Xavier granted NeaSc accreditation againPage 3

Mrs. Joan Tomasiello receives ryken awardPage 4

Dear Members of the Xavier Community,

In the days before our Christmas vacation, several faculty members commented how quickly the school year seems to be moving. As you read this, our year is nearly half over. We’ve celebrated a wonderful Christmas and have probably already broken whatever New Year’s resolutions we have made, and our students are busy preparing for mid-year exams.

As I work my way day-by-day through my first year as Xavier’s headmaster, I continue to be amazed at the energy in our building. Spirits are high and I am constantly grateful for all that our faculty and staff do for our students. They are truly committed to the mission of Xavier High School, and they model what it means to bring the love of Christ to others in our classrooms and on our playing fields and in so many activities that go on well after the last bell has rung.

The dedication of our faculty and staff was clearly recognized last October when we hosted a visiting team from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges as part of the re-certification process which occurs every ten years. I’m very pleased to say that we passed the process with flying colors, and we now move ahead to plan for the next ten years. We will shortly begin working on one of the recommendations of the visiting team, which is to develop a new strategic plan for our future development.

Xavier High School is only as good as the people who walk through our doors each day, and as you read this edition of Xavier Today I’m sure you will share my pride in our school as you see the accomplishments of our school community.

I certainly want to thank all of you who have been so generous in your support of Xavier so far this school year through our Ad Book campaign, auction, and other fund-raising activities. Membership in our St. Francis Xavier Society continues to grow. We welcome new members and gratefully acknowledge the continued support of returning members. Our Annual Fund Drive is vital for the operation of our many programs, as well as for funding financial aid for families in need.

Thanks for your interest in Xavier and for your valued support in so many ways. Please keep us in your prayers as we keep you in ours.

May God continue to bless each of you and your families.

Gratefully,

Brother Brian Davis, C.F.X.Headmaster

eadmaster

a message from the

H

Xavier Today 1

Xavier TodayThe Magazine for

Xavier High School

December 2009

Featured Articles 3 NEASC Reaccredidation

4 Mrs. Tomasiello Receives Ryken Award

24-25 We Remember

Faculty/Staff/School NewsPages 2, 3, 4,6,7,8,14,15,16,17,19,26

Alumni NewsPages 2, 3, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 26, 27, 28, IBC

Student NewsPages 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 17,

18, 28

Mid Term Exams January 12–15

Martin Luther King Day — no classes January 18

Alumni Winter RaffleJanuary 20

Make-up Entrance Exam January 27

Junior Parent Night & Career NightFebruary 4

Winter Vacation — no classes February 15–19

Mercy/Xavier Musical “Guys and Dolls”March 5–7

Spring Vacation — no classes April 12–16

Baccalaureate Mass May 15

Graduation May 16

Reunion Clambake — for classes ending in 5 or 0 June 19

Table of Contents

CHECK THE XAVIER CALENDAR REGuLARLy AT

www.xavierhighschool.org

Calendar Items

John GuerinEditor, “Xavier Today”

Director of Communications

Margaret GaleanoDesigner

OFFICE OF ADVANCEMENT

Michael Tommasi ’67Director

Joseph Lane ’95Assistant Director

Karen BrownAdministrative Assistant

Xavier Today, the Xavier High School magazine, is published twice a year

by Xavier High School. Editorial offices are located in:

Xavier High SchoolOffice of Advancement

181 Randolph RoadMiddletown, CT 06457

(860) 347-6079www.xavierhighschool.org

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR:

Send to above address or by email to:

jguerin@xavierhighschool.org

or by fax: (860) 346-6859

PHOTO CREDITS:The “Don” yearbook staff

John GuerinImages Photography

Joe LaneKathryn LeeTed MilardoBill O’Brien

Michael TommasiOthers as available and noted

2 Xavier Today

Brother Houlihan joined the Xaverian Brothers…

6 0 T H J u B I L E E O F R E L I G I O u S L I F E

On September 19, 1949 J. Robert Houlihan joined the Xaverian Brothers after graduating from one of the Xaverian

Brothers Schools, St. John’s Preparatory School Danvers, MA.

Sixty years later, Brother Houlihan can still be found working in his support role here at Xavier High School. On Friday (Sept. 18), we saw Brother promoting student involvement in MyARC at the Student Activities Council (SAC)

Fair. Tending to the flowers surrounding the school and collecting recyclable cans and bottles in the ever present “X cans” still keep him visible to students and school personnel every day.

After entering the Xaverian Brothers that September, Brother Houlihan received the habit in March 1950 and pronounced first vows in March 1952. He began his teaching career at St. Theresa’s School in Brooklyn, Ny, teaching seventy -five 4th graders.

Brother also taught at Cardinal Hayes High School in the Bronx and has been at Xavier since 1970. From 1970 until 2008 he was on the science faculty at Xavier High School. In addition to teaching he has worked for years with developmentally handicapped persons both in New york and in Connecticut. He inaugurated the MyARC (Middlesex youth ARC) programs at both Xavier and Mercy High Schools and has served as secretary of the local MARC board and of the ARC of Connecticut statewide board. From 1992 until 2001 he served on the Pastoral Council of the Diocese of Norwich.

Thank you, Brother Houlihan, for 60 years of service in the Religious Life!

Since taking the helm as Headmaster, Brother Brian Davis has been meeting with Alumni, parents, grandparents and other benefactors of the school

to keep communication open and maintain a relationship between them and Xavier.

These are just a few examples of meetings here and off-campus. Many of the meetings have been arranged through the Office of Advancement. Please do not hesitate to contact us at 860-347-6079 or advancement@xavierhighschool.org if you are interested in Xavier High School’s mission and working with Brother Brian and all of us concerned with guaranteeing a strong future for the school and our past, present and future Alumni.

Getting to Know you

Shown clockwise is Brother with “Coach” Larry McHugh, president of the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce; with Alumni in Hartford and New york City; and at an informal “meet and greet” this summer.

Above Brother Houlihan mans a table at the 2009 SAC Fair. The black and white photos are from the 1972 yearbook.

Xavier Today 3

On the second and formal day of orientation for Xavier Freshmen, Xavier’s Ryken

Service Society conducted a prayer service. They said, “As we start this year allow this freshman class to be formed by you in the common, ordinary, unspectacular flow of everyday school life so that they may gradually experience liberation and a freedom never before imagined…”

A highlight of the service was the blessing and distribution of bibles to all freshmen. Fr. Sam Fuller O.F.M. Cap., Associate Pastor at St. Pius X Church, Middletown blessed the bibles. The bibles were donated through the generosity of Ed Brymer and Gerri Roberts; Jeffrey R. Del Favero ’78; and Richard and Margo Chiozzi. The bibles will be used as resource material throughout the students’ four years at Xavier.

Bibles Presented to Freshmen

(L-r): Michael Tommasi ’67, Director of Advancement, Jeff Del Favero ’78, Fr. Sam Fuller, O.F.M. Cap., Headmaster Brother Brian Davis, C.F.X., Atty Gerri Roberts and her husband Mr. Ed Brymer, Retired Middletown Chief of Police. Mr. & Mrs. Richard Chiozzi were not able to be present.

Just before the Thanksgiving weekend recess, Headmaster

Brother Brian Davis, C.F.X. told us, “We have an additional reason as a school to give thanks this week. I received notice yesterday from NEASC that the Commission on Independent Schools voted to grant us continued accreditation at their recent meeting. Thanks to all of you whose dedication and diligent work has made this possible.”

The Commission on Independent Schools (CIS), one of five Commissions of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC), accredits a wide range of private schools in the six states of New England. Each school is accredited using the

Xavier Granted NEASC Accreditation Againsame protocols and materials assuring that the school is faithful to its mission, conducts its programs appropriately to meet its goals and fulfills the Standards established by the Commission on Independent Schools. unlike popular magazines, this does not involve ranking schools, but rather establishes a level of acceptable quality for all accredited schools.

For 18 months to 2 years, Xavier was involved in a self-study program under the direction of Dean of Faculty Formation Mr. David Sizemore and faculty member Brother Thomas Ryan, C.F.X.

Following the self-study, a visiting committee made up of educators from throughout the region came to Xavier this fall to interview and observe the school community. The visiting committee was led by Brother

Thomas R. Leto, CFC president of Bishop Hendricken High School in Warwick RI. The visiting committee prepared a report for the school and the Commission assessing compliance with standards, formulating recommendations for school improvement, and making a recommendation on accreditation status.

The goals of accreditation are effectiveness, improvement, and public assurance.

Faculty, staff, alumni, parents and members of the Board of Directors first met informally with the visiting committee at a reception and dinner in the St. Joseph dining hall.

Brother Thomas Leto, CFC listens to comments from Chairman of the Board of Directors Dr. Perry Sangalli.

4 Xavier Today

Mrs. Joan Tomasiello Receives Ryken AwardOn December 3rd Headmaster, Brother Brian Davis, C.F.X. announced that Xavier Guidance Counselor Mrs. Joan Tomasiello has received the Annual Ryken Award. The award was presented at the conclusion of a special assembly for the entire Xavier community held on the Feast of St. Francis Xavier, the school patron and inspiration for Theodore Ryken who founded the Congregation of Xaverian Brothers. Brother Brian revealed (and completely surprised) this year’s recipient with the following remarks.

E ach year on the feast of St. Francis Xavier the Xaverian Brothers and their lay colleagues throughout the world gather to prayerfully remember and celebrate our

patron whose zeal for souls and dedication to spreading the Gospel message was the inspiration for Theodore James Ryken. Our founder would certainly be pleased with the fact that today there are thirteen high schools in the United States sponsored by his Xaverian Brothers and that his vision is carried on today by so many dedicated men and women who devote themselves to the care of over 12,000 students in these schools.

Each year in Xaverian schools it has become the custom to honor one member of the faculty or staff with the Ryken Award, a person chosen by his or her co-workers as an exemplary model of Christian dedication. Here at Xavier past reward recipients include Mrs. Linda Charpentier, Brother Thomas Fahey, Mrs. Andrea Hoisl, Brother Robert Houlihan, Mr. Tony Jaskot, Mr. Richard Magner, Brother Thomas Ryan, Ms. Jayne Vitale, and Brother James Boyle.

When asked for award nominees, faculty are asked to off er explanations for their selection. Compliments off ered for this year’s Ryken Award winner include:

• Completely immersed in service to the Xavier community • Energy and enthusiasm that is contagious

This story was the Mercy/Xavier Drama Club’s choice for the December 9th and 10th presentation. A cast and crew of almost 50 brought the story to life. The

role of Scrooge was played by Xavier’s Tomas Virgadula. Other Xavier thespians included Andy Williams, Garret Jackson,

“A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens

• Goes well beyond the academic needs of each student • Sticks with students and never gives up on them • Always ready to help with a smile • One of those people who makes this place tick, who give

this school a “soul” • A great listener • Does everything in an unassuming manner • Faithfully sets an example of strength, courage and trust

in God • And fi nally, our community would not be the same

without her It is my honor to present this year’s Ryken Award to Mrs.

Joan Tomasiello.

Tim Rhone and Bryan Wills. Two standouts from Mercy were Lauren Cunningham and Katie Corbett.

The Drama Club is already preparing for the annual Spring Musical Production of “Guys and Dolls” on March 5, 6 and 7. Details will be listed on the website.

Mrs. Joan Tomasiello accepts the Ryken Award from Brother Brian.

Xavier Today 5

I n this case the project was to design a bridge that would stand up to the stresses from the weight that it would carry in relationship to the span it would cover. The Pre-Engineering

class was given this 5 weeks long project:2 weeks: Classroom – studied different design/concepts, learned

some structural analysis, ended with a report on a famous bridge in the world (Some examples were Bixby Bridge, Brooklyn Bridge, Firth of Forth Bridge, George Washington Bridge, Golden Gate Bridge, Great Belt Bridge-Tunnel, New River Gorge Bridge, Tacoma Narrows Bridge, Sunshine Skyway Bridge, Tower Bridge, Verrazano Narrows Bridge, Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge).

1 week: Designing and making scale drawing of their bridges

Pre-Engineering Class Handles the Stress2 weeks: Construction and testing of the bridges.Goal: to have the highest strength (weight in pounds held by

bridge without collapsing) to weight (physical weight of bridge in grams) ratio!

The highest strength to weight ratio was achieved by the Sabato/Avelis team. The bridge ranked 4th overall when adjustment was made for the length of span. The Wu/Rahematpura bridge held the most weight (an impressive 89 pounds). After adjustment it finished 3rd overall. The top overall bridge was designed and built by the Giorgio/McConville team spanning 18 inches, weighing 54.4 grams and holding 51 pounds.

Most Weight

Best Overall PerformanceBest Ratio

6 Xavier Today

M ore than 90 Xavier Seniors joined a team of Faculty and Staff members for the annual XAVIER CHRISTIAN LEADERSHIP INSTITuTE (XLI) at Holy Family Retreat

Center in West Hartford, Connecticut. The seniors volunteered to participate in this program which is geared towards helping the students discover and appreciate their leadership potential.

Amidst all the training, reflection and activities of the week one event stood out above all the rest. The following is a recap from the 2009 XLI Olympics taken from the “official” Institute Report Committee and offers a student’s perspective of the historic Tug of War event.

Historic XLI Olympics

Xavier Christian Leadership Institute

Tug of War: Rangers vs. FacultyThe XLI Olympics began, pitting team against team, friend

against friend, using every fiber of their being to succeed

and claim victory. Well, maybe not so much, but it was

still fun anyway. Mr. Kieda’s ‘Power Rangers: Xavier Force’

placed in several events and earned the most points,

taking home the gold!

Now for the event that makes it or breaks it — The

Tug of War. After bringing down all other competitors, the

Rangers faced the Faculty which, if I may mention, their

score up to now was ZERO. After they beat us (fairly) we let

them have their glory in a selfless act of sacrifice since we

felt sorry for them.

Even though Power Rangers won the Olympics, they

will only be remembered as a footnote in the history of XLI

because of the AMAZING, HISTORICAL win by the Faculty in

Tug of War. (They don’t have much, let them gloat…)

Xavier Today 7

“C elebrating Community” was the theme of this year’s opening faculty and staff retreat as all gathered at the Falcon Pavilion on Crystal Lake in Middletown.

While only a few miles from the campus, it was as if we had been transported to a remote location. A perfect day with clear blue skies and cool temperatures seemed to make everyone enjoy a hot cup of coffee or tea to accompany fresh-baked pastries while happily greeting colleagues that had not been seen in several weeks. Mr. Langevin, Religion Department chair, offered the opening prayer and then introduced Brother Brian Davis, C.F.X. who welcomed everyone in his first official address to the faculty and staff since he took office as Headmaster in July.

The community aspect of XLI (Xavier Leadership Institute) was a major topic at the opening of the retreat as Mrs. Hoisl, Director of Campus Ministry, gave a recap of the week. Frank Maturo, a senior, offered a student’s reflection on the impact that XLI had on him. He stressed how important it was to see (at XLI) how the adults at Xavier High School play such an important role and that their example of just being “real people” gives the students a focus on what the motto “Be a Man” means.

There was also a lighthearted presentation of the Xaverian Idol “out-takes” video that we’ve been told will never be released for public consumption. While the “talents” of the faculty and staff who participated had the audience in stitches, a non-disclosure policy is probably warranted.

The keynote address “Community: what we like about Xavier” was introduced by Father Greg Galvin, the Director of Vocations for the Diocese of Norwich. The address was a collection of reflections by faculty and staff representing various constituencies.

Faculty and Staff “Celebrating Community”

They were: Mr. Michael Tommasi ’67, Staff; Mr. Robert King, newer faculty; Mr. Reggie Simmons, Custodians; Mrs. Lisa Keereweer, secretaries; Brother Thomas Fahey, C.F.X., Xaverian Brothers; and Mrs. Linda Charpentier, veteran faculty. Together, the seven stressed the importance of each of the roles they represent and how the students and the relationships within the school were keys to what they liked about Xavier.

As in all retreats, some quiet time of reflection was provided to contemplate the many ideas presented, especially in relationship to how the upcoming year will unfold. There were also small group discussions for sharing and questions.

And what would a celebration be without more good food and game time? For the physically fit, there was kickball, volleyball and bocce. For those who preferred less strenuous fun a variety of board games and intellectual challenges were provided. There was a brief community song (Happy Birthday, Mr. Elligers!).

Father Greg celebrated Mass at the gazebo overlooking the lake. All were sent off, refreshed and renewed, to prepare for the arrival of students for their orientations and the classes that will make up the new school year.

… adults at Xavier High School play an important role and their example of just being “real people” gives the students a focus on what the motto “Be a Man” means.

— FRANK MATuRO ’10

Father Greg Galvin celebrates Mass at the conclusion of the “Celebrating Community” retreat.

8 Xavier Today

G et up on a cold December morning and go to school. That’s pretty routine for school-age children. But that was also the plan for more than 125 grandparents on

December 8th. It was the second time in a week that Xavier High School opened its doors to student’s grandparents. Days earlier more than 100 freshmen grandparents were introduced to the school. This time it was the sophomore class that invited these special family members to visit Xavier.

Grandparents were treated to a breakfast with their grandsons. Headmaster Brother Brian Davis, C.F.X. shared his thanks for all that grandparents do: provide transportation, give their grandsons a place to go after school, help with tuition, contribute to Xavier through various drives and events and most importantly offer them love and support.

After this very social hour, the grandparents were escorted to the Arthur M. Kohs gymnasium where Mass for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception was celebrated for the entire school. Ms. Jayne Vitale opened the assembly with a call to worship and

Grandparents Go Back to School for VIP Treatment

Reverend Gregory Galvin, Vocation Director for the Diocese on Norwich was celebrant. Music was provided by the school chorus.

Xavier will open its doors to grandparents two more times in May, welcoming more freshmen grandparents to an introduction of the school and grandparents of juniors for similar events.

Seven Chosen to ServeOn December 8th, during the Mass for the Feast of the

Immaculate Conception, seven Xavier High School seniors were installed as Eucharistic Ministers. They were called before an assembly of the entire school and commissioned by Father Greg Galvin, Norwich Diocesan Vocation Director, who presided at the liturgy. These students will serve communion during school liturgies.

(L-r): Newly inducted Special Ministers of the Eucharist at Xavier High School. Front: Devin D’Amato of Wallingford, Marc Savino of Northford, Scott Thompson of Portland and Daniel Roux of Rocky Hill. Back: Kevin Rizy of Cromwell, Bruce Funteral of Guilford and Zachary Cosgrove of Madison.

Freshmen Grandparents Day

Sophomore Grandparents Day

Xavier Today 9

Or so they believe… At the beginning of the

school year, Xavier’s junior and senior classes reported to orientation where they were greeted by the administration. They were reminded of the importance of the role they play in the Xavier community and the many demands and responsibilities they are going to face this year.

Headmaster Brother Brian, Dean of Students Mr. Cerreta, Academic Dean Mr. Gargano and Dean of Faculty Formation Mr. Sizemore all contributed to the morning’s presentations.

The students also heard from Jack Petritz, president of the Student Activities Council who said “Welcome back guys. I hope you had a fun and restful summer and are ready to be back. We have many events that you should be aware of.” He spoke about the Students Helping Students ad drive, the SAC Fair, Battle of the Bands, junior field day and the first SAC mixer. “I wish everyone a good year and best of luck to all of you on your academics, sports seasons and all other club activities.”

upperclassmen Rule!

Battle of the Bands

Mr Cerreta in the dunk tank.

2009 SAC Fair

Orientation

10 Xavier Today

S E P T E M B E R 2 2 , 2 0 0 9

Opening of School Mass & Awards Presentation

T he Most Reverend Michael R. Cote, Bishop of the Diocese of Norwich, was principal celebrant and homilist at the Opening of School Mass in the Arthur M. Kohs

gymnasium. Bishop Cote quoted St. Augustine as a central theme in his homily, “Forgive and you will be forgiven. Give and it will be given you. These are the two wings of prayer on which it flies to God. Pardon the offender what has been committed, and give to the person in need.” He challenged the students to do more than just succeed academically, pointing out their need to grow as members of the community.

Con-celebrants were Reverend Gregory P. Galvin, director of Vocations for the Diocese of Norwich and Reverend Phil Sharkey, Pastor of St. Rita Church in Hamden. Reverend Kevin Reilly was the master of ceremonies.

Headmaster Brother Brian Davis, C.F.X. thanked Bishop Cote for his continued support of Xavier High School and Catholic education throughout the diocese. He also welcomed and thanked benefactors and families who were present for their contributions to Xavier.

CJ Kowaleski ’10, Vice-President of the Student Activities Council, also added thanks to Bishop Cote and Brother Brian.

He pointed out the “fast start” that the school has gotten off to. He told the freshmen “you may think that four years is a very long time, but it will go by much faster than you think.” He also presented the Bishop with a wrapped gift from the student body. Bishop Cote said “I asked him what it was. He told me I’d have to wait and be surprised later.” We are all hoping it was something he’ll appreciate and enjoy.

At the end of Mass, Academic Dean Mr. Andrew T. Gargano, announced the names of this year’s scholarship and award recipients. Headmaster Brother Brian Davis, C.F.X personally greeted and congratulated each student as he presented them with their award.

“Forgive and you will be forgiven. Give and it

will be given you. These are the two wings of

prayer on which it flies to God.” — BISHOP COTE

Xavier Today 11

SCHOLARSHIPSTHE BROTHER ROBERT, C.F.X. SCHOLARSHIP was established in honor of the first principal of Xavier High School and is awarded to the incoming freshman who achieved the highest score on the entrance exam. This year’s recipient is Mario J. Chris.

THE BISHOP VINCENT J. HINES SCHOLARSHIP is named in honor of the late Bishop Hines who was the founding Bishop of Xavier High School. This scholarship is awarded to the incoming freshmen who received the next eight highest scores on the entrance exam. The recipients are Mark K. Breault, Christian J. Cannata, Nathaniel M. Clark, Daniel A. Drabinski, Benjamin W. Emory, Matthew K. Henzy, Jacob M. Lensing-Sharp and Trevor J. Root.

THE CHRISTOPHER CARROZZELLA SCHOLARSHIP was established in memory of Christopher, a member of the Class of 2004, and is awarded to a student who excels in the area of Fine Arts. The recipient is Andrew R. Williams.

THE SuSAN G. CIGANEK SCHOLARSHIP was established to honor the memory of Susan Gail Ciganek, sister of Brother William. This year’s recipient is Vincent M. Ruffino, Jr.

THE THOMAS CLOuTIER SCHOLARSHIP was established in memory of Thomas A. Cloutier, Jr., a member of the Class of 1992. This year’s recipient is Michael R. Thompson.

THE ELEANOR FONTANELLA MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP was established in memory of Mrs. Fontanella and is awarded to a deserving student from Meriden or Wallingford. This year’s recipient is Matthew J. Gueble.

THE ROSE MARy FuENTES LOFFREDO SCHOLARSHIP was established in memory of Mrs. Fuentes Loffredo by her family for a deserving student who has an interest in the area of Fine Arts. The recipient is Jeffrey Herrera.

THE FuRSTENBERG SCHOLARSHIP was established in memory of Christian Furstenberg, a member of the Class of 1990. This scholarship is awarded annually to a student after his sophomore year who reflects the values of scholarship, leadership and service which Christian exhibited. This year the recipient is Ryan A. Mishou.

THE BROTHER HAROLD SCHOLARSHIP was established by Mr. and Mrs. Bernard Pacholski, uncle and aunt of Brother Harold, to recognize a student at the conclusion of his sophomore year who has excelled in the accelerated program. The recipient is Dominick J. Proto.

THE ERIC KALBER SCHOLARSHIP has been established in memory of Eric, a member of the Class of 2004, by his family. The scholarship is awarded to two students entering their junior year who have worked to their maximum potential. This year’s recipients are Walter S. Davis, Jr. and John V. Palmieri.

THE ARTHuR KOHS SCHOLARSHIP was established by Mr. Arthur Kohs, Xavier’s first Director of Athletics, to recognize a young man entering his junior or senior year who lives out Xavier’s motto “Be A Man” and who exemplifies class, hustle and determination in and out of the classroom. The recipient this year is Timothy T. DeMatteo.

THE ROBERT MICHALSKI SCHOLARSHIP is awarded to a student based on his “character, academic performance and athletic effort”. The recipient is Louis Zanette.

THE JOSEPH PAGANO SCHOLARSHIP was established in memory of Mr. Pagano, a member of Xavier’s class of 1973, and is awarded to a student who excels in community service. This year’s recipient is Marc J. Savino.

THE MARK RONDO SCHOLARSHIP was established for an incoming freshman from Holy Trinity Parish who has served as an altar boy and has performed recognizable community service. The recipient this year is Carlos A. Mesquita.

STAFF SGT. THOMAS SMITH SCHOLARSHIP was established by Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Smith in loving memory of their son, Thomas. This scholarship is awarded annually to a student entering his senior year who best exemplifies the spirit, character and values of Tom, a 1976 graduate of Xavier. The recipient this year is Joshua Improta.

THE DR. WILLIAM E. WRANG MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP was established by William Wrang, Jr. and his son, William Wrang, III ’75, in memory of their beloved father and grandfather. This scholarship is awarded to a student entering the senior year who shows interest and academic prowess in science. This year’s recipient is Christopher J. Smith.

THE XAVERIAN BROTHERS SCHOLARSHIP is awarded to a young man who exemplifies and lives the values of the Xaverian Charism: humility, trust, compassion, simplicity and zeal. This year’s recipient is Julian L. Hayes.

Jeffrey Herrera ’11 receives scholarship from Brother Brian.

12 Xavier Today

AWARDSTHE BOSTON uNIVERSITy SCHOOL OF EDuCATION JuNIOR BOOK AWARD is awarded to encourage outstanding students to consider a career as an educator. This year’s recipient is Nicholas E. Flynn.

THE FAIRFIELD uNIVERSITy BOOK AWARD is donated annually by Derek Dunn, Class of 1982 and his brother, Brendan Dunn, Class of 1986. This year’s recipient is Gregory J. Witz.

THE HARVARD BOOK PRIZE is offered each year by The Harvard Club of Southern Connecticut to a student entering his senior year. This award is donated by Mr. William Holley, an alumnus of Harvard’s Class of 1983 and Xavier’s Class of 1979. This recipient this year is Andrew J. yandow.

THE HOLy CROSS BOOK PRIZE is awarded each year by The General Alumni Association of the College of the Holy Cross and this year’s recipient is Brian T. Ford.

THE RENSSELAER MEDAL AWARD is awarded for outstanding academic achievement in the study of mathematics and science. The recipient this year is Phillip D. Corriveau.

THE ST. ANSELM BOOK AWARD is awarded to a student for superior academic achievement and personal character. The recipient this year is Joshua Improta.

THE ST. MICHAEL’S BOOK AWARD is awarded to a student for their achievements in academics and community service and to acknowledge the spirit of volunteerism exhibited by the recipient. This year the award is presented to Casey R. Taillie.

THE uNIVERSITy OF CONNECTICuT – AVERy POINT BOOK AWARD is given to a student in recognition of his outstanding accomplishments in Coastal and Environmental Issues. The 2009 recipient is Andrew G. Brown.

THE yALE BOOK PRIZE is donated by the yale Club of New Haven and is awarded to Matthew J. Gueble. This award was presented at a formal ceremony at yale university in October.

2009 Peer MinistersMrs. Hoisl and Mr. Langevin and the Campus Ministry Department announced our Peer Ministry Team for the 2009-2010 school

year. Please join us in congratulating these young men, and be assured of our continued prayers for a successful year!Matt Algiere, Matt Criscuolo, Brian Cunningham, Pat DeToro, Ralph DiFonzo, Tavish Fitzpatrick, Brian Ford, Alex Fredericks, Ricky

Funaro, Jon Geenty, Matt Gozzi, Sean Grasso, Spencer Kelly, Gerard Kerins, Kevin Landers, Frank Maturo, Michael McNelly, Alex Messersmith, Matt Morrone, Pat Renstrom, Vinny Ruffino, Marc Savino, Erik Schmitt, EJ Stankewicz, Brandon Sullivan, Casey Taille, Will Thomann, Tomas Virgadula, Neil Watson, Andy Williams and Greg Witz.

Xavier Today 13

Sophomore Mason Passavant has been a significant youth fundraiser for the March of Dimes for the past 8 years, and this year he raised a total of $4,585 and was honored as the “Top Walker” (fundraiser) for the Middletown “March for Babies” (formerly “WalkAmerica”). Last year Mason raised $4,755 and was honored as the “Top youth Walker” for the Middletown area. Mason’s family recently received notification from the State and National headquarters for the March of Dimes informing them that Mason is currently the No. 7 walker in Connecticut and the No. 22 youth walker in the united States!

The Boy Scouts of America have awarded the rank of Eagle Scout to Brian Bascom of Troop 49 in Portland, CT in recognition of successful completion of all of the requirements for Scouting’s highest rank. Brian is a senior and his Eagle Scout ceremony took place at St. Mary’s Church in Portland. Brian’s Eagle Scout project was the construction of side panels to enclose the pole barn at the Portland Agricultural Fairgrounds in Portland.

S E R V I N G T H E C O M M u N I T y

Scott Stewart, a senior at Xavier, and member of Troop 49 in Portland, also attained the rank of Eagle Scout in September. His project was developing a meditation garden in the rear of St. Mary’s Church in Portland.

Teaching students the value of community service is an important aspect in Catholic education. As a graduation requirement, all students must complete a minimum of 30 hours of community service by the end of their junior year. This total can be done all at once, or at anytime, if the student has a service opportunity that fulfills this requirement. Hours done over the summer are accepted and welcomed. Further explanation of Xavier’s service requirement can be found in the Student Handbook (page 14) or on the Campus Ministry page of the school website. (Website Tip – use the Search page found on the About us tab to help you locate information on the website.) We would like to recognize some of our students for their community service.

In September Senior John R Paine Jr. was presented with the Boy Scouts of America’s highest rank; that of Eagle Scout. John is a member of Troop 463 in Northford. To become an Eagle Scout with the Boy Scouts of America is considered to be a major achievement, the top honor a scout can earn. The requirements for this recognition include earning 21 merit badges (John earned 44), demonstrating Scout Spirit, leadership skills and finally planning and executing a service project to benefit his church or community. John chose to do his service project for his church, St Monica’s in Northford. The project included painting and the new shutters on the parish house.

Sophomore Michael Mischke was selected and attended a 17 day “People to People” trip to Australia as a student ambassador for the uSA. Michael’s mother tells us “he saw many sights, met Aborigines and stayed with an Australian family.”

Senior John Wilkinson received the Pope Pius XII Religious Emblem at the Archdiocese of Hartford Catholic Boy Scout Recognition Sunday. He has previously earned the Light of Christ, the Parvuli Dei Medal and the Ad Altare Dei Cross for Scouts.

14 Xavier Today

Xavier High School’s faculty is always looking for new information

and techniques to expand the knowledge of our students. Social Studies Chair Mr. William Braychak recently told us “James Royce has been doing some noteworthy activities which might be worth mentioning.” Mr. Royce, Xavier Class of 1999, joined the Social Studies faculty in 2008. He is a 2003 graduate of Central Connecticut State university with a Bachelor of Arts degree, Cum Laude, in Anthropology/ Archaeology. Since graduating from Central Connecticut he has pursued his interest in the field of archaeology continuing to work as a volunteer with the Farmington River Archaeological Project and the CCSu field schools.

Mr. Royce told us about some of his efforts that will enhance a course he will be teaching our students. “This spring I am co-presenting with CCSu professor and author Dr. Ken Feder at the Teaching Local and State History Hostile on April 3rd. A location for the presentation has yet to be determined. The title of our presentation will be “Learning at the Lighthouse: Archaeological and Documentary Exploration of a Connecticut Legend.” Our

Xavier Faculty Expands Horizons

presentation will focus on the archaeological excavation of the “Lighthouse Site” (Not actually a lighthouse). It’s a Native American site from the late 18th and early 19th century. (More information is available as the Barkhamsted Historical Society website –barkhamstedhistory.org – search the site for “lighthouse”) I helped in the latest excavation of the site this past summer and have brought middle school students there in the past to meet with Ken and discuss the site. The intention is to use the site as an example of the Native American colonial presence in the Native American Studies class I will be teaching here at Xavier in the spring. My portion of the presentation will center on using the Lighthouse Site as a resource for teaching

secondary students about Native American history in Connecticut.”

Mr. Royce has also received a grant that will help his class. “Basically, the Mohegan Tribe of uncasville, Connecticut offered secondary social studies teachers from around the state the opportunity to write a proposal for a grant that would assist in getting a new program at the school off the ground to help students learn about Native American history. I wrote my proposal with the new Native American Studies class we will be

offering in the spring in mind. The school will receive $1000 dollars from the tribe for classroom materials, a free trip to the new Mohegan Museum located on their reservation and, I believe, a visit from a tribal historian to the classroom.”

An Irish Moment“When I heard that Ted Kennedy, Jr. was appearing at an event in Cromwell, I

knew I wanted to at least meet and say hello to him” said Brother Thomas Fahey, C.F.X., Xavier’s Director of Admissions. Brother Fahey explained that he and Ted had become friends years ago when they attended a seminar. That friendship has lasted through correspondence and a visit to the Kennedy compound on Cape Cod.

Kennedy was a guest speaker at a Workforce Alliance Breakfast sponsored by the Quinnipiac Chamber of Commerce September 22 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Cromwell. He told Brother Fahey that they should “get together after the meeting to spend a little more time together.” Brother’s schedule which included the opening of school Mass that morning did not allow a longer meeting to take place. But the warmth and congeniality of the exchange between two “old friends” was evident.

Scan from “Legends of Barkhamsted Lighthouse and Satan’s Kingdom in New Hartford by Lewis Sprague Mills, 1961”

James Royce ’99, Social Studies

Br. Fahey with Ted Kennedy, Jr.

“My portion of the presentation will center on using the Lighthouse Site as a resource for teaching secondary students about Native American history in Connecticut.”

— JAMES ROyCE ’99

Xavier Today 15

H eadmaster Brother Brian Davis, C.F.X. announced that four

seniors have been named Commended Students in the 2010 National Merit Scholarship Program. They are Zachary T. Cosgrove of Madison, Casey R. Taillie of Southington, Gregory J. Witz of New Britain and Evan N Woodford of Westbrook. These scholastically talented seniors received a Letter of Commendation from the school and National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC), which conducts the program.

About 34,000 Commended Students throughout the nation are recognized for their exceptional academic promise. Although they will not continue in the 2010 competition for National Merit Scholarships, Commended Students placed among the top five percent of more than 1.5 million

Commended Students in the…

2010 National Merit Scholarship Programstudents who entered the 2010 competition by taking the 2008 Preliminary SAT/ National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT).

“Recognition of high-achieving students is essential to advancing

educational excellence in our nation,” commented a spokesperson for NMSC. “As demonstrated by their outstanding performance in our highly competitive program, the young Commended Students

represent some of the most academically talented Students in our country. We sincerely hope this recognition will enhance their educational opportunities and encourage them in their pursuit of academic success.”

Ms. Vitale Enjoys Master Program in Italy

As high school art instructor and artist, I have benefited in many ways as a result of my three courses in the Master program at Orsoni. I have learned about technique, method and design principles from “Maestra” Antonella Gallenda.

She has an exceptional ability to see whatever may be needed to enhance, correct or improve a piece. The staff at Orsoni complement the course program in so many ways that serve to enhance the overall mosaic course experience. Likewise, I have enjoyed staying at Domus Orsoni for each of my course programs. Staying at Domus Orsoni has made me feel that Venice is a home away from home. It is my hope to return there each year for this very special artistic experience. Through his heritage and mosaic artistry, Maestro Lucio Orsoni has created an artistic educational experience that can bring new avenues of growth for any mosaic artist in the enchanting city of Venice.

Orsoni - Smalti Veneziani“Orsoni’s fame goes back to Venice of the XIX century... Today, Orsoni mosaics can

be admired in the furthest corners of the earth: from Westminster Abbey in London to the gilded domes and the Buddhas in Bangkok, from king’s palaces in Saudi Arabia to the religious works in Budapest, from the pagoda of the grand palace of the Royal Family in Thailand, to the Bund 18 in Shanghai.”

The photo and comments are from the Orsoni website’s testimonials (www.orsoni.com).

Ms. Vitale (left) poses with her instructor as she receives the certificate for the mosaic created in the summer 2009 session.

(L-r): Zachary Cosgrove, Evan Woodford, Brother Brian, Casey Taillie, and Gregory Witz.

After a night of torrential downpours, the skies cleared. The sunshine

highlighted the beautiful New England fall foliage, welcoming prospective students.

Families began to arrive even before the 1 o’clock scheduled opening and continued throughout the afternoon. We had over 330 families visit our school which is the largest turnout over the last ten years. They were greeted under a bold new banner that read “Welcome Class of 2014” focusing on the 8th grade young men who planned to take the entrance exam on November 14th. As this issue of Xavier Today goes to press, more than 400 young men have taken the entrance exam to determine

their eligibility and course placement as

Open House 2009

new Xavier students. During the Open House

small groups of families were assigned a student tour guide who would walk them through the building. The band and chorus provided music throughout the afternoon in

the gymnasium indicating the growth of Xavier’s music

and fine arts offerings.

St. Joseph’s Hall, the science labs, recent technology upgrades in classrooms and the chapel were among the scheduled stops on the tour of the campus.

All along the way, the young men and their families met the Xavier faculty, staff, administration, alumni, present parents and other student volunteers who were on hand to answer any questions. Displays were set up to highlight the many activities,

clubs, intramurals and sports that are a part of

Xavier’s offerings.In promoting the

event this year, we also encouraged

6th and 7th

graders and their families to visit the school and have some of their questions about a Xavier education answered. It was not unusual in the past to have a few of these younger prospects on the tour, so the decision was made to extend the invitation formally.

At the conclusion of the tour, the families were invited for some light refreshment in the St. Joseph dining hall. The reception was sponsored by Xavier’s Home and School Association.

There will be an additional make up entrance exam on Wednesday, January 27th at 8:00 a.m. Please call 860-346-7735 ext. 702 to preregister.

16 Xavier Today

Xavier Today 17

L ife Scouts Nicholas Kinsman ’12 and Brendan Lewis ’11

showed Xavier pride after reaching the summit of Mt. Baldi, one of the highest peaks in New Mexico, elev. 12,400 ft. The two students were on a 10-day, 75-mile backpacking trip with a 12 member crew through the 137,000 acre Philmont Scout Reservation in July.

Nick and Brendan visited the cathedral at the Air Force Academy and the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs; navigated white water during a raft trip down the challenging Arkansas River; visited the Royal Gorge, before their boots hit the trail in Cimarron, New Mexico. The Scouts backpacked supplies in 50-pound packs, living mostly on dehydrated meals and local water enhanced with electrolyte powder to disguise the taste. The trip

Xavier Students Reach New Heights

tested their fitness, stamina in high altitudes, leadership, self reliance and ability to avoid encountering Philmont’s 450 black bears.

The boys met their service hours’ requirement by clearing meadow brush/trees around the roots of towering Ponderosa Pines. Nick and Brendan

Life Scouts (l-r): Nicholas Kinsman ’12 and Brendan Lewis ’11 display a Xavier sweatshirt atop Mt. Baldi.

rode horses, shot black powder rifles, rappelled down mountain cliffs, and led mules packed with supplies along steep mountain switchbacks.

Once back in the land of cooked food, the boys said they would never look at a Power Bar the same way again. Nick and Brendan’s great 75-mile

adventure ended with a cowboy chuck wagon dinner. The Philmont Grace is everlasting in their memory: “For food, for raiment; For life, for opportunity; For friendship and fellowship; We thank Thee O Lord. Amen.”

On December 4th, the Xavier High School community came together to celebrate the Feast Day of St. Francis Xavier. The

Peer Ministers put together a prayer service that explained some of the history and traditions of the Xaverian Brothers.

The seven Xaverian Brothers who work and live in the community were recognized: Brother Brian Davis, Brother Thomas Ryan, Brother Thomas Fahey, Brother James Boyle, Brother Robert Houlihan, Brother Labre Dillon and Brother Eugene Behenna.

In the opening prayer, senior Erik Schmitt said “We celebrate the lives of all who have come before us and paved the way with St. Francis Xavier as their example. He brought Jesus’ word to others in different countries and amid cultural challenges and language barriers as he served others with compassion.”

The Xaverian Brothers display zeal in their everyday lives. They have the undying passion and enthusiasm in their commitment to educate others and bring them towards God. Here at Xavier, the Brothers are dedicated to spread Christ’s message like St. Francis Xavier did 500 years ago. Thank you and Happy Feast Day!

Feast Day of St. Francis

18 Xavier Today

Harriers Take it in StrideThe Xavier Cross Country team fi nished the regular season

undefeated in dual meets with a record of 9-0. Xavier has now won the Quinnipiac Division Championship for the 6th straight year. The team won the SCC Championship, the Class LL Championship, ranked number one in the State Coaches Cross Country poll, won the Connecticut State Open, and fi nished 8th out of 30 teams at the New England Cross Country Championship. Congratulations on a great season!

The picture is of the top 12 runners in the SCC Championship courtesy of Bill O’Brien, SCC Commissioner Emeritus. Xavier placed three of the top twelve: Ian Albert, Nick Lemon and Jonathan Annelli were named fi rst team All SCC.

EASTON, Pa. (www.lafayette.edu) — Lafayette College senior William Booz of Durham has spent the summer as an intern at Curtiss-Wright in Phillipsburg, N.J., working in the Engineered Pump Division, which makes and overhauls pumps for the U.S. Navy. The company specifi cally designs pumps for

submarines and aircraft carriers, such as the new Gerald R. Ford Class aircraft carrier.

Booz, who is a mechanical engineering major at Lafayette College says, “When Curtiss-Wright sells pumps, it doesn’t sell one for a single boat, it sells pumps for every boat in that class. So essentially, the company sells around ten at a time.”

The 2006 graduate of Xavier High School assists the engineers in any way possible, such as with inventory, checking on assembly, testing, and working with the drafting department producing and distributing engineered drawings.

Booz feels privileged to be working for such a cutting-edge

Alumnus Scores State-of-the-Art Engineering Internship

company that has “testing facilities that are available nowhere else. The experience is rewarding because it allows me to be immersed in a professional offi ce setting. Doing this gives a student a better idea of what an engineer actually does,” he says.

Booz believes his work at Lafayette has well prepared him for his internship, especially his interaction with Scott Hummel, associate professor and head of mechanical engineering.

“For me, college has largely been about learning how to think the right way in the appropriate situation. This is what separates Lafayette engineers from the pack,” he says. “In Professor Hummel’s class, I didn’t learn how to do specifi c problems, but rather how to take our entire body of knowledge and apply it to various situations. This skill has proved especially useful at my internship. It allows me not to be overwhelmed, even when presented with daunting tasks.”

Booz plans to pursue a master’s and Ph.D. in mechanical engineering and ultimately become a professor.

Spievey ’06 to Orange Bowl

As a junior Cornerback with the Iowa Haweyes, Amari Spievey is in the Orange Bowl on January 5th vs.

Georgia Tech. Amari has been ranked among the top defensive backs in the country and there is speculation that he could be picked in the 2nd round of the NFL draft.

Since this fall, Amari Spievey’s football jersey, signed by the players and coaches of Xavier’s 2005 State Championship Football team now hangs proudly in the Arthur M. Kohs Gymnasium along with Xavier’s championship banners.

A Xavier alumnus from 2006, Amari was named the Most Valuable Off ensive Player on his team and was also the Connecticut Player of the Year.

Director of Guidance Mr. Richard Magner forwarded this article that outlines the interesting work that William Booz, a 2006 Xavier graduate (shown here in his yearbook photo), did at Lafayette College.

Xavier Today 19

As our New England days grew shorter and Xavier’s varsity football team continued its quest to extend its season,

there was a dilemma. Shorter days, less light, no lit fields for practice and an absolute need to keep our team conditioned and prepared for the final battles of the year. Add to this the terrible economy and a general “tightness” of funds for the multitude of items that our school needs to guarantee the quality of education and programs we want for our students.

The football coaches decided that it would be really important to maintain the practices and drills for the team through the return of Daylight Standard Time and the sun’s

In September Chris Corvino (center), parent of alumnus Chris Corvino ’09,

delivered a Kwik-goal 7.5’x18’ portable heavy duty training goal that he donated to the Xavier High School soccer program. Director of Athletics Anthony Jaskot (right) and Director of Advancement Michael Tommasi (left) accepted the donation on behalf of the school. Chris said, “It’s a great piece of equipment that I believe the boys’ soccer program can benefit from.” Tony Jaskot said he spoke to Soccer Coach Kedves and that the team would start using the goal for practice immediately.

relentless march south through December. The solution was to donate the necessary funds to rent portable lights for the practice field. Head football coach Sean Marinan told us that coaches Paul Bischoff, Geoffrey Close, Steve Crescimanno, Andy Guyon, Greg Jaskot, Rajbir Jaswal, Joseph Lentini, Niidjan Lomote, Dick Nobile, David Sterling and Jayson Thibodeau all contributed to make the extra lights a reality.

Thanks to the coaches for their dedication and commitment, and congratulations on an outstanding varsity season 9-2 and making the State playoffs.

Let There Be Light(s)!

GOAL!

G E N E R O S I T y O N T H E F I E L D

20 Xavier Today

Seeing Is BelievingAs a member of Xavier’ first graduating class, I’ll always remember that brisk St. Joseph Day in March, 1962, when the Most Reverend Vincent J. Hines, Bishop of the Diocese of Norwich, unearthed a good portion of what had been farm land and a legacy took root.

Although there have been many changes and circumstances since that historic day, Xavier has maintained the educational philosophy to educate the whole person in spirit, mind and body and to impress upon students the dignity of the human person.

If you were to visit Xavier today, and I invite you to do so, you would be so impressed to see the many ways it has grown and become one of the top Catholic high schools in the country — from the exterior of our well-maintained building, to the advanced technology classrooms, to the Galluzzo Media/Technology Center, to the 70 acre campus, to our committed and dedicated faculty and staff. Our students truly appreciate and benefit from this one-of-a-kind learning environment.

All of this would not continue to be possible, especially in these challenging times, without the ongoing support from the community of alumni, parents, grandparents, faculty/staff, students, and friends. It is because of your generosity that so many doors are opened to our students’ future.

Get involved…Invest in Xavier’s Commitment to Excellence.

Sincerely,

Michael A. Tommasi ’67Director of Advancement

Alumni Contributors to the 2009 Annual Fund DriveMany thanks to the following members of the Xavier Alumni. Through their partnership, volunteerism, and financial generosity, the benefits of a Xaverian education are extended to new generations of young men.

Only direct Alumni contributions are reflected here. In-Kind donations and other generous donations from our many constituents are included in the complete Annual Report that was mailed to 2008-2009 donors. Copies of the Annual Report are available at the Office of Advancement or online on the Advancement Activities page of our website.

Contributions received after July 1, 2009 will be acknowledged in next year’s report. Xavier’s fiscal year runs from July 1 through June 30.

CLASS OF 1967Mr. Maury Berger Dr. John T. Carroll Mr. Stephen G. Cobb Mr. Timothy J. Danahey Mr. William Dwyer Mr. James Guida Dr. James Hennessey Mr. William F. Klein, Jr.Mr. John Klevecz Mr. Thomas J. Kronenberger, Jr.Mr. Stanley Marciniec, Jr.Mr. Robert J. Maron Mr. Jack Marshall Mr. Dennis McNeil Mr. Frederick H. Miller Mr. Joseph Monarca Mr. Joseph Murphy IIIMr. John Nawrocki Mr. Clifford Opalacz Mr. Francis J. Pawlowski Mr. James Pyskaty Mr. Garrett Schultz Mr. George Scott Mr. Thomas J. Seiferman Reverend Gary Simeone Mr. John Smith Mr. George M. Stanley Mr. Joseph Termine Mr. Michael A. Tommasi Mr. Edward P. Tynan Mr. Donald Zywocinski

CLASS OF 1968Mr. Edward Burke Mr. Richard D. Cadorath Dr. Paul Ceplenski Mr. Michael Chmielewski Mr. Robert Foell Mr. Stephen A. Foell Mr. David G. Hetzel Mr. Joseph A. Jaskot Mr. John LarsonMr. Clement Lelasher Mr. Theodore S. Miazga Mr. David Murphy IIIMr. Thomas Murphy Mr. Rodney H. Pelletier Mr. David Rondeau Mr. Paul Rybczyk Mr. Gary Satagaj Mr. John Scott Mr. Paul Stacey Dr. Karl A. Van Bibber Mr. Leon F. Vinci

Mr. Thomas Vuolo Mr. John J. Wall, Jr.Mr. Thomas Woltmann

CLASS OF 1969Mr. Carl J. Appellof Mr. John T. Coates Mr. Michael Cubeta Mr. Peter Daniels Mr. Dean DiMauro Mr. Stephen J. DiMugno Mr. Michael Drozd Mr. Thomas Duda Mr. Jim Dykas Mr. David Hall Mr. John HeffernanMr. Anthony J. JaskotMr. Robert Kardys Mr. Richard J. Keithan Mr. Walter J. Kendrek Mr. Vincent Kurek Dr. John Laczak Mr. Joseph LaRosa Dr. William A. Longo Mr. Richard B. Magner Mr. Matthew M. McLaughlin Mr. Paul Moquin Mr. David Papallo Mr. Steven Perruccio Dr. James Powers Attorney Theodore V. Raczka Mr. Gregory C. Schmidt Mr. Thomas Stolarz Mr. Thomas Tokarz Mr. Merrill Turner Mr. Paul Van Almkerk

CLASS OF 1970Mr. John Bartek Mr. Carl Carta Mr. Lee Cuneo Mr. John P. Custy Mr. Gerald E. Daley Mr. William D’Angelo Mr. Barry Daniels Mr. Peter Edson Mr. John Ellis Mr. Gary A. Giannelli Mr. John Jarzbek Mr. Mark J. Kosnoff Mr. John Krajewski Mr. Philip J. McBrien Mr. Dale McCauley Mr. Michael McMahon Mr. William Mekrut

Mr. Richard Milardo Mr. David W. O’Brien Mr. Lee M. Partyka Mr. John A. Perry Mr. Everett J. Rutan IIIMr. Nicholas Schmidt Mr. Bryan R. Southall Mr. Richard C. Turek

CLASS OF 1971Mr. Eric J. Appellof Mr. Curt Brown Dr. Robert Jakubiec Mr. Michael Kokoszka Attorney Peter W. LaVigne Attorney Joseph S. Magnano Mr. Leonard Messina Mr. John D. Moore Mr. Thomas O’Brien Mr. Louis Pitruzzello Mr. John Powers Mr. Walter Roguski Mr. Michael E. Rosano Mr. Jeffrey Schmaltz Mr. William Shortell Mr. Keith Vinci Mr. Joseph W. Waz, Jr.Mr. Joseph F. Wrinn

CLASS OF 1972Mr. Patrick Ahlquist Mr. John S. Amato Command Sergeant Major John Botti Mr. Thomas Bukowski Mr. Kieran Cahill Mr. Louis A. Calamari Mr. Brian Curtis Mr. Kevin Dunleavy Mr. Peter Gillies Mr. Gary Grockowski Mr. Charles Jackowski Mr. Thomas Krywinski Mr. Robert W. McGarry Mr. Salvatore Misenti Attorney Paul A. Morello, Jr.Dr. Stanislaus Opalacz Mr. James Orr Mr. John Pecoraro Mr. Albert Peel Mr. John Pieper, Jr.Mr. Vincent Rutledge Commander Mark J. Salonia IIIMr. John J. Tomasiello

Xavier Today 21

CLASS OF 1973Mr. Mark W. Cosgrove Mr. Anthony D’Amico Mr. Philip Franklin Mr. Stephen F. Haydon Mr. David A. Leone Mr. John F. Lomartra Mr. Gregory Makuch Mr. Gary F. Marino Mr. Harry McBrien Mr. Steven J. McDowell Mr. Michael F. McKenna Mr. William McKinley Dr. Arthur Moebius Mr. Peter Petruzelo Mr. Wallace Robley Mr. Fredrick M. Tremalgia Mr. Douglas J. Willis

CLASS OF 1974Mr. Charles English Mr. Jack W. Gastler Mr. Francis J. Gilbert Mr. William Hagan, Jr.Lieutenant Colonel John W. Hannen, Jr.Mr. Carey M. Hewitt Mr. Brian Hurlbutt Mr. Maurice McDonald Mr. David Meyer Mr. Kevin Mischke Mr. Christian J. Mularski Mr. Mark J. Rutan Mr. Joseph Timbro Mr. Richard E. ZadrogaMr. Mark V. Zanelli

CLASS OF 1975Mr. Mark E. Appellof Mr. Frank J. Baldi Mr. Larry Benedict Mr. John Bozzi Mr. Anthony E. Brown Mr. Peter L. Ceulemans Mr. David Chapman Mr. Gary W. Clark Mr. Peter A. DeFrancisco Mr. Walter Gayeski, Jr.Mr. Edward A. Haydon Dr. Mark Hegel Dr. Timothy J. Kring Mr. William McDermott Mr. Peter J. Mondani Sr.Mr. Stephen T. Murphy Mr. John Nettis Mr. Wayne Pegolo Mr. Michael R. Shukis Mr. Robert M. Stachura Mr. Donald Thompson, Jr.Mr. Guy J. Tommasi, Jr.Mr. Thomas Walsh

CLASS OF 1976Mr. James Augeri Mr. Joseph Bordonaro, Jr.Mr. Paul A. Calamari Mr. Steven M. Cannata Mr. Thomas M. Chmielewski Mr. Joseph G. DeMaio Mr. Thomas Flynn Dr. Stephen Franklin Mr. Mark Griffin Mr. David LaMay Mr. Mark Makuch Mr. Vincent Marino Dr. Samuel J. Moncata

Mr. William Nellis Mr. William F. O’Connor Mr. Jeffrey T. Ogilvie Mr. Daniel Olver Mr. Kevin F. O’Sullivan Mr. William Schultz Mr. Christopher Smith Mr. Robert Zanelli

CLASS OF 1977Mr. Raymond P. Bengtson Mr. James K. Carley Mr. Gregg Ferguson Mr. John F. Gilbert Mr. Mario S. Gioco Mr. Jeffrey Grockowski Mr. William J. Hannigan Mr. Richard J. Haydon Mr. Steven Kelly Mr. Timothy Kelly Mr. Peter A. LaMalfa, Jr.Mr. Craig Palardy Mr. William W. Post Mr. Raymond R. Quintin Mr. Kevin S. Rarey Mr. Joseph Sikora Mr. Philippe Slezak Mr. Richard J. Stanton Mr. Nicholas Wocl, Esq.

CLASS OF 1978Mr. James Bartolotta Mr. William P. Cashman Mr. John Coughlin Mr. Richard T. Cunningham Mr. Jeffrey R. DelFavero Mr. Marc D’Orvilliers Mr. William Dykas Mr. Robert Eastwood Mr. Andrew Ferretti Mr. Frank Fiala Mr. Phillip Kirk, Jr.Mr. Frederick L. Konopka Mr. George McKnight Mr. Kurt Mischke Mr. Stephen G. Niemerski Mr. Joseph Pasternak Mr. Kevin Reiner Mr. William Rondini Mr. Barry Rosenblatt Mr. John Salemi, C.P.A.Mr. Alan R. Schumann, Jr.Mr. Timothy E. Wrinn

CLASS OF 1979Mr. Scott Adams Mr. Dean Anderson Mr. Daniel Bartlett Mr. Thomas A. Campbell Dr. Michael Costa Mr. Patrick J. D’Amato Mr. Richard M. Dooley Mr. Michael L. Emard Dr. Robert A. Frank Mr. Joseph Gugliemino Mr. William Holley Mr. John M. KyciaMr. Joseph A. LaBella Mr. Glen Manemeit Mr. Robert J. Moore Mr. Raymond Ragozzino Mr. Michael T. Reynolds Mr. Glenn J. Russo Attorney John F. Wolter Mr. John J. yorio

CLASS OF 1980Mr. Paul Ackermann Mr. Brian D. BowenMr. Thomas J. ByrneMr. Geoffrey T. DeVille Mr. Thomas DiMauro Mr. Barry Fasciano Mr. David Gilbert Mr. Philip J. Gosselin Mr. Charles B. Kaprielian Mr. Marc Levin Mr. Kevin Lillis Mr. Sean R. Marinan Mr. David Neun Mr. Robert Olson Mr. Benjamin Patten, IIMr. Kenneth Perrotti Chief Robert J. Ross Mr. Guy Santostefano Mr. David Vitali Mr. Paul Zimmitti, Jr.

CLASS OF 1981Dr. Matthew Aresco Mr. James Bacon Mr. Norbert G. Bissonnette Mr. Vincent S. Carta, IIIMr. Kevin Clark Mr. Jeffrey A. Dooley Mr. William Foley Mr. Robert D. Guere Mr. Brian J. Hetherington Mr. Thomas P. Inglis Mr. George V. Keithan, Jr.Mr. Timothy McNamara Mr. Francis J. McNulty Mr. John Mooz Mr. Robert J. Ness Mr. John J. Otto Mr. Michael J. Pasquaretta Mr. Robert H. Ricard Attorney Mark X. Ryan Mr. Gregory Sylvestro Mr. James Zawisa, Jr.

CLASS OF 1982Mr. Edward Adametz Mr. James C. Barket Mr. Warren Bischoff Mr. Walter M. Czapla, Jr.Dr. Gary DiDato Mr. Joseph Flynn Mr. Bruce Giamei Mr. Curtiss Griesing Mr. William Kiley Mr. Michael Kowalski Mr. Robert Mazzotta Mr. Thomas Mazzotta Mr. Robert Mierzejewski Mr. Craig Murphy Mr. John Nann Mr. Christopher Nolan Lieutenant Commander Timothy P. Parr,

u.S.N.R.Mr. John Patton Mr. Thomas M. Patton Mr. Richard Rochette Mr. Kevin Sheehy Mr. Thomas J. Tanski, Jr.Mr. Joseph Tine Mr. Martin Vela Mr. Carl S. Von Dassel

CLASS OF 1983Mr. Brian J. Amend Mr. Scott Andrews Mr. Thomas N. Bailey Mr. Duncan J. Belcher Mr. Steven J. Berry Mr. Joseph E. Biega, IIIMr. Michael J. D’Aquila Mr. William DeFrances Attorney Michael Epright Mr. John P. Giaimo Mr. Daniel Hoey Mr. Thomas Hutton Mr. James Johnson Mr. James R. Joyce Mr. Bruce Lawrence Mr. Bruce Micale Mr. Michael Muzio Mr. Louis Pattavina Mr. Michael Picard Mr. Todd M. Roberts Mr. James Rumberger Mr. Richard D. Saks Mr. Kevin Wall Mr. Arthur Wrubel

CLASS OF 1984Class of 1984Mr. Marc Antonetti Mr. Kevin Bonaiuto Mr. Carl G. Bulgini, IIIMr. Michael Conlan Mr. Carl R. Erlacher, Jr.Mr. Vincent Fazzolari Mr. Christopher C. Fialko Mr. Joseph J. Guerra, IIMr. Frederick E. Hedberg Mr. David K. Hughes Mr. Michael Johnson Mr. William Kovacs Mr. John Listorti, Jr.Mr. Michael Longofono Mr. Timothy Loughlin Mr. Sebastian S. Marino Mr. Ronald Muskatallo Mr. Jeffrey S. Muzio Mr. Paul Narducci Mr. Salvatore Pepitone Dr. Michael J. Ricard Dr. Dennis S. Stachelek Mr. David J. Winicki

CLASS OF 1985Mr. Steven Anderson Mr. Robert A. Arena Mr. Gino Beaudoin Mr. James Cote Mr. Stephen M. Curran Mr. Todd R. Darling Mr. Peter DeRita, Jr.Mr. Jared S. desRosiers Mr. John Kane Mr. James Rame Mr. Scott C. Wallace Mr. J. Thomas Wronski

CLASS OF 1986Mr. Jeffrey Alexander Mr. Stephen M. Galluba Mr. Chris M. Johnson Mr. Richard R. Morin Mr. Mark P. Picard Mr. Carl Pitruzzello Mr. David Sizemore Dr. Christopher T. yeaw

22 Xavier Today

CLASS OF 1987Major Douglas J. Bayley Mr. Thomas P. Belzek Mr. Stephen Cahill Mr. Jeffrey Colandrea Mr. Steven A. DeMartino Mr. Eric C. Johnson Mr. Martin Lilienthal Mr. Stephen Suraci Mr. Mark Wheeler

CLASS OF 1988Mr. Jason J. Dudek Mr. Sean Egan Mr. Christopher Mefferd Mr. Glenn C. Salamone Mr. William Savinelli

CLASS OF 1989Mr. Christopher M. Bradley Mr. Wayne Carlson Mr. Michael J. Coughlin Mr. Daniel Gaffney Mr. Patrick Holley Mr. Robert Lafreniere Mr. Keith D. Majors Mr. Robert Messore Mr. Jeffrey Mulqueen Mr. Brian Pear Mr. Timothy C. Reinsch

CLASS OF 1990Mr. Michael Bailey Mr. Scott DeFilio Mr. Michael C. Eagle Mr. Brendan Egan Mr. William P. Fritz Mr. Christopher Shortell Mr. Christopher Weirup

CLASS OF 1991Mr. Brian Judge Mr. James C. Lane, Jr.Mr. Michael J. Turner

CLASS OF 1992Mr. Steven C. Downs Mr. Trevor Knell

CLASS OF 1993Mr. Gary Abolafia Major Francis S. Gay Mr. Neil MitchillMr. Andrew Mule Mr. Seth P. Spector Mr. Jared A. Stabach Mr. David T. Wenchell Mr. Christian B. Winkley

CLASS OF 1994Mr. Joseph Didato Mr. David DiGenova Mr. Jeremy D. Fowler Mr. Edward Palau Mr. Gregory Silvestro

CLASS OF 1995Mr. Luke Dalton Mr. Paul Jevelle Mr. Joseph E. Lane

CLASS OF 1996Mr. Paul T. Camarco Captain Jeffrey Larson Sergeant Michael Moravecek

CLASS OF 1997Mr. Christian Plummer

CLASS OF 1998Mr. David J. Applegate Mr. Neal Mulrain Mr. Thomas V. Northrop Mr. Stephen R. Novacki

CLASS OF 1999Mr. James E. Markham Mr. Thomas Milardo Mr. James Royce Mr. Matthew Strekel

CLASS OF 2000Mr. William A. Albro Mr. Ryan J. Boothroyd Mr. Christopher M. Dion Mr. Robert McGuinness, Jr.Mr. John Skorzewski, Jr.Mr. Alexander Strekel

CLASS OF 2001Mr. Nicholas Cerreta Mr. Daniel C. DeConti Mr. Ross Giovanniello Mr. Robert J. Piontek

CLASS OF 2002Mr. Geoffrey P. AstleMr. Jason M. Boothroyd Mr. Matthew B. Carney Mr. Frank W. Dresty Mr. Gino P. Troiano, Jr.

CLASS OF 2003Mr. Christopher J. Cotton Mr. Brendan Fennessy Mr. Jason Hubball Mr. Zachary J. Storms

CLASS OF 2004Mr. Nicholas A. Turelli

CLASS OF 2005Mr. Peter M. D’Amato

CLASS OF 2006Mr. Anthony W. Leone Mr. Daniel R. Peck

CLASS OF 2008Mr. Steven C. Humes Mr. Daniel S. Virgadaula

CLASS OF 2009Mr. Anthony J. Benning Mr. Joshua D. Cunningham Mr. Anthony J. Fontanella Mr. Trevor J. Kelly Mr. David C. Langer Mr. John D. McGrath Mr. Justin A. Proto Mr. Dennis M. Scarpa Mr. Christopher R. Shugrue Mr. David J. Sorrentino

Largest dollar increase over the previous year’s campaign 2001 2007 2009

Largest % dollar increase 2007 2001 2005 Followed closely by 2004

Largest number of alumni participating 1969 1967, 1970 and 1972

Tied for 2nd place

The 2009–2010 Competition Begins!

As of Thanksgiving, the 2009–2010 Annual Fund Drive competition is off to a fast start. The idea of a little competition among the alumni classes

has been well received as we work to raise needed funds to support the future alumni of Xavier High School. Thanks to all who suggested this approach to boosting participation. Our younger Alums have gotten off the starting block quickly. But the older Alums are still setting the pace when it comes to numbers in the race.

The leaders are in the following categories:

Largest increase in number of members participating 2005 and 2007

Tied for 1st place 2004, 2006 and 2008

Tied for 3rd place

Largest % increase of class members participating 2007 2005 2004

The largest increase in number of new donors* for the year 2009 2005 2007 and 2008

*A “new donor” is one who had not participated in the 2008-2009 AFD campaign. They may have contributed to other past campaigns.

Xavier Today 23

F O R C L A S S E S E N D I N G I N 5 ’ s A N D 0 ’ s

June Reunion ClambakeSATURDAY, JUNE 19, 2010 — XAVIER HIGH SCHOOL

Cheese and Cracker appetizer tray

Clam Chowder & Oyster Crackers Clam CakesSteamed Little Neck Clams, Lemon & ButterSteamed MusselsGrilled Chicken Breast

Corn on the CobBoiled Red new PotatoesNew England Biscuits, ButterSliced Watermelon

Assorted Cold Beverages

Reunion/Clambake MenuSave the Date: June 19!An old-fashioned summer clambake seemed like a natural for

food, beverage, conversation and striking up old acquaintances. It is Father’s Day weekend and just a few days before this year’s Travelers Open (formerly the GHO). It seemed like a good time to fi nd alumni who may have moved away and might be visiting “home.”

So plan on joining us for a great time!

Register and pay securely by credit card on our website — www.xavierhighschool.org/2010reunions

On the website we’ve included a list of Alumni from the reunion years that we have no valid mail address on fi le. If you know them and their whereabouts, please let them know of the reunion. If they have no objection, we would really like to update their information so they can receive the school magazine and important information (like the reunions). Please don’t send internet search results unless you are absolutely sure it is the same person. We have already used a few such sources to try tracking information.

We have also listed the deceased members of these classes at the end of the webpage, in case you wanted that information.

JUNE REUNION CLAMBAKE — TICKETS $45 PER PERSON_ 1970_ 1975

_ 1980_ 1985

_ 1990_ 1995

_ 2000_ 2005

Name ___________________________________________________________________________________

Address _________________________________________________________________________________

City/State/Zip _____________________________________________________________________________

Email ____________________________________________________________________________________

Number of tickets: __________ at $45 per ticket = $ ___________________ enclosed.

Please make checks payable to: Xavier High School

TO PAY BY CREDIT CARD:

Name (as it appears on credit card) ___________________________________________________________

Credit Card # _____________________________________________________________________________

Exp. _____________ m Master Card m Visa

Please mail this coupon with payment to:Xavier High School, Offi ce of Advancement, 181 Randolph Rd., Middletown, CT 06457-5635

I am an alumni of the Class of: We would really appreciate hearing from you.

If you would like to be

involved or have suggestions:

Call us at: (860) 347-6079

Email: advancement@

xavierhighschool.org

Or send a note to:

Joe Lane ’95, Assistant Director

of Advancement

1970 • 1975 • 1980 • 1985 • 1990 • 1995 • 2000 • 2005

24 Xavier Today

Thomas George Aiello, 63, of Middletown passed away October 14, 2009 at his home. A past administrator and teacher at Xavier, Tom was the father of Liam Aiello ’01 of San Francisco, CA and Gavin Aiello ’04 of Brooklyn, Ny. See story on Page 25.

Joseph Benson, 54, died November 23, 2009. He was the brother of English teacher Mr. Walter Benson.

Mary (Lynch) Bergan, 94, a lifelong resident of Middletown passed away peacefully on September 9, 2009. She was the mother of Robert Bergan ’72, Christopher Bergan ’77 and the late Michael Bergan ’71. She was also the grandmother of Richard Bergan ’01 and Joseph Bergan ’03. Memorial contributions may be made to Mercy High School, 1740 Randolph Rd., Middletown, CT 06457 or to Xavier High School, 181 Randolph Rd., Middletown, CT 06457.

Louis Salvatore D’Aquila passed on. He was the father of 4 Xavier Grads, Douglas ’75, Kenneth ’76, David ’77 and James ’81 and the uncle to Jean (Mercy - ’77), Dan ’80, Paula (Woodrow Wilson - ’81) and Michael D’Aquila ’83. His nephew Michael wrote “He was one of the most honorable and sincere people I knew. He will be greatly missed!”

Joanne Agnello DiBella, 84 of Old Saybrook, passed away June 19, 2009. She was the grandmother of Michael ’06, Daniel ’09, Matthew ’12 and Joseph ’13.

Genevieve (Zawisza) Drenga, 89, of Moodus, grandmother of William Phaneuf III ’85, died June 24, 2009 at Chestelm Health and Rehabilitation Center.

George Fedak, 92, of Southington, died peacefully on Sunday, June 21, 2009. He was the grandfather of Mr. Christopher Dresko of Xavier’s Music Department.

Anna Ferrara, 86, died at her home December 1, 2009. She was the grandmother of Jake Gawlak ’10 and mother-in-law of Charles Gawlak ’71.

Thomas M. Piatti ’72 yearbook Photo

Michael Krupa ’04 yearbook Photo

Timothy E. Reilly ’73 yearbook Photo

Mark Sokolowski ’69 yearbook Photo

Michael Terzi ’87 yearbook Photo

John Tynan, Jr. ’75 yearbook Photo

Thomas Aiello yearbook Photo

Dr.Bruce J. Francis ’82 yearbook Photo

Dr. Bruce J. Francis ’82, 45, of New Jersey, formerly of Glastonbury, died suddenly August 6, 2009 at yale-New Haven Hospital. Bruce gradu-ated from St. Anselm College in New Hampshire and from the Penn-sylvania College of Podiatric Medicine. Bruce was a Podiatrist with a practice in Philadelphia since 1990.

George V. Keithan, Sr., 85, of East Berlin, formerly of Middletown, died July 7, 2009 at Hospital of Central Connecticut, New Britain. He was the father of Richard J. Keithan ’69 and George V. Keithan, Jr. ’81 and the grandfather of Jonathan Keithan ’96, Christopher Keithan ’99, Adam Keithan ’07, George Keithan ’11 and Christopher Casey ’12. George was a 37 year officer with the Middletown Police Department and served as a State Marshall for fourteen years after his retirement.

Michael Krupa ’04, 22, was tragically lost in a kayaking accident in September. Please remember the Krupa family in your prayers. Krupa went missing September 6, 2009 while kayaking off the coast of Milford.

Gustave W. Larson, 87, grandfather of John Wilkinson ’10, passed away December 5, 2009, at his home in Waterbury.

Ida Marie (Rusconi) Masselli, 91, of Middlefield, died peacefully after a short illness on August 29, 2009. She was the mother of Mark Masselli ’69.

Mary Dorothy McElheron, 90, of Enfield and formerly of Somers, entered eternal peace on Dec. 4, 2009. She was the grandmother of Math teacher Mr. John Traceski.

Josiah Sherman Mitchell, 91, father of Christopher Mitchell ’86, died March 24, 2007.

William “Bill” Nellis, father of William Nellis ’76, passed away November 14, 2009 in California.

Thomas M. Piatti ’72, 56, of Cromwell, formerly of Portland, died July 31, 2009, at Middlesex Hospital. Tom had been employed by Bob’s Furniture Stores for many years and had been a member of the Portland Volunteer Fire Department.

We Remember

Xavier Today 25

T homas George Aiello, 63, of Scenic View Dr., Middletown, beloved husband of Helen (Niedzwiecki) Aiello, passed away October 14, 2009 at his home.

Tom graduated from the university of Rhode Island in 1969 and received his EdD in mathematics education from Boston university in 1978. Tom dedicated his professional career to education, particularly in Xaverian Brothers Sponsored Schools: from 1978 to 1981 when he taught at Malden Catholic in MA, to his 27 year career with Xavier High School in Middletown. Tom’s dedication to teaching allowed him to impact the lives of many young men and their families throughout his career at Xavier, where he served as a mathematics teacher and later as assistant principal. Additionally, he has served on the board at both St. John School in Middletown and St. John’s Prep in Shrewsbury, MA.

Besides his wife, he is survived by his two sons, Liam Aiello (Xavier,’01) of San Francisco, CA and Gavin Aiello (Xavier ’04) of Brooklyn, Ny. In addition, the family would like to express their gratitude to Dr. Robert Levy, MD, and all the staff of the Connecticut Oncology Group for their care and compassion.

Decades of Devotion

Frank A. Precourt, 79, of Higganum, beloved husband of Ellen (Horan) Precourt, died July 9, 2009 at his home. He was the father of Patrick Precourt ’85 and Bart Precourt ’87.

Timothy E. Reilly ’73, age 54, lost his long and courageous battle with cancer on November 17, 2009. He was the brother of James Reilly ’73. Tim was a respected restaurateur in the Middletown area for over 25 years. He started out in his grandparent’s restaurant, The Cabin in Meriden. In 1984 he opened J.T. Reilly’s in Portland. In 1995, Tim pioneered the restaurant revival in Middletown when he and his sister Brenda opened Tuscany Grill. Baci Grill in Cromwell followed four years later. He was a member of St. Joseph Parish in New London. The family would like to thank Middlesex Hospital VNA for all of their care. Memorial contributions may be sent to the Helen and Harry Gray Cancer Center, 80 Seymour St., PO Box 5037, Hartford, CT 06102.

William M. Simpson, Sr., 78, of Middletown, father of Bill Simpson, Jr. ’76 and Paul Simpson ’83, passed away peacefully in his sleep on October 14, 2009. He was also inducted into the Xavier High School Hall of Honors in 1991 for his long-standing contributions to the school.

Mark Sokolowski, 58, a member of the Xavier Class of 1969 died on Nov. 2, 2009, in Berlin after a period of failing health. He was formerly employed with the Atlas Company as a pyro-technician. Mark had a passion for music, playing the guitar and pedal steel guitar with various bands. Memorial contributions may be made to the Friends of Berlin Animal Control, PO Box 1, Kensington, CT 06037 or to a charity of the donor’s choice.

Edward W. Stabach, 75, husband of 40 years of Lois Flagg Stabach, of Portland, died July 1, 2009 at Middlesex Hospital following a courageous battle with cancer. He was the father of Jonathan Stabach ’88, Jason Stabach ’89, Jared Stabach ’93 and Jeffrey Stabach ’95. Mrs. Stabach was the Science Lab Assistant for Brother Houlihan for many years.

Walter T. Taylor, 89, passed away on August 31, 2009. He was the father of Paul Taylor ’67 and grandfather of Samuel Rondini ’13. Mr. Talylor was the first president of Xavier’s Home and School Association.

Michael Julius Terzi ’87, age 40, passed away suddenly on Nov. 12, 2009. He graduated from Xavier High School in 1987, attended uConn

and went on to graduate from Post College where he earned a degree in accounting. He was employed as the controller at Record Products of America in Hamden for several years.

James Louis Tonina, 76, grandfather of Daniel Thompson ’09, Michael Thompson ’11 and Andrew Murrone ’13, died peacefully at Middlesex Memorial Hospital’s Weiss Hospice Center on December 4, 2009.

John F. Tynan Jr. ’75, 52, of Bristol, passed away at home on Aug. 1, 2009. John was the brother of Patrick Tynan ’76 and William Tynan ’78. John worked for over 30 years at Habasit America in Middletown. He had a passion for all sports; he was a fan of uConn, the New york Giants and the Celtics, but he was an avid fan of the Boston Red Sox. He began his involvement with Bristol Little League when his children were playing and eventually became deeply involved with it, most recently as an umpire. He was also a Cub Scout and Boy Scout leader.

Mary Caltha Stigall Wright, 94, grandmother of John O. Neal ’11, died peacefully at Hope Hospice in Cape Coral, FL on February 7, 2009 after a brief illness.

William M. Simpson, Sr.

Robert C. Wilson, 64, a former Xavier faculty member and a resident of Norwalk for over thirty years, died on October 24, 2009 in his home. He retired from education in June 2006. He began his career in 1969 by teaching for five years at Xavier. Most of his teaching was in Connecticut public schools. Mr. Wilson taught in Brookfield for eighteen years and at Greenwich High School for eleven years. He was also

one of its associate directors and an adjunct professor in English and Education at Fairfield university.

In this photo from the 1973 yearbook, Mr Wilson showed the Kestrel staff how to cut and paste with pen knife and glue.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Xavier High School Scholarship Fund, c/o Advancement Office, 181 Randolph Rd., Middletown, CT 06457; or the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation, 383 Main Avenue, 5th Floor, Norwalk, CT 06851

Receiving the 2003 Ryken Award from Br. William.

26 Xavier Today

D irector of Advancement Michael Tommasi ’67, recently unveiled a new feature of the Xavier website. Informational

Newsletters “prepared for the benefit of the friends of Xavier” who are looking for ways to help the school through a program of “Planned Giving.” These letters can be found by going to www.xavierhighschool.org > Advancement & Alumni > Advancement Activities > Planned Giving.

Hints on year End Giving and Charitable Remainder Trusts are the first two featured Newsletters.

Xavier High School has embarked on a formal program to encourage Planned Giving as we strive to find ways to provide assistance to our students and continue the level of education necessary to advance the mission of the school.

Since July 1, 2006 more than $1.5 million has been contributed to endowed scholarship funds that are intended to provide continuing support for our students. Interest earned annually from each of these restricted funds is awarded to deserving students in the form of scholarships and financial aid.

More than $1.2 million of those funds came from Planned Giving contributions.

Xavier Legacy SocietyIn recognition of these contributions and to foster growth in the area of planned giving, Xavier

High School will soon recognize those who have given and those who have included Xavier in a planned giving document under the banner of the “Xavier Legacy Society.”

Please contact the Office of Advancement (860-347-6079) with any questions.

Informational Newsletters Featured

Tony, holding his award, is surrounded by family and friends.

On December 4th Xavier’s Director of

Athletics, Anthony Jaskot (Xavier class of 1969), was awarded the Central Connecticut Association of Football Officials (CCAFO) 2009 Friend of Football Award at the Aqua Turf Club in Southington.

Guest speaker Larry McHugh (President of the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce and Xavier’s first football coach – 1963 -1983) praised Tony’s accomplishments throughout his career here at Xavier as a student athlete to his service as teacher, coach and athletic director as well as his involvement in the greater Middletown community.

importantly, as human beings.”The CCAFO is dedicated to

providing professional football officiating services to the central Connecticut public, parochial and private high schools. Founded in 1929, the organization has grown to be

President of the CCAFO Al Santostefano (student in the class of 1968) presented Tony with the award. In his remarks, Tony thanked Larry for challenging him and his teammates to “reach their full potential as athletes and, more

the largest football officiating board (approx. 150 members) in the state of Connecticut. Many of the members are qualified to officiate games played under both National Federation and NCAA rules.

Anthony Jaskot ’69 Named 2009 Friend of Football

Planned Giving

P lanned Giving is an area of

fundraising that refers to several

specific gift types that can be funded

with cash, equity, or property. These

gift vehicles are commonly based on

united States tax law, but Canada,

the united Kingdom, and other

nations are beginning to establish

similar laws. In the united States,

the specific rules of planned giving

are defined by the united States

Congress and the Internal Revenue

Service.

Planned gifts are referred to as

such because they require more

planning, negotiation and counsel

than an outright gift. Planned gifts

involve an arrangement between a

donor and a non-profit organization,

whereby the donor takes a partial

tax deduction for the gift and then

receives an income stream from the

non-profit.

Planned Giving programs

are popular among thousands of

colleges, universities, hospitals,

museums and community

foundations in the united States.

— As defined in Wikipedia,

the free encyclopedia

Xavier Today 27

1960s Richard Larrivee ’68 is now living in Alabama. Richard graduated from Central CT State university with a Bachelor degree in Political Science. He now works in Engineering for Dynetics Inc., Headquartered in Huntsville. AL.

1970sDavid LaMay ’76 is a Vice President and Senior Account Executive with the Fidelity Private Client Group in New Haven, CT. David tells us that he is also keeping busy with his part-time activities. He is currently teaching at Albertus Magnus College. “Also, through the Department of Defense and MHN Government Services, I provide service members, including National Guard and Reserve components, and their families with professional, individual financial planning and consultation services.”

Gary A. Szewczyk ’77 lives in Middletown and is owner of The Life Planning Retirement Group.

1980sThomas Bailey ’83 recently told us “ Earlier this year I retired from the Air Force after 21 years and moved back to Connecticut. Before leaving the Air Force, I was fortunate enough to earn an MBA and Graduate certificate in investments from Johns Hopkins university. My wife Karla and I have settled in Hartford and I recently joined Merrill Lynch as a financial advisor.”

1990sJeff Triblets ’95 wrote “I married Tara Binckerhoff on July 1, 2006. We had a baby daughter, Robyn Lynn, on July 12, 2009. We also got a dog “Shadow” from Second Chance Animal Rescue in Puerto Rico. We are currently very sleep deprived, but happy.” Jeff received his BS in Agronomy from uConn in 2000 and is currently a Senior Implementation Representative with the Hartford Insurance Group.

With his 5 year commitment to the Army fulfilled, Dan Presutti ’98 is enrolled at Mercer university School of Medicine in Georgia. He is now in his second year of medical school. Dan lives in the Savannah area with his wife Kristin and their 1 year old son.

2000sSome information about William Bagley III ’00… Bill now lives in Washington, DC. He works in the uS Senate where he is Deputy Press Secretary to Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania. Bill’s father tells us “I have heard from him that he is quite interested in returning for his class reunion (June 19, 2010 for the classes ending in 5 or 0) and that he and several of his pals have set their sights on returning to CT for it.” Bill’s father, a graduate of St John’s Shrewsbury (’69), said “…very nice news about your new headmaster. Brother Brian is a wonderful guy and I know that he will be a super match for the school.”

Michael DeLude ’01, who earned his Associate degree at Middlesex Community College, says “ After a long absence, I will be going back to finish up on my degree with the ultimate goal of achieving my Bachelors degree in History. I have been working full time for about 4 years and I realized that I do need a change of career. My goal is to become a secondary education history teacher and I will be starting classes this fall at MXCC with the intention of finishing up at CCSu in the near future.”

Douglas Presutti ’01 has graduated from the university of Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business. He received an MBA with a concentration in Finance. While at Notre Dame, Doug was a contender in Bengal Bouts, a charity boxing event in its 79th year which raises money for the Holy Cross Mission in Bangladesh. Doug’s mom wrote that “Dan (’98) and Doug both speak highly of their 4 years at Xavier. We are so thankful for the school, brothers and faculty.”

Spencer Emch ’02 is a drummer in the Army band stationed in Kentucky. We have been told that he will be deploying to Afghanistan in June.

Christopher Seidl ’05 joined Barnum Financial Group, an office of Metlife in Wethersfield CT, in August 2009 as a Financial Services Representative.

Maj. Keith Matiskella ’89, an engineer with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, finished first in the 2009 Fleet Feet Soldier Field 10-miler shadow run at Forward Operating Base Fenty, Afghanistan. This was just one of the races Keith participated in. “Anything that

adds a bit of normalcy to the everyday life while deployed is a benefit. It also gives people a goal to shoot for, which helps pass the time as you train up and work towards the goal.”

In his senior year at Xavier, Keith received the “Most Improved Harrier Award” from Coach Michalski.

Alumnus Takes First in Afghanistan

More Alumni News…

Arthur Wrubel ’83, owner of Wesley Capital Management in New york City, has been appointed to the undergraduate Executive Board of the Wharton School, university of Pennsylvania, one of the world’s largest, most diverse, and most influential business school faculties: 250+ scholars across 11 disciplines and more than 24 research centers and initiatives.

Ryan Cody ’05 joined the KFDA NewsChannel 10 team in Amarillo, Texas in October. Ryan graduated from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State university. While at ASu, Ryan reported and anchored for the award-winning Cronkite Newswatch, a live evening newscast with the largest viewership of any student-run newscast in the world. He also interned for Fox Sports Arizona as a Production Assistant and the ASu Media Relations Dept. Ryan helped produced the nightly sportscast at WTNH in New Haven Connecticut. Contact Ryan at rcody@newschannel10.com.

28 Xavier Today

Name ______________________________________________Class year ______

Address ___________________________________________________________

City, State, Zip ______________________________________________________

Phone # Home _________________________ Work _______________________

Email _____________________________________________________________

Employed by _______________________________________________________

Position ___________________________________________________________

College/university attending __________________________________________

Major/Degree ______________________________________________________

NEWS _____________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

Signature______________________________________Date________________

Have you moved, changed jobs, married, earned a degree, had a baby and not let us know? Well, we’d like to hear from you. Please take a minute to fill out the form below so that we may update our records and let your fellow alumni know how (and where) you are.

Mail to: John Guerin, Xavier High School, 181 Randolph Rd., Middletown, CT. 06457. Email: advancement@xavierhighschool.org. Or call: (860) 347-6079

Learning to Help OthersJohn W. Hannen, Jr. ’74 recently sent us the following

note, “I thought you might find this article regarding my welcome back to Xavier after the 1991 Gulf War interesting. My Mom found it among some personal items my grandmother was saving after she passed away.”

We found some of the student comments particularly interesting in this 1991 Hartford Courant article. you never know the effect that experiences and circumstances will have on others.

John is with Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems in Abu Dhabi, uAE (The united Arab Emirates) and is the father of freshman Lucas Hannen.

What’s New?December 2009

Senior Tyler C. Naumann has just received congratulations for being named to the 2009 uSA Swimming Scholastic All America Team. Marvin and Joyce Lanphere of uSA Swimming wrote “uSA Swimming is very proud of you. It is no small accomplishment to achieve

success both in the swimming pool and in the classroom. We applaud you and wish you success, athletically and scholastically.”

Current Co-Captain of Xavier’s Swim Team, Tyler was also recognized on the Headmaster’s List for 2008–2009. The Headmaster’s List is comprised of students who had a final grade point average of 3.5 or higher for the school year with no grade below B on the final average in a major course.

Congratulations Tyler!

The Xavier alumni are always looking for ways to get together and enjoy each others company. 2009 had several notable examples.

check the alumni events page of our website and don’t hesitate to suggest ideas of how to get together and keep in touch.

Thanksgiving weekend brought 37 hockey players and about a hundred spectators to a fun filled and competitive alumni Hockey game at Wesleyan’s arena. The event also raised over $1,200 for the annual Fund Drive. given the success, watch for information on a repeat match in 2010.

The annual alumni golf classic was a little soggy but successful in September. Save the date for the 28th annual event on September 10, 2010. We’ll be getting details out to all alums. Watch the website and email for information this spring.

alumni Basketball is a great time to get together to play a little ball and visit with friends. all games are played on Wednesdays beginning at 7:00 pm in the Kohs gym at Xavier. Dates for the 2010 season are January 13th; February 3rd, 10th, 17th and 24th; March 10th, 17th and 24th.

alumni Happenings

The class reunion/clambake held in June for the classes ending in 4s and 9s was declared a success; so much so that another has been planned for June 19, 2010 for Xavier alums who graduated in a year ending in 5 or 0. (See page 23 for more details)

Xavier HigH ScHool181 randolph road

Middletown, cT 06457

Phone: 860-347-6079

email: advancement@xavierhighschool.org

www.xavierhighschool.org

Non profit org.

U.S. Postage

PaiDPermit #529

Middletown, cT 06457

Freshmen continue Xaverian legacyat the conclusion of the opening

of School Mass in September, the twenty-three freshmen whose fathers are alumni of Xavier came to the stage to take a photo with Brother Brian and Brother James Boyle. They are: eric S. aresco son of Mr. eric S. aresco ’88, Kevin r. Beeman son of Mr. robert J. Beeman ’77, James M. Biega son of Mr. Joseph edward Biega iii ’83, christian J. cannata son of Mr. Joseph alfred cannata ’75, Michael a. carta son of Mr. carl albert carta ’70, emmett J. coughlin son of Mr. James

robert coughlin ’84, corey J. Danko son of Mr. Mark a. Danko ’78, Jacob S. DiBella son of Mr. Michael louis DiBella ’74, Daniel M. Dobler son of Mr. Mark Stephen Dobler ’81, Michael Fredericks son of Mr. Henry e. Fredericks ’82, lucas J. Hannen son of Mr. John William Hannen, Jr. ’74, Frank T. Kronenberger son of Mr. Brian Thomas Kronenberger, Sr. ’75, victor a. lagana son of Mr. vincent N. lagana ’83, Matthew l. lyons son of Mr. anthony lyons ’77, John-Paul M. Morello son of Mr. Paul a. Morello, Jr. ’72, vincent P. Nettis son of

Mr. Philip Michael Nettis ’80, Samuel l. rondini son of Mr. Jess rondini ’74, Kyle J. Schroeder son of Mr. Jeffery ronald Schroeder ’84, Brian P. Sheehy son of Mr. Kevin Patrick Sheehy ’82, ryan l. Sowa son of Mr. Marc lawrence Sowa ’81, Bryan a. Szewczyk son of Mr. gary a. Szewczyk ’77, Donald J. Thompson son of Mr. Donald James Thompson ’75 and carl S. Thorell son of Mr. Thomas Thorell ’81.

We wish them all the best in their high school career.