hong

Thomas Dawson Negrelli *

Madalyn Eleanor Stefanak

Michael Lawrence Bridges

Zachary Thomas Hostoffer *

Marisa Marie Palumbo

Yibing Sun

Daniel Noah Broadbent *

Jocelyn V. Hunyadi

Ethan Alan Pawlak

Chloe Jane Thomas

Laura Anne Brzozowski

Anna Kathryn Impullitti

Brandon J. Phillips

Markus James Treppo

Ryan Andrew Burns

Claire Louise Jacobs

Courtney Ann Marie Pleasant

William Patrick Velotta IV

Alexis Nicole Canty

Annie Rose Janasek

Megan Christina Polak

James Anthony Venzor

Rachel Victoria Carranza

Michael Otto Jankus

Mitchell B. Popp

Noah Lincoln Veres

Gabriela M. Cerer

Jack Quinn Kennedy

Megan Nicole Porter

Shuyi Wei

Taylor Nicole Chisholm

Emily Ruth Kirk

Michelle Christine Porter

Grant Logan Weiss

Mackenzie Kathleen Connelly

Anna Katherine Rose Kolesar

Sarah Elizabeth Potratz

Caitlin Elise Whetstone

Ashton Elizabeth Conwell

Joseph Frederick Kourie

Kevin John Pryatel

Cassandra Vishnevsky Williams

Kiersten Marie Dietrick

Claire Elizabeth Krakowiak

Shaya Stephanie Puglia

Thomas Michael Wilson

Marcus Anthony DiVincenzo

Mary Grace Hennessy Krapf

Nicholas John Regalbuto

Aidan Alexander Winters

Colin Winston Driggs

Neal Kumar

Zachary Edwin Ritter

Katrina Tze-Wai Wong

Kiley Marie Eble

Seung Yeob Lee

Shelby Lauren Roberson

Joseph Montgomery Young *

Hannah Rose Finotti

Nicholas James Loncar

Ryan James Rowell

Nicholas Adam Younker

John Patrick Flynn

Nicholas Joseph Marquette

Courtney Alexis Rulison

Siwen Zhao

Donald Louis Foiani III

Adrian Joseph Marusic

Joseph Paul Sabik

Sophia Noelle Zupanc

Andrew Patrick Gallagher *

Lauren Benay Massaad *

Ryan David Keo Seibert *

Jack Thomas Gallagher *

Caroline Ann McCormick

Madison Elise Semarjian *

Conrad Ludwig Geis

Evan Oliver McCuaig

Juwan Louis-Lee Shabazz

*entered Gilmour Academy prior to second grade

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2015 24

the

Gilmour Family

continues to grow

Bissan ’14 and Ashtar ’15 Abboud

Claudia ’17, Jacob ’14, Alex ’15, Olivia ’12 and Alison ’11 Althans

Grant ’15 and Leland ’11 Bent

Cameron ’17 and Ryan ’15 Berger

Taylor ’11 and Daniel ’15 Broadbent (missing Shelby ’13)

Nicole ’14, Laura ’15, Julia ’17 and Megan ’19 Brzozowski

Michael ’19, Gabriela ’15 and Joseph ’14 Cerer

Mackenzie ’15 and Michaela ’16 Connelly

Erin ’17 and Kiersten ’15 Dietrick

Charity ’13 and Colin’15 Driggs

Tom ’81 and Emma ’09 Flesher, Annie Rose Janesek ’15 and Oliver Flesher ’12

Thomas ’12, John ’15 and Patrick J. III ’84 Flynn

Andrew W. ’78 and Andrew ’15 Gallagher

Alexandra ’18 and Conrad ’15 Geis

Oona ’15 and Jack ’16 Haffey

Heidi Weber ’84 and James Herten ’15 (missing Hope Herten ’13)

FALL / WINTER 2015

MAY 24, 2015 ~ COMMENCEMENT

Up from the Middle School

Brendan McNamara ’18, Megan Holzheimer McNamara ’87, E. Timothy Holzheimer ’61, Sarah Potratz ’15, Bridgette Potratz ’13, Beth Holzheimer Potratz ’86 and Tim Holzheimer ’89

Annie Rose ’15 and Timothy G. ’80 Janasek

Vince ’07, Zachary ’15 and Nicholas ’09 Hostoffer (missing Alexander ’05)

Residence Hall Students

Patrick ’08, Jack ’15 and Nicholas ’06 Kennedy

Madeleine ’14, Claire ’15 and Sarah ’16 Krakowiak

Natalie ’18 and Emily ’15 Kirk

Lifers

Maureen Boland G.O. ’73 and Mary Grace Krapf ’15

Hannah ’18, Nicholas ’15 and Jessica ’12 Loncar

Alec ’18 and Adrian ’15 Marusic

Andrea ’11 and Lauren ’15 Massaad

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2015 26

Commencement a joyful day of Celebration

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MAY 24, 2015 ~ COMMENCEMENT

Caroline ’15 and Timothy McCormick ’18

Megan ’18, David ’15 and Patricia Pfundstein ’85 Miller

Alan M. ’78 and Thomas ’15 Negrelli

Spicer ’83, Madison ’15 and Pyper ’18 McDowell (missing Miles ’17)

Seamus ’15 and Samuel ’17 Meaney

“Personally, my experience at Gilmour has challenged me to extend myself beyond boundaries I never believed possible, and has left me with a set of values that I look forward to applying in my college career.” ~ valedictorian James Venzor

Kyle ’12, Carolyn ’15 and Daniel ’17 Menges

Maribelle ’15 and Michelle ’17 Moufawad

Christian, Marisa ’15 and Michael III ’14 Palombo

Shaya Puglia ’15 and Giovanna Piedimonte ’23

Danielle ’18, Nicole ’12, Michelle ’15 and William M. ’84 Porter (missing Jacqueline ’10)

Steven E. ’78, Steven ’10, Kevin ’15, Michael ’08 and Meghan ’13 Pryatel

Joseph ’89, Nicholas ’15 and Joseph ’13 Regalbuto

Courtney ’15 and Amber ’17 Rulison

Madison ’15 and Austin ’12 Semarjian

James F. ’87, Christian ’15 and Henry ’85 Sheffler

Audrey ’13, Josie ’15 and Griffin Sheehan

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In the Class of 2015,

83

%

going as far west as Hawaii, as far northeast as Maine and as far south as Florida.

Some of the colleges that members of the class will be attending include Amherst College, Boston College, Case Western Reserve University, Cornell, Duke, Fordham, Hobart and William Smith, NYU, Purdue, Tufts, University of Cincinnati, University of Miami, University of Michigan, University of Notre Dame, University of Rochester, University of Southern California, Wake Forest and Wellesley College.

2015

of students were accepted at either their first-or second-choice school.

Students from the Class of 2015 will attend colleges across the nation –

FAST FACTS

Ryan Seibert ’15 began doing independent molecular genetics research as a freshman and, by junior year, his work was published in the highly respected science journal PLoS One.

Seung Yeob Lee was honored

with the Br. Robert A. Kelly, C.S.C. Outstanding Student Service Award for the

570 hours of service he completed (far above the 60 that are required of students).

Sophia Zupanc ’15 was named Student of the Year in all of speech and debate in northern Ohio. Grant Bent ’15 set the Gilmour record for most points earned in a speech and debate season and was the top point earner in the state of Ohio.

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4

54

members of There are the graduating class with siblings, parents and/or grandparents who also attended GA.

Kiley Eble ’15 is the defending state champion in the 100m butterfly, Alexis Canty ’15 is the state champion in dramatic interpretation for speech and debate, and Sophia Zupanc ’15 is the state and national champion of the Sons of the American Revolution oration contest and the national runner-up for Student Congress.

Four scholar-athletes from the Class of 2015 signed NCAA National Letters of Intent to play for Division I and II universities and an additional eight signed commitment letters indicating their intent to play at the college level. GA scholar-athletes will be playing for Lehigh, Florida Gulf Coast, University of Tampa, University of Cincinnati, Hobart and William Smith, Salve Regina, Amherst, Tufts, University of Maine, Cornell, Ohio Northern and Allegheny.

MAY 24, 2015 ~ COMMENCEMENT

Sarah ’15, Christine Sabio ’85, Ian ’15 and Joshua ’17 Socrates

Stephen ’18 and Christopher ’15 Sommer

Emily ’04, Madalyn ’15 and Samuel ’08 Stefanak

Greta ’13 and Chloe ’15 Thomas

Emily Wainwright ’19 and Nicholas Younker ’15

Let Education Sing

Where can our youth find their way?

Through Gilmour Academy for endless days Prepare the mind, attend the heart!

Only Christ can give our young headstart Patron saint of family its grounds did adorn The statue of Saint Joseph will guide us safely home Family and diversity the Academy lauds Both flow from within – the heart’s applause Where do I send my child to learn?

Academics and love his soul must yearn Passions of the heart, burnings of the mind True Gilmour goals a student will find The joy of family, the beauty of diversity – Fragrances of Christ bring sweet unity A smile, a handshake, the power of words Through the spirit of love folk are reborn The joy of family, the beauty of diversity Let education sing universally! ~ Shirley Adams, mother of Todd Adams ’82 Copyright, August 8, 2015

Markus ’15 and John ’18 Treppo

Kylie ’16, Gianna ’20, William P. IV ’15 and William P. III ’71 Velotta

Anne ’10, James ’15 and Grace ’08 Venzor (missing Alexandra ’11)

Sebastian ’18 and Cassandra ’15 Williams

Jessica ’13 and Thomas ’15 Wilson

Joseph ’15 and James II ’12 Young

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2015

College & University

30

Matriculation List

Allegheny College

Johns Hopkins University

University of Cincinnati

Amherst College

Junior Hockey

University of Dayton

Appalachian State University

Kenyon College

Boston College

Lehigh University

University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign

Boston University

Loyola University Chicago

Bowling Green State University

Miami University

Brigham Young University-Hawaii

Michigan State University

Case Western Reserve University

New York University

Cleveland Institute of Art

Ohio Northern University

Cleveland State University

Purdue University

Columbus State Community College

Rollins College

Cornell University

Saint Vincent College

Denison University

Salve Regina University

Duke University

Santa Barbara City College

Duquesne University

St. Edward's University

Florida Gulf Coast University

Texas Christian University

Fordham University

The College of Wooster

Gannon University

The Ohio State University

Hobart and William Smith Colleges

The University of Akron

Indiana University at Bloomington

The University of Findlay

Ithaca College

The University of Tampa

John Carroll University

Tufts University

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University of Kentucky University of Maine University of Maryland, College Park University of Miami University of Michigan University of Missouri Columbia University of Mount Union University of Notre Dame University of Rochester University of South Carolina University of Southern California University of Toronto University of Vermont Virginia Military Institute Wake Forest University Wellesley College Western Michigan University Xavier University

MAY 24, 2015 ~ COMMENCEMENT

Congratulations

2015

to tһose students in tһe Class of wһo were һonored witһ tһe һigһest awards and most prestigious commendations.

Phi Beta Kappa

National Merit Finalist

The Gilmour Trophy

The Cleveland chapter of Phi Beta Kappa was chartered in 1947 and, over the past 60 years, has extended its recognition of achievement and intellectual curiosity to high school students throughout the greater Cleveland area. The Gilmour faculty selected this year’s inductee because she is truly representative of the qualities of academic integrity, outstanding scholarship and all-around initiative in matters of the mind.

Based on her high PSAT scores, this student was among the approximately 150,000 students nationwide to be named a 2015 National Merit Finalist.

The Gilmour Trophy is the highest honor a student can receive during his or her time at the Academy. The honor is bestowed upon the male and female in the graduating class who in the estimation of and with the endorsement of the faculty, administration and student body, best exemplify those qualities the Academy hopes to instill in its graduates.

Both winners are not only excellent studetns, but also true leaders in cocurricular and extracurricular arenas.

They are also individuals who have shown clear commitment to the purposes of the Academy.

Inductee: Alyssa Solano ’15

Alyssa Solano ’15

Winners: Megan Polak ‘15 Ethan Pawlak ’15

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AROUND

CAMPUS Squeezy Breezy Lemonade

Maybe it’s her special recipe: freshsqueezed lemon juice, Minute Maid natural lemonade and fresh mint from her backyard garden, garnished with lemon and strawberry slices – or maybe it’s her bubbly personality, but something is working for this young entrepreneur. She was recently featured in an article in Northeast Ohio Inside Business Magazine on “kidpreneurs.”

Entrepreneurship is just part of the culture at Gilmour.

Students today have an idea and think nothing of putting it in play thanks to the efforts of Deanne Nowak, Ph.D., who has been spearheading the entrepreneurship program at Gilmour since 2008.

“We’re always looking for ways to inspire students in real-world contexts. Moving from business ideas to viable opportunities requires students to analyze, evaluate, communicate, solve problems and learn independently.

“Most importantly, the process cultivates creativity and grit; instead of fearing failure, students recognize it as an opportunity for growth. I’ve enjoyed watching some of our most timid students grow into confident, competent, business leaders and am delighted to see the strong focus on social entrepreneurship.” Nowak says.

And this entrepreneurial spirit is not limited to the Upper School. Students of all ages are joining the fun.

Fearless

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After this initial success, Merielle set up her stand at Shaker Square’s Farmers’ Market over the summer and, despite bad weather, again recorded great profits – $96.58.

Lower School student Merielle William ’27, first began thinking about starting a business after participating in the Lemonade Day program at the Lower School last year. She set up her first lemonade stand at a Youth Marketplace held at University School and was the hit of the marketplace.

She sold 54 cups at $2 each and ran out of lemonade with a line of people still waiting at her stand.

Another Gilmour student is working on building another brand – her own. Quinn L’Esperance ’19 recently recorded her first album. Called “Fearless,” it is a compilation of pop covers and one original, called “Fearless,” written by a songwriter from Los Angeles.

And the best part is that, amidst the lessons she has learned about financial management, profits, marketing and self-confidence, Merielle has learned that even more fun than making money is being able to give some away.

She donated a portion of her profits to the Gilmour Lower School for its garden and some to her church. As she makes more money in the years ahead, she’d like to donate to cancer research, as her father is a hematologist/ oncologist and a cancer investigator.

The album is available on iTunes, Amazon and at cdbaby.com.

L’Esperance sings at various restaurants and performance venues around town, including Valenti’s; Happy Dog; the Wine Bar, in Parma; and The Grove, in Mayfield Heights. Her album is always available for sale at her live performances.

Eternally Yours A group of four like-minded students began talking about starting a business that would pair the technical skills they’ve garnered through the AV Production course they took with the entrepreneurial skills they’ve developed through participation in the variety of entrepreneurship programs Nowak has run at school. Charbel Najm ’16, Sam Winslett ’16, Claire Werynski ’16 and Da-Eun (Kathy) Jung ’18 decided to start a business that would produce commissioned digital stories including digital memoirs, ethical wills, athletic recruitment videos and commemorative works.

After writing a business plan, they began entering competitions such as the Believe in Ohio state-level competition, the Junior Achievement Company Program contest and the Lake Erie College business plan competition. They fared well, racking up prize money, ultimately winning $11,500, including the $10,000 top prize at the Believe in Ohio contest.

Najm also received the Top Young Business Leader Award at the Junior

Achievement outing. It was there, too, that the group picked up their first client. One of the judges asked them to create a video telling his father’s life story. They completed that project over the summer, along with a video commemorating the 20th anniversary of Gilmour’s Our Lady Chapel.

They are working on videos about Gilmour’s newly launched Bishop Gilmour Institute and Gilmour’s long-standing collaboration with our friends at Nuevo Paraiso, the destination for two annual mission trips. The students are currently talking with Junior Achievement about creating a video for the group’s 75th anniversary.

members at Gilmour, who have helped them navigate this process – from helping them select the most cost-effective equipment to providing technical advice to answering their questions as they wrote the business plan.

Najm said, “The mentorship at GA is just awesome. Doc Nowak is so great.

Her door is always open for us.”

Winslett serves as the company CEO, Najm is the VP of marketing, Werynski is the VP of video production and Jung serves as the VP of procedures.

They have a paid staff of about 10 students working as videographers and video editors.

All four of the company board members mentioned their gratitude to the faculty

A former figure skater sidelined by a knee injury, L’Esperance now devotes her time to singing, acting and dancing. She is a part of Gilmour’s new a capella group, which meets on Monday mornings before school and is performing in the fall play and hopes to be in the spring musical. She trains

Najm, Jung,Winslett and Werynski

regularly with a private vocal coach outside of school as well.

L’Esperance is already thinking about her next album, which will be all originals. She can often be found in her bedroom working on the lyrics for her newest songs. This Gilmour freshman certainly is Fearless!

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AROUND

CAMPUS The Michael J. Pender ’90 Speaker Series

“Educating the Heart: A Moral Compass” A respected expert and leader in the field, internet safety expert Jesse Weinberger is frequently sought by media, educators, administrators, and law enforcement for guidance on how to manage and improve the digital lives of children all over the United States.

During these grade-level presentations, Weinberger gathered information from students about their online habits. Talking with a Gilmour student after the presentation, the student told Weinberger that she was going to ask her mom to attend the parent presentation. Weinberger was surprised that the student would encourage her parent to attend, since it would most

The speaker series sponsored by the family of Michael J. Pender ’90 brought renowned internet safety expert Jesse Weinberger to campus for a variety of presentations.

On October 5 and 6,Weinberger met with students in grades 5-12 for 45-minute discussions by grade level.

A computer programmer by trade, Weinberger is a big proponent of technology and its use in the classroom.

However, she stresses that when used without proper safety precautions, it can lead to dangerous situations for users.

Weinberger shared real-life examples of sexual predation cases she has worked on with law enforcement officials. She also shared true stories of the legal trouble teens find themselves in as a result of sharing inappropriate photos and/or information.

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of likes and shares online. She discussed the risk of sexual predation and which social media and gaming sites open children up to this danger. She talked about the importance of raising critical thinkers who can decipher reality when presented with images that have been photoshopped, advertisements that portray people according to strict stereotypes, and people who pose online as someone other than who they are.

Weinberger concluded by sharing the data she gathered from the students during her meetings with them, alerting some parents to their children’s use of sites and apps that they did not know existed. She offered tips for monitoring usage and sites to be sure children avoid.

likely lead to greater restrictions on the student’s internet usage. The student’s response was, “I think kids of our generation want to be stopped and we don’t know how to ask.”

At the end of the week, Weinberger presented an equally eye-opening talk for parents, alumni and guests. She talked about the additional academic, athletic and economic pressure that students face today. She explained that, on top of all that, students now have the added social pressure that comes with the fact that “popularity” can be quantifiably measured by the numbers

Weinberger’s book was for sale at the conclusion of the event. Titled “The Boogeyman Exists: And He’s In Your Child’s Back Pocket,” it is a complete guide for parents on how to keep children safe in a 24/7, always-connected digital society.

Young Gilmour Alum Launches Fair Trade School Uniform Business Hilary Dell ’05 always wanted to get into fashion design. As a fashion design and finance major at Kent State, Hilary did an internship in Uganda working with a small group of female artisans called One Tree Mango. She trained the group of women in the manufacturing of One Tree Mango knit apparel, a business that recently sold to Global Girlfriend, a fair trade manufacturer and retailer.

From this experience in Uganda, a spark was ignited for Hilary.

She graduated from KSU, worked for Global Girlfriend followed by Active Fashion Brands, and then for her sister’s start-up mobile fashion boutique, The Runaway (www.shoptherunaway.com).

In September 2014, she left for a vacation to Guatemala and ended up staying for four months.

Hilary has always had a fascination with textiles and, while in Guatemala, she learned how to weave alongside Mayan Guatemalan women. As she met more of these artisans, she started to think about ways to connect them with consumers and One Seed Heritage was born.

One Seed Heritage is a provider of ethically sourced school uniforms.

It allows students to become agents of change by selecting a fair trade uniform option. Additionally, five percent of all sales are donated to support scholarships for Mayan children in Guatemala. (Mayan girls in Guatemala only receive an average of 1.8 years of schooling due to the economic circumstances of their families.)

Gilmour is one of One Seed Heritage’s first three clients. When purchased through One Seed Heritage,

Liam Ryan ’21, Sarah Krakowiak ’16 and Lily Switka ’18 in their fair trade uniforms Gilmour uniform skirts and ties are hand-made by the co-op of women with whom Hilary learned to weave in the Solololá region of Guatemala and the shirts are made in a fair trade factory in Calcutta, India. This year, about 30 GA uniforms were purchased through One Seed Heritage and the hope is that, as students learn more about the impact their purchases have on the lives of these women and on their communities, even more will participate next year.

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CAMPUS

Flat Lancer Sightings

Associate Athletic Director Kristy Booher brought Flat Lancer to her wedding in October!

Flat Lancer in El Salvador with Spencer Slaght ’17 Katie Decker ’17 and Elizabeth Edmondson

Flat Lancer taking the tube in London to King's Cross Station and then to the Globe Theater to catch a show with the family of Michael Huber ’16

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A Holy Cross Summer Adventure Guidance counselor Jamie Kazel led a tour group to France this summer. The group included 11 Gilmour students, four Gilmour parents, four students from Archbishop Hoban, a Hoban teacher and Kazel’s wife, Regan. They departed on July 26 and returned on August 3. In addition to the day spent in Le Mans, the birthplace of the Congregation of Holy Cross, trip highlights included visits to the Place de la Concorde, the Arc de Triomphe, Les Invalides, Notre Dame, the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, the site of Joan of Arc’s martyrdom, Arromanches, Omaha Beach, the island abbey of Mont St. Michel and Versailles. The group also enjoyed an evening river boat ride on the Seine and a French cooking class.

While in Le Mans, the group visited the Shrine of Blessed Basil Moreau, where Fr. Moreau’s tomb is located.

They then walked about 20 minutes to the Solitude of the Savior, which served as the novitiate of the priests of Holy Cross during Moreau’s time. They also visited Saint Julien Cathedral, where Moreau spent a lot of time as a priest of the Diocese of Le Mans; a late medieval/early renaissance village called La Cité Plantagenêt; and saw one of the best preserved walls of the ancient Roman empire.

Three Seniors Named National Merit Semifinalists and One Named Commended Student Three Gilmour students were recently named National Merit semifinalists: Brendan Cheng ’16, Jaret Ross ’16 and Daniel Zhang ’16. Of the 1.5 million students who entered the 2016 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2014 Preliminary SAT (PSAT) or the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (NMSQT®), less than one percent were named semifinalists.

Additionally, Samantha Winslett ’16 was named a Commended Student. To qualify for this distinction, Winslett placed among the top five percent of PSAT or NMSQT test-takers.

All four are honors students who are leaders in their respective extracurricular activities.

Cheng has earned highest honors academically with a 4.3 GPA; is a member of the National Honor Society; is a captain on the cross country team this fall and will be a track captain this spring; and helps to organize Gilmour’s annual talent show, Live Jive. By graduation, he will have completed 10 AP courses.

He also participated in the school’s Catalyst program, spending an average of 40 hours per week for five weeks during the summer of 2014 doing a research project alongside a biomedical engineer at the Louis Stokes Cleveland

VA Center. Cheng was subsequently hired by his mentor to continue the research and has been working for her ever since. He plans to major in electrical engineering in college.

Ross holds a 4.1 GPA and has also earned highest honors. He, too, is a member of the National Honor Society. He will have completed 10 AP courses upon graduating. While the swim team does not designate captains, he is a leader on the varsity team and was a member of the 2014-2015 state-qualifying 200m medley relay team. Ross is also the co-president of the Cartooning Club, and is involved in music ministry and competitive speech. He intends to major in engineering in college.

Zhang has earned a 4.1 GPA as well, earning highest honors. By the time he graduates, he will have taken 11 AP courses. He received recognition last year after receiving a perfect score of 2400 on the SAT. Zhang is a member of the National Honor Society, co-founded the school’s Model UN program, is a member of the Academic Challenge team and is currently participating in the Catalyst science research internship with a computer programming mentor at Rockwell Automation. He plans to major in computer science and business in college.

Ross, Zhang, Cheng and Winslett Winslett has a 3.97 GPA, earning honors, and is a member of the National Honor Society. She will have completed seven AP courses by spring.

She is the CEO of Eternally Yours, a student-run school business that produces commissioned digital stories including digital memoirs, ethical wills, athletic recruitment videos and commemorative works (see story on page 33); is the co-president of the Cartooning Club; is a member of the Blue and Gray Society, which provides tours for prospective families; and a three-sport athlete as a member of the soccer, swimming and lacrosse teams.

The soccer team’s starting goalie, this fall, Winslett was named one of the top 50 goalies in the state. In college, she plans to major in either biology

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Book

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We popped in to teachers’ offices around campus.

Can you guess which bookshelf belongs to which teacher?

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Tiho Teisl

Matt Lindley

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Ryan Ryzner

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Yvonne Dell

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Elizabeth Edmondson

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Bob Beach

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Answers: 1.) Yvonne Dell 2.) Elizabeth Edmondson 3.) Tiho Teisl 4.) Ryan Ryzner 5.) Matt Lindley 6.) Bob Beach

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Our Lady

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20T H A N N I V E R S A R Y C E L E B R AT I O N I S A B I G S U C C E S S 250 turned out to fete Our Lady Chapel as it marked its second decade.

In the last two decades, Our Lady Chapel has stayed much the same as it was when philanthropist Fred Lennon first gifted it to Gilmour in 1995.

But in a most meaningful way, the chapel has changed: It has grown exponentially to encompass a devoted community of supporters, both on campus and off.

That’s why so many turned out to honor the chapel on its 20th anniversary, including Cathey Lozick and John Lennon, the daughter and son of Fred Lennon.

“I was very pleased with the turnout,” said Fr. John Blazek, the only priest Our Lady Chapel has ever known. “It was wonderful. A lot of people commented to me that they were so glad we did it. It was a good opportunity to gather the community together.”

The celebration brought together people from the chapel’s past and present. Several former chapel musicians returned to perform, and current students produced a video about

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the history of the chapel. Bishop Gries, meanwhile, said Mass in the chapel, which was followed by a gourmet brunch buffet in the Athletic Center.

The event “made us stop and think about how the chapel is really at the center of our life at Gilmour,” Fr. John said.

“The chapel has really become the heart of community gatherings here, and that became very clear in the celebration.”

Gilmour parent Ed Bartlett was on the planning committee for the celebration. Because the chapel is such a meaningful centerpiece on campus, being part of the celebration and helping to plan it over the last year felt especially gratifying, he said.

“The chapel was a truly significant addition to Gilmour,” he said. “It’s significant in the development of the school as well as the community. The transformation and growth of the school over time is inherent in the chapel. And the fact that the Holy Father gifted a Vatican treasure (originally called “Our Lady of Vladimir,” the name was changed by Pope John Paul II to “Our Lady of Gilmour”) to Our Lady Chapel signifies that it’s a special place – a truly holy space.”

In planning the 20th anniversary celebration, organizers sought the active involvement of students on campus, from the Lower School through the Upper School. The committee sponsored a contest in which students could show through art or writing how the chapel affected them.

“The response was so overwhelming that we decided to have two prizes,” Bartlett said. “The greatest response was from the Lower School. It was great to see such a positive response overall, but especially from the younger students.”

Gilmour parent Janet Heryak also was part of the planning committee, something she called an honor and a privilege.

“I did not know the Lennon family, and it’s touched me to learn of their sacrifice and generosity,” she said. “It’s amazing how the chapel continues to touch people, people they don’t even know.”

The party was a grand tribute to the chapel’s devoted community of the last 20 years and those whose contributions made it a reality, Bartlett said. “The entire celebration was beautiful and poignant. It came off as well as we hoped.

Everything we envisioned for it, it came to fruition.”

Great Celebration of Our Lady Chapel’s 20th Anniversary Friends of Our Lady Chapel gathered on Sunday, September 13 for the 20th anniversary of its dedication.

Bishop Roger Gries, O.S.B. and Fr. John Blazek ’58, C.S.C. celebrated the Mass together, honoring the history of the Chapel.The group then moved to the Athletic Center, where the festivities continued at a brunch.

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He’s been privy to more top secrets than Jason Bourne.

He recalls flying intelligence missions off foreign coasts, prepping helicopters for the Iran hostage mission, and the fall of the Berlin Wall (He has a piece of it on his desk.).

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At Gilmour, Muench and his classmates took classes six days a week. “Back then, we went to school on Saturdays,” he says. And while he enjoyed Br. Ambrose’s physics class, it was Wednesday’s arts class that left a lasting impression on Muench.

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“We love it here,” Muench says. “We’ve lived here longer than we’ve lived anywhere in our life.”

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While it may sound like a lot of intrigue, deep down, RAY MUENCH ‘53 is just an average guy. He married his college sweetheart, Joyce, in 1961, after being awarded his Navy wings. Today, the couple lives in Virginia, a place they’ve called home for 36 years.

RAY MUENCH

“That education became big in my life,” Muench says, “because after I left Gilmour, I was in technology for the rest of my life.”

Muench was always headed that way. He had a natural knack for science. After Gilmour, Muench received his bachelor’s in physics from Villanova University and never looked back.

During the Vietnam War, he was stationed with the U.S. Navy in the Gulf of Tonkin. When the war ended, the Navy, enamored with Muench’s computer skills, wanted to hang on to him. He stayed with them for 21 years.

The Navy sent him to graduate school in Monterey, Calif., where he studied electrical engineering. From there, it was on to the University of Florida, where he studied systems engineering.

Muench retired from the Navy in 1980. When he did, his specialization in communications systems and signal processing put him in great demand. He joined Booz Allen Hamilton as director of electronics equipment development and worked on government contracts until 1990.

That’s when Muench’s career took a highly classified turn. He took a job as a principal scientist at EG&G—a national defense contractor founded by Doc Edgerton, Kenneth Germeshausen and Herbert Grier, the MIT professors behind the Manhattan Project.

“I did a lot of work in foreign intelligence,” Muench says. “A lot of the work was so highly classified. My movements were restricted and tracked by computer. Any trips outside of the U.S. had to be pre-approved by several intelligence agencies…I just attribute it to having the right background at the right time.”

You have been married to Joyce for 54 years and have four kids and four grandkids. How has family enhanced your life?

You look at what mistakes you made and try to mentor your children accordingly, often making more mistakes. The real fun is with the grandchildren. They are so eager to learn.

How do you spend your time?

Family! Enjoying and attempting to nurture

our grandchildren and laughing with our kids at their tribulation of now being parents.

Secondly, keeping abreast of world events through sources outside of the U.S. Our media, which has become very unreliable, has lost respect throughout the world.

What’s the best thing about Virginia?

Virginia embodies this country’s beauty of nature and formulation of much of this country’s history.

What’s the best book you’ve read recently?

“People I’ve Met” by our good friend and author of several books Sir Robert Lima, Ph.D. OIC. You took a cruise on the Queen Mary in July. What was that like?

The great ocean liners are disappearing. You step back into the faux luxury of the 1940s. It was great fun.

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Scenes from Reunion Weekend June 5-7

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The list of country music legends who have recorded the songs of RORY BOURKE ’60 is exhaustive. You’ll surely recognize the names: Elvis Presley, Charlie Rich, Anne Murray, Ronnie Milsap, Bonnie Raitt, Kenny Rogers, Dolly Parton, Tim McGraw.

With hits like “The Most Beautiful Girl” and “Shadows in the Moonlight,” Bourke’s songs are some of country music’s most enduring favorites.

And considering that Bourke himself has made a living writing songs in Nashville for more than 40 years, by now his talent and reputation have just as much staying power as his tunes.

“It’s a bigger crapshoot than anyone can possibly imagine,” he says of making it big in Nashville. “I mean, you come in and you don’t know anybody.

You have to find a way into the system somehow, and you have to work 10 or 12 years before you might even make a dime. Most people come here, they get off a bus, and when they hit the ground they’re looking around saying ‘What do I do next?’”

Bourke himself did not have to take that route to songwriting success. When he arrived in Nashville at age 27 to do national promotions for Mercury Records, he had already been with the company several years. By the time he left Mercury to pursue songwriting full-time a few years later, “I knew just about everybody in town,” he says.

Most importantly, he had an influential mentor in music publisher Don Gant, who told Henry Hurt, VP and general manager at Chappell Music, “You need to sign this guy.” So he did. Bourke became a staff songwriter at Chappell Music and at PolyGram Music.

In 1989 Bourke was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, something he calls “every songwriter’s dream.” “I was elated,” he says of the honor. “I felt relieved.”

But for all his success, the most meaningful song Bourke’s ever written is one that hits closer to home – the one he wrote upon becoming a father for the first time. It’s about his oldest daughter, Allyson, and it’s called “Your Love’s Been a Long Time Coming.”

“Elvis recorded it,” Bourke says. “And that song really means something to me, because she’s 40 now and she’s a terrific woman.”

And that’s Bourke, a family man first, a music man second. This is a man who married his college sweetheart, Rita Welty, six months after he met her. She shared his love of music, and in the early days of their marriage she told him, “We’re going to buy a piano and I’m going to write your lead sheets for you.”

Bourke’s daughters, too, recall a father who could make a tune out of anything, such as passing potatoes at the dinner table. For Bourke, it’s all been part of an amazing life.

“I just have to pinch myself sometimes,” he says. “When I look back at this incredible journey I’ve had, I can’t help but feel gratitude.”

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At what point did you know you wanted to be a songwriter?

Music was always a great outlet for me. After I learned to play guitar “a little bit” in college, I started writing songs. By the time I graduated from college I knew I wanted to write songs.

You have been married to Rita for 50 years. You have three daughters, Allyson, Kelley and Leslie. What impact has your family had on your career?

They’ve always been there for me.

They’re the ones I come home to.

Their encouragement, through both good times and hard times, has been so important to me.

Who was your best teacher at Gilmour?

John Gale had a tremendous influence on me. I was a kid in a weird place, and he was very helpful. He busted my butt sometimes, he encouraged me, he was just a great guy.

What’s your favorite thing about Nashville?

The people. They’re so friendly.

Nashville is a friendly place.

I read that, as a kid, you went up to the roof and shouted, “I am Rory Bourke! I am Rory Bourke!!” Why do you think you did that?

I haven’t the slightest idea. I never felt like I was going places. All I knew was that I wanted to go places.

ERIC PENICK ’71 came of age at Gilmour as a star athlete. He was as talented at football as he was at sprinting.

Sports were Eric Penick’s ticket. First to the University of Notre Dame, then to the NFL. But they were never his identity.

“Football was a vehicle, track was a vehicle, to Notre Dame, to the NFL, and to who I wanted to become in life. But they were never who I am.”

Penick shined as an All-American on Gilmour’s football team and set state records in the 100-yard, 220-yard and 440-yard races in track. He attended Notre Dame on a football scholarship and went on to play for the Denver Broncos. But he identifies more strongly with the work he does now as a chaplain ministering to incarcerated youth.

“I want them to learn to live their lives better,” he says of the young prisoners he teaches in a class about choices. “I want to help them look at things differently. You have to think about consequences, what the results of your actions could be. I learned that at Gilmour Academy, at Notre Dame, before that from my mother.”

To this day, Penick looks upon Gilmour through gilded eyes. It was, in many ways, where he got his start. He recalls his first day in Vern Weber’s gym class. Mr. Weber, the track and football coach at the time, saw how fast his new student ran the 100-yard dash and said, “You’ll run track.”

As a student, Penick bought quickly into the ideal of the “Gilmour Man.” He strove to become that ideal, and he is the proud embodiment of it today.

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“Gilmour was a major blessing for me,” says Penick, who attended the school on an inter-racial scholarship.

“At Gilmour, they were determined that a Gilmour Man would stand for something.

It was the personification of a high level of integrity, a strong desire to do well and help others. Who I’ve become, it started at Gilmour.”

ERIC PENICK

You got injured in the NFL and decided to get out. What did you do after that?

I got my MBA and became a financial consultant. I just retired a few months ago, from United Lending Partners. I still consult independently. I also buy and sell real estate. And I’ve been in the ministry since 1998, so I try to give back as much as I can.

Where do you live today?

I came to Dallas in 1985 for work and I decided I would never leave.

What about your family life?

I am married to my wife, Sandra, and have five kids. One boy and four girls.

How do you define success?

My youngest child is 23 now, and they’re dedicated to doing the best they can. That makes me proud. I have five kids I love. I have a wife I love. I have friends who care for me. That’s success. If you have the successes that are important in life, whether you have a lot of money or not, you have success.

What’s something you’ve learned?

People talk about “What is my purpose in life?” Your purpose in life is to help people. You’re not taking this other stuff with you.

What you do in your lifetime is what you take with you forever.

Who influenced you most at Gilmour?

Mr. Weber was the greatest thing in the world. Mr. Brandt, our track coach for junior and senior year, he was instrumental in my life. Mr. Gale made sure I toed the line and got good grades.

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While DR. JIM TOTH ’86 won’t be going to Haiti this February, it’ll be a first – at least, the first time that’s happened in 15 years.

Dr. Toth has taken the trip twice annually since 2000. He’s gone to treat patients at The Whitney Clinic, the primary care clinic his Georgia church, St. Monica’s, founded several years ago.

The clinic has three exam rooms and three dental chairs.

The team of doctors and dentists does everything from vaccinating and treating infections to dressing wounds and extracting teeth.

You’ll never catch me_____.

Listening to country music. Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday are more my style.

True happiness is_______.

Bare feet three inches deep in white sand.

What’s one of your hobbies?

My daughter and I go to a Krav Maga Martial Arts class once a week.

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Who makes up your family?

My wife, Catherine, my daughter, Claire. My brother, Jeff ’84; my sister, Jennifer ’94; and my parents, Joyce and Joseph.

JIM TOTH

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What type of physician are you at Kaiser Permanente?

I’m a Family Medicine physician in Kaiser’s Adult Medicine Department

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The medical missions started as an annual trip, but St. Monica’s realized it wasn’t really making an impact. So the initiative slowly grew. In 2003, The Whitney Clinic hired a nurse to treat high blood pressure. In 2005, it hired a doctor, who’s seen patients five days a week there ever since.

There’s also a soup kitchen on the property now. “As a result, the incidence of disease dropped because people are better nourished,” Toth says.

P Toth, who until 2014 was medical director at the clinic, says he goes to Haiti because he feels it’s his duty as a physician, as a Catholic and as a parent.

He recalls his very first mission trip in 2000, where he cared for a sick baby, and how it changed him.

“I’m in Haiti, where there’s no medical care, and I’m holding this baby girl in my arms,” he says.

“She’s a year old, the same age as my daughter back home. I thought, ‘This could be my daughter.’ I looked at the parents and thought, ‘That could be me and my wife.’ And from that moment on, I just thought, ‘This is something I need to do. Because I can.’”

While Toth has seen some serious illnesses at The Whitney Clinic, the work never fails to fulfill him.

“It’s a mix of spirituality, fellowship, partnership,” he says. “We’re brothers and sisters in Christ, but in a very tangible way we can bring our skills, supplies and medication to help people who need it.

In return we get a huge influx of spiritual energy from the folks we’re treating.”

The patients range in age from newborns to the elderly.

Toth plans to return to Haiti for as long as help is needed, even if he can’t make it this year.

“There are some really positive changes taking place,” he says. “Someday, the hope is, they won’t need us anymore.”

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She read about a sunscreen initiative Miami Beach was launching, and it got her attention. So DANIELLE DEROY PIRAIN ’94 decided to do something about it. Pirain, who works as a histologist at Vujevich Dermatology Associates in Pittsburgh, took her idea to the dermatologist she works with. She wanted to install sunscreen dispensers at public parks in the area.

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Together, they proposed the idea to the City of Mount Lebanon in the Pittsburgh suburbs, and then again to the City of Pittsburgh.

Now, thanks to Pirain, sunscreen dispensers (SPF 30) are in several parks in the Pittsburgh area.

“I guess I’m that kind of action person,” she says. “I want to be that person who does it, not just talks about doing it.”

With the rise of skin cancer incidences, Pirain believes having sunscreen in the parks will be a handy reminder to people to apply sunscreen—and reapply it. “You put your sunscreen on and you think you’re fine for the whole day, but you actually have to reapply it every two hours,” she says.

“A lot of people don’t know that.”

As a histologist, Pirain takes skin tissue, freezes it, stains it and puts it under the microscope to look for cancer cells. At Vujevich Dermatology Associates, two surgeons remove skin cancer in real time during an intricate procedure called MOHS surgery.

“I love being part of the laboratory,” Pirain says. “It’s a wonderful area to be in, for helping to solve the whole medical mystery of things. You’re solving the puzzle real time. Patients come in with cancer, and by the time they leave, their cancer is gone.”

You’re mom to Noelle, 11, and Christopher, 9. What’s it like being a mom?

Being a mom of a middle schooler is fun. It tests your technology skills and the love of your car. I enjoy watching my kids in their activities as they mature into beautiful, kind people.

What values do you strive to impart to your kids?

I try to teach my kids values by example. I want my kids to be respectful, compassionate and honest.

What are some things Americans can do to take better care of their skin?

Protect your skin at a younger age by wearing sunscreen – even on your hands. Skip the tanning beds, and get an annual skin check.

What’s your guilty pleasure?

I love cooking, eating great food, entertaining friends, any kind of music and running.

What’s one trait you like in others?

I admire a sense of adventure.

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JINJOO CHO

Her career has been far from ordinary. JINJOO CHO ‘06 is a world-renowned violinist – and she’s just 27. She’s been playing professionally since age 17, when she won the prestigious Montreal International Musical Competition. She beat out 250 others in the preliminary round alone.

How does one become a violinist of your caliber – what traits must have one have?

I think you have to love it. You have to love being involved in the artistic process, because no one can teach you to love something. When you love something, you think about it.

And when you think about it, you act on it.

For three weeks next summer, Cho will host ENCORE Chamber Music at Gilmour, bringing internationally acclaimed music teachers and talented young musicians from around the world to campus.

What is your favorite concert hall in which to perform?

Every venue is really special in its own way. I love Severance Hall, because that was where I made my first performance, at age 15. I played with the youth orchestra.

“It’s the most meaningful thing I’ve done so far in my career,” says Cho, who recently completed a residency in Seoul, South Korea. “The fact that it will take place at Gilmour makes it even more meaningful.”

What advice do you give aspiring violinists?

Work hard. Trust yourself.

ENCORE aims to educate young musicians through musical collaboration. The chamber music festival is open to international students of exceptional talent (ages 14 to 23) who aspire to be professional musicians.

Who were your most influential teachers at Gilmour?

Mr. McCamley (English) and Mr. Horner (World History). They taught me the things you can’t see are the most important things. Mr. McCamley encouraged you to explore your creativity and your own voice. For me, as an artist, it was such a priceless lesson. It eventually translated into my playing.

In that competition, Cho was launched to stardom. Since then, she has performed in the world’s finest music halls: Carnegie Hall, Severance Hall and Teatro Colón of Buenos Aires, among them.

Now she will be giving back to Gilmour in the best way she knows how, through music.

Cho approached several venues about hosting the festival, but she chose Gilmour because of the school’s strong support of the concept.

“The most important thing was their openness to the arts and their willingness to integrate art into Gilmour,” Cho says. “Everybody I talked to at Gilmour was very appreciative of what this could be. They really believed in this vision, they fully embraced it, and for me as a creative artist, that is always what made Gilmour really special to me.”

Sitting prominently on ENCORE’s faculty are those who influenced Cho most on her own path to artistry. Among them, Paul Kantor, Jamie Laredo and Sharon Robinson, the festival’s three artistic advisors. Having traveled the world, Cho says Clevelanders’ generosity of spirit, their desire to help others, is rare and unique.

“Musicians in Cleveland are incredibly generous – they share so much of their experience and love for this art form that it transmits into you,” Cho says. “In a way, they give out pieces of themselves so our potential can shine through, and I find that to be extraordinary.

“That really was the biggest motivation for creating this festival,” Cho continues. “I want to expose all the young aspiring musicians to that nurturing.”

Where did your talent come from? Is your family musical?

My family is not musical at all. I think it has more to do with how I work – how I practice and how I work. Especially when I was younger, I had a good work ethic.

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AlumNEWS Few undergrads have the opportunity that MICHAEL CLARK ’12 had last year. Now a senior at Johns Hopkins University, Clark was the team leader on a stem cell injection project that may one day make life a lot easier for people with prosthetic limbs.

Clark’s eight-person team, which he vetted and selected himself, was introduced to Dr. Luis Garza, who does wound healing research at Johns Hopkins. “He was working on developing a new stem cell therapy with the goal of converting the thin skin you might find on your arms or legs to the thick, volar skin typically found on your palms and your feet,” Clark says. “For amputees, this could mean a reduction in the chafing and abrasion caused by wearing a prosthetic device.”

Dr. Garza told Clark’s team he was having problems delivering the stem cell therapy to patients through injections. He challenged Clark and his team to invent a device that would make that feasible. As it was, injecting into the outer layer of skin was challenging because the layer is so shallow.

Not to mention, “when these stem cells are injected through the needle, a lot of them die,” Clark says. “That was the primary concern for us.”

In the end, Clark and his team developed a device that performs intradermal injections with a high degree of control over injection rate and injection volume. They also designed a system that reduces the risk of infection at the injection site, and an automated cell thawing system that reduces cell loss.

In addition to all of this, they developed a business plan for selling, marketing and profiting from the device.

They presented the device to researchers at Johns Hopkins and pitched their sales plan at contests, taking first place at Carnegie Mellon University’s McGinnis Venture Competition in 2014.

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“I loved working on this,” says Clark, who is majoring in biomedical engineering. “I was thinking what direction I wanted to go in with my biomedical degree. I wanted to explore whether working as part of a start up would interest me, and I figured this would be a good way to test the waters.”

In the end, it was, Clark says. “I ultimately decided to go to medical school, but whatever I end up doing in medicine, I want medical device innovation to be a part of it.”

MICHAEL CLARK

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You applied for this project as a sophomore, when it is typically led by seniors. Why did you push yourself to get involved?

I was always a science guy at Gilmour.

I did the Catalyst program there, and it really inspired me to get involved in research once I got here. Research was a big reason why I chose to come here, so I chose to get involved with it as soon as I could.

What do you envision yourself doing down the road?

I want to pursue a career in medicine,

but I don’t just want to practice. While at Hopkins I have had a blast getting involved in clinical research and medical device innovation, so I want those aspects of medicine to be a part of my career.

How do you unwind?

Hanging out with friends and exploring Baltimore.

The best things in life are_____.

Not things.

2015 ATHLETICS Gilmour Inducts Four to Athletics Hall of Fame At halftime of the Gilmour Academy football team’s home opener on Saturday, September 5 against Mogadore, three former Lancer athletes and one former Lancer coach were inducted into the school’s Athletics Hall of Fame.This year’s inductees were Brett Schumacher ’01, Gabrielle (Bri) Tayek Steiner ’04, Christopher Rhode ’93 and Coach Tiho Teisl.

Brett Schumacher ’01 Schumacher played three sports – football, basketball and track – all four years at Gilmour. He earned a total of 10 varsity letters, including four in football and track and two in basketball. During his senior year at Gilmour, he was a captain in each of those sports.

During his senior year, Schumacher was Sun Player of the Week in football; received the Lancer Award in football and track; earned All-MAC 8 recognition in all three sports; won the Charles Mooney Trophy as the (Co)-Male Athlete of the Year; received the Br. David Baltrinic Award and earned OIAAA/NIAAA Scholar-Athlete scholarships. He helped lead the track team to MAC 8 and District championships that season.

Schumacher just finished his tenure as the Alumni Association President and will remain active as the Past-President for the next two years. He and his wife, Maggie, have a daughter Isabell and the family continues to reside a few miles from Gilmour.

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“It’s definitely a

“Today is an honor

“The induction is very

“To come back and

tremendous honor and

because Gilmour is

special to me not only

see the development

I’m very grateful for the

such a great place and

because it recognizes

not only in the athletic

opportunities that I was

there is commitment

years of service

department, but also in

given here at Gilmour –

to the mission…Just

but, in particular, it

academics has been

being able to play three

to be put in that group

recognizes the fact that

just amazing. And

sports and learning a lot

of inductees is a real

I got the opportunity to

now that I’m back in

lessons on the field that

honor for me.”

work with some very

the U.S. (after being

have helped me out in

– Bri Tayek Steiner ’04

wonderful men and

abroad for nine years),

my life.”

women over the 30

I’m really looking

– Brett Schumacher ’01

years and watch them

forward to becoming

grown from high school

an active part of

student-athletes to what

the community and

they are today. That’s

hopefully sending my

very special.”

child here one day.”

– Tiho Teisl

– Chris Rhode ’93

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Bri Tayek Steiner ’04 Steiner was on the softball and basketball teams during her time at Gilmour Academy. An accomplished pitcher on the Lancer fastpitch team, she had 42 career wins, and, during her junior year, pitched all but three innings, finishing with a 19-3 record. Throughout her career, she had the most runs scored (78), was a MAC 8 All-League selection for two years and was the conference Player of the Week twice. She earned the Gilmour MVP Award for her team in 2003 and received the Gilmour Coaches’ Award in 2004. Tayek Steiner was also recognized as a Plain Dealer “Player to Watch,” earned Plain Dealer Honorable Mention and was named to the NewsHerald First Team.

LANCER ATHLETICS

Brian Horgan, Kathy Kenny, Tiho Teisl, Chris Rhode ’93, Brett Schumacher ’01, Bri Tayek Steiner ’04, Jon Wanders and Jeff Walrich at the induction ceremony

On the basketball court, as a sophomore, she led the varsity basketball team to the district finals with double-digit scoring through the sectional tournament.

She was recently married to Ryan Steiner and resides in the Cleveland area.

Chris Rhode ’93 During Rhode’s four years at Gilmour Academy, he participated in three sports – swimming, baseball and football – lettering 10 times.

He was a varsity swimmer all four years and, during his junior and senior years, was the team captain. In 1992, he received the Lancer Award for boys swimming. As a sophomore, junior and senior, he also played varsity baseball and football. He earned a number of awards throughout his high school career.

Rhode’s senior year, he was selected as Gilmour’s Outstanding Defensive Back in football.

As a baseball player, he received Rookie of the Year in 1991. During the 1992

season, he won the Lancer Award and was selected for the All-SEC First Team.

During his senior year, he was captain of the team and was one of seven seniors who led the team to a 20-2 record.

He struck out only twice that season and finished with a .475 career batting average. He earned All-Ohio Honorable Mention, was selected for the News-Herald First Team Infield for Division III-IV and was selected for the Greater Cleveland Baseball All-Star game.

Rhode and his family have recently relocated to California.

Coach Tiho Teisl Teisl began coaching soccer at Gilmour in 1974 and coached through 2003, amassing an overall record of 246-242-48.

Throughout his tenure, his teams were East Division champions in 1977, 1978 (co-champions) and 1981; MAC 8 champions in 1996, 1999, 2001, 2002 and 2003; and the district runner-up in 2001.

Teisl accumulated numerous coaching awards as well. He was named the East Sectional Coach of the Year in 1981;

MAC 8 Coach of the Year in 1996, 1999, 2001, 2002 and 2003; the Greater Cleveland Scholastic Soccer Coaches Association’s (GCSSCA) Division III Private School Coach of the Year in 1996, 2001 and 2003; the GCSSCA Division II Private School Coach of the Year in 1998; the Ohio Scholastic Soccer Coaches Association’s (OSSCA) Division II Private School Coach of the Year in 1998 and the GCSSCA Private School Coach of the Year in 2002. He was inducted into the OSSCA Hall of Fame in 1996.

Teisl is in his 43rd year at Gilmour. He is currently the Dean of Student Life and Discipline and he continues to lead yearly trips to Honduras with students, alumni and parents.

Athletic Director Jeff Walrich says of the inductees, “The Hall of Fame is such a special honor and I am excited to be a part of the inductees’ memorable day.

The inductees embrace Gilmour’s mission and embody what it meant to be a student-athlete or a coach at the Academy.”

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GILMOUR MEMORIALS

• Memorial -

Charlie Tremont, Varsity Men’s Golf Coach, Dies at 62 Charles “Charlie” Tremont ’70, the beloved varsity golf coach who led the Lancer men to the state championship in 2010, passed away peacefully April 23, 2015. He was 62. He is survived by his wife, Karen, and two sons, Chris ’01 and A.J. ’04.

In his 11 years as Gilmour’s men’s varsity golf coach, Tremont also coached the team to seven district championships and eight top-10 state tournament finishes. Four students won individual state golf championships under Charlie’s direction as well.

Man of the Year in 2012, a nod to his consistent dedication to the school over the years. In addition to being the men’s varsity golf coach, Charlie served as Gilmour’s finance officer and assistant to the Headmaster from 1975 to 1978 and was a Gilmour parent.

Charlie, who starred on Gilmour’s varsity football and golf teams, spent a lifetime giving back to his alma mater in many ways. He was honored as Gilmour’s

News of Charlie’s passing invoked sympathy and sorrow throughout the Gilmour community. He was remembered by all as a talented coach, but more, as a kind person with a generous spirit.

“He was a very thoughtful guy. He never said ‘no,’” recalled Vern Weber, who coached Charlie in football and became his close friend as the years went by. “He always was there to help anybody. He’d call me every so often, usually on a Sunday evening, and he just liked to talk. He’d ask, ‘How’s everything going?’”

One of them, Andrew Bieber ’13, recalled his former coach and mentor as utterly selfless, the kind of person one strove to emulate.

“No matter the situation, Coach Tremont was a person who could always be relied upon,” Bieber said. “It didn't matter if one of his players was sick and in the hospital or standing on the podium receiving a trophy. He was there through the good and the bad. Not just out of courtesy, but because he genuinely cared for our well being and wanted to see us succeed in all of our endeavors.”

finance and business manager at the Church of St. Clare in Lyndhurst.

To honor Charlie, members of Gilmour’s golf team memorialized him with a plaque on a bench near Gilmour’s football field. It was dedicated in a special ceremony on October 11.

Charlie earned his undergraduate degree in management and finance from Baldwin Wallace University in 1974.

In 1983, he earned his master’s degree in systems management from Baldwin Wallace. For 17 years, he worked as the

“Coach Tremont coached us in a similar way to how he lived his life: with respect, passion, courage, and care,” Bieber said. “As a result, these are the same values that he instilled by example into all of his players. He didn't just help to develop us as golfers, but as people, too. He was really a life coach, and golf was his medium.”

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• Memorial -

Gilmour Academy expresses sympatһy to tһe families of tһe following: BRIAN J. KADUNC ’95,

brother of Melinda Kadunc Sgariglia ’93

JAMES H. LOWNIK ’65

JAMES F. WEISGERBER ’64

JOSEPH E. SOTAK III ’61,

JOSEPH R. ZIDANIC ’59

MARK A. KAMPMAN ’81,

brother of Donald ’69

son of Mary, former Gilmour staff member; brother of Matthew ’85, Dean ’86 and Douglas ’88

MICHAEL P. TUITE ’87

Our sympathy is also extended to the alumni and families of the following: RICHARD BARANSKI,

MICHAEL DAHER, uncle of

father of Richard ’72

Charbel Najm ’16

HENRY BELZINKSAS,

ELAINE DESALVA, grandmother of Kevin

grandfather of Justin Hallal ’15

Berry, former Gilmour Upper School instructor

ROBERT K. HEALEY, SR., founding member and board director of Glen Oak School for Girls; father of Sharon Healey Lesinski GO ’75 and Mary Healey Pisano GO ’81; grandfather of Christopher ’05 and Edith ’07 Lesinski

MARY MARTHA C. EBLE, grandmother of

FLORENCE HEMMI, grandmother of

IRENE O. BENT, grandmother of

Leland ’11 and Grant ’15 Bent JAMES A. BROWN, SR.,

father of James Brown, Jr. ’88 and Lauri Brown ’98; father-in-law of Katherine Geraci Brown ’88

DANIEL E. FERRAZZA, father of Gregory

Ferrazza ’83; father-in-law of Gregg Rodier ’79

Richard Hemmi ’87 and Theresa Hemmi Rowohlt ’88 JOSEPH HEIMANN, former Gilmour coach;

grandfather of Megan Porter ’17

DONALD J. COBURN,

ANNE MARIE FRIEDMAN, aunt of Ronald

father of Mary Rose Coburn Sullivan GO ’78; grandfather of Colleen ’04 and Catherine ’07 Coburn

Ryavec ’16

VINCENT J. HLAVIN, father of Thomas ’76, Peter ’77 and Pamela ’87

SUSAN GALLATIN, mother of Krista Gallatin Weisberg ’83

Horbaly ’84

PAUL COLLINS,

MARIAN S. HORBALY, mother of Pamela

son of Joseph Collins ’84; nephew of John Collins ’78

HARRIET GEASE, great-grandmother of

Hannah ’21 and Trevor ’24 Weltle

JAMES J. KASCSAK, grandfather of Dominic Kascsak ’16

RICHARD COMMONS, relative of

MARY GRETAK, aunt of Richard Grejtak,

MARY G. KILBANE, cousin of Br. Robert

Sr. Mary Ann Mehling, I.H.M., Gilmour Upper School instructor

Gilmour Upper School instructor

JOHN L. CONWAY,

Katherine Budaji ’06

uncle of Martine Conway ’92

DANIEL HATHY, former Gilmour technical

LYNNE LAVELLE COSTIGAN,

support specialist

aunt of Michael ’11 and Katharine ’14 Zavagno 96

Kiley Eble ’15

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BETTY ANN HARTMAN, grandmother of

Lavelle, headmaster emeritus and director of The Bishop Gilmour Institute for Holy Cross Mission Integration BR. BERNARD KLIM, C.S.C., former Gilmour maintenance and groundskeeping staff member

GILMOUR MEMORIALS ALEXINE MORGAN, grandmother of

MICHAEL SCHREMS, father of James

and Olivia ’97 Kunevicius

Marcus Jordan ’19

Schrems ’87

VINCENT LALLI, grandfather of Matthew

JANET NOWAK, mother-in-law of

JOHN SCHULD, grandfather of Margaret

Deanne Nowak, Gilmour Upper School instructor

Schmidt ’12

JOHN NEWTON, father of Jon Newton ’62

Matthew Greenfield, Gilmour Upper School instructor

JAMES M. KUNEVICIUS, uncle of Jessica ’95

Lalli ’03 JAMES M. LAVELLE, father of Laura Lavelle Ramella GO ’73 and Timothy Lavelle ’76; grandfather of Claire ’09, Madeline ’14 and Jacqueline ’16 Hawkins PATRICK LAWLOR, father of Alec Lawlor,

residence hall senior proctor FLOYD D. LOOP, father of Marie Loop ’04

EPHREM MARIE O’BRIEN, grandmother of

James Day ’94 CONSTANCE M. OCCHIONERO, grandmother of Matthew ’93, Michael ’96 and Daniel ’00 Occhionero

EDWARD A. LOZICK, uncle of John ’78 and James ’80 (deceased) Lennon; brother-in-law of John P. Lennon ’55

SHAWN O’REILLY, brother-in-law of

GEORGE LUNGOCIU, father of Daniela Lungociu Archer, former Gilmour instructor

TIMOTHY J. ROCCO, father of Timothy

PETER P. MAISANO, grandfather of Laura

and former students Brian and Kevin O’Rourke

Novotney, Gilmour Montessori directress and Tricia Maisano ’96, Gilmour advancement associate

Robert Fowler, Gilmour Upper School instructor Rocco, Jr. ’88 DENNIS O’ROURKE, uncle of Grace ’08

SHIRLEY PEETZ, grandmother of Kiersten

ELAINE SHAGRIN, grandmother of

JOHN R. SHAINOFF, father of Christopher

Shainoff ’82 MICHAEL SHEA, brother of Theresa Stark, Gilmour Lower School instructor JOHN M. SISKOVIC, SR., father of John, Jr. ’83; grandfather of Alexandra ’17 and John K. ’19 KEVIN J. SROUB, father of Brian Sroub ’77; grandfather of Katharine ’06 and Jackson ’09 Sroub; father-in-law of Jennifer Stephan Sroub GO ’75 ROBERT TAYEK, grandfather of Douglas ’00

and Gabrielle ’04 Tayek

’15 and Erin ’17 Dietrick

JOSEPH TEKNIPP, former Gilmour varsity

THOMAS A. PEZZENTI, grandfather of

’15, Kylie ’16 and Gianna ’20 Velotta; mother-in-law of William Velotta III ’71

Jeffrey ’88 and Kelly ’93 Brunello

football coach; uncle of Donald ’96, Melissa ’97, Brian ’05 and Allison ’10 Herbe

ADELLE C. MAPSTONE, grandmother of

ROBERT PRATT, father of Christopher ’06 and former student Christina Pratt

WILLIAM P. TIGHE, JR., grandfather of Kathryn Tighe Falhamer ’06

ANN RAYMOND, grandmother of Adam

LAURA B. TREMONT, sister-in-law of Charles ’70 (deceased) and Timothy ’71 Tremont; aunt of Christopher ’01 and Andrew ’04 Tremont

MARILYN MALLOY, grandmother of Will

Terre Toedtman Strcic ’88 VINCENT G. MAROTTA, SR., father of Mary

Marotta GO ’75

Lesko ’05

LOIS CARR MARTIN, sister of David D. Carr,

JOHN RICHUISA, great uncle of Anthony

Gilmour trustee; aunt of David M. Carr ’79

LOLA FALCONE ROSSO, mother of Camille

KATHY MCPHILLIPS, former Gilmour

Lower School instructor ROBERT J. MEYO, uncle of Lisa Meyo

Bricker ’93 and Joseph Meyo ’94 VIOLA R. MILITE, grandmother of Brian

Minotas ’96, Gilmour Lower School instructor and Lauren Minotas ’99 KATHLEEN MILLER, aunt of Jacob ’13,

Zachary ’14 and Joshua ’20 Saliba

Folisi ’83

RAYMOND USIAK, father of Marianne

Krause Keyes, former Gilmour Lower School instructor

Usiak GO ’80

EDWARD F. RYBKA, father of Edward W. ’73; grandfather of Keith ’05 and Hallie ’08 Rybka

’89

KATHLEEN D. SANTABARBARA, former

Gilmour Admission administrative assistant CATHERINE T. SCHAFER, wife of Theodore

Schafer ’50

JOSHUA R. WEIL, nephew of Matthew Weil ROBERT WILLIAMS, grandfather of Nathan

’23 and Evelyn, former Gilmour student, Turocy; father-in-law of Gregory Turocy ’82 THOMAS YOUNG, uncle of Kris Rogers, Gilmour trustee; great uncle of Harry Rogers ’22

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INSPIRATION, PERSPIRATION, DEDICATION. Lancers’ hard work pays off with four appearances at State Championship meets.

2015 STATES Congratulations to the varsity volleyball team for earning the program’s first-ever state championship on November 14. In the championship game, the Lancers upset previously undefeated St. Henry, the No. 1 ranked team in Division III. Gilmour volleyball has been to the Final Four a total of seven times in the past nine seasons, finishing as runner-up in five of the appearances.

Congrats, also, to the boys and girls cross country teams, which finished 10th and third in the state. Hannah Markel ’16 led the way for the Lancers, finishing sixth in the state.

Finally, congratulations to varsity girls tennis player Claudia Althans ’17 for finishing third in the Division II girls tennis state championship. It was her second time competing in the state event, finishing fourth as a sophmore.

An independent, coed, Catholic school in the Holy Cross tradition Montessori (18 months - Kindergarten) and Grades 1-12 34001 Cedar Road • Gates Mills, Ohio • www.gilmour.org

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Congratulations, cla s s o f 2015!

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Gilmour Academy 34001 Cedar Road Gates Mills, Ohio 44040-9356