Fall 2010 Corbie Chronicle

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corbie chronicle

S t. A nselm’s A bbey S chool • W ashington, D.C. • F all 2010 • V ol. 19 N o. 1

The Corbie Chronicle Fall 2010 • Volume 19, Number 1

St. Anselm’s Abbey School 4501 South Dakota Avenue, NE Washington, DC 20017 202-269-2350 www.saintanselms.org

The Corbie Chronicle is published two times a year by the Communications Office of St. Anselm’s Abbey School.

We welcome correspondence and submissions from the St. Anselm’s Abbey School community. Please direct letters, class notes and other communication to James Leathers, ’04, at the School or via email at jleathers@ saintanselms.org.

Photography in this publication has been provided by the St. Anselm’s Abbey School yearbook and newspaper staffs, as well as by David W. Powell and school faculty and staff.

We apologize in advance for any errors and/or omissions.

Contributors: Valerie Brown, Peter Collins, ’74, Jeffrey Harwood, Kirk Otterson, Bryan Taylor Design and Layout: James Leathers, ’04 Production and Printing: Camera Ready Graphics,

Bethesda, Md. On the Cover: Fall foliage outside the monastic library in early November.

Photo: Fr. Peter Weigand, OSB

A Message from the President

Fr. Peter Weigand, OSB

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Reflections from the Headmaster

Mr. Louis Silvano

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Campus News

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Panther Sports

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Fall Scholarship Gala

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Class Notes

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In Memoriam

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Above: Ebenezer Scrooge (Alex Girardot, Form VI) and the ghost of Jacob Marley (Cameron Johnson, Form IV) in the Priory Players’ production of A Christmas Carol.

A Message from the President Most Gracious God, do not abandon what You have sown, but cherish and increase it, perfect and preserve it. We can begin nothing good without You; neither can we bring anything to fruition, nor maintain it, without You. Saint Anselm of Canterbury, 1033–1109 Dear Alumni, Parents, Benefactors and Friends of St. Anselm’s Abbey and School, With this fall issue of the Corbie Chronicle, I will bring you upto-date on what I have done and experienced since June 30th as the President of St. Anselm’s Abbey School. Our Headmaster, Mr. Louis Silvano, will update you on the academic side of things. Now that I am in my 70th year of life, having spent 46 of these years at the Abbey, I have an enduring perspective. As Black Elk, an Oglala Sioux Indian, said in the late 1890s, “Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing, and always come back to where they were.” In late August, we began another fall term; we have had another Career Day, another Gala, another Open House, another series of faculty meetings; and soon we will have another week of semester exams, another All-Alumni Reunion, another round of college placements, and another commencement in this never-ending circle of events.

And within this circle of happenings, the monastic community started in September to celebrate its 86th year as a Benedictine foundation in Washington, just as the school began its 69th year.

By now, all of you should have received the School’s 2009-2010 Annual Report in which I wrote about the major events of the last academic year and shared some perspectives on what is going to happen this year. I started this past summer with alumni gatherings in the San Francisco, Portland, Oregon, and Chicago areas. I also stayed at the home of our great friends Mr. Brian Devine, ’59, and his wife Sylvia in Rancho Santa Fe, California, and attended the 70th birthday celebration of Mr. David Harnett, ’58, in Philadelphia.

Soon after the start of this school year, the Alumni Association held a most inspiring Career Day, which you can read about later in this issue. Currently, our Director of Alumni Affairs, Mr. Lawrence Hamm, ’68, is hard at work planning the school’s third annual AllAlumni Reunion Weekend this coming April 29th, 30th, and May 1st; I hope all alumni will keep these dates open and attend the weekend’s festivities.

As you know, earlier this year Mrs. Valerie Brown joined my staff as Director of Development, and this October 23rd, she and her assistant, Mrs. Kimberly Walhout, organized a very successful Fall Scholarship Gala. This year the school honored His Eminence Theodore Cardinal McCarrick, the former Archbishop of Washington, for his dedication to Catholic education.

I said the following to our guests that evening: “Last April, we celebrated 900 years of our patron Saint Anselm of Canterbury’s impact upon the Church and the world. As Abbot of Bec and as Archbishop of Canterbury, Anselm believed that excellence in education was a moral and social responsibility. It is fitting that this year we should honor another archbishop and leader in the Church.

Both Saint Anselm and His Eminence have been true educators in their times. Their minds, souls, and hearts have always been devoted to the Catholic Church and to Catholic education.”

I said to His Eminence, “I bow to your wisdom, but it seems to me that there is a Divine discontent with the status quo, there must be a Creativity that is always fresh, that invites our own complicity in making a world new! And as Benedictines, we help to do this through our ora et labora, our constant prayer and our educational work.”

Let me take this opportunity to thank everyone who was able to attend this year’s Gala for sharing in our Benedictine mission

of recreating our world. I thank His Eminence, I thank all of our donors, benefactors, sponsors, parents, our Board of Trustees, faculty, students, and friends for helping the monks in their work. It could not be accomplished without each and every one of you.

There were over 300 guests at this, the 28th Gala in the School’s history and my fourth Gala as President. I want to thank Fr. Luke Travers, OSB, former headmaster of the Delbarton School and current subprior of St. Mary’s Abbey in Morristown, N.J., for his most fitting introduction of Cardinal McCarrick. I also want to thank Mr. Paul Quinn, who donated his services as our splendid auctioneer.

But more importantly, I am so grateful to all those who supported the Gala, which has already netted $135,000 for current scholarship aid to needy students.

For a Benedictine school, the sole purpose of every aspect of its program, every segment of its day, every activity, project, or department must be to encounter God through love of learning in a wholesome atmosphere of holiness, happiness, and hope. As Cardinal McCarrick said, “We have never needed what St. Anselm’s Abbey School has to offer more than we do now.” Your gifts to the Fall Scholarship Gala ensure that many students who otherwise could not attend are able to be here at St. Anselm’s today.

Our new past parent organization, Form VII Forever, enjoyed its first social event of the year with a Mass and Brunch on September 19th. Fr. Michael preached at this Mass, and 125 past parents attended. Our next event was be a cocktail reception following the student Christmas concert on December 11th.

As President, I wish to report that Mrs. Valerie Brown also organized two joint public relation events for the Abbey and School.

On September 12th, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Borger hosted an exhilarating cocktail reception for major donors. Recognition of our loyal constituents was long overdue. Then on September 23rd, Mr. and Mrs. Morgan O’Brien, ’62, held a moonlight cocktail and buffet reception aboard their yacht, where I announced the beginning of the silent phase of an upcoming capital campaign for the Abbey and School: One Location, Two Vocations—Caring, Building, and Planning for Tomorrow.

By the time you receive this Corbie Chronicle, you should have received our Annual Fund appeal literature. In my letter to you, the monks are asking you to contribute to the 2010-2011 Annual Fund.

Through your gift, you have an opportunity to designate where your Annual Fund donation should be applied: 1) Overall School Needs; 2) Current-Year Financial Aid, or 3) Support of the Monastic Community. All three of these compelling needs require your help.

I hope I have not overwhelmed you by what I have written here— since I have retired as Headmaster, it seems that my jobs have only multiplied! I wish you all a blessed Advent season, and I hope to see you at one of our many events this spring.

Pax in Sapientia,

Fr. Peter Weigand, OSB President

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Reflections from the Headmaster As Christians, we are called to serve the poor and the needy among us.

In November, the Priory Players presented the world premiere of a new musical production of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. St. Anselm’s was invited to present this premiere by the English composer Piers Chater Robinson, and our drama teacher Mrs. Diggle enthusiastically accepted.

The cast and crew worked collaboratively to produce an effective recreation of the well-known Dickens tale. The story of Scrooge’s transformation and ultimate redemption is a universal parable that speaks to us all.

When the Spirit of Christmas Present visits Scrooge, Dickens focuses our attention on the plight of the poor and needy in presenting the two allegorical twins Ignorance and Want.

Dickens believed that it was only through education that poverty could be eradicated.

“This boy is Ignorance. This girl is Want. Beware them both, and all of their degree, but most of all beware this boy, for on his brow I see that written which is Doom, unless the writing be erased.”

Dickens echoes the words of Christ in Saint Luke’s account of The Sermon on the Plain: “But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. But woe to you who are filled now, for you will be hungry.”

In the final judgment scene of Matthew’s gospel, Jesus reminds us: “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink…” As Christians, we are called to serve the poor and the needy among us.

During the month of November, the student leadership organizes a Thanksgiving food drive for local non-profits and charities. The four Houses participate in a friendly competition to see which House contributes the most food. This year, all the food that was collected was delivered to the Capital Area Food Bank, which is one of the organizations that our students serve every week as part of our community service program.

Before the Thanksgiving holiday, the entire school gathered for a Thanksgiving service. This was followed by a traditional Thanksgiving meal shared by students, faculty, staff, administrators, and members of the monastic community. The students were seated at tables according to their Houses, and parents graciously volunteered to serve the food. We were delighted to welcome back several visiting alumni who also joined us for this annual event. Together we gave thanks to God for the many blessings that have been bestowed upon our school community.

As Headmaster, I am deeply grateful for your continued support, and I wish you all the peace and joy of the holiday season.

Pax Christi,

Louis Silvano Headmaster

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Campus News Seniors Excel in National Merit Competition Twenty-two members of the senior class at St. Anselm’s were honored by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation and the College Board in their annual competitions this fall, corresponding to over sixty percent of the 35-man senior class. These young men rank in the top five percent of high school seniors nationally based on their performance on the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT).

Honorees from the St. Anselm’s Class of 2011 include four National Merit Semifinalists, who rank in the top one percent of U.S. high school seniors who took the PSAT/NMSQT. The Semifinalists are Mathew Calkins, Thomas Hansen, Michael McCutchen and Abraham Secular. These young men, who are among only 16,000 students across the country to earn this distinction, will compete against other Semifinalists for 8,400 Merit Scholarships, which will be awarded in the spring.

This year’s group of honorees from St. Anselm’s also includes 14 National Merit Commended Students, who rank

in the top three percent of PSAT/NMSQT test takers. Commended students this year were Benjamin Best, Christopher Bragale, Joseph Breslin, Nathan Dickerson, Joseph Downs, Tomas Husted, Alexander Jankovic, Jeffrey Nemes, David Oetjen, Yaw Oteng-Agipong, Ian Rich, Patrick Riechert, Farrell Sheehan and Brendan Ziebarth.

Additionally, Christopher Bragale, Marco Cerritelli and Tomas Husted were honored by the National Hispanic Recognition Program and Benjamin Beidleman, Christopher Epps, Yaw Oteng-Agipong and Askari Rushing were named Outstanding Students in the National Achievement Scholarship Program, which recognizes outstanding Black American high school seniors.

The proportion of seniors honored—roughly 63 percent—is thought to be one of the highest of any school in the Washington area. Over the past decade, 46 percent of St. Anselm’s graduates have been honored by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation.

Twenty-two members of the Class of 2011 were honored in the National Merit, National Achievement and National Hispanic Recognition Programs this fall. From left: Thomas Hansen, Mathew Calkins, Nathan Dickerson, David Oetjen, Benjamin Best, Christopher Epps, Christopher Bragale, Benjamin Beidleman, Jeffrey Nemes, Brendan Ziebarth, Farrell Sheehan, Michael McCutchen, Marco Cerritelli, Alexander Jankovic, Yaw OtengAgipong, Joseph Breslin, Tomas Husted, Abraham Secular, Patrick Riechert and Joseph Downs. Not pictured: Ian Rich, Askari Rushing.

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Campus News

Faculty Notes St. Anselm’s welcomed four new faces to the faculty and staff this fall. Mr. Tim Allen is teaching Arabic and French and assisting with after-school supervision. Mr. Thomas Mehigan, whose son Aidan is a Fifth Former, is the Head of the Middle School and also teaches religion.

Mr. José Padilla is our new athletic director. Mrs. Kimberly Walhout joined the Development Office as the new Assistant Director of Development.

Mr. Michael Lodico was married to Priya Desai on October 9, during the Columbus Day weekend.

Congratulations!

Mr. Bryan Taylor was married to Kerry O’Brien in August. Mr. Taylor, a math and science teacher and coach of the cross-country and track teams, began his eighth year at St. Anselm’s this fall. His wife is a teacher at St. Albans School in Northwest Washington.

Fr. James Wiseman, OSB, was among a dozen theology professors from the U.S. and U.K. who were selected to participate in a new program at the Center of Theological Inquiry (CTI) in Princeton, N.J., from June 20 through July 10. The center is located on the grounds of the Princeton Theological Seminary, adjacent to Princeton University. The program, called “Writing Theology,” focused on ways to write theology effectively for an audience broader than professional theologians.

The overall director of the workshop was Dr. Marilynne Robinson, a senior fellow at the CTI and an awardwinning novelist and lay theologian who teaches much

of the year at the well-known Iowa Writers Workshop.

During the three weeks in Princeton, each participant submitted two short papers and one longer paper, each of which was discussed by the entire group with a view to improving the writing for a non-specialist audience.

Most of the longer papers were sections of books that the participants are working on. Fr. James expects his own next book to be about ways in which members of various religious traditions have served as peacemakers in different parts of the world.

On October 7, Dr. Herb Wood, along with his son Chris (who is an Army nurse stationed at Walter Reed Army Medical Center), served as welcomers to a “Badger Angel Flight.” These flights bring World War II veterans to Washington, D.C. to see the World War II memorial and other sights in town. It is part of a nationwide program to honor these veterans and their families for their service. The veterans were accompanied on the flight and throughout the day by sponsors, usually family members. This was called a “Badger Flight” because these veterans were from Wisconsin. Dr. Wood attended the University of Wisconsin, and his wife is from a town in the northern part of the state. The welcomers, along with a polka band, met the plane at Reagan National Airport to congratulate the veterans, shake their hands and escort them to their buses, which took them sightseeing. About 10 percent of the veterans were in wheelchairs, and most of the rest had walkers or canes, indicative of the fact that the veterans of World War II are now, as a group, elderly.

Fr. Peter Addresses Benedictine Educators in Germany

There were over 200 lay and religious Benedictine educators at this year’s Benet conference in Germany.

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The first week of November, St. Anselm’s President Fr. Peter Weigand traveled to the annual Benedictine Educators’ Network (Benet) conference.

This year’s conference was held at St. Ottilien Archabbey in Emming, Germany, about 30 miles west of Munich. At the conference, Fr. Peter gave a workshop entitled “Toward a Practical Philosophy of Benedictine Education Based Upon the Rule of St. Benedict and the Writings of St. Anselm.”

Campus News

Br. Ignacio Makes His Simple Monastic Profession On Sunday, August 29 at the Abbey’s conventual Mass, in the presence of Prior Simon McGurk, the monks, his parents, some oblates and friends, Br. Ignacio Gonzalez, having completed his first-year novitiate, made before God his Benedictine vows of Stability, Conversion of Life, and Obedience for a period of three years.

Br. Ignacio found his way to Washington from his home in Texas to work as a legal assistant with a law firm, later in foreign exchange and lastly as a Spanish instructor for Berlitz Language Center before beginning his postulancy at the Abbey in the fall of 2008.

Br. Ignacio began his religious studies in September at the Dominican House of Studies. He is also teaching Spanish to Form IV students in the Abbey School.

The monks are grateful for the musical gifts and other skills he brings to the Abbey and for the contributions he makes to the liturgy and in the classroom. It was truly a day of joy for all.

Left: Br. Ignacio makes his simple vows before Prior Simon McGurk.

Activities & Accomplishments Just days before graduating from St. Anselm’s, Benjamin Moniz, ’10, had his Eagle Court of Honor in the Abbey Church. Fr. Peter offered a prayer, and several other St. Anselm’s students who participate in scouting were in attendance. It was fitting that Ben receive the rank of Eagle Scout here at St. Anselm’s, as his Eagle Scout community service project was to construct the Prayer Labyrinth that sits in the field opposite the Academic Building.

Senior Michael McCutchen has been named a 2010 recipient of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) Achievement Award in Writing. Michael is one of only two students from the District of Columbia to receive the award, which was given this year to 543 high school seniors across the country.

The Student Council ran its annual Thanksgiving Food Drive again this November, collecting cans and other non-perishable food items to be donated to the Capital Area Food Bank, located on Taylor Street not far from St. Anselm’s. The students contributed more than 1,600 pounds of food this year, surpassing their goal by over 100 pounds. This year’s food drive was set up as a competition between the Houses, with points awarded to the House that collected the most food.

Moore House came out on top, collecting more than one-third of the School’s overall total.

Several Fifth and Sixth Form students were featured on WUSA (Channel 9) in a segment titled “Friday’s

St. Anselm’s scouts at the Eagle Court of Honor for Benjamin Moniz, from left: Rockne Krebs, ’10; Matthew Blower, ’10; Benjamin Moniz, ’10; Fr. Peter Weigand, OSB; Alexander Jankovic, ’11; and John Hamm, ’11.

Heroes” during the station’s evening newscast October 8. The students were featured for their work assisting the elderly sick and homebound with Christian Community Group Homes (CCGH) in Michigan Park, Brookland and other neighborhoods near St. Anselm’s. These young men volunteer with CCGH on Tuesday mornings throughout the school year through the School’s Christian Service program. St. Anselm’s students have been working with CCGH since 2002.

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Campus News From the Development Office

A Tangerine for Her Stocking

By Val Brown, Director of Development

I

don’t think it’s possible for anyone to love the holiday season as much as I do. Thanksgiving and Christmas are as much fun for me today—at this age—as they ever were. Maybe more.

No doubt family tradition plays an important part. For instance, my dad always fixed the Thanksgiving turkey.

Several years ago my mom volunteered to take a turn, surely her last. Did you know there’s a “1-800 Butterball hotline” for beginners? The old bird was half-cooked when Mom realized we had to prepare for re-entry and remove the packaging!

I wanted gravy, but she couldn’t determine whether or not this one came with gravy packets inside. Some traditions are better left undisturbed.

Like all families, our family has developed some special Christmas traditions through the years. One special night is set aside for seeing the lights. When we were small, there was always a cookie plate for Santa. Christmas Eve was at MeeMee’s, but Christmas Day was at home—and we all got tangerines in our stockings. Mom said it was a tradition from the Great Depression era, and Santa still brings my grown kids one every year. And always, always, we have a real, live tree.

As a parent, very few things were as pleasurable as teaching my children about “keeping the Christmas secrets.” I should add that there were very few things as difficult. But each year, I couldn’t wait.

This year I’m adding one more tradition to my personal list.

Like many of you, I make an annual gift to St. Anselm’s Abbey School. But this year, I’m making my annual gift a Christmas present. And I’m doing it in memory of someone who’s not

here to share my Christmases anymore—my mom.

It’s hard for me to believe that I’ve had several Christmases without her already. Yet I can’t help but think of her at this time of year, as she was a key to everything I learned about giving.

Somehow, she and my dad always managed to give us a great Christmas, even when things weren’t so great. We learned the Christmas story, we sang, we strung popcorn. Add to that a few presents, a tangerine, and we were convinced that Santa was the greatest.

Above all, though, Mom and Dad gave me my education.

I didn’t get to thank Mom for that. So I’ll be sharing my Christmas with her in memory this year, and my gift to St. Anselm’s will be in her memory and for all she did for me.

We’ve all been blessed with wonderful people who are no longer here to share our lives, much less our holiday traditions—perhaps a parent, a grandparent, or maybe even a favorite teacher who “unlocked the door” and showed you what education was all about. I invite you to make your annual gift to St. Anselm’s Abbey School in his or her memory.

I still pray for my mom, and more than that, I hope she prays for me. Money is no substitute for prayer. But this year, my gift to St. Anselm’s will be my chance to put a tangerine in her stocking.

My holiday wish is that you and your family get to truly enjoy all those little traditions that have become such a big part of your home. I wish you a blessed and holy New Year. Know that you are remembered in the prayers of the monks, faculty, staff and students at St. Anselm’s Abbey School.

Career Day 2010 A distinguished group of 10 St. Anselm’s alumni came to campus the afternoon of September 20 for the annual Career Day sponsored by the Alumni Association.

This year’s alumni volunteers were, from left: back: Philippe Hensel, ’84; Pierre Boehler, ’76; G. Brent Mickum, ’72; Kevin Barefoot, ’00; Stephen Kinnaird, ’80; Morgan O’Brien, ’62; Dr. David Missar, ’83; John Corrigan, ’83; front: Dr. Mark Roddy, ’92; Carl Siebentritt, ’75; Maj. Robert Ross, ’93.

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Campus News Model United Nations

Multilateralism: As I looked for a catchy title that would capture the essence of this article, a Google search of multilateralism brought up a recent piece by Richard Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Relations, titled “The Case for Messy Multilateralism.”

In Haass’s op-ed, he suggests that no country can face the increasingly complex set of global challenges alone—“by their nature,” he says, “these challenges are best met by collective effort.” He uses the term “messy multilateralism” (but not pejoratively) to describe the various approaches to collective action that will characterize the 21st century. Regionalism, functional multilateralism (coalitions of the willing and relevant), and informal multilateralism will all be features of how the world deals with nuclear proliferation, terrorism, climate change and a host of other difficult global issues. By “messy,” Dr. Haass means that no singular approach may be appropriate—it will take fluid, flexible hybrids to achieve, through collective action, solutions to the pressing issues of this century.

This “messy multilateralism” was evident this semester in the Model United Nations program at St. Anselm’s. Not necessarily in the precise international relations sense discussed by Haass, but certainly in the way our young men collectively approached a variety of social-studies-related activities. And again, I mean “messy” in a good way! The first of these and probably the most analogous was the Model U.N. scrimmage held at the Academy of the Holy Cross in October.

Solving the World’s Problems in a Weekend ACHMUN (Academy of the Holy Cross Model UN) was this year’s version of our very successful MonkMUNC of years past. We had agreed when we established MonkMUNC, that we would give other participating schools the opportunity to host the scrimmage. Holy Cross did so this year and put on a great event. Our guys attended in force, with about 30 Abbey Boys participating as delegates, chairs, and scenario designers. I don’t know Dr. Richard Haass personally, but from the tone of his op-ed I’m certain he would have been proud of our team as they tackled the conference topics using a panoply of collective action approaches he identified in his multilateralism piece.

Representing countries and individual personalities, we worked closely with students from Holy Cross, Georgetown Visitation and St. John’s to solve issues related to the Cuban Missile Crisis, floods in Bangladesh, and Middle East peace.

The ACHMUN leadership this year decided to give awards to the delegates. These awards recognize, in effect, the best “collective action actors.” The top two awards in every committee went to the Abbey Boys! Marco Cerritelli (Form VI), Winfield Miller (Form IV), Nick Tucci (Form V), and Joe Downs (Form V) received Outstanding Delegate (or “Legit” Delegate as the girls from Holy Cross named it), and Thomas Hansen (Form VI), Maurin Mwombela, Joe Nahra and Robert Hankins (all Form IV) got Best (or “Crack”) Delegate awards.

Alive and Well at St. Anselm’s

The British Are Coming!

Multilateralism was also evident in two visits by British students to the School this fall. Students from St. Benedict’s, a Benedictine school at Ealing Abbey in London, participated in a roundtable discussion with St. Anselm’s students on problems of governance in Afghanistan. Dr. Paul Stares, father of Nick Stares (Form III) and an expert on regional instability at the Council on Foreign Relations, gave a keynote address that set the stage for the moderated discussion that followed. While it was clear that the students of St. Benedict’s and St. Anselm’s did not always see eye to eye on Afghanistan, it was also clear that during lunch a form of informal multilateralism took over and both parties found common ground—if not on the key issues of Afghan governance, then certainly through promises to continue a dialogue via the internet (read: “Friend me on Facebook”)! I doubt they’ll be discussing Afghanistan, but diplomacy is built on communication, so we’ll call this a win.

The Forest School from West Sussex, England, also visited in November and participated in a discussion of the U.S. judicial system. Students from both schools exchanged views on racial segregation during a discussion of Brown v. Board of Education and students also talked about issues pertaining to the regulation of violence in video games—Schwarzenegger v. The Electronic Merchants Association. Here again, views may have differed, but a school tour and lunch went a long way to bridging the gap between two peoples separated by a common language!

On the Horizon Some key activities loom for next semester for Model U.N. First, thanks to the generous help of Mr. C. Richard Stafford, ’53, an alumnus of St. Anselm’s and Harvard, we are currently in the selection process for the elite team we’ll send to HUMN (Harvard Model U.N.) in January. Roughly 15 boys are competing for the six slots on our delegation, which will represent China on a range of economic issues. I for one am looking forward to their position papers explaining China’s currency devaluation—from China’s perspective! This is an issue I must admit a fair degree of ignorance on, and I can’t wait to learn something from our guys.

This winter, we hope to attend conferences at Sidwell Friends School, Catholic University and Georgetown. Finally, we look forward to capping off the season in March with George Washington University’s Washington Area Model U.N. Conference.

As always, the boys will do well and prepare hard for these events. They will garner awards and accolades. And as one Abbey Boy put it, “with ridiculous intellect and irresistible charm”—not to mention ties sometimes askew and shirt tails flapping—the Abbey will exhibit its own unique brand of “messy multilateralism!”

- Mr. Kirk Otterson

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Campus News

Austin Prevails in House Day Festivities

Students and faculty lined the athletic fields to cheer on the runners who participated in the relay race, the final (and decisive) activity on House Day. Above, seniors are shown nearing the finish line in the relay’s final stretch.

Sixth Former Michael Higgins enjoys lunch with new A Form students Tyler Pirovic and Aamir Khuller, both drafted by Moore House earlier in the day.

The St. Anselm’s campus was buzzing with excitement the morning of Friday, September 24 as students and faculty geared up for the annual House Day. The day began with new students receiving their House assignments and shirts at the House Draft, conducted by the Sixth Form House Heads. All were detemined to seize the year’s first major House competition and position themselves well to win the 2011 House Cup. Students took part in a series of games and competitions throughout the day, capped by an exciting relay race with students from each Form. Austin House came out on top, but everyone went home happy with ice cream and sodas served by the Student Council.

Charlie Ladd (Form I) hands off the relay baton after a race well run.

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Photos courtesy of the St. Anselm’s Photography Club.

Sharing a New Christmas Spirit Priory Players Celebrate the Season With a World Premiere Musical The St. Anselm’s community got a head start on the Christmas season this year when the Priory Players presented the world premiere of a new musical version of “A Christmas Carol” the weekend of November 19.

The music for this new work was written by awardwinning British composer Piers Chater Robinson, a writer, producer and director based in London’s West End. The book and lyrics were written by Chris Blackwood, a British writer and director who has worked professionally in the U.S. and Europe.

“A Christmas Carol” was directed by Mrs. M. Catherine Diggle, with musical direction by Dr. Charles Downey. The show featured St. Anselm’s students from the Middle and Upper Schools and girls from several Washington-area schools.

This production marked the beginning of the 64th season for the Priory Players, who have been in continuous existence since 1947.

Far left: Alex Girardot (Form VI) as Ebenezer Scrooge with Cameron Johnson (Form IV) as the ghost of Jacob Marley. Left: The Cratchit children, Martha (Sarabeth Moniz), Tiny Tim (Eric Juneau, Form I), Belinda (Anna Moniz) and Peter (Will Butler, Form I). Above: Adam Calkins (Form IV) as the narrator. Below: the entire 25-member cast of “A Christmas Carol” at their dress rehearsal.

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Panther Sports

Cross Country Overcomes Challenges The 2010 Abbey cross country team came into the season with high expectations, only to face challenges week after week. Whether it was massive hills on almost every course, hot weather, heavy rain induced mud or simply the challenge of balancing practices and the Abbey academic workload, the Abbey runners took each challenge and conquered it. We placed higher than ever before at many large public/private school meets. We finished third in the PVAC, close behind the talented Edmund Burke and Field squads. Much of our success this year was thanks to a solid group of young runners, including many freshmen and sophomores. Next year we expect our large and committed junior class will lead us to another solid season. Best of luck to this year’s graduating seniors—you are always welcome to come back and run a B.O.B.!

- Coach Bryan Taylor

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Varsity Soccer

The 2010 Varsity soccer squad was led by head coach Barry Hillocks (far right) and assistant Michael Mowery, ’03 (far left). Front row, left to right: Matthias Pecoraro (Form IV), Ellis Berns (III), Alex Turner (IV), Riely Blake (VI), Stephen Delli Priscoli (VI), Sydney Kpundeh (V), Sean Attridge (V), Luke Foley (V). Back row, left to right: Coach Mowery, Michael Paganelli (V), John Recchia (IV), Kevin Ngo (VI), Christopher Bragale (VI), Atticus Sawatzki (VI), Marco Cerritelli (VI), Thomas Hansen (VI), Michael Higgins (VI), Kyle Winkler (V), Joe Breslin (VI), Nick Tucci (V), Luke McCormick (V), Sam Thirumalai (V), Chang-In Mungai (V), and Coach Hillocks.

J.V. Soccer

Middle School Soccer

Back row, left to right: Coach Michael Mowery, ’03, Francis McCarthy (Form IV), Thomas Fazio (IV), Chang-Wu Mungai (IV), Andrew Fois (IV), Joshua Peri (IV), Erich Schwartz (V), John Madden (V), Kody Low (III), Coach Michael Edelin, ’06. Front row, left to right: Alex Turner (IV), Geri Dunellari (IV), Jimmy King (IV), Sam Girardot (III), Phoenix Morrison (III), Michael Dudinsky (III), Nico Bell (IV), Bill Foley (III).

Back row, left to right: David Polhemus (Form I), Cameron Underwood (I), Jonathan Lorentz (I), Nick Klinkenbergh (I), Pablo Ruiz (I), Ryan Dalbec (II), Miles Moore (II), Brendan Sloan (I), Thomas Bui (II), Conor Sloan (II), Sean Swartz (II), Coach Friday Johnson. Front row, left to right: Clement Williams (A), Sam Novak (A), Tyler Pirovic (A), Thomas Banks (II), Stephen Kpundeh (II), Nathan Dangle (I).

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The 2010

Fall Scholarship Gala Saturday, October 23

H

is Eminence Theodore Cardinal McCarrick was inducted into the St. Anselm’s Abbey School Hall of Honor during the annual Fall Scholarship Gala on October 23. Cardinal McCarrick, who served as Archbishop of Washington from 2001 to 2006, was honored for his steadfast support of Catholic education here in the nation’s capital and around the world.

St. Anselm’s President Fr. Peter Weigand, OSB, welcomed Cardinal McCarrick on behalf of the school community. Fr. Peter thanked His Eminence for supporting St. Anselm’s during his time in Washington and for his continued friendship. Cardinal McCarrick was introduced by Father Luke Travers, OSB, a former Trustee of St. Anselm’s and the current Subprior of St. Mary’s Abbey in Morristown, N.J., who has known the Cardinal for over 30 years.

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Cardinal McCarrick thanked the St. Anselm’s community for the honor and praised the School as “a place where students really feel at home.” He called St. Anselm’s a unique school in the Archdiocese of Washington, citing the influence of the Abbey’s Benedictine monks as a defining characteristic of the School.

His Eminence said that “holiness, hospitality and wholesomeness” were at the heart of the St. Anselm’s community, jokingly calling these the “three H’s” of St. Anselm’s.

As Archbishop of Washington, Cardinal McCarrick was a vocal advocate for the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program, a federally funded program that allowed more than 1,000 low-income students to attend Catholic schools in the District of Columbia, including St. Anselm’s. His Eminence was also responsible for strengthening the finances of the

Archdiocese’s Catholic schools, raising millions of dollars to support education in the Forward in Faith campaign.

Cardinal McCarrick joins his predecessor, the late James Cardinal Hickey, in the St. Anselm’s Hall of Honor. Cardinal Hickey was honored by the School in 2001 following his retirement as Archbishop.

There were over 300 guests present at this year’s Gala, which featured a silent auction, dinner and live auction in addition to the award presentation. To date, the Gala has raised nearly $200,000 to support current-year scholarships for students at St. Anselm’s with demonstrated financial need. The School has awarded more than $850,000 in financial aid for the 2010-2011 school year, an all-time high. Eighty-four students, or 36 percent of the student body, are receiving aid this year.

Clockwise from left: Auctioneer Paul Quinn declares an item “sold” during the exciting live auction; Prior Fr. Simon McGurk, President Fr. Peter Weigand and Headmaster Louis Silvano greet Cardinal McCarrick; Fr. Peter and Chairman of the Board William Fennell, ’66, present the Cardinal with a chair as a token of his induction into the Hall of Honor; guests mingle and bid on items during the silent auction in the Devine Theater prior to dinner.

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Class Notes 1956

George Mattingly, right, won the singles championship at the annual Damian Crane, ’55 Alumni Pool Tournament on October 27.

This is his fourth consecutive year winning a title at the tournament: he won the singles in 2007 and the doubles in 2007, 2008 and 2009. George was the earliest alumnus at this year’s event, which took place at Buffalo Billiards in Dupont Circle and drew approximately 40 alumni.

1974

Mike Broderick passed away on November 4 after a brief illness. He was remembered in a November 25 Washington Post article by columnist and friend Lenny Bernstein, who called Mike a “rock star” in the local distance-running community. In June, before his illness, Mike completed the 100-mile Western States ultra-marathon, finishing in less than 27 hours. Classmate Peter Collins remembers Mike Broderick on page 18.

1982

Jim Lucier joined the Board of Trustees this fall and will serve a three-year term.

He is one of seven alumni currently serving on the 15member Board.

1985

Christian Barry was in Washington the last weekend in October to run in the 35th annual Marine Corps

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Tom Borger is a member of the Board of Trustees at St. Anselm’s and previously served as the Board’s Chairman.

1999 George Mattingly, ’56

Marathon. He stopped by St. Anselm’s for a visit with the Alumni Office and a prerace jog around the Abbey grounds. Christian traces his love of distance running to his days on the cross-country team at St. Anselm’s.

1995

Phil Walsh is a visiting assistant professor of English at Washington College in Chestertown, Md. He joined the faculty there in 2008 after completing his Ph.D. in Comparative Literature at Brown University. Phil and his family visited St. Anselm’s during the annual Alumni-Varsity Basketball Game on November 27.

On November 2, Patrick Granfield was interviewed on CNN International, which airs in more than 200 countries worldwide.

Patrick, a former teacher at St. Anselm’s and current opinion editor of The National, an Englishlanguage newspaper in Abu Dhabi, offered his analysis of the day’s midterm elections.

2002

Robert Cobbs matriculated at Yale Law School this fall after taking a summer trip to Israel. He had previously worked on Capitol Hill as a Congressional staffer.

2003

Michael Mowery has been back at St. Anselm’s recently as head coach for the J.V. soccer and Middle School “B” basketball teams.

JB O’Brien is moving to California’s Napa Valley in January to pursue a degree at the Culinary Institute of America. For the past three years, JB has worked in Washington as an associate at a commercial real estate firm and has served on the Alumni Association’s board.

2004

Matt Lynch married the former Katie Keller on October 23, 2010 in Towson, Md. Kevin Hudson served as best man, and classmates Charles Hamm, Kevin Sweeney and James Leathers were also in attendance.

1998

Marc Borger and his wife, Marcy, recently welcomed their first child. McKenna Christine Borger, shown at right with her mother, was born at 6:10 p.m. on November 9, 2010. She weighed six pounds, 12 ounces at birth. McKenna Christine’s grandfather

Mrs. Marcy Borger and McKenna Christine Borger

coached the Varsity and J.V. soccer teams this fall.

2009

Alumni from the Class of 2004 gathered for the wedding of Matt Lynch to Katie Keller. From left: Charles Hamm, Kevin Hudson, Matt Lynch, Kevin Sweeney and James Leathers.

2006

Several members of the Class of ’06 are back on campus this year as assistant coaches. Andrew Schiff is the assistant wrestling coach. Jack Leathers and Scott Salandy-DeFour are serving

as assistant coaches for the Varsity basketball team. They are assisting head coach Paul Grenaldo, who began his 30th season of coaching this year. Their classmate Michael Edelin assistant-

Bobby Rudd was recently named “Outstanding Young Numismatist of America” by the Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS), which is the national leader in evaluating coin collections. He is the recipient of a plaque and letter of commendation from David Hall, CEO of PCGS. He has also been recognized for his numismatic accomplishments by Larry Shepherd, Executive Director of the American Numismatic Association.

2010

Michael Carpenter is a freshman at the University of Virginia, where he joins his brother John Carpenter, ’09, as a manager of the men’s basketball team.

We Extend Our Deepest Sympathy to the Families of Those in Our Community Who Have Died Ms. Michelle Arène Spanish and French Teacher, Mother of Santiago Nesti Aréne, ’99 Mr. Michael P. Broderick Class of 1974 Mrs. Sara D. Casarella Mother of Peter Casarella, ’81, and Mark Casarella, ’85 Dr. John T. Cockerham Father of Jeremy T. Cockerham, ’10 Fr. David Granfield, OSB Priory School religion teacher, 1952-1960 Mr. Bobby Latimer Brother of John P. Latimer, II, ’09 Mr. Michael D. Mead Class of 1958 Mr. David Miller Past Parent and Friend of the School

Mrs. Virginia L. Moniz Grandmother of Matthew J. Moniz, ’08, Benjamin J. Moniz, ’10, and David Oetjen, ’11 Mr. Matthew J. Nevins Class of 1958 Dr. Helen E. Peixotto Oblate and Friend of the Abbey Mrs. Elizabeth D. Peters Wife of Eugene Peters, Sr., ’47; Mother of Dr. Edward Peters, ’72, Eugene Peters, Jr., ’73, and Charles Peters, ’74; Grandmother of Eugene Peters, III, ’04 Mr. John M. Powderly Class of 1947 Mrs. Patricia Hayden Powell Sister of Fr. Hilary Hayden, OSB, and Joseph Hayden, ’50

Mr. George Roche Brother of Mrs. Courtenay Pecoraro; Uncle of Benjamin T. Pecoraro, ’06, Matthias Pecoraro, ’13, and Timothy Pecoraro, ’16 Mr. David M. Rogers Class of 1959 Mrs. Antoinette Ruppert Grandmother of Erin Ersenkal, ’94 Mrs. Helen Doherty Swinton Mother of W. Gerald Swinton, ’75 Dr. Frank B. Whitesell, Jr. Father of the late Dr. Frank B. Whitesell, III, ’70, Dr. Luke J. Whitesell, ’76, and Dr. Peter L. Whitesell, ’79; Grandfather of David Whitesell, ’01, Neill Horton, ’98, Frank Horton, ’00, and John Horton, ’04

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In Memoriam Ms. Michelle Arène

Ms. Michelle Arène, a Spanish teacher at St. Anselm’s and the mother of Santiago Nesti Arène, ’99, died Wednesday, August 18 at age 57 at her home in Washington. She had cancer.

Ms. Arène immigrated to the U.S. from her native El Salvador in 1987 and began teaching at St. Anselm’s 11 years later, during her son Nesti’s senior year here. She taught Spanish at St. Anselm’s from 1998 until the time of her death. Ms. Arène was remembered by hundreds of friends, family members, students and colleagues at her Memorial Mass, held at St. Anselm’s on August 28. Mr. Jeffrey Harwood gave the following remembrance at the Mass.

Michelle was a modest and humble person. She did not promote her accomplishments to her colleagues, but I had the good fortune to learn more of her extraordinary story. I still teach a unit on Central America in the Form A World Geography course, and when I learned of her experiences in El Salvador, I made a point to spend time with her and ask her questions. I then invited her to speak to my A Formers, and this became an almost annual ritual.

Michelle served as a leader in the Salvadoran Human Rights Commission. It was her job to listen to the testimonies of Salvadorans who had lost loved ones or who had endured abuses at the hands of the armed forces and the various dictatorships who had ruled El Salvador. Her work was as necessary as it was difficult. Michelle documented many of the most wrenching and horrific cases of abuse, and then she would send this information on to the United Nations.

She pressed on with her calling, even after a colleague and friend disappeared and was found brutally murdered. The death squads came for her on several occasions, at her home and at work. She evaded them by moving from place to place, a sojourner without permanent sanctuary. Michelle finally made the decision to flee her nation, and the story of her real-life escape at the airport rivals any depicted in a Hollywood movie.

In Form A World Geography we studied about the human rights abuses in our textbook, and we even watched the film Romero in class. However, nothing could take the place of a courageous, flesh-and-blood human being, a teacher at our school, bearing testimony to her own efforts and her own risks.

What we studied in our textbooks came very much alive to these, our youngest students, and it was a lesson that they will never forget—they were always spellbound as she spoke in our class.

I know that we as a faculty considered it an honor and a privilege to have worked alongside Michelle, our most courageous colleague, a true hero and near martyr for social justice. It has been the tradition at many memorial services for Salvadoran justice workers, for the participants to declare that the departed is still very much present and active—“Presente.” Therefore, it is appropriate that we say, “Michelle Arène—Presente.”

- Mr. Jeffrey Harwood

Michael Broderick, ’74

After a Career in Law, Alumnus Became Runner and Coach

Mike Broderick in the fall of 1973, during his senior year at St. Anselm’s. (Photo: Peter Collins)

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Michael P. Broderick, ’74, died November 4 of complications from an extremely aggressive lung cancer. He is survived by his wife of 28 years, Jill; his father, James and stepmother Anne; and his sister, Sue. A 1978 graduate of the University of Virginia and a 1986 graduate of the Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law, Mike was a founding partner of Donovan & Broderick in Gaithersburg, Md. After a successful 20-year legal career, he retired to become a personal fitness trainer and a coach for elite runners, establishing several acclaimed training programs for both novice and experienced marathoners. As an accredited instructor for the Road Runners Club of America, Mike travelled the nation to train candidate coaches. Mike particularly enjoyed the challenges of long-distance trail running and had completed the prestigious Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run in June before his illness became apparent.

Fr. Peter and Mike’s classmates Pat Attridge, Peter Collins, Bill Conyngham, Bruce Kirchner, Tom Ostronic, Charlie Peters and Edward Sharp attended the hundreds-strong memorial service.

- Mr. Peter Collins, ’74

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