Alumni Spotlight: Mike Meehan ‘03

Alumni Spotlight: MIKE MEEHAN

Mike Meehan ‘03 truly understands what it means to make the most out of your time here at Malvern. It is a special place and he has continued to be involved with Malvern since his graduation day. Meehan grew up in West Chester and began his schooling in the West Chester public schools. Prior to his entrance into high school, his parents saw the beauty in Malvern, and they were the initial driving force behind him attending Malvern Prep. “They kind of saw it before I did and helped to steer me in that direction. From there, I had great conversations with Gamp Pellegrini and Paul Hornsleth, and it didn’t take me long to see that Malvern was a great fit for me,” he shared. He quickly immersed himself into the Malvern experience by playing football, swimming, and playing the piano at various occasions and school events. One of his favorite memories from Malvern was a swimming memory. “I think my best memory is junior year swim season, beating Germantown Academy. Germantown Academy at that time…had a real powerhouse team. I think they won the Inter-Ac every year from the mid-70s through the early 2000s. They had a few superstar swimmers who won their individual events, but our team took second, third, and fourth in those events, and that’s how we won the meet. It was the epitome of a true team effort.” Following his four years at Malvern, Meehan continued his education at Princeton University and played football there as well. He was a threeyear starter as a defensive lineman, winning an Ivy League Championship in his senior season. Upon his graduation in 2007, he enrolled directly into the Charles Widger School of Law at Villanova University. He’s been working as a transactional attorney ever since - first at Blank Rome LLP in Philadelphia for four years, and currently at Fox Rothschild LLP in Chester County since 2014. Throughout all of that time, he has remained connected to Malvern. Meehan joined the Alumni Board in 2012 and now serves as the Alumni Board President. “The Board is a nice way to stay engaged with a place where I have formed such great connections. Malvern is where I feel the most plugged into a network, and a lot of my closest friends I’ve stayed in touch with are from Malvern. It’s great to get back on campus, it’s great to see it evolve, and see the teachers that you had. It’s great to network. It’s great to meet people, help Malvern, and share a common connection. That’s the drive for me,” he said.

As the current Alumni Board President, he has a lot of initiatives to keep fellow alums connected to Malvern for the next three years of his term.

“My main goal over the next three years is to find different ways for alums to be engaged without just hitting their wallet every time. One of the best ways that I know to do that is through student engagement. There’s not a Malvern alum that I know that wouldn’t have lunch with a student, or review a resume, or take the time to talk to a student about getting into their industry or going to their school,” he said.

The Alumni Board, in tandem with the Counseling team, is working now on a project to connect students with Malvern alums who attended their “wish list” schools. Those alums could take the students to a sporting event, or on a tour, or make themselves available to provide advice on the college institution. “That sounding board aspect works both ways - it’s great engagement for the student and parents, and it’s great for the alums. I think it will be helpful on the Admissions side, too, for prospective parents and students to see that resource in action. The alums love it too. And now you have alums back and engaged and they’re jumping on calls and jumping in on career night and things like that. You have to find a number of ways for people to give back and stay engaged,” he shared. Alumni engagement, continuity, and alumni culture were a few of the most important facets Meehan was looking for when he was part of the Executive Search Committee in the recent Head of School search. As an alumni liaison, he did not take this commitment lightly. He knew how important it was for a Head of School to balance the school’s history with its future. “Being on the search committee was a good experience. Patrick and I have discussed alumni engagement and he understands how important it is. He knows it’s important for a Head of School to engage with alums who are 5, 10, 30, 40 years out. He hasn’t had to do that much in his current role and he seems excited to have the chance to do that now. As alums, we need to meet him halfway and welcome that discussion,” Meehan said.

When asked what advice he would share with the Class of 2022 before they officially become Malvern alums, he said, “I would tell them I’ve gotten a lot of personal benefit out of staying involved. If Malvern was a good place for you or contributed something to your life, then stay connected to it. Come back to athletic events, become a Class Agent, organize a reunion. It doesn’t end at graduation, and the investments you make in this place will come back to you ten-fold.” mp

Fr. Duffy Alumni Christmas Party Honors Two Malvern Faculty and Staff Members

There was no shortage of holiday cheer at this year’s Rev. David J. Duffy O.S.A. ‘48. Alumni Christmas Reception. Members of Malvern’s community came together to celebrate the holidays on Thursday, December 16, 2021, in The St. Augustine Center for Social Impact.

This year, Lou Giangiulio ‘86 P‘21 was honored as the recipient of the 2021 Alumni Loyalty Award. Timothy Dougherty and James McBride were celebrated for 25 years of service to the school.

Congratulations to Lou, Tim, and Jim on their accomplishments. mp

Brian Wendig ‘09 married Kimberly Rogers on June 26, 2021, at Huntingdon Valley Country Club. Several Malvern 2009 grads were in attendance including John Rawlings (Best Man), Stephen Boyle, Brendan McNulty, Richard “Harte” Thompson, Mark Sherman, Patrick Oates, and Andrew Zoeller.

2010s

______________________________________________________ For the past year, Matt Tomarchio ‘10 has been a National Security Fellow with the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration where he works tracking nuclear materials around the world. He is also in graduate school at the University of Denver’s Korbel School of International Studies where he is expecting to receive his Master’s Degree in International Security, Cyber Security, and International Business later this year.

Ryan Polischuk ‘11 received a Ph.D. in physics from the University of California, Davis. He completed a dissertation in theoretical biophysics on COVID-19 and the trypanosome parasite, focusing on a COVID variant and on the 3-D organization of the trypanosome’s DNA. Ryan is now working as a research scientist at a cancer biotech called Nektar Therapeutics in San Francisco. P.J. Finley ‘12 recently accepted a position with North Bridge Opportunities, an early-stage alternative investor focused on the intersection of real estate and climate solutions. In his new role, P.J. will be responsible for originating new investments across the U.S. as well as general business development. Prior to starting in April, P.J. traveled to Europe to observe sustainable practices in places such as Germany and Copenhagen.

After two great years at Vanguard, Pearse Hobson ‘14 is happy to announce that he has moved over to FarmTogether as a member of their Investor Relations team in September of 2021. FarmTogether is an investment platform that allows for individuals to invest directly into operational farms in the United States.

Zachary DeCarlo ‘15 is completing a Doctor of Chiropractic program at Life University.

Matt Wray ‘17 launched a Travel Sports app called LENZ. Matt co-founded the platform after spending the last 6 years in the industry.

Isaac Salinas ‘18, Navy water polo senior team captain, was named First Team All-Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference-East

Tygee Leach ‘19 was selected by his coaches and teammates to lead the Lehigh University Football team as a captain.

Sean Rushton ‘19, current Lafayette junior, was named Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week.

2020s

Malvern Prep Swimming and Diving Alumni Danny Faunce ‘20 (Loyola, MD, Diver), Ryan Durkan ‘21 (Army, Swimmer) and Michael McMahon ‘21 (Loyola, MD, Swimmer) connect on deck at the Patriot League Swimming and Diving Championship at Navy, Annapolis, MD.

(June 2021-January 2022)

Henry Berling ‘61

Ronald Bosken P‘83‘84 GP‘15‘18‘21‘22, father of Steven ‘83 and Sean ‘84, grandfather of Ryan Antell ‘15, Jimmy Gabrielsen ‘18, Victor Bucci ‘21, and Joey Bucci ‘22. Ronald is also the father-in-law of Charlie Antell ‘85

Thomas A. Bruder, Jr. ‘54 P‘80‘84‘87‘89‘94 GP‘11‘13‘13‘16‘24 PT, father of Thomas ‘80, John ‘84, Timothy ‘87, Christopher ‘89, and James ‘94, grandfather of Thomas Bruder ‘11, Stephen Bruder ‘13, Christopher Trusk ‘13, Timothy Trusk ‘16, and James Bruder ‘24, brother of Michael ‘58 and James ‘59

Patricia Calpin, wife of John Calpin ‘59

Thomas Carroll, father of Thomas II ‘91 and Richard ‘95

Barbara Clarke P‘73‘74‘77‘84‘87, mother of John ‘73, Jeffrey ‘74, Stephen ‘77, Christopher ‘84, and Lt. Col. Michael J. Clarke, USA ‘87

Rick Colvin, father of Rick ‘94 and the grandfather of Owen McHugh ‘21 and Colin McHugh ‘23

Mrs. Elizabeth Dunn-Couch, mother-in-law of Mr. Jeff Kinney, Director of Facilities

Louise Craig, mother of Mrs. Linda Bogan, our Assistant to the Director of Dining Services here at Malvern

Gerald Curran, Jr. P‘17, father of Jerry ‘17

Joseph Dougherty ‘68

Captain Francis “Frank” Duffy USN Retired ‘50, brother of William ‘45 and Rev. David Duffy, O.S.A. ‘48 Jeffrey Heilmann ‘78, father of Joseph (JP) ‘18

Alec Hicks ‘59

Helen Hobson, mother of Abraham ‘64, John ‘68, Peter ‘69, Michael ‘71, William ‘73, and Joseph ‘74, and the grandmother of John ‘98, Tom ‘01, William ‘02, Andrew ‘03, Matthew ‘05, Paul ‘08, and Pearse ‘14

Peter Irish, father of Ryan ‘93 and the grandfather of John ‘22 and William ‘23.

John Kilby Jr., father-in-law of 12th Grade Student Academy Leader, Tim Dougherty.

Kevin McClatchy ‘56

Joseph J. McLaughlin, father of current member of the Board of Trustees Joseph McLaughlin, Jr. and the grandfather of Joseph ‘12, Alex ‘14, and Eric ‘18

Frank O‘Brien III ‘57

George Peckham M.D. ‘57

James Purnell, father of Eric ‘13

Lorraine Ruch, mother of Malvern‘s former Director of Athletics, Kurt Ruch.

Peter Sloan ‘94, brother of John ‘96

Ret. Timothy J. Taylor, USN SEAL, brother of Matthew Taylor ‘82 P‘11‘18‘20 PT

William “Barry” Walsh ‘65, brother of Thomas ‘72

Earl “Rob” Weaver P‘24, father of current sophomore student Colby Weaver

418 S. Warren Avenue • Malvern, PA 19355-2707

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SAVE THE DATE & JOIN US HOMECOMING WEEKEND OCTOBER 21-23, 2022

October 21, 2022

Alumni Awards (St. Augustine Award and Athletic Hall of Fame)

October 22, 2022

Celebrating classes 2’s and 7’s (All Class Reunion) Alums interested in planning a Class Reunion, please connect with the Alumni Relations Office (Mary Fran Frankenheimer, MFrankenheimer@malvernprep.org) 50th year (Class of 1972)–please contact Steve Klug (steveklugnd@gmail.com) or Mary Fran Frankenheimer (MFrankenheimer@malvernprep.org) 55th year (Class 1967)–please contact Mary Fran Frankenheimer (MFrankenheimer@malvernprep.org)

October 23, 2022

Mass for Reunion Classes at 10:00 am in Our Mother of Good Counsel Chapel