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Faculty & Staff

Guidance Counselor Maureen McLaughlin and her husband, Brian, welcomed a daughter, Isabelle “Izzy” Grace Taylor, on January 14, 2021. Izzy joins big brother, Jonathan.

Assistant Director of College Counseling Angela Davies and her husband, Evan, welcomed a daughter, Quinn Meredith Davies, on October 15, 2020.

Religion Teacher Laura Gengler Hudson and her husband, Kevin, welcomed a son, Andrew Bott Hudson, on October 2, 2020. Andrew joins his sister, Kathryn.

Director of Educational Technology and Fine Arts Teacher John Kilroy and his wife, Alexa Reimelt, welcomed a son, Christopher Reimelt Kilroy, in October 2020.

Last fall, Religion Teacher Dr. Harry Rissetto, PhD ’89 had a book review published in the International Journal of Evangelization and Catechetics. Dr. Rissetto reviewed Claude Pavur, S.J.’s In the School of Ignatius: Studious Zeal and Devoted Learning which examines the role of the Ratio Studiorum and its application within modern Jesuit education.

1943

Col. Nicholas J. Morana, Ret. ’43 Col. Nicholas J. Morana, Ret. ’43

celebrated his 95th birthday on October 16, 2020 and celebrated his 70th wedding anniversary with his wife, Ann, on September 4, 2020.

1956

David Hofmann ’56, a painter based in Santa Fe, visited Gonzaga in December 2019 at the invitation of recently retired art teacher Ms. Jenn Carter. After the talk, David decided to donate a painting to Gonzaga, which was hung in the Alumni Art Gallery in Reusch Cantwell in November 2020. After graduating from Gonzaga in 1956, Hofmann attended the U.S. Naval Academy, where he earned a B.S. in Engineering. After serving in the Marine Corps, he worked as President and CEO of several public and privately-owned companies. In 2006, he earned a M.A. in Liberal Arts from St. John’s College in Santa Fe.

1958

Following his graduation from Gonzaga in 1958, Jack Fenlon ’58 attended Georgetown University, St. Mary’s Seminary, and Loyola College in Baltimore for a master’s degree in education, and Denver University in Colorado for a doctorate in education. A former Catholic priest, Jack is now an Elder in the Presbyterian Church. While he was a teacher, counselor, and administrator in education, he was also a City Councilman, State Representative, and State Senator in Colorado. He now lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, and has three daughters and six grandchildren.

1959

In September, Thomas Clark, Jr. ’59 published his latest novel, The Altar Boy, which is available in both hard copy and electronically through outlets such as Amazon and Kindle. graduated in 1963 from Georgetown University as an Accounting Major in the School of Business, Charlie joined the accounting fi rm of Councilor, Buchanan and Mitchell. He would then use his fi nancial and accounting acumen to establish successful payroll and human resources companies including Hughes Computer Systems and Wolf Computers, which went on to become Payroll Network. As his business ventures grew, so too did Charlie’s involvement with numerous local civic, religious, and educational institutions.

In November, Charles “Charlie” Wolf II, CPA ’59 was named the Catholic Business Person of the Year by the Catholic Business Network DC (CBN-DC) at their 7th Annual CBN-DC Gala. A Washington DC native, Charlie is Chairman and Founder of Payroll Network. Having

Top right: Col. Nicholas J. Morana, Ret. ’43

and his wife, Ann. Bottom right: Father Stephen Planning in the Alumni Art Gallery in Reusch Cantwell next to a painting by David Hofmann ’56.

Left: Charles “Charlie” Wolf II, CPA ’59

1961

Jeffrey McKay, son of Charles ‘Jack’ McKay ’61, was recently elected as Chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.

1963

John Shanley ’63 was elected president of Skyline Community Action, a 501(c) (3) nonprofi t organization in central Virginia that provides lower income households in three central Virginia counties with a variety of assistance and services. Programs provided include Head Start, Healthy Families child care counseling, and Project Discovery, a program to help youth stay in high school and graduate. Skyline Community Action also provides affordable housing for renters and owners, housing counseling, and emergency home repairs.

1968

In October, the Catholic University of America (CUA) Columbus School of Law honored J. Michael Hannon ’68 as one of its 2020 Distinguished Alumni at the Law School’s Reunion Weekend. The Distinguished Alumni Award honors an alumnus who has led an extraordinary career since law school graduation, showing dedication and commitment to the betterment of the legal profession and refl ecting the importance of a Columbus Law School education. Michael graduated from the evening division of Catholic’s law school in 1980. His father, the Honorable Joseph M. Hannon, Associate Judge of the Superior Court for the District of Columbia, and brother, Brian W. Hannon ’75, partner with the intellectual property fi rm of Shugrue Mion, also earned their law degrees from CUA. Following law school, Michael served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Columbia from 1981 to 1988. In 2006, he founded Hannon Law Group.

A conversation between two members of the Class of 1968 has led to publication of a historic personal account of events that ushered the United States into World War II. At their Jubilarian Reunion in 2018, Robert Taplett ’68 mentioned to Michael Dolan ’68 that his father (also Robert) had kept a diary from 1941-1942 as a young U.S. Marine Corps offi cer serving in the Pacifi c. Mike, who edits American History magazine, asked to read the transcript of the never-published diary. The result is a fascinating and intimate glimpse into American life in the months before and after December 7, 1941. “So This Is War!” ran as the cover story of the August 2020 issue of American History and is accessible online at www.historynet.com.

Thomas C. Holtz ’68 published a book called Architecture, Drawings, & Paintings 2010-2020 in May 2020.

1970

Dr. Jeffrey C. Mazique ’70 has been treating coronavirus patients on the Sault Ste. Marie Reservation in upstate Michigan.

1971

Hardy G. Bennett ’71 is celebrating 35 years of employment with Montgomery County Health and Human Services.

1972

Richard Sheridan ’72 has spent the last ten years working for an advertising fi rm specializing in advertising campaigns for legal services and is now retired. Richard describes himself as a “real fi ghting Irishman,” as he has survived two bouts of colon cancer, liver cancer, and is limited in his mobility by multiple sclerosis. Richard and his wife, Lynne, live in East Los Angeles and he is looking forward to his 50th Reunion in 2022.

1979

In August, Emilio Garcia-Ruiz ’79, managing editor for The Washington Post, was named editor-in-chief of the San Francisco Chronicle. Emilio has been a managing editor at The Post since 2013 and has been with the news organization for more than 20 years. According to The Washington Post, Garcia-Ruiz said in an interview: “The opportunity to lead the Chronicle’s newsroom at a time when local news has never been more vital was impossible to pass up. In the Bay Area, you have an

Left: J. Michael Hannon ’68

Right: Robert D. Taplett, father of Bob Taplett ’68, led the Marine amphibious landing at Inchon that turned the tide in the Korean War. He was decorated for his heroism at the Battle of the Chosin Reservoir.

Together Again

Two Eagles—Dr. Nicholas P. Charles DM,

Class of 1981 and Mr. Carrington Carter Class

of 1984—reunited this year at the Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. The United States Army War College (USAWC) is a U.S. Army educational institution on the 500-acre campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks. It provides graduate-level instruction to senior military offi cers and civilians to prepare them for senior leadership assignments and responsibilities. Each year, a number of Army colonels and lieutenant colonels are considered by a board for admission. Approximately 800 students attend at any one time, half in a two-year-long distance learning program, and the other half in an on-campus, full-time resident program lasting ten months. Upon completion, the college grants its graduates a master’s degree in Strategic Studies. “Nick and I had not seen each other since he graduated from Gonzaga in 1981,” says Carrington. “Ironically, he was my big brother when I entered my freshman year at Gonzaga in 1980. Now, he is assuming the big brother role again at the U.S. Army War College. It is pretty awesome!”

iconic city and an entire region whose entire identity is being challenged by numerous forces. The Chronicle newsroom has the talent and ambition to tell the story well, and I want to be part of it.”

Michael A. Bell ’79 is pleased to report that his wife, Janet, turned a youthful 60 in January 2021 and his daughter, Micah, graduated from Cornell’s Law School and now works with him at his company, Acaletics. His daughter, Monet, just became a pediatrician and had their fi rst granddaughter, Aniyah, on his birthday. Another daughter, Janae, graduated from Harvard and has been accepted to Harvard’s Business School.

1984

Dr. John R. Prahinski ’84 serves as team orthopedic surgeon for Liberty University’s Top 25 Football Team.

Andrew Zaharevitz ’84 recently retired from U.S. Customs and Border Protection after 29 years of service and has fulfi lled his lifelong dream of being a pilot. Andrew fl ew for the U.S. Navy for over 10 years and then with Customs. He has no future plans as of right now and is enjoying some time off.

1986

Paul Zapatka ’86 had 11 of his still life paintings displayed in the 2020 DC Art all virtual online gallery (due to the pandemic) in Tenleytown, Washington DC during September 2020. He recently showed his artwork in the virtual “Small Works” and “Drawing and Water Media” art shows at The Yellow Barn Gallery in Glen Echo, Maryland.

1990

In December, Michael Bobbitt ’90 was named Executive Director of the Mass Cultural Council, an agency that partners with communities across the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to expand access, improve education, promote diversity, and encourage excellence in

Left: Michael Bobbitt ’90 Right: Thomas Farley ’93

the arts, humanities, and sciences. In this new role, Michael is the most senior cultural offi cial in the Commonwealth. He joins the Mass Cultural Council after serving as the Artistic Director of the New Repertory Theatre in Watertown, Massachusetts.

1993

In January, Thomas Farley ’93 returned to Eye Street (virtually) to speak with members of the Gonzaga Young Investors Society about his experience in

Set in Stone

Michael Bratti ’84 is the owner of R. Bratti Associates, a fourth-generation stone contractor based in Alexandria. As part of the restoration of St. Aloysius Church, Michael recently fi nished restoring the set of yellow marble stairs that leads to the altar. Gonzaga is incredibly grateful to Michael for volunteering his time and talent to this unique and important project. Michael, who helped with the St. Al’s restoration in the 90s, says that he was down at Gonzaga over a year ago with his son, Peter, who is a current junior, and noticed that some of the stair treads were coming apart. He called Father Planning and offered to repair them; Father was very grateful to have his help. “The stairs in the lower sanctuary are made of an Italian marble from Tuscany called Giallo Siena,” said Michael. “It’s a famous church marble that has been used for centuries in Europe, but is very hard to fi nd now. I made a few calls to some of our friends and colleagues in Italy and sent pictures of what we were trying to match. I told them, ‘Anything you have, we’ll take.’ It took us more than a year to fi nd matching materials. The pieces they sent were small and awkwardly shaped, but we pieced the stones together and wove them together until they fi t. Father Planning was incredibly helpful in giving us the liberty to make it work, even though it couldn’t be perfect.” In addition to work in the church, Michael and his company have helped Gonzaga with many projects in the past, including the granite benches, wall, and “G” along Eye Street. R. Bratti Associates, which was started by his great-great-grandfather, has worked on thousands of projects around the United States and in Washington, D.C., including the Kennedy Center, the National Air and Space Museum, and the repair work to the Pentagon after September 11. “Gonzaga is a big part of my life,” Michael says. “I owe a lot to the school. Gonzaga made me a successful man, and it’s my responsibility to give back.” “This is just one example of Mr. Bratti’s generosity toward Gonzaga through the years,” says Father Planning. “He has always offered his services to his Alma Mater, helping us to preserve and protect Gonzaga’s historic treasures. We are very grateful for his willingness to always give back to Gonzaga.”

the fi elds of fi nance and entrepreneurship. In an hour-long discussion with current students, Tom talked about how he got started in fi nance, current happenings on Wall Street, his views on running markets, his experience raising funds for special-purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), and how young people can become involved in investing. Tom, who gave the Kohlmann Address at Gonzaga’s Commencement ceremony in 2016, is Chairman and CEO of Far Point Acquisition Corp. He is also the former President of the New York Stock Exchange, the second youngest person to serve in that role.

1994

In October, Malcolm Johnson ’94 was the featured guest on 1st Amendment Sports’s weekly livestream broadcast, the WCAC Spectacular. Malcolm, who was inducted into Gonzaga’s Joe Kozik Athletic Hall of Fame in 2007, currently resides in Los Angeles, California and is the Executive Director of Community Development at JPMorgan Chase.

1995

Matt Donnelly ’95 published his second book, Lucky Day, in December. The book is the follow-up to Naughty Week, which was published in 2019, and is the second book in the children’s book series that is set in the DC area.

1997

In November, Chris Lucey ’97 joined the board of directors of the Father McKenna Center.

1998

In October, Dave Mackie ’98 was appointed General Manager of The Dabney, one of only 18 Mobil star restaurants in the DC area and located in Blagden Alley. Dave was previously a manager at the iconic Manhattan restaurant Gramercy Tavern.

2000

Phil Boland ’00 and his wife, Lauren, welcomed a baby girl, Shea Siena Boland, on August 8th, 2020. Shea joins her brother, James, in Rockville, Maryland.

2001

Dan Balserak ’01 and his wife, Jessica, welcomed a son, Augustin “Gus” Stuart Balserak, on December 29, 2020. Gus joins sisters Ella, Cate, and Lucy.

Michael Orfi ni ’01 and his wife, Betsy, welcomed a daughter, Virginia Lillian “Lilly,” on September 18, 2020. Lilly joins brothers Ollie, Luke, and Mickey.

John Stone ’01 and wife, Lizzie, welcomed a son, John Edward “Jack”, on November 5, 2020. Jack joins brother,

Left: The Lucey Family (from left to right) Chris ’97, Katie, Jack (8) and Charlotte (5) on the 4th Annual (Virtual) Walk4McKenna this year.

Right: Gonzaga alumni at the wedding of Doug Smith ’03 and his wife, Sarah, in 2019. From left to right: Ryan O’Boyle ’03, Mark Dillon ’03, Matt Glading ’03, Doug Smith ’03, Steve Kennedy ’03, Bryan Berry ’03, and John Wasp ’03. Reid. Gonzaga staff member Patty Stone is the proud grandmother.

2002

Cory Snyder ’02, who works in Corporate Safety for JetBlue Airways in Long Island City, New York, developed a COVID-19 infection prevention program for JetBlue and served as a subject matter expert for COVID-19 testing. He also developed a database for the collection, tracking, and reporting of COVID-19 cases and directed novel disinfection strategies for aircrafts.

2003

Bryan Berry ’03 and his wife, Lauren, welcomed a son, Luke Andrew, on March 23, 2020.

Michael R. Cherry ’03 married Maria Stucke in July of 2020. They are expecting their fi rst child in June 2021.

Eric Gehrke ’03 was recently named Men’s Lead Coach for USRowing’s 2021 Under 19 National Team. Eric will lead the coaching team that will represent the United States at the 2021 World Rowing Junior Championships this August in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.

Jamie Long ’03 and his wife, Jen Fountain, welcomed a daughter, Willa Elizabeth, on Dec. 21, 2020. Willa joins brother, Wally.

Doug Smith ’03 and his wife, Sarah, were wed at St. Aloysius Church on December 28, 2019. Several Gonzaga alumni were in attendance including

Ryan O’Boyle ’03, Mark Dillon ’03, Matt Glading ’03, Steve Kennedy ’03, Bryan

Berry ’03, and John Wasp ’03.

2004

Matthew W. Foust ’04 and his wife, Julie, welcomed a son, Jackson Willig Foust, on September 8, 2020.

2005

In October, the Sacramento Kings NBA franchise announced Paul Johnson ’05 as the organization’s new Director of Basketball Operations and General Manager of the team’s G League affi liate, the Stockton Kings. Johnson now leads Stockton’s front offi ce and has a hand in multiple aspects of the Kings’

Thank You to Our Alumni Poets

On Thursday, January 14, Gonzaga Poets & Writers Club hosted its third annual Alumni Poets’ Gathering via Zoom. Several alumni poets offered their time to assist current students in the morning before participating in a reading and discussion in the afternoon. In the morning class, Lucas Jung ’19 and Kyle Newman-Smith ’16 wrote drafts and then all the alumni present “workshopped” those drafts to demonstrate the process, in which the poet mostly listens to others assess his work. “It’s an excellent way to improve a poem, for the poet to know how others understand, or misunderstand, his words,” says English Teacher and Poets and Writers moderator Mr. Joe Ross. At the afternoon reading, each alum talked about his current life and his writing since Gonzaga. Then several of them read poems they’ve recently written. The alumni discussed how poetry helps them in their current jobs, and serves both a source of personal expression as well as an artistic pursuit. “It’s clear that these poets look at the world around them and bring it to poetry, their art,” says Mr. Ross. Alumni in attendance included

2000 Landen Buckson ’16, Jirhe Love ’17, Walter Hill ’16, Liam Wholihan ’16, Ryan Baker ’16, Kyle Newman-Smith ’16, Joseph Wete ’19, Lucas Jung ’19,

Derrell Bouknight ’15, and Maurice

Holmes ’14.

Thank you to all who made this annual event a success!

basketball operations. After graduating from Gonzaga, Johnson played basketball at La Salle University in the Atlantic 10 Conference, where he was captain of the men’s basketball team and graduated in 2009. He’s had several positions in the NBA since then, most recently serving as the Assistant General Manager of the NBA G League’s Oklahoma City Blue.

2006

Matt L'Etoile ’06 and wife, Katie, welcomed a baby boy, Thomas William, on February 18, 2021, joining sister Clara. This is the second grandchild of former English teacher Allan L'Etoile ’73.

Matthew Ryan ’06 was married to Jenna Korte on September 25, 2020 in Redondo Beach, California, before a small, socially distanced group of family and friends, which included Matt’s brother William ’10.

2007

Ryan Degnan ’07 and wife, Samantha, welcomed a baby girl, Mary Elaina, on July 13, 2020.

Carlos Marquez ’07 and his wife, Heather, welcomed their fi rst child, baby boy Javier Daniel Marquez, on February 10, 2021. The whole Marquez family hopes that little Javier follows in the footsteps of his father and his uncle Alejandro Marquez ’11 and becomes a fellow Eagle in the class of 2039.

Joey Orfi ni ’07 and wife, Katie, welcomed their fi rst child, Ava Rose, on February 2, 2021.

2009

Dylan Carter ’09 received his Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Maryland in 2020.

2010

Jon Turissini ’10 graduated from Georgetown University’s School of Medicine in the Spring of 2020 and will be completing his residency in General Surgery at Inova Fairfax Hospital in Virginia.

2012

Madison C. Hardimon ’12 was recently promoted to Legislative Director for Congressman Ron Wright, 6th District, Texas.

Demitrius McNeil ’12, a 2018 graduate of Le Moyne College, was recently named the College’s fi rst President’s Administrative Fellow in September. The program is a one-year appointment designed to introduce recent Le Moyne alumni to a variety of roles within higher education administration and prepare alumni to assume leadership roles at Le Moyne, other institutions of higher education, and organizations in other sectors. Demitrius will be pursuing a graduate degree while completing his fellowship. Since graduating from Le Moyne in 2018 with a B.A. in business analytics and marketing, Demitrius has served as director of business and economic development at CenterState CEO in Syracuse, an account manager at Pinckney Hugo Group, a marketing fi rm in Syracuse, and a partner/owner at Our Glass Consulting, whose mission is “to transform workplace culture and behavior to foster a more welcoming, diverse, and inclusive environment.”

2013

In February, Ryan Howell ’13 spoke to the Gonzaga Astronomy Club via Zoom about neutrinos, the standard model, and his own research. Ryan is several years into his Ph.D. program at the University of Rochester and recently concluded a 12-month grant from the Department of Energy at the Fermilab outside Chicago. He is working on the commissioning and operation of a neutrino detector at Fermilab and involved in related machine learning reconstruction projects.

In September, John “JJ” Mitchell ’13 was featured on SiriusXM’s The Catholic Channel (Ch. 129) on the “Sounds from the Spires” program as the guest of Dr. Jennifer Pascual, Music Director of St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City. In JJ’s interview, which includes about 30 minutes of his recordings, he talks about past projects as well as his current endeavors.

Matthew Ryan ’06 and his wife, Jenna.

Vincent Allen ’15

2015

After Graduating from the University of Maryland College Park with a degree in Cell Biology and Genetics last year, Vincent Allen ’15 was accepted into the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore. On Tuesday, November 10th, he participated in the school’s virtual “First White Coat” Ceremony where the student doctors take their oath and mark their offi cial entry into the medical profession. In addition to his studies, Vincent continues to volunteer helping underprivileged students in Baltimore and to be a man for others. He is working toward a residency in orthopedics.

In August, Aaron Elder ’15 was named President of the Graduate Student Association at James Madison University. According to a post on the GSA’s Facebook page, Aaron’s goal for the Association was to grow awareness of their programming and to produce increased networking opportunities for each member. Aaron also works at the University Recreation Center (UREC) as the Graduate Assistant for Sport Clubs and Inclusive Recreation while he pursues a Masters in Sport and Recreation Leadership with a Campus Recreation concentration.

2019

Former Gonzaga football captain and current player at Johns Hopkins University Loic Sangwa ’19 co-hosted and moderated a live webinar about concussion education on Tuesday, September 8. Loic is an intern at the GW Rodham Institute. The hour-long panel discussion included Head Coach Randy Trivers as well as a number of esteemed guests.

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Gonzaga mourns the recent passing of longtime teacher and coach Father Raymond Lelii, S.J. as well as former Board Chairman and faithful Gonzaga supporter John “Jack” Vardaman. Father Lelii fi rst came to Gonzaga as a Jesuit scholastic in 1955 and then returned for two more stints—from 1965 until 1995 and from 2000 to 2011—totaling more than 40 years of service to Eye Street. Jack Vardaman fi rst joined the Eye Street community as a parent in the 1980s and served on the Board beginning in the early 2000s, shepherding the school through three capital campaigns that transformed Gonzaga into what it is today. Both men had an incredible impact at Gonzaga, and will be deeply missed. We are eternally grateful for their dedication and service.

Father Lelii (left) receiving the St. Aloysius Medal and Father Planning (right) Father Raymond Lelii, S.J.

Father Novotny (left) and Jack Vardaman (right)

Jack Vardaman (left) receiving the St. Aloysius Medal and Father Planning (right) Father Lelii with a student Jack Vardaman unveiling the St. Ignatius statue in the courtyard.