Kennedy Catholic LANCER LEGACY AWARDS Celebrating our Past Inspiring our Future
Kennedy Catholic LANCER LEGACY AWARDS Program of Events
Master of Ceremonies
Jim Dever News Reporter and host of KING 5’s “Evening”
Blessing
Father Bryan Dolejsi
Welcome
Mike Prato Kennedy Catholic President
Awards Program Alumni Awardees:
Lizanne Falsetto (’81)
Dave Anderson (’71) Steven Langmack (posthumous) (’90) Mike Utley (’84) Darian Brooks (’11) Jessica Razanadrakoto (’13) Vinnie Sposari (’82) Thomas Scanlon (’89) Mateo Messina (’90) Performance by the Kennedy Catholic band accompanied by Mateo Messina (‘90)
Cornerstone Award Presentation Nancy Bradish Kennedy Catholic Principal
Cornerstone Award Recipient John M. Goodwin (posthumous)
Closing Remarks
Mike Prato Kennedy Catholic President
ALUMNI ACHIEVEMENT AWARD Lizanne Falsetto (’81)
Business and Wellness Entrepreneur, Founder of thinkThin In 2000, after a decade of world travel and a successful career modeling internationally, Lizanne launched thinkThin. A foodie and nutrition enthusiast, Lizanne created a better-for-you, high protein nutrition bar and food line for active women on the go. As the Founder and CEO of thinkThin, she steered her company to become a national lifestyle brand to its place today as a multi-million dollar household name growing into many categories. In December 2015, Lizanne sold thinkThin to global performance nutrition and ingredients group Glanbia Inc. for $217 million. Lizanne is a dynamic and inspiring speaker who has been featured on NBC, ABC and Fox and in various newspapers such as The New York Times, Business Week, Huffington Post, Entrepreneur Magazine, Advertising Age and the National Business News. Beyond being a successful businesswoman and mother of two, Lizanne is a passionate philanthropist. In 2014 and 2015, she hosted benefits for Whole Foods Market’s Whole Planet Foundation in support of micro-lending programs, assisting women out of poverty in 59 countries worldwide. An advocate and frontrunner of health and wellbeing through nutrition, she has raised money for The Dream Foundation and Women’s Cancer Research.
ALUMNI ACHIEVEMENT AWARD David C. Anderson (’71)
Vice President and General Counsel, PACCAR, Inc. Dave Anderson is the retired vice president and general counsel of PACCAR, where he worked from 2004 to 2016. PACCAR is a global Fortune-200 technology company that manufactures premium commercial vehicles with 2015 revenues of $19 billion, 23,000 employees and 77 consecutive years of net profit. As general counsel reporting to the chief executive officer, Dave was responsible for management of all facets of PACCAR’s legal affairs including advice on corporate governance, financial reporting, labor relations, litigation and financing. Additionally, he advised the board of directors on a variety of issues, particularly those considered by the Nominating and Governance and Audit Committees. Dave was a member of PACCAR’s Executive Operating Committee with reporting responsibility for real estate, facilities and government affairs. During his tenure, Dave assisted the company with expansion into Brazil, China, India, Russia and Eastern Europe and with the launch of its engine manufacturing business in the United States. Prior to joining PACCAR, Dave was general counsel for Airborne Inc., a multinational, Fortune-500 transportation and logistics company. Dave worked closely with Airborne’s chief executive officer on a full range of business opportunities and issues. He managed the legal function at Airborne and its wholly owned airline subsidiary, ABX Air Inc., including litigation, financing and labor relations. He also served as corporate secretary and managed government affairs. Earlier in his career, Dave was a partner with Foster Pepper, a Seattle-based law firm, where his practice focused on commercial litigation, directors’ and officers’ liability and real estate. Dave is a graduate of Stanford Law School (JD) and Harvard University (BA, magna cum laude, Philosophy). He was a member of the Washington State and the U.S. Supreme Court Bars. He served on the Executive Committee of the Corporate Counsel Section of the Washington State Bar Association. Dave lives in Kirkland with his wife, Sherri Pfeifer Anderson, Kennedy Catholic Class of 1971.
ALUMNI SERVICE ABOVE SELF AWARD Steven Langmack (’90) posthumous
US Army Special Forces and Ranger Hall of Fame Inductee Sergeant First Class Steven Langmack was inducted into the Ranger Hall of Fame on July 12, 2012 in Fort Benning, Georgia for his valorous and meritorious service while conducting combat operations in multiple theaters throughout a career culminating in his death while facing down high value terrorists in Iraq. Ranger Langmack began his career with A Company, 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment in which he served during the United States’ 1994 intervention in Haiti. In 1999, Ranger Langmack was selected to serve in the U.S. Army Special Forces where he was assigned to Operational Detachment A744, 2nd Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne). It was with ODA744 that Ranger Langmack conducted foreign internal defense missions to the Republic of Colombia and combat operations in Afghanistan. In 2004, Ranger Langmack was assessed and then selected for a Special Missions Unit. While conducting combat operations in Iraq in 2005, Ranger Langmack led the way one last time into a foreign fighter safe house. SFC Langmack displayed immense courage by braving intense machine gun fire in order to suppress the determined enemy. His actions allowed his team to maneuver on the target, but ultimately cost Ranger Langmack his life. Ranger Langmack’s bravery and dedication set the example for others to follow as he always chose the toughest assignments and lived the Ranger Creed.
ALUMNI SERVICE ABOVE SELF AWARD Mike Utley (’84)
Founder, Mike Utley Foundation and Professional Football Player After graduating from Kennedy Catholic in 1984, Mike Utley received a scholarship to play football for Washington State University in Pullman, WA. During his college football career, he played in the Coca-Cola Bowl in Tokyo, Japan in 1987, the Aloha Bowl in 1988, where Mike was MVP, the Hula Bowl in 1989 and the East West Shrine Game in 1989. He became the second player in WSU history to earn NCAA consensus first team all-American honors. In 1989, Mike was drafted as the 3rd pick in round three by the Detroit Lions and in his rookie year became the starting right guard. On November 17, 1991 while playing against the Los Angeles Rams, Mike fractured his 6th and 7th cervical vertebrae and became instantly paralyzed. After his injury, the Mike Utley Foundation was established to provide financial support for research, rehabilitation and education for spinal cord injuries. The foundation is also dedicated in providing motivational and emotional support for the individuals and their families who face this devastating condition. Mike has been the recipient of many prestigious awards; including the Walter Camp Man of the Year Award, Ed Block Courage Award, Shoemaker Award, the Gene Autry Courage Award, the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame Courage Award, Detroit Lions Spirit Award, Against all Odds Award, The Ellis Island Medal of Honor Award, and recently inducted into the 2016 College Football Hall of Fame to name a few. Mike has appeared as a guest on many different shows such as Jim Rome’s nationally syndicated Sports Talk Show, Good Morning America, ESPN’s “Portraits of Courage” Inside the NFL, Up Close with Chris Meyers, NBC’s Nightly News with Tom Brokaw, American Journal, the sports cover of USA Today, and was featured in People magazine. Mike’s courageous life was chronicled on OLN’s Emmy nominated series, “Fearless”, “Crunch” on the Discovery Channel, and “Giving is Good” on Associated Television International.
OUTSTANDING YOUNG ALUMNI AWARD Darian Brooks (‘11)
Stanford Track and Field Standout Darian Brooks is an Academic Counselor for the Rainier Scholars program in south Seattle, where he promotes education and opportunity within underrepresented groups. He came to Rainier Scholars after graduating in 2016 from Stanford University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology. Prior to attending Stanford, Darian was a running back for the Kennedy Catholic football team, and a competitive member of the track and field team. During his time at Stanford, his stellar record continued to grow as a triple jumper for the track and field team. Over the course of five years, Darian worked to achieve notable awards on the track and excelled academically. He currently holds the Stanford triple jump record for both indoors and outdoors and was a four time All-American. In his final three years of his career, he won three straight PAC-12 championship titles which earned him a PAC-12 Athlete of the Year award from the Stanford Athletic Board. He was the first in the conference to win three consecutive titles for this event. Off the track, he participated in research on User Experience in Application Development and Child Development. Darian lives in Renton, WA.
Jessica Razanadrakoto (‘13)
Awarded the Resolution Fellowship Born and raised in Madagascar, Jessica left her home at age 14 to receive a better education in Seattle, Washington, where she attended Kennedy Catholic. While at the school, she participated in activities such as choir, color guard, and lacrosse. After, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in International Business in three years from Whitworth University while studying abroad with Semester at Sea, visiting 12 countries in Asia and Africa. During her time with Semester at Sea, she entered into a competition with the Resolution Project, an organization focused on developing leaders committed to social responsibility. Along with two colleagues, Jessica won the competition, and a $3,000 grant. The grant was used to start Camp Fihavanana, the first summer camp of its kind in her home country, focused on sports and leadership. Currently, Jessica is working for Jubilee REACH, located in Bellevue, Washington, a non-profit organization with a mission to transform lives and community, one student at a time. They fulfill this mission by providing after school activities and building relationships with the students and the community itself for a better tomorrow.
LANCER FOR LIFE AWARD Vincent Sposari (’82)
Owner, Mr. Rooter Plumbing Vincent (Vinnie) Sposari started in the plumbing business in 1988 and opened his first Mr. Rooter franchise in 1991. As a single truck operator, Vinnie built his business going door-to-door attracting customers one at a time. Today Vinnie’s company employs 60 men and women servicing Western Washington. Vinnie married Mary Kay Dooley ‘80, in 1990 and they have two beautiful children, daughter Danielle ’11 and son Vinnie ‘14. Vinnie grew up in West Seattle attending Holy Rosary School and then John F. Kennedy (Catholic) High School graduating in 1982. He attended Bellevue Community College where he got his degree in Criminal Justice. While attempting to get into the police academy, Vinnie realized starting his own business rather than joining the police force would best serve his future. While working for a local plumbing company, Vinnie received his plumbing license. Today, in addition to running his company, Vinnie is the President of the Kennedy Catholic Booster Club and sits on the Kennedy Catholic Advisory Board. He serves as the Men’s Captain at Rainier Golf and Country Club and sits on the board of the Master Builders Association GRIP Program. Over the last 26 years as a Mr. Rooter franchisee, Vinnie has earned numerous awards. He was awarded Mr. Rooter Plumbing Rookie of the Year in 1993, Build Mr. Rooter Award in 1995, Franchisee of the Year in 1996 and 2016, Excellence in Leadership 1997, 1998, 2014, Sales Leader of the Year 1999, Multi-concept Franchisee of the Year 2006, The Mr. Rooter Pioneer Award in 2010 and the Don Dwyer Award of Excellence in 2005. In addition to his career, Vinnie spent many years volunteering as both coach and umpire for baseball at both the middle school and high school level. Currently Vinnie is President/Owner of Mr. Rooter of Western Washington. He splits his time between Seattle, Washington and Palm Desert, California where he enjoys both his family and indulges his passion for golf.
ALUMNI VISIONARY AWARD Thomas Scanlon (’89)
Professor of Mathematics, UC Berkeley Thomas Scanlon is a Professor in the Department of Mathematics at UC Berkeley. He received his B.S. in mathematics from the University of Chicago in 1993 and his Ph.D. in mathematics from Harvard in 1997. Tom has been a researcher at the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute in Berkeley and at the Newton Institute in Cambridge, UK, a professor at UC Berkeley since 1998 and a visiting professor at various universities such as Oxford, Université Paris, Université de Mons in Belgium, the University of British Columbia, the National University of Singapore, la Universidad Nacional in Bogotá, and Yonsei University in Seoul. Tom’s primary research area is in mathematical logic and its connections to other parts of mathematics, especially in number theory, differential algebra and dynamical systems. His 1997 Harvard doctoral thesis, Model Theory of Valued D-Fields, was award the 1998 Sacks Prize by the Association for Symbolic Logic as the best thesis that year in logic worldwide. In addition, Tom has written or co-written over 42 published papers, has several additional papers under review and he can often be found speaking at international math conferences and workshops. In 2006, he was an invited lecturer at the International Congress of Mathematicians in Madrid. Much of his work has been supported by grants made by the National Science Foundation. Tom has advised over two dozen students during their own doctoral research and has taught thousands of students in mathematics classes including large calculus lectures, advanced undergraduate courses on logic and algebra, and graduate seminars. Tom’s work has focused on bringing more people into the high level study of mathematics through such programs as the UC President’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program and Berkeley’s Mathematics Opportunity Committee. Tom lives with his family in Oakland, California.
ALUMNI DISTINCTION IN THE ARTS AWARD Mateo Messina (’90)
Grammy Award-winning Music Composer Mateo Messina is a Grammy winning composer who writes music for film, television, and the symphony. His signature sound can be found on many of today’s Oscar winning movies & independent film hits. The beauty of unfamiliar sounds becoming musical is one of Mateo’s unique sought after talents. With studios in Hollywood and Seattle, Mateo and his team have been delivering a fresh, unique style of music for the past 15 years. He is well known in Hollywood for introducing a new type of simple and heartfelt filmscoring to the Oscar winning film, Juno. Mateo consistently takes risks, he lacks boundaries, his energy is endless, and his creativity spills out from his heart. He’s a dreamer and a doer, a combination critical to his success. Since the age of 24, Mateo has written, produced, and premiered 19 symphonies. Each premiere has been a benefit concert for kids, families, and research at Seattle Children’s Hospital. To date, he and his team have raised over $1,000,000 for Seattle Children’s. Mateo is an accomplished musician, a unique storyteller, a seasoned producer, the absolute biggest fan of his kids, and one of today’s most innovative composers. One interesting thing about this composer of 19 symphonies, over 40 films, and over 100 TV shows, is he does not read music. He studied business at Western Washington University and started a career in eCommerce at it’s very beginning. After his third symphony, he was asked to write music for a short film and he fell in love with the art form. He promptly moved to Hollywood and took a big swing at being a composer for films. His hard work paid off when he started writing for the major motion picture studios a few years later and hasn’t looked back since. Mateo says, “I am grateful every day I find myself supporting my family through creating music. I love collaborating with the best storytellers in the world and effecting emotion through music in film and concert.” Mateo, his wife Tammy, and their 5 children, Simon, Sydney, Spencer, Manhattan, and Malibu currently live in Kirkland but leave to explore the world as often as they can.
KENNEDY CATHOLIC CORNERSTONE AWARD John M. Goodwin (posthumous) In 1972, John M. Goodwin was appointed by Archbishop Connolly to serve as the third principal of John F. Kennedy Memorial High School. John previously dedicated 20 years as an educator, administrator and coach at Seattle Prep and served five years as an assistant football coach at the University of Washington. His leadership skills, charisma and deep dedication to Catholic education made him the perfect choice for a school that, at the time, was experiencing financial challenges. Rewarding the Archbishop’s trust and faith, Kennedy Catholic soon reached all-time enrollment highs and achieved success in the classroom, on the athletic fields and in the community. John’s passion for Catholic education and dedication to maintaining its affordability was forged in Spokane, Washington, where he attended Gonzaga Prep and Gonzaga University. He frequently remarked that he was “raised by the Jesuits” and he held them and their teaching ideals in high esteem. After serving his country in WWII, John returned to finish his degree and began his teaching career in 1948. John is best remembered by some as a highly successful and decorated football coach who won back-to-back state championships at Seattle Prep and who was selected Seattle Post Intelligencer “Sports Man of the Year” in 1965. He routinely deflected credit for these successes and insisted he was an educator, not a coach. His students agreed. As both principal and coach, he had a special gift for surrounding himself with top flight colleagues and consistently drawing excellence from his students and athletes. Those who knew John best understood that the successes he achieved and brought out in others were due in equal measure to his deep humanity and great heart. These qualities made him many lifelong friends, including the Diocesan priests and lay faculty at Kennedy Catholic for whom he had great admiration and affection. Few in his era will forget his booming voice calling out spiritedly to students as they passed by in the hallways between classes. He was an original Lancer for Life. John considered himself rich in life’s blessings. His greatest blessing was his wife, Marguerite, who labored with him in the service of Catholic education, first at Seattle University and later in the attendance office at Kennedy Catholic. John and Marguerite’s commitment to education and service lives on through their children Mike (who also taught at the school), Peggy, Molly, Tom, Ellen, Mark (‘76), John & Pat (‘79) and Sally (‘81).
THANK YOU
It is with gratitude that we welcomed the return of so many alumni to help us celebrate our 50th anniversary year. This has been a year full of blessings. Our current students, parents, faculty and staff, volunteers, friends, and community members joined together with alumni to celebrate our past and inspire our future. We heard tales from our early pioneers. Their stories speak of unwavering faith and conviction in the importance of sustaining and honoring our mission: to graduate leaders following Christ in a community that is accessible, diverse and committed to pursuing the fullest potential of every student. Each of the five decades since our founding has witnessed succeeding generations picking up the torch to ensure the vitality of Kennedy Catholic. We hope and pray this year inspired all to renew their commitment to the educational vision of our school. It is our goal to ensure we continue to innovate, influence and inspire. Our purpose is, and always will be, to secure the future of Kennedy Catholic. We thank our benefactors, advertisers, volunteers, and friends without whose immense support this year of celebration would not have been possible. We thank the members of the 50th Anniversary Committee for their guidance and collaboration throughout our planning process. Their imagination, hard work, and energy, coupled with the generous support of many, ensured a year of unforgettable moments. May our unity inspire the current generation of Lancers and may they in turn give glory to God through their future endeavors rooted in our tradition of learning, faith and leadership. Gratefully,
Mike Prato President
Nancy Bradish Principal