Over 550 Stanners Reunite
On November 6th, Archbishop Molloy High School hosted its annual Stanner Hall of Fame Induction and Class Reunion event. The evening began with a memorial mass in the Ralph DeChiaro ’31 Theater honoring those in the Stanner community that have passed away in the last year. Mr. Jim Sheehan ’75, Erica Mundy ’04, and the school chorus led the mass in song as it was celebrated by Father John Serio ’71 and Deacon Bob Lonergan. Following the mass, the Hall of Fame presentation began with words from Molloy President Richard Karsten ’81 and an introduction to each inductee. Honorable John J. Hargrove ’60, who traveled with his family from California to attend the ceremony, shared his Stanner story. Bro. Dan O’Riordan ’85 and Senator Joseph P. Addabbo Jr. ’82 followed with words and thanks upon receiving their honors. Perhaps the most moving part of the ceremony occurred when those speaking on Bro. Leo Richard’s behalf took the stage; his nephew Ted Morris and Bro. James Norton. Both Mr. Morris and Bro. James spoke at length and from the heart about the late Bro. Leo, which elicited a tremendous applause from the crowd. Following the Hall of Fame inductions, Mrs. Anne Lonergan was honored with the Stanner Outstanding Achievement Award, given to non-graduates of St. Ann’s and Molloy that have shown a great dedication to the Stanner community. She spoke highly of Mr. Mark Lipset and Coach Jack Curran as she thanked them and others for helping her succeed as a teacher at Molloy. It was a wonderful and historic moment for Archbishop Molloy High School to be able to acknowledge these very special alumni and honorary Stanners.
After the Hall of Fame ceremony, the school was bustling with alumni from the classes of 1950, 1955, 1960, 1965, 1970, 1975, 1980, 1985, 1990, 1995, 2000, and 2005. The class of 1960 and the class of 1985 celebrated their 50th and 25th anniversary reunions respectively and received medals for their milestones. Judge Hargrove and Bro. Dan had the honor of handing out the medals to their classmates. Following cocktail receptions for each class, the Stanner Alumni Center’s Maria Ford introduced Bro. Ben Consigli, F.M.S. ’80, who provided an invocation for the event. President Karsten then introduced the Hall of Fame honorees to the crowd. The biggest applause, again, was for Bro. Leo. Stanners spanning many generations, stood, applauded, and even chanted “Leo” in a wonderful moment remembering a great Marist Brother. The evening progressed with class photos, dinner, dancing, and dessert. The night saw over 550 alumni in attendance, which makes it the most successful St. Ann’s and Molloy reunion to date. We would like to thank the Molloy faculty, facilities staff, caterers, DJ, valets, and student volunteers for helping to organize such a huge, successful event. A very special thanks goes to Maria Ford for all of her long hours of planning to help accommodate over 550 guests. We look forward to seeing more alumni in the weeks and months to come, leading up to an even better 2011 reunion. Click on the photos below to enlarge. Top left: President Richard Karsten speaks with Judge Hargrove. Top Right: Class of 1960 celebrates its 50th Anniversary Reunion. Bottom Left: Stanners take to the dance floor. Bottom Right: Family & Friends of Bro. Leo Richard.
Around the School
College Seminars
During Oc
tober, a number of prestigious colleges sent representatives to Molloy, providing students a wealth of information and insight meant to aid them in making tough decisions about where to apply. Colleges that visited Molloy include: Loyola University New Orleans, Loyola University Maryland, Annapolis (pictured, Captain Chuck Haunss of Annapolis speaks to students), Columbia, C.W. Post, Vassar, Lesley University, Adelphi, Franklin & Marshall, Boston College, Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Northeastern University, York College of Pennsylvania, University of Pennsylvania, St. Joseph’s University (Pennsylvania), Providence College, SUNY Fashion Institute of Technology, SUNY New Paltz, SUNY Binghamton, Sacred Heart, Amherst, St. Peter’s, CUNY Macaulay Honors (pictured below, admissions counselor at Macaulay Honors College Mr. Luke Heywood speaks to students), CUNY Baruch, Belmont Abbey, University of Scranton.
The college reps enjoy the classroom visits because they can interact with the students in a smaller, personal setting. The students can ask questions and find out about specific programs offered by the schools. According to senior academic and personal counselor Mr. Ed McGuinness ‘81, “The experience gives the students a larger perspective of what is available as a college option. Best of all, the reps get to meet our students and see what great young people we have at Archbishop Molloy High School.” In many instances the reps who speak to Molloy students are the admissions counselors who will be reading their essays and applications. Needless to say, Molloy’s students left wonderful impressions with all of the college speakers.
Also in October, Molloy held its first Sophomore College Night. The evening, organized by the guidance department, was attended by almost 400 parents and students. It provided sophomore parents and students their first glimpse into the ins and outs of the college application process. The evening was led by Ms. Emily Wolper and Ms. Victoria Orner, former and current college admissions officers. Many questions were answered and a lot of helpful information was shared, and judging from the feedback from both parents and students, the evening was a great success.
William Wissemann ’70 visited the Stanner Alumni Center and told us he has been working as General Council at New York Hospital in Queens. After graduating from Molloy, Bill attended Cooper Union and studied engineering, after which he attended Pharmacy school where he earned an MBA. He later studied in law school before eventually settling in at New York Hospital. Bill looked through his 1970 yearbook and pointed out all of the Marist Brothers that taught him. He spoke highly of Br. Terence, Br. Salmon, and Br. Aquinas. In his words, “Teachers elsewhere couldn’t compare to Molloy’s teachers.” Bill currently lives on Long Island with his family. Pictured left are William and Br. Aquinas in the Molloy Biology lab.
Non scholae sed vitae
Richard M. Reilly ’63 informed us that he has been appointed as Chairman to the Massachusetts Joint-Labor Management Committee (JLMC) for Municipal Police and Fire. The JLMC is responsible for all collective bargaining negotiations between municipal police officers or firefighters and municipalities in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Previously Richard served as Senior Vice President of the American Arbitration Association. He is also involved with several community-based programs where he currently resides in Newton, MA. He holds degrees from Fordham University, St. John’s University, and Boston College.
Class Updates
Terrence Ford ’98 (pictured) ran the ING New York City Marathon on Sunday, November 7th. Finishing in just over 5 hours, Terrence raised over $4,000 for Run for Our Sons Muscular Dystrophy in honor of his wife Ledja’s niece and nephew. Several other Stanners ran the race including Robert DeLay ’00 finishing in just over 4 hours, Brian Power ’85, brother of teacher Mr. A.J. Power ’84, finishing in 3 hours 40 minutes, Steve Cichlar ‘86 in 3 hours 8 minutes, and Keith Forlenza ’05 finishing with a time of 2 hours and 33 minutes. Congratulations to all the runners, particularly our Stanners, that completed the challenging race!
For a number of years Mr. Joe Dombrowski, a historian at heart, has been compiling a copious amount of photos and content that would help shed light on the great tradition of athletics in Catholic schools in New York City. All of his hard work has finally paid off with “The Sports History of the Catholic High School Athletic Association of Greater New York”, a comprehensive account of all the famous coaches and athletes that have gone on to have outstanding and storied professional careers. According to Joe, “I tried to pay homage to the generations of CHSAA coaches who took thousands of boys and molded them to men.” It features a list of the schools that qualify, vintage published news stories, information on the CHSAA Hall of Fame including Coach Jack Curran, and more. Among the cover photos are Coach Lou Carnesecca, St. Ann’s Class of 1943, and track star Tom Farrell, Class of 1961. For information on obtaining a copy of this publication, contact the Stanner Alumni Center at 718-441-9210 or email Joe Dombrowski at jdombrowski@molloyhs.org
The Stanner Alumni Center is saddened to share news of the passing of Michael Prusinski ’04. Michael, part of Molloy’s first co-ed graduating class, passed away early last week. Please keep Michael, his family, and friends in your thoughts and prayers.
Please pray for the soul of Robert Tolan, St. Ann’s Class of 1955. Robert passed away in October.
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