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WELCOMING OUR NEWEST ALUMNI
The Class of 2019 Sunday, May 19, 2019 the Class of 2019 celebrated Graduation in the Fr. Michael McCabe Activities Center at Lourdes Central Catholic School. Valedictorian speakers were Ashley Baragary and Colter Fulton. Academic All-Conference Medals were awarded to students with a composite score of 24 and above on their ACT or SAT equivalent. Bronze: Macey Allgood and Logan Bakula. Silver: Chloe DuBois, Colter Fulton and Piper Monson. Gold: Ashley Baragary and Grant Draus. Colter Fulton won the John Paul II award. The John Paul II award is given to a student who is not only academically proficient but also demonstrates holiness, humility and excellent character. Prior to Graduation, we celebrated our Seniors during the traditional Baccalaureate Mass, Senior Salute video and hugline (where parents, faculty and staff, and our Kindergarten-Junior Class students shared hugs, high-fives, and well wishes to our graduating Seniors).
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WELCOMING OUR NEWEST ALUMNI
Front Row: Colter Fulton, Anna Gigstad, Karinne Olson, Chloe DuBois, Piper Monson, Heaven Winscot, Macey Allgood Row 2: Grant Draus, Cristian Watkins, Andrew Aldana, Johnny Heng, Logan Bakula, Ashley Baragary Back Row: Jacey Kreifels, Natalie Wright, Alivia Stuhr, Thomas Carpenter
Class Motto
“Our lives are before us, our pasts are behind us, but our memories are forever with us.” -Unknown
Class Flower White Rose and Blue Carnation
Class Color Royal Blue
Class Song “High Hopes” By Panic! at the Disco (Valedictorian speakers Ashley Baragary and Colter Fulton)
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S T E WA R D S H I P AWA R D S Bishop Conley joined us to celebrate Mass for the feast day of Our Lady of Lourdes and to help us recognize some volunteers who have gone above and beyond in support of our school.
ALUMNI OF THE YEAR Mrs. Mary Kaiser is our Alumni of the Year. Mary Durr Kaiser is a graduate of the Class of 1950. After graduation, Mary immediately began taking an interest and helping our alumni at St. Bernard’s Academy/Lourdes by hosting the first alumni banquet, keeping records of all our alumni, and supplying yearbooks for our school library. Mary’s daughter-in-law shared that Mary kept notebooks full of handwritten records to keep track of our alumni - long before the luxury of computers and excel files! Mary’s efforts and foresight have been a great blessing in developing our Alumni Association and recording the history of our St. Bernard’s Academy and Lourdes Central Catholic school. STEWARDSHIP OF FAITH AWARD This year our Stewardship of Faith award recognizes Mr. Herb Lavigne for his generous gifts of time, talent, and treasure to Lourdes. Herb has been a great friend to Lourdes over the years. His passion and interest in providing a Catholic education for our students, and providing for our faculty, staff, and facilities has helped Lourdes to be the vibrant school it is today. Herb has not only been generous in donating to help with our school building, fine arts programs, and special projects but he has been generous in giving of his time and expertise to Lourdes over the years as well. Herb has always been very humble and purposeful in his giving to Lourdes and we are blessed to have him as part of our Lourdes Family. VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR We are honored to recognize Skip and Monica Welsh as our Volunteer of the Year. Skip and Monica Welsh own Table Creek Golf Course & Restaurant and continually open up their business for LAA meetings, school fundraisers, and events for our students, families, fans, and alumni. Skip has selflessly given countless hours to our youth in organizing and coaching the basketball leagues for boys and girls in grades 3rd-8th. Skip also helps keep stats for our football team. Monica helps with our basketball program by keeping the book and time clock at basketball games. Monica serves on our Alumni Association and volunteers with alumni activities as well. Skip & Monica Welsh are two of many, wonderful volunteers we have at Lourdes. We are so grateful for the ways Skip and Monica have supported our students, families, alumni, and fans at LCC! 4
L I F E T I M E A C H I E V E M E N T AWA R D After 45 years at Lourdes Central Catholic, and a total of 49 years of teaching, our iconic teacher Mrs. Diana Harris is retiring. Mrs. Harris has taught nearly 900 Lourdes graduates! She has been an example of excellence to all and demanded the same standard for our students. No one will forget their days in Mrs. Harris’ classroom and her students will always remember her with a smile. Mrs. Harris lives out the mission statement of our school and will forever be part of our Lourdes Family. Lourdes Central Catholic awarded her the Our Lady of Lourdes Lifetime Achievement Award and confers upon Mrs. Diana Harris “Honorary” Alumni status. Congratulations on your retirement, Mrs. Harris. We cannot thank you enough for all your years of sacrifice and service!
THE LOURDES EVENT On April 6, 2019, we celebrated the 25th annual Lourdes Event fundraiser. The first Lourdes Endowment Dinner was held in 1994 in the upstairs banquet hall at Premier Bank, the former Farmers Bank, in an effort to build an endowment program for Lourdes Central Catholic School. The Endowment Dinner was founded by Tom and Dorothy Funke, Tom and Linda Lollman, Arvon and Lu Marcotte, Mary and Ed Mills, and Fr. Lyle Johnson. The Endowment Dinner continued and grew until 1999 when the first themed gala was held and became the Lourdes Event. Our endowment funds have been a tremendous blessing to Lourdes and today create over $250,000 in income each year, which assists in keeping our tuition low for families. This year we had a wonderful evening celebrating our school and raised $108,000 for Lourdes! We raised an additional $11,000 towards our library renovation project. Thank you to all the alumni who donated items and attended the event. Special thanks to Mike & Misty Wheeler for donating a 1972 MG MGB Roadster to our auction!
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KNIGHT HIGHLIGHTS Lourdes Central Catholic second grade class received their First Holy Communion April 28, 2019. Students are pictured with teacher, Mrs. Noreen Harris, and Fr. James Morin, Fr. Jonathan Haschke, and Fr. Michael Ventre.
Lourdes students finished the day with two team championships at the 26th Annual Greater Southeast Nebraska Mathematics Challenge at Peru State College. Pictured with the Math Challenge awards is Mr. Tom Dinville, coach.
Our Class of 2031 had a fun Kindergarten Graduation!
Lourdes sent seven students to State Track & Field! Freshmen Aidan Aldana and Beau Lee, Sophomore Brianna Fulton, Junior James Kearney, Elaina Madison, and Seniors Colter Fulton and Natalie Wright. James Kearney placed 3rd in the 3200 and 8th in the 1600. Brianna Fulton placed 4th in the 400, 6th in the 200, and 8th in the 100 at State competition.
Brianna Fulton James Kearney 6
KNIGHT HIGHLIGHTS Ms. Lesley Gould and our Lourdes Central Catholic Performing Arts Department produced another awesome musical this May with My Fair Lady. The excellent performance of our cast & crew earned them the “Outstanding Musical Theatre Production” award by the Nebraska High School Theatre Academy (NHSTA). The NHSTA also awarded Lourdes with the Outstanding Ensemble, Luke Partsch with the Outstanding Actor in a Lead Role, Piper Monson with the Outstanding Actress in a Lead Role, Cathy Shawhan with the Outstanding Actress in a Supporting Role. Piper Monson was also nominated as a finalist for the National High School Musical Theatre Awards Finalist. One actor and one actress will be announced at the awards showcase on June 7th to represent Nebraska and travel to New York City and perform in the “Jimmies” a Tony-style award show.
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KNIGHT HIGHLIGHTS The Lourdes Academic Decathlon Team was the 2018-2019 State Champions in the Very Small School Division and the State Runner-Up in the Small Schools Division. In the Super Quiz competition Lourdes placed second in the Small School Division and third overall. The theme for ACADECA this year was the 1960’s. Students study various aspects of the theme to prepare for competition which includes tests, speeches, interviews, and Quiz Bowl competition. Citlali Rodriguez and Evie Madison qualified for the National History Day Contest in Washington D.C. June 9th-13th. Their project “The Jungle and The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906” is based on Upton Sinclair’s 1904 book, “The Jungle” and its impact on the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906. Evie & Citlali placed 1st at the local competition at Peru State College and second at State to advance to the National History Day competition.
Lourdes Central Catholic High School students continue to co-op with Nebraska City High School for wrestling, baseball, soccer, golf, tennis and cross country. This year James Kearney qualified for State Cross Country. Paige Stones and Samantha Fredrichs qualified for State Tennis.
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KNIGHT HIGHLIGHTS The 2019 Knights Boys Basketball Team, coached by Joe Tynon, had a hard fought season with an exciting end. The team made their fourth straight appearance at the State Basketball Tournament. The Knights lost in the first round of State Tournament to Elm Creek.
The 2019 Lady Knights Basketball Team made it to the State Tournament for the first time in 19 years! The Lady Knights, coached by Clay Carlton, lost in the first round of State Tournament to Fillmore -Central.
Knights “Super-Fans�
The 2000 Lady Knights Team celebrating their district championship.
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RECOGNITION TREE Bishop Conley joined us to bless and dedicate our Donor Recognition Tree from the 2011 Capital Campaign. We are so grateful to all who gave so generously to realize the vision of the 2011 Visions for a Vibrant and Faith Filled Future Capital Campaign and the blessings.
L I B R A R Y U P D AT E S Our library is getting a facelift this summer! Thanks to the generous donations in memory of Tom and Dorothy Funke, and the generosity of the Funke families, our library will get new furniture, shelving, paint, carpet and materials. Visit our school website over the summer for updates on the progress. Several renderings have been made which outline the new “look� our library will receive. These updates will streamline student use and provide additional seating for many school activities.
Current furnishings and layout have not been updated in many years.
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A L U M N I U P D AT E S BIRTHS Miles Jon Gude, a baby boy, was born March 20, 2019 to Tyler ’11 and Taylor Reiff ’11 Gude.
Nick Wulf ’12 graduated from the University of Alaska-Anchorage with a Bachelors of Arts in Justice.
Alden Jefferson Rarig, a baby boy, was born January 22, 2019 to Emma Scaturro ‘13 and Colin Rarig. KNIGHT SIGHTINGS
Noah Hammond ‘09 graduated from the University of Nebraska Medical Center and will be completing his Internal Medicine Residency at UNMC.
Two of our Lourdes Central Catholic Alumni met up in Rome! Leah DeFreece ’16 was recently in Rome and was able to see James O’Neil ’13. Leah studied abroad in Poland this past semester and her study abroad group traveled to Rome to visit and study the historic and religious sites. James is a seminarian studying in Rome and was able to give the group a tour of St. Peters. Fr. Matthew Rolling was also with the group and offered Mass.
Brian Wirth ’09 was ordained a Deacon within the Diocese of Lincoln on May 24, 2019. He will continue his studies at Mount St. Mary in Maryland. Brandon Whitten ’11 received his Doctorate of Physical Therapy from Briar Cliff University on May 11, 2019. He will be doing his Orthopedic Residency at Avera McKennan in Sioux Falls, SD.
Sister Diana Rawlings A.S.C. ’70 is celebrating her 45th anniversary as a religious Sister!
Sarah Warga ’13 graduated with her Medical Lab Science Graduate Degree from Nebraska Methodist College. Joseph Allen ’13 is a Theology 1 student at St. Charles Borromeo, Pennsylvania. James O’Neil ’13 is a Theology 2 studying at North American College, Rome. . Jameson DeFreece ’14 graduated from the University of NebraskaLincoln with his Bachelors of Science Education and Human Science. He will be teaching Science at Millard North Middle School. Noah Goodman ’15 graduated from the University of Nebraska Lincoln with his Bachelors of Electircal Engineering. Noah has accepted a position as an electrical engineer for Blattner Engineering.
Nick Kreifels ‘07 earned his Masters of Business Administration at Kellogg School of Management-Northwestern University, one of the top MBA schools in the country. 12
A L U M N I U P D AT E S plans to obtain his Master of Professional Accountancy (MPA) this next year. He will then take the CPA.
(Jameson and Noah) Aliya Dreiling ’15 graduated from Fort Hays State University with a Bachelors in Medical Diagnostic Imaging. She has accepted a position in Mammography at Olathe Health and is starting a CT preceptorship at KUMC.
Beki Warga ’15 graduated from Nebraska Wesleyan University with a Bachelors in Science studying Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Alex Hogeland ’15 graduated from the University of NebraskaLincoln with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, majoring in Accounting. Alex
Recent graduate and new alumni, Anna Gigstad, and her red poodle Cali won all their classes and placed 2nd overall at the UKI Midwest Cup. They will compete at Nationals in Florida this November.
SAVE THE DATE ALUMNI HOMECOMING FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 13, 2019 PEP RALLY ALUMNI TAILGATE HOMECOMING FOOTBALL GAME
KNIGHT SIGHTINGS! Want to share your student/graduate’s accomplishments, updates and news in our Alumni Newsletter and on our social media pages? We want to hear from you! Send your news and photos to brooke -chaney@cdolinc.net. 13
DECEMBER 2018 TO MAY 2019
Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory, my understanding, and my entire will. All I have and call my own. Whatever I have or hold, you have given me. I restore it all to you and surrender it wholly to be governed by your will Give me only your love and grace and I am rich enough and ask for nothing more. St. Ignatius of Loyola
Thomas “Tom” Funke, Honorary Alumni Passed away on February 14, 2019. Survivors are his children; Deb ‘83 & husband Kevin ‘82 Rettig, Jeff Funke ’87 & wife Hettie, Ryan ‘99 Funke & wife Lisa Stukenholtz ’00 Funke, daughter-in-law Tammie Funke. Brother Steve Funke & wife Dottie, sister in law Liz Funke. William “Bill” Lutz, Class of 1950 Passed away on February 11, 2019. Survivors are his wife, Bertha “Bertie” Schmitz Lutz, children; William Robert Jr. & wife Melony, Laura Blevins & husband Ralph, Mary Ellen Hiatt & husband Richard, Susan Lienberger & husband Scott, Stephen Lutz & wife Randi, daughter-in-law Kris Lutz ’82. Karen Ann (Gress) Madison, Class of 1973. Passed away May 7, 2019. Survivors are her husband, Duane Madison; son Kyle Madison; mother, Verna Gress; sisters, Kathy Martin ‘65, Donna Gress ‘76; brother Dean (Susan ) Gress, Larry & Mary Lou Crom, Roger & Linda Behrns. Dr. Catherine Jean Harris, Class of 1971. Passed away March 21, 2019. Survivors are her sister, Julie Elvers ’75 and husband Craig, brothers: Tom Harris ’72 and wife Shelli, and Bill Harris ’77 and wife Noreen. Each year at our All School Mass to celebrate All Souls Day, we pray in a special way for our Lourdes Family. Names of all our alumni, family of alumni, and family of our students, faculty and staff who have passed away are written on a scroll that is displayed down the aisle at St. Mary’s Catholic Church and the names of those who have passed in the last year are read during our prayer intentions.
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ANNUAL APPEAL Be strong and steadfast! Do not fear nor be dismayed, for the LORD, your God, is with you wherever you go.
Joshua 1:9
The 2018-2019 fiscal year is coming to a close. As you can see depicted by our thermometer, we have on reached the half-way point to our goal of of $300,000. Please prayerfully consider a donation to help us meet our goal. ANY GIFT LARGE OR SMALL IS GREATLY APPRECIATED! Our alumni are the strength and backbone of our school. Your belief in the mission of Lourdes Central Catholic and your donations provide the support necessary for the education and spiritual growth of future alumni. If you have any questions or need additional information or if you would like information regarding our Legacy Society, please contact Patrice Wulf at patrice-wulf@cdolinc.net. If you would like to make a donation simply mail it to the school address and mark your envelope “Annual Appeal.”
P R AY F O R O U R R E L I G I O U S We are very proud to have a number of our alumni who have dedicated their lives to serving the Lord. Please pray for our alumni who are studying for the priesthood, those in religious life, those who are no longer with us (+). +Sr. Mary Emmanual Bischof, 1913 +Sr. Johanna Lechner ‘28 +Fr. Felix Clement Wirth ‘31 +Sr. Rose Emma Monaghan ‘32 +Fr. Harry Eglsaer ‘34 +Sr. Mary Margaret Durr ‘36 +Sr. Damian Francois ‘37 +Sr. Anne Louise Ramold ‘39 +Sr. Jean Stukenholtz ‘40 Sr. Catherine Durr ‘46 +Sr. Mary Camilla Anne Verret, R.S.M. ‘53
Sr. Veronica Volkmer ‘53 Fr. Michael Volkmer, C.P.P.S. ‘58 Sr. Patricia Rhoten ‘62 Sr. Phyllis Stowell ‘64 Fr. John Cooper ‘69 Sr. Elizabeth Moyer O.S.U. ‘69 Fr. Mark Pfeiffer ‘74 Sister Mary Cecilia Mills ‘93 Fr. Steve Mills ‘01 Deacon Brian Wirth ‘09
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Lourdes Central Catholic School 412 2nd Avenue Nebraska City, NE 68410
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