Saint John's Magazine Summer/Fall 2017

SUMMER/FALL 2017

INSIDE 18 Vande Hei ready for liftoff

as first Johnnie astronaut 26 Family defines Gagliardi’s living legacy 34 Learning Commons adds a new dimension 38 Bell’s Benedictine adventure circles the globe

MAGAZINE

INSIDE THIS ISSUE SUMMER/FALL 2017

MAGAZINE

Departments

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My Perspective View from Collegeville Service to the Church In Sight Alumni Connection Advancing the Mission Johnnie Sports Inspiring Lives Class Notes

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SAINT JOHN’S MAGAZINE

is the alumni magazine of Saint John’s University. It is published twice a year, in the spring and fall, by the SJU Office of Institutional Advancement.

EDITOR Dave DeLand ddeland@csbsju.edu 320-363-3013

CONTRIBUTORS Margaret Arnold Jessie Bazan Rob Culligan ’82 Dana Drazenovich Jennifer Mathews Emery Mike Killeen Ryan Klinkner ’04 Julie Scegura ’15 Eric Schubert ’92

CREATIVE DIRECTION AND DESIGN

Features

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O’Toole’s Story Follows Wildly Unlikely Path P. 14

From a one-room schoolhouse in Oregon to the halls of Saint John’s, from refugee aid in Greece to the Bundy militia compound, from a near-fatal surgical experience to a meeting with a U.S. President, from chemistry awards to medical school, Thomas O’Toole ’17 has done it all – and he’s just getting started.

Lori Gnahn

PHOTOGRAPHY Thomas O’Laughlin ’13

UNIVERSITY ARCHIVIST Peggy Landwehr Roske ’77

EDITOR EMERITUS † Lee A. Hanley ’58

ADDRESS CHANGES Ruth Athmann Saint John’s University P.O. Box 7222 Collegeville, MN 56321 rathmann@csbsju.edu Find the Saint John’s Magazine online at sjualum.com/saint-johns-magazine. ©2017 Saint John’s University

The Amazing Adventures of Mark Vande Hei P. 18 His first career choice as a 6-year-old was to be Spider-Man. His second was to be an astronaut. They both seemed unlikely, but that dream will come true this fall for Mark Vande Hei ’89 as he blasts off for a 5½-month mission aboard the International Space Station. He is the first Johnnie astronaut.

SJU ALUMNI ARE SOCIAL Like us on Facebook at facebook.com/sjualum Follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/sjualumni Follow us on Instagram at instagram.com/sjualumni

Family Defines Gagliardi’s Living Legacy P. 26 The winningest coach in college football history was also the guy Flynntown neighborhood kids would ask to come out and play. That’s just part of John Gagliardi’s family legacy, for both his football family and for his own. At age 90, Gagliardi – always a “kid at heart” – reflects on that legacy.

Subscribe to blogs at sjualum.com

SUMMER/FALL 2017

ON THE COVER Saint John’s University graduate Mark Vande Hei ’89 gets his spacesuit adjusted during training in Houston, Texas. In September, Vande Hei will become the first Johnnie astronaut when he starts his 5½ month mission on the International Space Station. Training photos courtesy of NASA. INSIDE 18 Vande Hei ready for liftoff as first Johnnie astronaut

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Family defines Gagliardi’s living legacy

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Learning Commons adds a new dimension

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Bell’s Benedictine adventure circles the globe

MAGAZINE

MY PERSPECTIVE

Our Living Endowment and the Future

Dietrich Reinhart ’71, OSB, recognized the need for a new relationship between the Abbey and University and initiated the process to separately incorporate the two institutions (a process that was finalized on July 1, 2012).

By Michael Hemesath ’81, President

This next academic year, there will be 13 monks teaching in a faculty of over 300, and most of them will be part time. For over a decade each monastic’s salary has been fully retained by the monastery to support the retirement and health needs of the aging generations of monks, and the university makes a payment to the monastery each year for campus space rental and other services.

An alumnus recently recounted how, unbeknownst to him, as his family experienced a significant and unexpected financial challenge, two monks quietly took it upon themselves to make sure he was able to continue his education at Saint John’s.

“I am indebted to the SJU community and to the monks who took me under their wing,” he wrote. “Without their support, it seems unlikely I would be where I am or who I am today.”

While this alum’s situation was more complicated than many, I think it is fair to say that the vast majority of Johnnies could acknowledge similar sentiments.

Until very recently, every Johnnie quite literally owed a debt to the monks of Saint John’s. For decades the monks who worked as faculty, staff and administrators at the university were the living endowment that made Saint John’s financially viable and provided Johnnies with an education rivaling that of our much better financially endowed peers.

Alas, that world is no longer with us. The changing demographics of the monastery reflect the changes in the post-Vatican II Catholic Church.

Before changes in society and the Church in the 1960s, the monastery had a peak membership of just over 400 monks in 1963. Johnnies of that era were taught almost exclusively by monks. The university had resources for entrepreneurial endeavors like Minnesota Public Radio, the Hill Museum & Manuscript Library and the Collegeville Institute.

As monastic demographics changed, so did the ability of the monastery to support the university. By the early 1980s, the monastic population had declined to about 300 and there was a significantly higher number of lay faculty members. But the faculty still was 20 percent monastics and there still was a substantial subsidy in that 80 percent of the monks’ faculty and staff salaries flowed back to the university.

The 21st century brought further changes. Though there continue to be new vocations to the monastery, the community today stands at 124. Former president Br.

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Though the role of monks at SJU obviously has changed over time, this brief history should not be taken to suggest that the monastic community is not an essential part of the experience of each Johnnie. Monks still are the primary faculty residents in the dorms, especially for freshmen floors, where, with rare exceptions, each new Johnnie will develop a relationship with a member of the Abbey. Several young monks have chosen to become professors, promising many decades of service to students.

Monks still serve in staff positions in Campus Ministry, Student Development and Dining Services, among other roles. Four times a day the monastic community welcomes Johnnies to join them in the centuries-old tradition of the Liturgy of the Hours.

Saint John’s remains a deeply Catholic and Benedictine place and virtually every student, regardless of his own religious background, leaves here Benedictine in an essential way.

Many alumni find that their “Benedictiness” becomes more important to them throughout their lives.

There is, however, a very important practical implication of the changing demographics described above. Our living endowment – the monks of our community – provides continued spiritual sustenance but can no longer provide the financial support that was so important in the first century and a half of Saint John’s existence.

To ensure our ability to continue to educate great Johnnies for a world that surely needs them, it is up to our alumni and friends to build a financial endowment capable of providing access for future generations of students. It is this challenge that I look forward to discussing with our alumni and friends in the months and years ahead.

I want future generations of Johnnies to feel supported by us in the same way alumni felt supported by the monks who educated them.

Read more perspectives from Michael Hemesath by visiting his blog Quad 136 at: sjualum.com

VIEW FROM COLLEGEVILLE

“I think a lot of people are inspired by his terminal illness because he’s been so brave in coming forward and talking so openly and elegantly,” said Matt Beirne ’94, CSB/SJU’s director of admissions and Fr. Mark’s long-time friend.

“There are many words that can be used to describe Fr. Mark by those of us who have come to know and love him,” added George Maurer ’88, who introduced Fr. Mark to an overflow Benedictine Institute Lunch & Learn audience April 5 and to those watching a live-stream broadcast.

“He is Orpheus. He is poetry. He is love.”

Fr. Mark was all that and more to countless people during a Saint John’s career that spanned five decades.

A 1969 Saint John’s Preparatory School graduate and 1973 magna cum laude graduate of Saint John’s University, Fr. Mark was ordained in 1979 and earned his doctorate in Germanic languages and literatures in 1986.

He served Saint John’s as professor of modern and classical languages from 1984-2016, and as headmaster of Saint John’s Preparatory School from 1994-98. He also directed the CSB/SJU honors program and directed student programs in Austria, Germany, Mexico, Italy, India and Tibet.

Fr. Mark’s Poetic Final Gift Thamert shared his reflections on the end of a rich life

Up to the very end, he was still a teacher. The April 5 session began as a virtual classroom presentation, complete with history and poetry, visuals and a laser pointer, literature and music and bilingual references to Rilke, Tolstoy and Rodin.

By Dave DeLand

“All these poems are now different to me,” Fr. Mark said.

“They mean something different as I approach God, as I approach the threshold.

This was one last lesson, taught by a masterful instructor who made teaching his life’s mission.

“The Lord said, ‘I’m creating a place for you. I’m going on ahead of you. Don’t be afraid.’ That’s the most important message, don’t be afraid.”

This was a final reflection on life itself, offered with perspective and humility and humor by a man viewing it all through the lens of his own mortality.

Fr. Mark looked out over the room, over the poetry, over his life. It has come full circle.

This was quintessential Fr. Mark Thamert ’73, SOT ’79, OSB, doing what he did best throughout a rich life that was about to end.

“I want you guys to be the send-off party for me,” said Fr. Mark, a beloved Saint John’s University institution who died April 29 after a three-year battle with stomach cancer.

“I can picture it like a football stadium or something,” he said with a smile, “running through and handing me off to the Divine.”

“I circle around God, the ancient tower,” he said, quoting from a Rainer Maria Rilke poem. “Lord, it is time.

“And we’re all in this together, aren’t we? But there’s some beauty in it.”

Watch Fr. Mark’s final reflection on video at the Benedictine Institute website csbsju.edu/benedictine-institute

Fr. Mark was 66.

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McDonough Energized by Saint John’s Homecoming Former White House Chief of Staff reflects on four years inside the Obama Administration and the future in campus visit

By Dave DeLand

The journey that brought Denis McDonough ’92 from Saint John’s University to the White House brought him back again March 14, and his return to Collegeville was everything he imagined it would be.

occasionally sipped a beer (it was the 100th session of the McCarthy Center’s “Politics and a Pint” program, normally held at Brother Willie’s Pub). “I’ll always be extraordinarly grateful.”

“Coming to Saint John’s is a lot like coming home,” McDonough said during his 70-minute interview with CSB/ SJU Political Science Professor Matt Lindstrom before an overflow McCarthy Center “Politics and a Pint” crowd at SJU’s Pellegrene Auditorium. “It’s been super energizing.”

“Character clearly shines through in the way you talked about what you do, how you work with people, how you treated people,” Saint John’s President Michael Hemesath said. “I’d like to think the Benedictine nature of our institutions here played some role in that as well.”

That sentiment mirrored McDonough’s reflections on his four years (Jan. 20, 2013-Jan. 20, 2017) as President Barack Obama’s White House Chief of Staff, a period when he played a vital role and had an insider’s perspective during a critical time in U.S. history.

That undoubtedly helped during McDonough’s four challenging years as the 27th White House Chief of Staff, a position often described as the second-most powerful job in Washington D.C.

“The whole thing is awe-inspiring,” said an uncharacteristically relaxed McDonough, 47, who wore a plaid shirt, gray sweater, khakis and hiking shoes and

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“Behind every set of decisions,” he said, “there are people who were impacted.”

He handled it all with his uniquely diplomatic but doggedly

determined approach. A 2016 story in Politico Magazine described McDonough as a “dove with brass knuckles,” and there had to be a hard edge to his Minnesota nice in an intense job.

“I think the challenge is to be well-prepared so you don’t forget,” said McDonough, who was noted for his meticulous attention to detail. “With great opportunity comes great responsibility.”

Accompanying photos chronicled some of those responsibilities, showing McDonough conferring with President Obama in the Oval Office, on Air Force One and while strolling across the White House lawn.

In one photo, McDonough received a birthday cake from the president.

In another, he sat with him in the Situation Room during his 27-month tenure as Deputy National Security Advisor (Oct. 20, 2010Jan. 20, 2013), observing the May 2011 SEAL operation in Pakistan that resulted in the death of Osama Bin Laden.

“That’s the definition of chief of staff,” said McDonough, who enjoyed a close relationship with a president who went through four of them during his first term in office. McDonough was by far the longest tenured.

“I’m a team-sport guy. I have some background in running teams, and building teams,” said McDonough, a standout safety who helped Saint John’s win MIAC titles in 1989 and 1991. He also was known for running to work while at the White House.

“Mostly,” he said with a laugh, “I wanted to run from it.”

But he never did. In the process, his wife Karin Hillstrom and children Liam, Addie and Teddy enjoyed their unique vantage point.

“Our kids got to see this up close and personal,” McDonough said. “There’s some beauty in seeing this stuff through the eyes of your kids, because they’re not varnished by the cynicism that so pervades much of what we do now.”

After earlier conversations with a “Lunch and Learn” group and with students in former football coach John Gagliardi’s “Leadership Lessons” class, McDonough also answered questions about his views on Congress, climate change, media coverage and other ongoing issues.

Some of his answers expressed concerns.

But ultimately, Denis McDonough left the White House and returned to Saint John’s with a sense of optimism.

He was intrigued by Obama’s optimism and deep belief in the country, and their relationship reflected those shared beliefs.

“Look man, this is America. Literally, the sky’s the limit when you live here,” he said. “We have to stop thinking we’re victims of something and start remembering we’re from America.

“The good news,” McDonough said, “is I didn’t screw it up.”

“The United States is the greatest place to be,” he said.

His Saint John’s educational and athletic background helped.

McDonough graduated summa cum laude in 1992, and also excelled on the football field.

“Saint John’s is the greatest place to be inside the greatest place to be.”

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VIEW FROM COLLEGEVILLE

Johnnie-Tommie Football Marks 116 Years of History

The 1901 Saint John’s football team capped its 4-0 season with a 16-6 victory over St. Thomas on Thanksgiving Day. The 87th renewal of the Saint John’s vs. St. Thomas football rivalry will be played Sept. 23 at Target Field in Minneapolis before a crowd guaranteed to smash the NCAA Division III single-game attendance record.

was freshman tackle Ignatius O’Shaughnessy, who according to published reports was expelled in January 1902 for skipping Sunday Vespers and instead attending a keg party in the woods.

The first football meeting between the Johnnies and Tommies – 116 years ago – was a bit more modest.

O’Shaughnessy transferred to St. Thomas and went on to become an oil tycoon who made extensive contributions to the Tommies. Their current football stadium bears his name.

In 1901, the Johnnies capped their first season that included games against collegiate opponents with a 16-6 upset victory over the Tommies on Thanksgiving Day at Lexington Park in St. Paul.

“When the news of the victory reached Saint John’s, the campus went wild,” wrote Fr. Dunstan Tucker ’25, SOT ’29, OSB, and Fr. Martin Schirber SOT ’35, OSB, in their 1979 book “Scoreboard: A History of Athletics at Saint John’s University.”

Chuck Houska 1902 ran for two touchdowns (they were worth five points back then) and William Kilty 1902 added a touchdown and an extra point for the Johnnies, whose win capped a 4-0 season.

Another standout for Saint John’s in the Nov. 28, 1901 game

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Saint John’s leads the all-time series with St. Thomas 51-34-1. But that first victory was enough to prompt a writer in the December 1901 edition of The Record to basically claim Minnesota college football superiority for SJU. “In defeating St. Thomas it holds the ball over all Minneapolis and St. Paul teams,” said The Record article.

“Through four hard-fought battles it has carried the Cardinal and Blue to victory, and, still unconquered, is willing again to put on the armor to maintain her championship rights.”

If you believe you have items of historical record that might be a good addition to the SJU Archives, contact CSB/SJU Archivist Peggy Landwehr Roske ’77. She can be reached by email at proske@csbsju.edu or by phone at 320-363-2129.

Join Us for the Johnnie-Tommie Rivalry Weekend Make plans to join thousands of Johnnie football fans in Minneapolis Sept. 23 for the first football game at Target Field. Over 25,000 tickets have already been sold. Join your Saint John’s and Saint Ben’s friends for this historic event.

Our host hotel is the Minneapolis Marriott City Center, located two blocks from Target Field. Join us Sept. 22 in the Marriott ballroom for Red Reign ’17, a social celebrating the Tommie rivalry with CSB/SJU alums, parents, students and fans from across the country.

To order tickets and for more information go to

johnnietommiegame.com CSBSJU.EDU/NEWS

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Mike Scherer ’67 Earns Fr. Walter Reger Distinguished Alumnus Award

Pax Christi Award Honors David Haas, Marty Haugen and the Rev. J. Michael Joncas Saint John’s Abbey and University presented its Pax Christi Award to (left to right) David Haas, Marty Haugen and Rev. J. Michael Joncas – three of America’s most popular Catholic liturgical composers – June 25 during Reunion 2017 weekend.

The presentation followed a brief concert by the National Catholic Youth Choir and Mass featuring the choir, Abbey Schola and St. John’s Boys’ Choir.

All Minnesota residents, Haas, Haugen and Joncas have generously offered their musical talents and contributed greatly to the “full, conscious and active participation” of the people of God in the liturgy as called for by the Second Vatican Council. Their compositions are sung by congregations, choirs and ensembles around the world, across a variety of Christian traditions.

Haas serves as director of The Emmaus Center for Music, Prayer and Ministry and as animator for the CretinDerham Hall Taizé Prayer Community in St. Paul. Haugen is a liturgical composer, workshop presenter, performing and recording artist and author. Joncas is artist-in-residence and fellow in the Center for Catholic Studies at the University of St. Thomas.

In their writing, speaking and presenting, they have evocatively connected liturgical music with the work of the churches for peace and justice.

As the highest honor awarded by Saint John's Abbey and University, the Pax Christi Award recognizes those who have devoted themselves to God by working in the tradition of Benedictine monasticism to serve others and to build a heritage of faith.

The award has been presented to 60 individuals, dating back to 1963.

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The driving force in Mike Scherer’s life can be summed up by four letters that loom high above the Saint John’s University campus.

“If you look at the collar Saint John’s President Michael on the Quad, Hemesath and Mike Scherer there are four letters – IOGD,” said Scherer, referring to the Latin stone inscription embedded atop the building’s west wall.

“Have you ever noticed those?” he said. “They stand for ‘Do All Things for the Glory of God.’ It’s not about glorifying yourself.

“That’s something that always stuck with me,” Scherer said, “those four letters.”

That’s also a major reason why Scherer ’67 is this year’s recipient of the Fr. Walter Reger Distinguished Alumnus Award, the highest honor bestowed by the Alumni Association for service to the Saint John’s community.

“He’s got the heart of a champion when it comes to Saint John’s,” said SJU trustee Jim Sexton ’81, who nominated Scherer for the award. “He’s an amazing guy, a true friend and dedicated trustee of the university.”

“Saint John’s just had a big influence on my life,” said Scherer, who has served SJU in a variety of capacities since his graduation 50 years ago. “I’ll call it the Rule of Saint Benedict – hospitality, giving back, service to others.”

Scherer received the award June 24 at Reunion 2017.

Scherer’s ability to take a long-lens, holistic view and advocate university needs has been invaluable to Saint John’s during his decades of postgraduate service.

He has provided exceptional leadership during his nine years as a Saint John’s trustee and chair of the Buildings and Grounds Committee. Scherer helped facilitate completion of major capital projects including the Alcuin Library Renovation, Dietrich Reinhart Learning Commons and the Saint John’s Athletic Complex.

Kroll Leaves Legacy of Stewardship, Connection It was only fitting that Tom Kroll spent his last day as Saint John’s Abbey land manager and Saint John’s Outdoor University director taking an eight-mile hike.

Trekking through the fields and forest was no different than many days Kroll spent in his 15 years as Saint John’s forester and educator.

However, this was a special walk through the woods Tom Kroll and Abbot John Klassen ’71, accompanied by his staff SOT ’77, OSB and reflecting on his years of service shaped by the Benedictine traditions of stability, hospitality and stewardship.

“Tom calls the stewardship tradition at Saint John’s palpable, felt in the presence of architecture, history and culture, as well as a great example where good forestry was implemented with a long vision,” said Ryan Kutter ’03, studio manager at the Saint John’s Pottery Studio.

“At a time when other rural monasteries were being engulfed by urban development, then-SJU President Dietrich Reinhart, OSB, encouraged Tom to find solutions to preserve the ecological community at and around Saint John’s,” said Kutter, a former Arboretum employee and current member. “Tom has assisted the Abbey in expanding the core of the Abbey Arboretum and ensured a widening buffer of protected land.”

Upon his retirement and for his years of service, Kroll received the 2017 Fr. Vincent Tegeder, OSB/SJU Outstanding Administrator Award at a May recognition luncheon.

Kroll also was recognized in March by the Society of American Foresters (SAF) for his accomplishments in the forestry profession, having worked 20 years for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the German Forest Service prior to arriving at Saint John’s. The award recognizes an SAF member for long-standing service to forestry at the local, state and national levels and as an ambassador for the advancement of forestry.

The DNR’s Minnesota Biological Survey also praised Kroll for 36 years of managing forests in Central Minnesota and leaving his mark on some of the state’s most significant natural areas. They said: “Tom is one of the unusual land managers who got the balance right between resource extraction, education, recreation and other public use, and resource preservation and restoration. We are grateful for his dedication and service.”

Geissler ’99 Named Abbey Land Manager and Director of SJU Outdoor University After a national search, John Geissler has been hired as the new abbey land manager and Saint John’s Outdoor University director and began his work in June.

Previously, Geissler served for 10 years as the program director at Boulder Lake Environmental Learning Center in Duluth, Minn.

The 18,000-acre classroom, a unique partnership between the University of Minnesota Duluth’s College of Education and Human Services Professions and the Boulder Lake Management Area as well as other partners, fosters connections to natural resource stewardship through education, research and recreation.

Geissler has a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from SJU and a master’s degree in environmental education from the University of Minnesota Duluth.

In a 2016 profile in the Duluth News-Tribune recognizing Geissler as one of “20 Under 40,” he named two of his predecessors, Tom Kroll and Fr. Paul Schwietz ’76, SOT ’82, OSB, as influential people in his life.

“Their knowledge and passion for teaching about the natural world,” he said, “is contagious.”

“It has been an honor and pleasure to have served here since 2001,” Kroll said. “I am thankful to have so often walked and worked in the abbey forests.”

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VIEW FROM COLLEGEVILLE

Retiring Faculty Offer Reflections on Saint John’s After Recognition for Years of Service, Contributions Eight Saint John’s faculty members retired in May and were recognized at the annual Academic Affairs Awards and Recognition Ceremony.

A few shared their thoughts on the major changes they have seen during their time and how these changes have contributed to the academic, spiritual and social development of the two institutions’ young men and young women.

Professor Emeriti Gary Prevost, political science I arrived at CSB/SJU in the fall of 1977. The drive for women's equality, known as the Second Wave of Feminism, was well underway across the country. In the years that followed I watched CSB transformed into a true women's college that created opportunities for its graduates to pursue careers in all fields, not just those that had been traditionally reserved for women.

This transformation was led by the visionaries of the monastery including presidents like Colman O’Connell ’48, OSB, and Emmanuel Renner ’49, OSB, administrators like Linda Kulzer ’57, OSB, and Dolores Super ’53, OSB and faculty members like Phyllis Plantenberg ’48, OSB, and Nancy Hynes ’55, OSB. I was proud to be a small part of that effort.

Not pictured:

Professor Alumnus Andreas Kiryakakis, languages and cultures Professor Emeriti Fr. Mark Thamert ’73, SOT ’79, OSB, languages and cultures (posthumously) Professor Wendy Klepetar, global business leadership

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Professor Jim Schnepf ’75, computer science The biggest change that I have seen is a broader sense of community. This is exemplified in many ways: students who think of themselves as Johnnie/Bennie instead of just Bennie or just Johnnie … a greater diversity on campus … programs such as Extending the Link, and of course the expansion of study abroad programs.

Professor Emerita S. Phyllis Plantenberg ’48, OSB, biology

Professor John Olson, economics The greatest major change at CSB/SJU since 1985 has been the development and use of computing and electronic information technology. Students now have access, with great ease and at relatively low cost, to vast amounts of information about the world. Computing power and the internet have transformed educational objectives and processes.

The Saint John’s Pottery Awarded $500,000 for Japan-Based Study The Saint John’s Pottery has been awarded a $500,000 grant from the Mary Livingston Griggs and Mary Griggs Burke Foundation to establish the Mary Griggs Burke Fellowship for Japanese artists and apprentices.

This gift is the single-largest grant to the Saint John’s Pottery in its history, and one of the largest gifts for visual arts programming in SJU history.

The fellowship creates a new research and study endowment to provide opportunities for artists interested in furthering Japanese visual culture. This gift establishes the Saint John’s Pottery as a regional center for exchange with Japan, enabling it to host artists from the country that has grounded its work since 1979.

“For nearly 40 years, this studio has offered apprenticeships and artist residencies to U.S.-based artists interested in the deep history of Japanese ceramic art,” said Richard Bresnahan ’76, director and artist-in-residence at the Saint John’s Pottery. “This generous gift expands that to provide new opportunities for Japanese emerging artists to visit SJU and carry that tradition forward.”

Mary Griggs Burke, born in 1916, amassed the most comprehensive private collection of Japanese art outside Japan and was a pioneer of nature conservation in both countries. She was awarded Japan’s prestigious Order of the Sacred Treasure in 1987.

After her death in 2012, her collection was given principally to the Minneapolis Institute of Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Professor Janet Grochowski, education As I reflect on my career at CSB/SJU, I have witnessed an increasing emphasis on deepening our communities' understanding of the multiple dimensions of diversity and inclusivity in a dynamically changing world.

Our campuses not only embrace cultural and cross-cultural competence in theory, but also strive to engage students, faculty and staff in meaningful experiences in academic and social settings.

Professor Emeriti Greg Walker, music professor The steady growth of international programs stands out to me as one of the most significant changes I have seen.

After returning from a study abroad program, the input from students and faculty alike enriches our curriculum and daily lives, teaching tolerance and respect for diverse cultures and ideas.

Br. Mark Kelly, OSB, Retires from Grounds Department After 56 years working in the Saint John’s University grounds department, Br. Mark Kelly, OSB, announced his retirement as grounds superintendent this spring.

Supported by a dedicated crew of student employees, the grounds department, led by Br. Mark, maintained 118 acres of lawns and playing fields; nearly 17 acres of parking lots; over six miles of sidewalks; seven miles of roadways; and, in the winter, nearly an acre of stairs, ramps and loading docks.

Br. Mark and his crew took great pride in the campus’ appearance and contributed to its beautification, stewardship and safety through the never-ending mowing, weeding, grass seeding and snow removal. (It is also noted that Johnnies don't drive or park on the grass!)

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SERVICE TO THE CHURCH

By Jessie Bazan “Look into my eyes, and you see a different kind of light.

I am lacking in eyesight but not in mindsight. I journey without a lantern but I am led by the light of God. “I am guided by a vision stronger than physical sight, a vision that is etched in my mind, a flame burning in my spirit – the vision of my vocation.” – Kelsi Watters Kelsi Watters SOT ’19 lives life without vision – but not without a vision.

The second-year Saint John’s University Master of Divinity student was born without physical sight due to septo optic dysplasia, a condition of the optic nerves that also affects the pituitary glands.

She relies on the light of God, shining through the community and herself, to illumine the way forward. She says SJU’s School of Theology (SOT) serves as a beacon of light.

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“I can see there’s a relationship of care and trust woven into life at the SOT,” Watters said.

“Kelsi is never blatant or obvious about her physical blindness as a disability, and yet we are aware of her presence at all times,” said Dr. Barbara Sutton, director of field education and ministerial formation for the SOT. Before coming to Collegeville, Watters studied psychology and pastoral and youth ministry at St. Mary’s University in Winona, Minn. The aspiring hospital chaplain interned at Mayo Franciscan Healthcare in La Crosse, Wis. during college.

Navigating patient rooms with her white cane poses some challenges, but Watters is determined to share her gifts.

“Perhaps people will be able to view their challenges in a positive light,” Watters said, “giving them the strength and courage to bear their crosses.”

A vision stronger a

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s t r o n g e r

than phy sical sig ht t h a n

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A gifted musician, Watters delights in playing her reverie harp at patients’ bedsides.

“It is a privilege to be able to enter such an intimate space with patients,” Watters said, “to tune into my intuition and feel the energy in the room.”

Now a full-time student, Watters continues to play her harp at school liturgies and around Emmaus Hall where she lives.

Her classmates attest that the peaceful melodies make reading Aquinas a little more manageable.

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government vice-president for the 2017-18 school year. This summer, Kelsi traveled to Haifa, Tel Aviv, Bethlehem and Jerusalem on a Holy Land trip as part of the SOT pilgrimage group. Her impact on the community is deeply felt.

“Her life elevates, inspires and challenges our senses,” Sutton said. “I believe God wants me to notice her lightness, joy and patient spirit against the darkness, affliction and disappointments prevalent in society today.”

Watters uses a Braille Sense computer to do her reading for class, as well as check email and type papers.

“One of the ways I can minister to others,” Watters said, “is by demonstrating through words and actions that what appears to be brokenness has actually become beautiful.”

“I have to take a lot of extra steps for reading, but I make it work,” she said. “I think it’s because I read completely.

Skimming is a visual ability.”

Jessie Bazan, M.Div., SOT ’17, is the outreach coordinator for Saint John’s Abbey Vocations and youth formation minister at Pax Christi Catholic Community in Eden Prairie, Minn.

Watters’ classmates recently elected her to serve as the student

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O’Toole’s wide-ranging Saint John’s story follows

By Dave DeLand Before he was any of these other things, Thomas O’Toole ’17 was a rancher.

A real rancher – cowboy hat, boots, chaps, horse, saddle. That presentation looks out of place in Collegeville, but it’s perfectly normal in Southeastern Oregon.

“They would still pin me as out of place,” O’Toole said with a grin. “No cowboy hat. These jeans are a little tight. This shirt is not tucked in, and my sleeves are rolled up.

“And my hair has something in it – it’s been done a little bit. Those are marks of a non-native.”

That’s an ironic incongruity, but just the beginning of O’Toole’s story.

There are so many other facets to the recent Saint John’s University graduate’s narrative that it reads like the most wildly implausible Hollywood script.

“All these things sort of roll off that he’s done,” said Cal Mosley, who as CSB/ SJU’s vice president of admission and financial aid played a prominent role in getting O’Toole to attend Saint John’s.

“He doesn’t wear them on his sleeve.”

“Curiosity drives him,” said Dr. Kate Graham, chair of CSB/SJU’s chemistry department. “He is soooo driven. He doesn’t sleep – he just wants to do everything.”

“The kid is so capable that you just look and say, ‘Yeah, Saint John’s found a diamond,’ “ Mosley said.

“It’s been an interesting journey – coming here, and doing what I’ve done here,” O’Toole said. “I would never

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“I’ll be talking about something from home,” said O’Toole, 22, “or I’ll be talking about something I’ve been doing here, and everyone’s like, ‘You’re WHAT?’ ” • O’Toole tended to boatloads of refugees as they landed on the Greek island of Lesbos in November 2015.

• He sat between a U.S. President and his wife on stage during an Oregon campaign stop in 2004.

• He walked into Ammon Bundy’s armed militia compound in the Oregon hinterlands in January 2016 to have a little chat.

• O’Toole attended a one-room schoolhouse, learned to fly an airplane at 15 and graduated in a public boarding school class of 17 students from a massive Oregon county populated by more horses than humans.

• He survived a nearly fatal surgical experience, awakening from one round of anesthesia speaking only Latin and from another speaking only German.

• He won two of CSB/SJU’s most prestigious chemistry awards, published a scholarly paper on modifying amino acids, served a noteworthy internship at the Mayo Clinic and has begun medical school.

And there’s more. There’s always more with O’Toole, who to draw a cinematic comparison is basically Forrest Gump with a really high ACT score.

change how I grew up, but I never felt that I fit in perfectly. I always knew that I wanted to do something else.”

His journey began in the unlikeliest of places.

Home on the range It’s a long way from Harney County, Oregon to Collegeville – and, for that matter, to pretty much anywhere else.

“It’s one of the few counties in America that has more wild horses than people,” said Mosley, himself a native of Burns, Ore., in Harney County.

At 10,228 square miles, Harney County is bigger than nine U.S. states: Maryland, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Hawaii, Connecticut, Delaware and Rhode Island.

It had 7,422 residents in the 2010 census, about one for every 1.4 square miles.

The son of fourth-generation cattle ranchers Polly and Marc O’Toole, Thomas loved the open spaces – and at the same time, knew there was something else out there for him.

“It wasn’t like a lot of my friends – their interests were rodeo, doing cowboy activities, ranching,” said O’Toole, who at age 10 shared a stage in Medford, Ore., with President George W. and Laura Bush after the First Lady responded to his letter. “They really liked that lifestyle.”

“Not very many people (from Harney County) even go off to college,” said Graham, who had a similar upbringing

wildly unlikely path From ranching to refugee aid, from a President to a militia compound, from a one-room schoolhouse to medical school, SJU grad has seen it all

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O’Toole and College of Saint Benedict classmates (from left) Sarah Clark ’17, Amy Larson ’17 and Katie Schmitz ’17 helped refugees on the beach of the Greek island of Lesbos in November 2015.

“He’s a remarkable student,” said CSB/ SJU chemistry professor Dr. Nicholas Jones, who oversaw O’Toole’s 2015 summer internship project. “He wanted a place that would meet the needs of his curiosity.” in Whitehall, Mont. “Most of them stay and work on the farm.”

high school when Saint John’s popped onto his radar screen.

That curiosity found other outlets in far-flung locations.

O’Toole found himself drawn to other interests while attending public boarding school 50 miles from home in Crane – “a tiny, tiny high school where he knew he was the smartest kid in the room, including the faculty,” Mosley said.

“I don’t know if he had any idea what Saint John’s was,” Mosley said.

Foreign concepts

Among those interests were football, track and wrestling. O’Toole sustained a wrestling injury during his sophomore year and underwent surgery that very nearly proved fatal.

“It turns out I’m really, really allergic to one of the medications they used,” he said. “I was seizing for a couple hours before they got it stopped, which usually means severe brain damage.

“They had all the family called, saying, ‘This is probably it.’ They had priests called.”

O’Toole awoke from one round of anesthesia reciting the Tridentine Mass and blessing everyone in Latin.

He awoke from another speaking exclusively in German.

“It switched back relatively quickly,” he said.

And then this unusual life continued.

Off to parts unknown O’Toole was looking at prospective colleges online during his senior year of

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“Never heard of them before,” said O’Toole, who responded to an invitation to apply online and was immediately accepted and offered a scholarship and a flight for a campus visit.

“I find out that it’s in Central Minnesota, and it’s Feb. 11, and there’s 20 inches of snow.”

He was immediately hooked.

“I came here and I absolutely fell in love with it,” said O’Toole, who had been in Minnesota exactly once before (a brief airport layover in Minneapolis). “I couldn’t imagine going anywhere else after I visited.”

“I’d have loved to be a fly on the wall,” Mosley said, “when he told his folks, ‘I want to go to this place in Minnesota that nobody’s ever heard of.’ ” O’Toole arrived in fall 2013 with a cowboy hat and a few trepidations.

“I had a huge fear of coming and not being successful,” he said. “I knew that I was always at the top of my class in high school, but I didn’t know how that would transfer to a larger place and how I actually would compare to the majority of the population.”

As it turned out, quite favorably.

O’Toole participated in the GrecoRoman study abroad program in fall 2015, starting in Italy and then moving on to Greece.

On a November evening in Athens, O’Toole and CSB students Sarah Clark ’17, Amy Larson ’17 and Katie Schmitz ’17 decided their services were needed to help with the crisis on Lesbos, an island in the northern Aegean Sea where refugees were streaming in from Turkey. They bought airline tickets and left that night.

“We went straight to the beaches,” O’Toole said. “As we pulled up, there was a dinghy full of refugees coming.

“The first day we spent on the beaches – actually lifting people up and helping them, clothing them and getting them any kind of medical assistance they needed.”

“That’s what jumps out at you,” Mosley said. “He’s an extraordinary human being.”

Two months later, O’Toole was back home in Harney County over semester break when Bundy and his supporting militia group occupied a building at nearby Malheur National Wildlife Refuge as part of an ongoing dispute over Federal land management practices.

The Bundy compound was ringed by reporters and TV crews. The O’Tooles walked right in.

“My dad said he wanted to make sure they weren’t destroying the place,” O’Toole said. “It has some family significance.”

What ensued was an amicable conversation and a bit of surreptitious social media posting.

“I sent everybody Snapchat stories,” O’Toole said. “I don’t know if it was

in organic chemistry in 2015. The following year, he earned the Kiess Award for the outstanding research student. “(Graham) has definitely been a force to push me to do my best in chemistry,” said O’Toole, who began the application process for medical school in May 2016 and interviewed at three schools. He is attending Oregon Health & Science University.

“I don’t think of it as strange what

combined with a slice of his future.

“In his mind’s eye,” Mosley said, “he always knew he wasn’t going to come back to the ranch.”

“My parents both say they knew that I was never going to stay there,” O’Toole said.

Medical school began Aug. 7. His future is wide open.

“It’ll be interesting to see where he ends up,” Jones said. “When you think about

He’s been everywhere. He’s done everything. He’s hungry for new challenges. secret, but I would take videos of our talk and what was going on inside. I’m sure the press would have loved it.”

I’ve done,” said O’Toole, who plans to specialize in pediatric orthopedic surgery. “I do what makes me happy.

Friends were a bit more alarmed.

“If you think you can do something, why not try?”

“They were all just like, ‘Don’t get killed!’ ” O’Toole said. “It was crazy.”

The joy of chemistry Back at Saint John’s, O’Toole’s passion for chemistry grew equally intense.

“There were times in class where he would get so excited when he’d see the applications of the chemistry he would scream,” Graham said.

“We have students like Thomas that come in and you can’t challenge them enough,” said Jones, O’Toole’s cosponsor for his summer 2015 project on hydride reductions. “They keep pushing themselves.”

O’Toole earned the Jochman Award as the outstanding CSB/SJU student

More adventures lie ahead. But first, there was a loose end to tie up.

New vistas His four years at Saint John’s literally flew by, and graduation felt like it came too soon.

“It feels terrible,” O’Toole said with a wistful smile. “I feel like I’ve grown as a person here a lot because the friends I have share so many interests.

“I think it’s just the community. That’s the No. 1 thing I’m going to miss.”

O’Toole then returned to Harney County to help out for a few months at his parents’ ranch and work as a certified emergency medical technician at the local hospital – a slice of his past

what he’s capable of doing and the wide array of interests, I doubt that he’s just going to settle in and be the country doctor.”

And so, O’Toole is off – to new adventures, new challenges, new vistas, always something new.

“Sometimes,” he admitted. “I think I’m spurred to do that.”

Spurred.

For Thomas O’Toole – rancher, Johnnie, medical school student, adventurer and so many other things – that’s the perfect word.

Dave DeLand, editorial and content director for SJU Institutional Advancement, is an award-winning writer, guest lecturer at Saint John’s University and former columnist for the St. Cloud Times.

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Mark Vande Hei ’89 remembers being 6 years old, looking up at the sky and dreaming little-kid dreams about his great big future.

His first career choice was to be Spider-Man. His second choice was to be an astronaut.

Even in 1972, neither seemed particularly likely.

“Being an astronaut was kind of like saying I wanted to grow up and be Spider-Man,” Vande Hei said. “I didn’t think that was a real thing.

“I always thought of astronauts as superheroes. I certainly thought it was cool, but I don’t remember feeling like that was a possibility for me.”

That childhood dream is scheduled to become a reality at 3 a.m. Sept. 13 (4 p.m. Sept. 12 Collegeville time), when the 1989 Saint John’s University graduate blasts off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan aboard the Soyuz MS-06 spacecraft along with fellow American astronaut Joe Acaba and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin.

“I’ve seen other people’s launches, and it changes everything when you have somebody who you know (going up),” said Vande Hei, 50. “I can’t imagine how I’d feel if I had a kid or my wife getting on the spacecraft.

“You want to cheer, but you know at any instant it could go from being a very celebratory event to a tragedy,” he said.

“It’s a horribly awesome experience. I don’t know how else to describe it.”

Between now and launch time, the Vande Heis are focusing strictly on the “awesome” part.

“I do pinch myself,” said Julie Vande Hei, who will be making her third trip to Russia to watch the launch. “It has opened opportunities that I never foresaw in my life.”

They will join the International Space Station’s Expedition 53 and 54 crews for a 5½-month mission of “doing lots of science” – approximately 250 research investigations not possible on Earth – before returning Feb. 23, 2018.

“Every time I get in a NASA jet and fly someplace, I’ll think to myself ‘I can’t believe I’m here doing this,’” Mark Vande Hei said. “These are things that I never expected.”

Vande Hei will be the first Johnnie in space.

Sharing the Story

“He’s in his dream job,” said Julie Vande Hei, Mark’s wife of 22 years. “I think he wakes up and says to himself, ‘This is so surreal – I’m blessed.’ ”

Vande Hei shared his childhood career aspirations – Spider-Man first, astronaut second – during his NASA interview in 2009.

He’ll be taking a few college mementoes with him on a mission that resonates in the Saint John’s community and around the world.

“We’re proud of him,” said Dean Langley, one of Vande Hei’s physics professors at CSB/SJU. “A lot more people have been Spider-Man than astronauts. He sees it as a dream with a future for kids now.”

“He went into his astronaut interview and they asked him that question,” Julie Vande Hei said. “He told them the same thing he told you – ‘I wanted to be be able to tell Spider-Man.’

You want to school kids something that’s going to inspire them to do something great and pursue their dreams.

“It’s a big deal,” added Thomas Kirkman, associate professor of physics and astronomy at CSB/SJU and another of Vande Hei’s instructors at Saint John’s. “It still has a pretty big impact on our students. It’s still common for students to say they’re interested in science because of NASA.” Launch date will be an even more exciting time for the Vande Hei family, with an accompanying dose of nervous apprehension.

“When he got home and told me the story, I said ‘You did WHAT? Why did you do that?’ But it all worked out.”

Vande Hei also has shared his experience with dozens of elementary school classes, both in person and via Skype. Those classes will be able to watch the launch live at NASA.gov.

Questions he receives have recurring themes.

“Everything from ‘How does the bathroom work?’ to ‘Can we land a spacecraft on the surface of Jupiter?’” Vande Hei said.

“Even when it comes to adults, the topic is so interesting that you don’t run into antagonistic audiences.”

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“I have brought him in,” said Julie Vande Hei, a third-grade language arts teacher in Houston, Texas. “Kids are super excited about space. They love seeing the footage of where we think we’re going to go. It’s exciting all the way around when Mark comes to visit the school.”

Space food is also a popular classroom discussion topic. It’s mostly canned, powdered or dehydrated, which means Vande Hei – who will turn 51 while on the space station – won’t have a birthday cake.

“In general, things that make crumbs are bad for space,” he said. “Fresh food is a rare thing, but it’s appreciated when it comes up. I’ve seen pictures of crew members with a bunch of oranges and apples floating around them because a cargo spaceship just showed up.”

Vande Hei was selected in 2006 to serve as a Capsule Communicator in Mission Control, Houston, for Space Station Expeditions 15-20 and five space shuttle missions.

Vande Hei rarely fields a question about where he went to college, even though Saint John’s played a major role in setting the stage for outer space.

“Maybe that’s just indicative,” Vande Hei said with a laugh, “that they had their back turned to me while I was falling asleep.”

Collegeville Roots

Fat chance. The guy who arrived in Collegeville 32 years ago had no thoughts of being an astronaut, but he was very driven.

Vande Hei came to Saint John’s from Benilde-St. Margaret’s High School in St. Louis Park, Minn., on an ROTC scholarship in the fall of 1985 and made an immediate impact on the faculty.

“He was really gung-ho on ROTC,” Kirkman said.

“He always looked for what’s the hardest thing he could do,” Langley added. “Physics was one of those. ROTC was one of those. His basic motivation was always to do the difficult thing.”

“I was a kid who felt like this was real life all of a sudden, and what I was doing really mattered,” said Vande Hei, a physics major who characterized himself as a decent student and a tireless worker. “I definitely worked my butt off back then.

“I actually did extra homework in my classes. It hadn’t even occurred to me that I wanted to be an astronaut someday.”

But he poured the foundation. Part of that included his faith and a Benedictine approach that has helped Vande Hei through a life and career that has taken him all over the planet, and soon beyond.

“I think that’s probably true,” he said. “I would say there’s an attitude of being willing to accept what is that maybe I’m carrying forward from Saint John’s.”

“Mark had a focus on what he was supposed to be doing,” Langley said. “He was not easily distracted from his goals.”

Getting the Call Even if Vande Hei had never been an astronaut, Saint John’s launched him on a rich career.

Vande Hei arrived in Collegeville in 1985 on an ROTC scholarship and immediately impressed his professors with his diligence, maturity and dedication.

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“To be quite honest, I think I’ve been incredibly blessed,” he said. “You want to be able to tell school kids something that’s going to inspire them to do something great and pursue their dreams.”

Vande Hei was commissioned in the U.S. Army in 1989, rose to the rank of Colonel and served as a combat engineer during two tours of duty in Iraq.

… against heroic odds, the kid who wanted to be Spider-Man was headed for space.

“I think our military past helps us, because he’s done a lot of dangerous things in his lifetime,” said Julie Vande Hei, who married Mark in 1995. They are parents of 19-year-old twins Lauren and Gabe.

“The guy’s a risk-taker. I guess I’ve learned that I have to allow him these opportunities.”

Vande Hei was sent to Stanford University in 1997 to get a master of applied physics degree so he could teach physics in 1999 at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

In 2005, the Army opened up a new field called Space Operations. The little kid inside Vande Hei was intrigued.

“I didn’t really know what I wanted to do when I grew up,” he said. “Of course that whole 6-year-old (astronaut) thing came up once again. I was just blown away.”

“I threw the phone into the air and went screaming right out of the house.

“The odds of getting that job are so long.

To have it happen is amazing.”

Preparing for Space Vande Hei completed astronaut basic training in 2011 and served as the Astronaut’s Office Director of Operations in Russia in 2012-13.

His Russian? It’s not bad.

“I would say it’s pretty good. It’s constantly improving,” Vande Hei said. “But every time I think I’ve got it down, I get humbled.”

He returned to Houston in 2014 for two weeks of NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) underwater training, which simulates what some of the conditions would be like in a spacecraft orbiting the Earth.

Vande Hei also trained for space walks in the Neutral Buoyancy Lab, a 40-foot-deep pool that replicates conditions outside the space station.

“At the time he was picked up, he and I were both talking about how he would retire and become a teacher and we would just go off to some mountain village and live happily ever after,” Julie Vande Hei said. “Because we never believed it would happen, of course.

“And then all of a sudden it happens.”

“It looks like a science fiction movie,” Vande Hei said. “You’re looking at a full-scale mock-up of the space station and there are divers moving parts all over the place.”

Vande Hei was one of nine selected out of 3,500 applicants for the 2009 NASA astronaut class. His subsequent training in Houston has focused on replicating situations he may encounter while serving on the International Space Station.

In 2006, Vande Hei became a Capsule Communicator in Mission Control, Houston, for Space Station Expeditions 15-20 and five space shuttle missions.

Three years later, he and eight others were selected out of a field of 3,500 applicants for the 20th NASA astronaut class.

“I think one of my strengths going through that (selection) process is I didn’t let myself believe it would really work,” Vande Hei said. “I know myself well enough to not think of myself as a superhero.”

And yet, against heroic odds, the kid who wanted to be Spider-Man was headed for space.

“I can remember the day he called me,” Julie Vande Hei said.

Weightlessness training took place during a power dive in a large aircraft.

“Basically, the aircraft dives toward the ground and you’re all falling together,” Vande Hei said. “It feels like a room that gravity’s been turned off in because you’re all floating.”

There also was lots of time spent working on flight simulators, which replicated worst-case scenarios.

“We’ll have simulations where there’s a fire,” Vande Hei said.

“There are no flames, but smoke will start coming out of the console and then we’ll have to react to it.”

Vande Hei’s calm Benedictine demeanor helped in all of that.

It also helps in situations where he’s spending extended time in close quarters with other astronauts.

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“As the space flights got longer that’s been paid more attention to,” Vande Hei said. “All the people that got hired in my class and the class that got hired in 2013 – they’re all great people to camp with.”

Astronauts Vande Hei, Acaba and Misurkin will be sardined together aboard the tiny Soyuz capsule for the six-hour flight to the space station, which has been permanently staffed by rotating crews of astronauts and cosmonauts since November 2000. The agreement between the U.S., Russia, Europe, Japan and Canada runs through 2024.

“It’s cozy,” Vande Hei said. “You sit in the fetal position so that there’s enough space. I’m pretty confident there are no 300-pound astronauts.”

Calming the Nerves Even with all that training and preparation, launch day is a nerve-wracking time for astronauts’ families.

“I’ve spoken to some women that have gone to launches, and they warned me,” Julie Vande Hei said. “They said, ‘You need to understand that when it first goes off, you feel as though it’s exploding.

“It’s pure terror you’re going to feel. But then you’re going to be OK – it’ll go up, and that sound decreases.”

“I’m sure my wife is (more nervous than I am),” Mark Vande Hei said. “It’s harder to watch anything when you don’t have a sense of control over the situation.

“I spent so much time in the military that it’s just a fact of life that you’ve gotta be ready for that type of thing. But I have a lot of faith in a system that’s trying really Vande Hei hard to make sure I’m safe.”

Related discussions have brought them closer together.

Lauren (from left), Julie, Mark and Gabe Vande Hei are anxiously awaiting Mark’s Sept. 12 launch in Kazakhstan and International Space Station mission. huge additional training requirement for me.”

From October 2016 through February, Vande Hei spent all but three weeks training in Star City, Russia. He was back in Russia for much of the spring and early summer, with a brief break to visit his parents Thomas and Mary Vande Hei in Chanhassen.

And then comes launch day. A sizable family contingent will be on hand in Kazakhstan.

“NASA’s really supportive of getting the immediate family members out to the launch,” said Vande Hei, who will have roughly 15 family members on hand.

is scheduled to connect with Saint John’s during his 5½ months on the space station.

“We definitely have been spending more time focusing on each other,” Vande Hei said. “It’s been a good way to strengthen our relationship lately.”

Soon, the mission will take them farther apart than ever.

“The funny thing is, I’m going to be in quarantine,” he said. “The bulk of the group I’ll see for about 20 minutes.”

They’ll be able to see Vande Hei inside the Soyuz capsule via NASA’s live feed, which also may include other familiar elements.

The Rat in Space?

Ready to Launch

Vande Hei will be allowed to take a few Saint John’s mementoes with him – small ones, anyway.

Vande Hei’s originally scheduled space flight – slated for March 11 with the Expedition 51 crew – was postponed last October when the Russian co-pilot dropped off because of mission requirements and financial considerations.

“When they first told the (physics) department they could have something go up in space, Dean (Langley) said, ‘Take me!’ ” Kirkman said. “Then he found out it had to be under an ounce.”

That meant Vande Hei had to re-train for this flight, on which he’s now the co-pilot.

A Saint John’s Bible print given to him by the school should be waiting for Vande Hei when he reaches the space station.

“When we lost that second Russian, I had to take on all the responsibilities that second Russian had,” he said. “That’s a

There’s also something else – a small stuffed animal that can be seen floating inside the Soyuz capsule once it clears

22 SUMMER/FALL 2017

the Earth’s gravitational pull, which is a “canary in the coal mine” moment for family members.

“It’s definitely a tradition,” Vande Hei said. “It’s a three-stage rocket. When that third stage cuts off, then you’re no longer being accelerated. Once that’s done, it’s a success. You’re in orbit.”

“While they’re going up, you know when you’re watching them on TV that they finally have made it out of the atmosphere because the little stuffed animal floats,” Julie Vande Hei said. “What about the Rat on the Soyuz?”

A stuffed Johnnie Rat is among the mementoes Vande Hei was given, although it may not have seniority. Misurkin, the flight commander, is the only astronaut on the flight with young children.

“I think the Russian crew member’s probably going to be the one who’s going to pick,” Vande Hei said.

Reaching Out to SJU Even if the Johnnie Rat doesn’t make it into space, Vande Hei is scheduled to connect with Saint John’s in other ways during his 5½ months on the space station.

“When I was underwater doing that NEEMO mission, I made a point of trying to pick my favorite picture every day and Tweet it,” said Vande Hei, who plans to do the same thing from space on his Twitter account @astro_sabot. “It’s a fun thing to be able to share.”

He has been approved for a live conversation from orbit with a Saint John’s physics class via a NASA Inflight Education Downlink on Jan. 29, 2018. That session will take place sometime between 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Collegeville time, and the public will be able to view the session in Pellegrene Auditorium.

“There’s astounding interest out there in the community,” Kirkman said. “If there’s a ‘talk to an astronaut’ program, that auditorium will be filled with potential freshmen.

“It’d be very nice to have the auditorium showing the blastoff. It’d be very nice to have an interactive broadcast from space.”

“I would love to do that,” said Vande Hei, who has already agreed to be Saint John’s ROTC commissioning ceremony speaker in May 2018. “I put Saint John’s on the list of people I would like to do it with,” Vande Hei said, “but NASA’s got their own agenda sometimes. We’ll have to see what

works out.”

He’ll be busy. There are all those experiments, some of which are on the astronauts themselves.

“I am definitely a large guinea pig,” Vande Hei said with a laugh. “We’re also there to make sure we keep the thing running.”

A Vande Hei spacewalk is also a possibility.

“There’s a planned one for the tail end of my five months in space, though the timing depends on the arrival of visiting spacecraft,” he said. “I’m not hoping that something breaks that requires a previously unplanned spacewalk to fix it, but I’ll be happy for the opportunity to help out if needed.”

It’s the culmination of a lifetime of work and achievement, an opportunity to examine the big picture, the realization of a dream – for everyone.

“There’s a little bit of me that’s already starting to reflect on what all of this means,” Julie Vande Hei said. “I know in my heart beforehand I’m probably going to be a mess. How could I not be? I love my husband. We have a long history together.

“But this is our journey. We’re on it. You have to kind of expect that the universe and God have a plan for us, and I have to hand it over.”

“I’m really looking forward to that very unique perspective you can get from there,” Mark Vande Hei said. “Frankly, I’m just looking forward to seeing what the view is like.”

He saw it when he was 6 and still wanted to be Spider-Man. He sees it now, and he’s never been more prepared.

He’s an astronaut. This is real. Mark Vande Hei is ready for liftoff.

Dave DeLand, editorial and content director for SJU Institutional Advancement, is an award-winning writer, guest lecturer at Saint John’s University and former columnist for the St. Cloud Times.

Watch Mark Vande Hei’s NEEMO underwater training video at sjualum.com/saint-johns-magazine The Johnnie Rat and Spider-Man are hiding elsewhere in this issue. Email the location where they appear to johnemail@csbsju.edu by Sept. 30 to be entered in a drawing for Johnnie Rat and Spider-Man toys.

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IN SIGHT

Moon over Saint John’s Photo by Tommy O’Laughlin ’13

If you would like to download this photo of the full moon over the Saint John’s Abbey Church, go to sjualum. com/saint-johnsmagazine

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Family

Defines Gagliardi’s Living Legacy

By Dave DeLand John Gagliardi’s tattered spreadsheet of jokes and one-liners he used during decades of speaking engagements includes his go-to response for any situation involving a bestowed honor.

“When somebody receives an award like this,” Gagliardi would say with a deadpan delivery, “they should at least have the decency to be dead.”

But the 90-year-old Gagliardi is very much alive, which gives him the opportunity to weigh in on his unique impact – on Saint John’s University and coaching college football, of course, but also on the people closest to him.

“One of the things I think about when I hear these glowing remarks about me is this is like being at my own funeral,” Gagliardi said with a smile as he leaned forward in his easy chair.

“Everybody at the person’s funeral talks about how great he was,” he said. “Geez, I’m glad I was here to hear my eulogy.”

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Gagliardi with players circa 1963, the year of the Johnnies’ first national championship.

John and Peggy Gagliardi were married on Valentine’s Day 1956, and 61 years later they have a treasure trove of family memories.

1952 that doesn’t include a player recruited by Gagliardi, who retired from coaching after the 2012 season.

“I feel good about it,” Gagliardi said, “and sad about it.”

It’s been five years since his 64th and final season of college coaching and the last of his record 489 victories. But Gagliardi’s legacy is defined not so much by that number as by how it was achieved, and by the lives he touched along the way.

“To me, his legacy is he likes people,” said Gina Benson ’84, the third of John and Peggy Gagliardi’s four children. “He likes everyone. He sees the good in people.”

Pictures of the Past “I promise you that every single one of those players had at least one special memory or one thing they learned or one attribute they developed because of John Gagliardi.”

Walking into the Gagliardi home on nearby Big Watab Lake is like stepping back in time. The walls in virtually every room are lined with vintage photos, although perhaps not the ones you would expect.

“I call this my shrine – my shrine of Peggy,” said Gagliardi, who has 14 photos of his wife taped to his home computer.

Their 61-year marriage began on Valentine’s Day 1956.

—Tom Linnemann ’00 And what does the eulogy for the winningest coach in college football history sound like?

What is John Gagliardi’s legacy? It’s unique, and it’s essentially about family.

“He’s a unicorn. He really is,” said Blake Elliott ’03, threetime All-America wide receiver and the marquee player on Gagliardi’s 2003 NCAA Division III national championship team. “John’s so unique. It mostly had to do with how he dealt with people.”

“So many people were so successful in life after playing for him,” said Lyle Mathiasen ’73, an All-America offensive lineman for Saint John’s in 1973. “He relishes that greatly.”

“That’s his legacy. That’s his impact,” added Tom Linnemann ’00, All-America quarterback on the 2000 Saint John’s team that advanced to the NCAA Division III championship game. “I promise you that every single one of those players had at least one special memory or one thing they learned or one attribute they developed because of John Gagliardi.”

The 2017 Saint John’s football team will be the first since

Dalmatian Bo joins (from left) Nancy, Jimmy, Johnny, John and Gina Gagliardi for a family photo in back of their Flynntown home in 1969.

27

older children – peering over the counter of the Clemens Stadium concession stand during a game.

“I’m probably dying a thousand deaths on the field, and all they’re worried about is getting a hot dog,” Gagliardi said with a smile. “They were too young to enjoy the game, but they enjoyed the concession stand.

“That reminded me that the football game was a side issue.”

And that paints a picture of a man very different from the one the general public saw during all those football seasons.

A Kid at Heart When children in the Flynntown neighborhood rang the Gagliardis’ doorbell, they weren’t necessarily looking for the kids.

“They used to come to the door and ask if John could come out and play,” Peggy Gagliardi said. “He was the only play daddy in the area. I think he enjoyed it more than the kids.”

“He was a child at heart,” Benson said. “We were at Valley Fair, Como Park – we were always going somewhere.”

“They used to come to the door and ask if John could come out and play. He was the only play daddy in the area. I think he enjoyed it more than the kids.”

—Peggy Gagliardi

A favorite summer destination for the resident football coach was Valley Fair’s white roller-coaster.

“We would get off of it, run around and get back on it,” Benson said. “He was running right with us.

“They’d yell, ‘Don’t run!’ Dad just (shrugged). He’s just a kid. He was still doing (roller coasters) very close to 80.”

Over here is their engagement picture and their wedding picture.

Over there are dozens of family photos from vacations and parties and gatherings.

Most Saint John’s fans have more SJU memorabilia in their homes than Gagliardi, who displays just a few pictures that have anything to do with football.

“The only reason there’s any football stuff in here at all is we hang it up,” said Jim Gagliardi ’89, John’s youngest son and SJU’s offensive coordinator and assistant coach for the past 25 years.

“You know where his awards are? They’re in the pole barn,” Benson said. “We never had those in the house – ever.”

Instead, it’s all about family. And on the occasions when Gagliardi got obsessed with football, a picture he kept on his Warner Palaestra office desk gave him perspective.

It shows two little kids – Nancy ’79 and John ’81, Gagliardi’s

28 SUMMER/FALL 2017

John (left), Jimmy, Gina and Johnny Gagliardi wait in line to get back on a roller coaster during a family trip to Valley Fair circa 1974.

Gagliardis piling into a 1969 Cadillac and driving around the country for up to two months at a time.

“When we’d go on family vacations, we’d never know where we were going.

He didn’t either,” Jim Gagliardi said.

“We’d go on vacations where we thought we were going to be gone a week, and we’d be gone 20 days.”

“I knew where the first stop was going to be, but after that I didn’t know for sure,” John Gagliardi said. “We never missed any amusement parks.

“It was summer. We had time.”

Ahead of the Curve Gagliardi’s family focus carried over to the football field, and helped make his Saint John’s program truly unique.

“He has a famous saying – ‘Everybody has mothers that care about them,’” Elliott said. “You take a simple concept like that and bring it out into the real world, and there’s some power to it.”

John Gagliardi picks up after family horse Blackie while Nancy looks on in 1965.

“We went to Disney World with him (in 1996), and he’d sneak off to the Crystal Palace Buffet,” Jim Gagliardi said.

“They’d have characters at the meals, Winnie the Pooh and Eeyore and all this. Here he was eating alone at the buffet with all the characters.”

Their home became an amusement park and menagerie, complete with a swimming pool and go-carts and mini-bikes and every pet imaginable.

“We had cats, dogs, rabbits, ducks,” Jim Gagliardi said.

“Johnny had a pet crow for a while.”

“Squirrels, mice, you name it,” Benson said. “Horses.”

Two horses, one of which regularly fertilized and escaped the yard. But Gagliardi kept bringing them home.

“He was going to a party, and there was a grand prize of a Shetland pony,” Benson recalled. “He was joking with Nancy – ‘I’m going to win that for you.’”

Gagliardi didn’t. But he bought it from the guy who did.

“The woods around our place were completely ours,” Gagliardi said. “It was nice to be able to get in there and just be a kid with them. I enjoyed that respite.”

“Everything was a game,” Benson said. “He always had us playing.”

There were epic family road trips in the early 1970s, with six

“He carries this aura of respect without being authoritarian,” said Chris Palmer ’96, M.D., a two-time All-America wide receiver. “Confidence with humility is as simply as I can put it.”

“We were lucky that Gina and everybody else was able to share their dad with the rest of us,” Linnemann added, “because we look at him like that too.

“He was a father figure for all of us guys.”

Along the way, Gagliardi changed the sport to its very highest levels with his focus on eliminating practice contact and other nonessentials.

“With a lot of things,” Elliott said, “you see that John was just ahead of his time.”

“I sometimes think about where football would be without him,” Jim Gagliardi said. “He was so different. His best moments were when his peers appreciated him.”

“I was afraid that when Mike Grant (’79) showed up, he’d go tell his dad (Bud Grant) how we practiced and he’d think, ‘What the hell?’” said John Gagliardi, who counts the former Minnesota Vikings coach and Pro Football Hall of Famer as a personal friend. “I figured he’d be appalled. But of all the big-timers, Bud was the closest to what I was doing.”

29

Part of that simple genius was a flexible coaching approach that adapted the system to the talents of the players, not the other way around.

“The good coaches adjust and find ways,” said Gary Fasching ’81, who played for Gagliardi and was an assistant coach before replacing his mentor as head coach in 2013. “He was ahead of his time in a lot of things.”

think of a player, and everything is about the success of his players. I think he’s proud of that more than anything.

“He never talks about the games he won like an old coach might – he’s talking about these guys doing so well in life.”

Gagliardi takes a genuine interest in their careers, and pride in their accomplishments. He cared about them as football players, and he cares about them as people.

“It’s that family culture. He genuinely liked everybody,” Benson said, “and that makes everybody like each other.”

“Praise makes winners out of losers,” Gagliardi said. “If you can find something to praise these guys about, they feel a helluva lot better than the other way around.”

That’s just part of his legacy – the one Gagliardi gets to weigh in on, since he’s still here.

“What does legacy mean?” he asked rhetorically. “There’s a lot to be thankful for.

But it can’t go forever.”

John with his shrine of Peggy on his home computer.

“It just doesn’t make much sense for me to fit that square peg in a round hole,” Gagliardi said. “You might be able to pound it in there, but it’s going to wreck everything.”

“That’s really a tribute to John,” Mathiasen said. “He did that in life, too. He understood things and he adapted his life.”

Gagliardi adapted. He evolved. He flourished.

Or can it? The underpinnings of the Gagliardi legacy – family, originality, respect – are concepts with no expiration date.

“There’s obviously genius behind everything he says,” Elliott said. “It’s the culture here that John created and passed on to the next generation of coaches.

They care about more than just football. They care about you as a person.”

“He was just a family man,” Linnemann said, “and he had a big family.”

His approach allowed his players to do the same.

Family man. When pressed, that’s exactly how Gagliardi describes himself.

“You look at this program, and it’s been unique for 50 years,” Palmer said. “Now finally a lot of other programs are looking at what’s done here and saying, ‘That’s the right way to do it.’

“Being a decent guy who was nice to his players and everybody around him,” Gagliardi said. “Just be a nice guy.

That’s as high praise as you can get.”

“It’s all these things that are strikingly simple, but so smart.

And I think that’s John.”

Maybe that’s legacy enough. In a lifetime filled with milestones, that might be John Gagliardi’s proudest accomplishment.

Defining the Legacy Gagliardi will turn 91 on Nov. 1. He uses a walker for balance, and his hearing isn’t what it used to be.

But his memory is still amazingly fresh when former players drop by, which happens often.

“His recall is actually remarkable,” Mathiasen said. “He’ll

30 SUMMER/FALL 2017

Dave DeLand, editorial and content director for SJU Institutional Advancement, is an award-winning writer, guest lecturer at Saint John’s University and former columnist for the St. Cloud Times.

Watch a video of John and Peggy Gagliardi’s reflections on 61 years of family at sjualum.com/saint-johns-magazine

ALUMNI CONNECTION

Reunion 2017 Celebrating Coming Home “Returning to Saint John’s this weekend has renewed my soul and nourished my mind, body and spirit. I love this place and its people.” —Reunion 2017 Attendee

More than 1,600 SJU and CSB graduates returned home for Reunion 2017, a joint celebration of the two schools held June 23-25.

2018

Visit sjualum.com/reunion for many more memorable scenes from Reunion 2017.

Mark your calendars to come home for Reunion 2018, Friday, June 22 to Sunday, June 24, for classes ending in 3 and 8.

Reunion is the only place in the world where you can do all of the following and so much more: • Cherish longtime friends, reconnect with old friends and make new ones.

• Feed your mind with thought-provoking, interactive classes (no homework ) taught by professors, alums, and even the presidents of SJU and CSB. • Join under the stars or gather at the beach to hear a variety of live music and enjoy great food, drink and conversation.

• Worship with the Benedictine monks of Saint John’s and nuns of Saint Ben’s, and celebrate and remember classmates who are no longer with us at an honor-filled memorial service.

• Ride your bike on the Lake Wobegon Trail and the bucolic roads surrounding Collegeville.

• Experience the nature and history of this special place in a new way through a guided Saint John’s Abbey Arboretum walk.

Reunion has something for every attendee, including a widely shared bond – a love of a place and community like no other.

SJUALUM.COM

31

ADVANCING THE MISSION

Join us October 6–7 Homecoming Weekend & the Campaign for Saint John’s Celebration Publicly launched in 2013, the Forward Ever Forward campaign – the most ambitious in Saint John’s history – supports the future of Saint John’s excellence and leadership in academics, athletics, arts, culture, ecumenism, men’s development and more.

Forward Ever Forward advances Saint John’s residential educational experience founded on timeless Benedictine values such as community, hospitality and stewardship.

32 SUMMER/FALL 2017

During Homecoming 2017 weekend, tour renovated Alcuin Library, the new Dietrich Reinhart Learning Commons, the new Saint John’s athletic complex, The Saint John’s Bible Gallery and renovated Hill Museum & Monastic Library.

For a list of all activities and to RSVP for the Campaign Celebration go to csbsjuhomecoming.com.

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ADVANCING THE MISSION

Dietrich Reinhart Learning Commons President Michael Hemesath ’81 and the Saint John’s Board of Trustees are pleased to have named the new Learning Commons after President Emeritus Br. Dietrich Reinhart ’71, OSB, whose ideas and vision were the impetus for the project.

The 22,000-square-foot addition to Alcuin Library provides the kind of learning and teaching experience essential for preparing students for their future.

This innovative building combines flexible classrooms, the latest technology and a variety of informal social learning spaces. It will provide faculty and students with the environment and tools to fully engage in collaborative learning and innovative thinking.

The view from the Thimmesh Events Room looks out over Sherlock Terrace toward the Abbey Church.

The Schu offers a place to gather for coffee and other refreshments suitable for nearby communal areas.

The lounge area in front of Alcuin Library’s Grand Commons looks out over the Abbey Church.

Alcuin Library’s Musech Reading Room offers study space that looks out onto nature and Clemens Stadium.

34 SUMMER/FALL 2017

Seeing the Vision Fr. Don Talafous ’48, OSB (right) points out one of the features of the new Dietrich Reinhart Learning Commons to Fr. Alberic Culhane ’52, SOT ’57, OSB (left) and Fr. Hilary Thimmesh ’50, SOT ’54, OSB (center) during a tour of the facility.

Fr. Don, Fr. Alberic and Fr. Hilary all have specialty centers that bear their names in the Learning Commons and adjoining Alcuin Library.

Alberic Culhane Gallery Donors: Michael ’73 and Nancy McCarthy and Gordie ’57 and Jo Bailey Named after Fr. Alberic ’52, SOT ’57, OSB, the Culhane Gallery is an exhibit space to link contemporary and historic materials.

The gallery will contain some artifacts from Fr. Alberic’s excavations and place them in the larger context of the human experience demonstrated through the Hill Museum & Manuscript Library and other Saint John’s collections.

Don Talafous Media Center Donors: Ken ’64 and Betsy Roering, Jim ’78 and Mary ’80 Frey, Dan ’70 and Katharine Whalen, Tom Schnettler ’79 and Cheryl Appeldorn ’81 Named after Fr. Don ’48, OSB, the Talafous Media Center will house media equipment and collections as well as student support staff.

Media is an increasingly important communication mechanism, and we want to assist students in learning to both consume and create it with critical thinking.

Hilary Thimmesh Writing Center Donors: Pat ’70 and Kris ’70 Ellingsworth

Tom Thole Technology Center Donors: Hong Kong Alumni

Named in honor of Fr. Hilary ’50, SOT ’54, OSB, the Thimmesh Writing Center is a space for students to receive peer and professional guidance in completing writing assignments.

Named after Fr. Tom ’54, SOT ’58, OSB, the Thole Technology Center is the public-facing side of IT Services at Saint John’s. It houses the help desk, a training lab and open-access computing stations.

One-on-one sessions allow both the tutor and the student to work through procedures and strategies to help improve the student’s writing abilities.

The center is a resource in all stages of the writing process, from brainstorming to perfecting a final draft.

The center is deliberately placed in the Alcuin Library because technology is not as an isolated service but rather a tool for learning. It includes 14 public access computers and 24 training room personal computers.

35

JOHNNIE SPORTS

Tailgating tradition thrives at SJU

By Mike Killeen

When Tommy Auger ’19 decided to enroll at Saint John’s University in the fall of 2015 and play football and baseball for the Johnnies, it opened a whole new world for him – new friends, new classes, new responsibilities.

students, alumni and football parents that are tailgating is really amazing,” said Andy Auger, who was a punter, linebacker and tight end for the Johnnies from 1991-94.

It also opened up a whole new world for his parents, Libby and Andy Auger ’95 – football tailgating.

The formula is pretty basic – a gorgeous natural setting around Clemens Stadium while spending time with good friends and family.

“During Tommy’s freshman year, we were welcomed by all of the older players’ parents,” Libby Auger said. “It’s very inclusive.”

“It’s about the players out there (on the field), but it’s really about family and friends who are coming to the game, too,” Andy Auger said.

“There are tons of alumni, and the camaraderie between the current

“Really, it’s one big picnic,” Libby Auger said. “Many of the players will come down to the tailgating area to say

Libby’s J o

‘hi’ to their family after Mass on the way to the stadium.”

Their advice for novice tailgaters? Bring plenty of food and drink. It follows the Benedictine values of hospitality and community.

“The college kids – and anyone else for that matter – who are wandering through never go hungry,” Libby Auger said. “Someone always has enough food and drink to share. Someone always offers a beverage or a meal.”

And, it’s still a family friendly audience.

“Kids are running around everywhere and playing bean bags or throwing the football,” Andy Auger said.

Finally, it comes down to planning, execution … and cleaning up.

hnnie Win

In g redie nts 1 tsp drie : d 1 tsp drie ore g a n o d rose m a ry ½ tsp g r ou n 1 tsp kos d cu min he r or se a salt 2½ pou nd s chicke n win gs 2 tblsp e xt 2 tblsp m ra-virgin olive oil inced fre s 2 g a rlic clove s, fi h b a sil nely min ¼ c g rate ce d d p a rme s a n ch e e ½ tsp se se a sonin g s a lt (like L a w r y’s)

gs

Directio n s: 1. Prehe a to bowl, mix ven to 425F. In a sm all ore g a n o, rose m a r a nd salt. y, cu min L a y win g s on a b a a nd se a s kin g she on et 2. B ake f with mix tu re. or 20 -25 min ute s.

Me a n wh ile, mix to ge b a sil, g a rlic, p a rm ther the oil, e s a n ch e se a sonin e se a nd g salt.

3. After win gs a r e co oke d g a rlic/ch , toss wit ee h Libby’s T se/oil mix tu re. ip: Make the nigh then reh t before e at in alu min g rill at th e tailg ate u m p a n on the .

“Bring your recipes because someone always wants them,” Libby Auger said. “The people we tailgate with talk about what each is bringing so we have enough variety.”

“Don’t leave a mess,” Andy Auger added. “Respect the grounds that they are letting us use and don’t be late for the game. If there is one very common thing about SJU tailgaters, it’s still about the football.”

Share your recipes at sjualum.com/saint-johns-magazine

36 SUMMER/FALL 2017

Scorecard BASKETBALL Saint John’s (19-9 overall, 13-7 MIAC) recorded 19 wins for the second straight season and earned its 24th trip to the MIAC Playoffs. SJU advanced to the championship game for the 12th time, the first since 2007. David Stokman ’19 was named to the D3hoops.com All-West Region third team and All-MIAC first team, and was named a CoSIDA Academic AllAmerican. Tyler Weiss ’18 was also named to the All-MIAC first team, while Jubie Alade ’20 was named to the MIAC All-Freshman team.

BASEBALL The Johnnies (25-13, 14-6 MIAC) made their eighth consecutive trip to the MIAC Playoffs. Seven of their 13 losses were by one run, including two in the conference tournament.

Wyatt Ulrich ’20 became the first freshman to be named MIAC Most Valuable Player since 1999 and was named an American Baseball Coaches’ Association (ABCA)/Rawlings All-American.

He tied for the national batting title (.500) and led the MIAC in batting average (.494), on-base percentage (.523), runs scored (26) and hits (40). Pitchers Jake Dickmeyer ’19 and Ben Etzell ’18 joined Ulrich as All-Midwest Region honorees.

Dickmeyer led NCAA Division III pitchers with zero walks.

GOLF SJU finished 15th at the 2017 NCAA Championship, its 14th top-15 finish in 15 NCAA appearances. For the first time in

program history, all five Johnnies received Golf Coaches’ Association of America All-Central Region distinction: Wes Dickhaus ’17, Mack Farley ’17, Ryan Gallagher ’17, Austin Kottke ’18 and Sam Olson ’18. All five were also AllMIAC, while Gallagher achieved All-America honors. Farley and Olson were named Scholar AllAmericans. Farley was also named a CoSIDA Academic All-American for the second consecutive season, as well as a finalist for the Byron Nelson Award and a semifinalist for the Jack Nicklaus National Player of the Year Award.

He earned the NCAA’s Elite 90 Award as having the highest cumulative grade-point average at the NCAA Championship.

Bob Alpers ’82 was named MIAC Coach of the Year for the 11th time.

HOCKEY The Johnnies (12-10-3, 7-7-2 MIAC) missed a conference playoff berth by two points. Sam Valerius ’18 and Cole Souto ’20 were named to the All-MIAC first team. Souto and Brady Heppner ’20 were named to the MIAC All-Rookie team. Souto was named to the USCHO.com All-Rookie team and Daniel Tripicchio ’17 received CoSIDA Academic All-America honors for the second consecutive year.

SWIMMING AND DIVING Kenny Bergman ’17 won his third consecutive conference title in the 100-yard freestyle and the

SJU swimming and diving team finished fourth at the 2017 MIAC Championships.

TENNIS Saint John’s (5-13, 4-5 MIAC) won its final three matches to earn its fifth MIAC Playoff appearance in the last six seasons. Tim Larson ’18 achieved his third straight All-MIAC honor in singles, while Ryan Meger ’19 earned his first.

INDOOR TRACK SJU tied for fifth at the 2017 MIAC Championships. Ryan Bugler ’17 won the conference title in the 3,000 meters.

OUTDOOR TRACK Bugler earned his second consecutive All-America honor with a fourth-place finish in the steeplechase at the NCAA Championships. Bugler won the steeplechase, Mitch Peck ’18 won both the 110- and 400-meter hurdles, and Raymond Twumasi ’17 won the triple jump at the MIAC Outdoor Championships. Bugler, Peck, Twumasi, Maxwell Olson ’17 (pole vault) and Jordan Theisen ’18 (pole vault) were United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association All-Central Region.

WRESTLING Noah Becker ’20 (133 pounds), Luke Dodd ’19 (184), Teddy Erickson ’17 (165) and Robert Tait ’17 (197) advanced to the 2017 NCAA Championships.

Dodd, Erickson, Tait and Jerod Novak ’20 (157) were named AllAmerica Scholars.

GOJOHNNIES.COM

37

INSPIRING LIVES

E N I T C I D E N E B S

By Dana Drazenovich

A CONCERNED PASSERBY STOPS THE MONK PUSHING BOB BELL ’94 IN HIS WHEELCHAIR AS THEY EXPLORE NJOMBE, THE CITY NEAR THE BENEDICTINE MONASTERY BELL IS VISITING IN IMILIWAHA, TANZANIA. “THE HOSPITAL IS IN THE OTHER DIRECTION,” THE PASSERBY SAYS.

Nope. Bell was going gorilla trekking in Rwanda, paragliding in Nepal, scuba diving in Mauritius and the Maldives.

Bell returned to campus July 5 a better person.

“Living in monasteries with these amazing people had a lot to do with it,” he said.

So did traveling with his caregivers, 2016 College of Saint Benedict graduates Hannah Gurbada and Piper Murray.

A FR

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MI BI A

A MONK IN GERMANY EXPLAINS A SOPHISTICATED SYSTEM THAT GENERATES ELECTRICITY FROM COW DUNG AND SOLAR POWER, GIVING BELL A LOOK AT HOW ONE MONASTERY CARRIES OUT THE BENEDICTINE VALUE OF SUSTAINABILITY.

TH

EXPLORING THE RULE

SOU

“Even if it never gets better, I had this one year. And even having this one year gives me hope that I might have another year like that in the future. That’s enough to keep anyone positive.”

I T IUS

“It was the best year of my 27 years in a wheelchair. I’ve never had two people treat me the way I’ve been treated and had such a wonderful year,” Bell said.

IA RWANDA Z AMBIA MAUR

The trip deepened his understanding of the Benedictine values upon which SJU is founded. It helped people see the capabilities of someone with a disability.

K EN Y A TANZ AN

Such was the dichotomy of the year-long, 20-country odyssey that brought Bell, an associate professor in Saint John’s University’s Accounting and Finance Department, to Benedictine monasteries in Africa, Asia and Europe, many of them Benedictine Volunteer Corps sites.

BE LL’

“They think the only reason you’d be pushing somebody in a wheelchair,” Bell recalled, “is because we’re going to the hospital.”

SR

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The Benedictine influence attracted the 19-year-old Bell to Saint John’s in 1989. It drew him back after the accident that paralyzed him from the neck down, and ultimately led him to leave his career as a Wall Street attorney to return to his alma mater to teach.

Now, he wanted to explore how 21st century monastics around the world are living the sixth-century Rule of Saint Benedict.

MA

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“One of my key takeaways is the church is still alive and Benedictine monasticism is still alive,” said Bell, who plans to write a book about his journey. “People continue to dedicate their lives to this very same rule of community, of listening, of humility.”

CSB/SJU supported him by granting his sabbatical. The Eugene J. McCarthy Center provided some funding and Br. Paul Richards ’78, OSB, arranged his visits to monasteries at Benedictine Volunteer Corps sites.

38 SUMMER/FALL 2017

ADVEN TUR EC

That celebrated Benedictine hospitality helped him connect with monasteries eager to welcome guests.

“It’s like this whole Benedictine community that, once you’re tapped into, you can travel the world and you have all these incredible people looking out for you,” Bell said. “The trip took on a life of its own. It was amazing.”

He, Gurbada and Murray departed June 15, 2016, typically staying in monasteries or guest houses as they made their way from Nairobi, Kenya to Rome, Italy.

LOB THE G E LES IRC

Gurbada and Murray often did volunteer work while Bell spoke to groups and cultivated his understanding of Benedictine worship and work, understanding he wants to infuse into his teaching and his new role as a faculty resident on Mary 2.

“Everything I learned last year and that I focused on for this experience I hope to translate back to my little community of my department, and my bigger community of CSB/SJU,” he said. “It’s so exciting.”

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CHALLENGING PERCEPTIONS

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BELL, GURBADA AND MURRAY ARE CELEBRATING HOLI, A HINDU SPRING FESTIVAL, AT AN OUTDOOR CONCERT IN DELHI, INDIA. PEOPLE ARE SO EXCITED TO SEE HIM HAVING FUN THAT THEY SUDDENLY PICK HIM UP IN HIS WHEELCHAIR AND START CROWD-SURFING HIM. “Everybody’s hugging me,” he said, “and next thing I know everyone’s holding me, passing me around.”

Bell broke a lot of stereotypes — and a couple of wheels — by embracing adventure and taking every opportunity to talk to people in parts of the world where wheelchairs are a rare sight.

It wasn’t always easy. Some disregarded him, while others considered disabilities shameful. However, plenty of people recognized he had all his faculties and were happy to help him push boundaries.

The path up Rwanda’s Virunga Mountains was hardly wheelchairaccessible.

“They put me on a stretcher,” Bell said, “four men carrying me through the forest.”

And there he was, among some of the world’s only mountain gorillas.

“I appreciate the challenge and enjoy it when I’m able to be a good ambassador for people in wheelchairs and for people with disabilities,” Bell said.

“Others paved the way for me in the United States and many other countries, which made my life so much easier. To the extent that I get the opportunity to do it elsewhere, I feel privileged.”

View a gallery of photos of Bob Bell’s journey at sjualum.com/saint-johns-magazine

Inspiring Lives is reserved for reflective pieces with a Benedictine theme. Please submit essays, poetry or other reflections for consideration to Dave DeLand at ddeland@csbsju.edu.

39

CLASS NOTES

Alumni Achievement Awards The Saint John’s University Alumni Achievement Award is given to outstanding alumni in seven reunion classes annually and presented at their reunion dinners. Recipients are nominated by classmates, with final selection made by the Alumni Association Board of Directors.

Congratulations to this year’s award recipients!

LEE TORBORG ’51 RICHARD W. WEENING ’67 VIC MOORE ’72 MARK MUEDEKING ’77 DAVE PHILP ’77 CARL PROCARIO-FOLEY ’82 MICHAEL BAUMANN ’87 EFREM SMITH ’92

40 SUMMER/FALL 2017

Milestones … in the news 1961 Tom Smith, Ph.D. was featured and honored in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology as a “leading clinical virologist of the past five decades.” The career summary of Dr. Smith, an emeritus staff member at Mayo Clinic, is unique in that it represents the journal’s first biographical feature primarily focused on a diagnostic virologist.

with the victim, who lives across town from Manning’s Chanhassen residence, he reached out to his friends, including Johnnie classmates, asking for help. His kindness for a perfect stranger resulted in raising nearly $7,000 to cover building materials as well as providing volunteer labor to rebuild the garage she lost. Going beyond helping with loss and theft, Manning also planned to fix the driveway and reseed the construction area.

1979 Richard Ostlund was … in the spotlight featured in Attorney at Law for having been elected by the American Bar Association litigation division in Washington and Thompson West in New York, as a principal author of a completely new topic on fiduciary duty litigation for the Fourth Edition of “Business and Commercial Litigation in the Federal Courts.” This authorship selection attests to Ostlund’s fiduciary duty, 1980 Dave Osberg, Eagan city shareholder, trust and business administrator, has received governance practice being the highest award given by nationwide for over three the Minnesota City/County decades. Ostlund, a Saint Management Association John’s University trustee, is a (MCMA). The Dr. Robert A. principal of Anthony Ostlund Barrett Award for Management Baer & Louwagie P.A. Excellence is often referred to as the city manager of the year 1988 Bill Manning, senior award. In his remarks after the sales representative for Voya surprise award, Osberg gave Financial Services, was a shout-out to his alma mater profiled in an inspirational by making the connection article in the Star Tribune between the award and his after coming to the assistance time at Saint John’s. “As you of a woman who lost part know, I am a diehard Johnnie,” of her North Minneapolis he said, “and I think a strong home to a fire and part of that grounding in ethics subsequently suffered a comes from SJU. My time construction swindle by a there was very important phony contractor. After to me.” getting in touch and meeting

for “his ability to put the Ritz’s unique space to good use, promising many great things to come from this perfect pairing.”

2001 Two Saint John’s University 2002 alumni, Phillip Trier ’01 and Matthew Johnson ’02, have been honored in the 2017 Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal “40 Under 40 Awards.”

The business magazine’s editors comb through hundreds 1981 Chris Coborn was honored by of nominations each year, Twin Cities Business Magazine selecting 40 young leaders as a 2017 inductee into the who have made a name for Minnesota Business Hall themselves in their industries of Fame. Coborn, who is and communities. Both chairman, president and CEO awardees received bachelor of Coborn’s, was honored for of arts degrees in economics building upon the Coborn from Saint John’s. Trier family tradition by strategically is market president, U.S. expanding Coborn’s Bancorp overseeing U.S. operations, while giving back Bank’s commercial banking to the communities they serve. business in the Twin Cities, 1986 John Rosengren received and Johnson is vice president, the Donald Robinson Award product + solutions of the for Investigative Reporting Minneapolis-based digital from the American Society of innovation lab and business Journalists & Authors for his incubator GoKart Labs. article “How Casinos Enable Gambling Addicts,” which was … on the move published in the December 1996 Dan Schumacher has issue of The Atlantic. been named president 1988 Peter Rothstein has been of UnitedHealthcare. named Best Director by City Schumacher previously served Pages. In the award description, as chief financial officer for Rothstein was applauded UnitedHealthcare, the nation’s for his gifts in directing and largest health insurance performances in creative company. spaces. City Pages noted: “…

2000 Kevin Bitterman has been once again, he demonstrated appointed the Theatre his gifts for giving classic Communications Group’s musicals a fresh and intimate (TCG) new director of feel, drawing on our deep well institutional advancement of local talent.” As founding and partnerships. Since 2008, artistic director of Theater Bitterman has served as Latté Da, a company which associate director of artistic purchased the Ritz Theater and international programs at in northeast Minneapolis, TCG where he has managed Rothstein was also recognized

Alumni Achievement LEE TORBORG ’51

Lee Torborg helped build the Saint John’s community in many ways, from his work on the construction crew for Mary Hall and Emmaus Hall in the early ’50s through a lifetime of financial, construction and service contributions to the university until his death in May. He quietly set a standard for philanthropic giving and civic engagement through his dedication to Catholic organizations and involvement in a variety of Central Minnesota initiatives and in 2004 received the St. Cloud Community Foundation’s Alex Didier Award in Philanthropy with his wife, Mary. His business success lives on in the companies he founded, Torborg Construction and Torborg Builders. Torborg’s legacy has many dimensions, but the one he most valued is the tight-knit family he and Mary built together.

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CLASS NOTES

Alumni Achievement RICHARD W. WEENING ’67

Richard Weening is a philanthropist and visionary entrepreneur who applies his business acumen to develop companies that fill a particular need while building communities and benefiting underserved populations. Weening got his professional start with an impressive political career and then founded his first company in 1972.

His subsequent ventures include an online information service and e-commerce platform for farmers, a radio station in the Caribbean that grew to 250 stations in the U.S. and an enterprise software company that built the first internet e-commerce platform for business to business. He is now chairman and CEO of Prolitec, Inc., a scent marketing company with a client list that includes Abercrombie & Fitch, Bed Bath & Beyond and Verizon.

42 SUMMER/FALL 2017

a portfolio of grantmaking, professional development and global initiatives partnerships to support the future of TCG’s mission-driven programs and advancement efforts.

1961 Michael E. Murphy published a book of poetry called “Songs of Crocus Hill.” The book is a collection of poetry that focuses on memory poems of the people, places and experiences he imagines are 2005 Kevin M. Henry has joined drawn from his years growing Maddin, Hauser, Roth & up in the Crocus Hill district Heller, P.C. in Southfield, of St. Paul. The book received Michigan, as an associate a reader recommendation from for the firm’s Corporate and the Star Tribune in January Real Estate Practice Groups.

2016 for the book being at Representing businesses of the top of a reader’s bedside all types and sizes, Henry table stack for the three dozen has particular experience poems, many conveying the working with business startups, very flavor of St. Paul, the franchisees, physicians and reader said. In his retirement, other professional associations.

Murphy has combined his background as a lawyer and 2008 John Sullivan has joined English professor to teach a Minneapolis-based Best course on the law in literature & Flanagan law firm as an at the University of St. Thomas associate attorney in the Law School.

Litigation practice group.

Sullivan will also support 1973 Mark Reps recently wrote and the Intellectual Property, released the seventh novel in Construction and Employment the Zeb Hanks: Small Town practice groups.

Sheriff Big Time Trouble series, Native Earth. The mystery series was inspired by a chance … on the bookshelf meeting Reps had with an 1959 A.W. Richard Sipe, author and old-time colorful sheriff and psychotherapist, published his led him to develop the Zeb 12th book in July 2017 Courage Hanks character and the world at 3 a.m. Sipe was also featured that surrounds him. As an in the movie Spotlight, which avid desert wilderness hiker, won the Academy Award for Reps returns often to southeast Best Picture in 2016.

Arizona for inspiration and information for his writing.

1975 Robert Pearson wrote The Life and Times of the Vermilion Club: 1890-2015. It’s a chronicled history of the Vermilion Club, a social and fishing club founded on the waters of Lake Vermilion that was started in 1890 and had its camp located on Gold Island. Written with Stephen M. Hennessy and published in October 2016, the book is available in paperback on Amazon.com.

for scholars, professors, and students, as well as pastors and church leaders, the book offers a liturgical reading of the Gospel of Mark, arguing that the Gospel is a narrative interpretation of early Christian ritual.

1978 Mark Sakry wrote Quarry Quest: The History of Stearns County Quarry Park and Nature Preserve. Sakry, a retired Stearns County Commissioner, currently serves as executive director of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Minnesota.

Quarry Park is considered the 1986 “crown jewel” of the Stearns County Park system and Sakry captured that beauty with exquisite photos and rich

narrative. Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar writes in the cover notes “ … Mark Sakry has done a great job of capturing the history of the park for future generations.”

The book, published in July 2016 by North Star Press in St. Cloud, Minn., is available on Amazon.com.

Tom Kubinski, has written his first book, How Dads Can Make a Difference, part memoir, part how-to for other dads who want to be intentional with their kids but aren’t sure where to start. When Tom found himself battling throat cancer in 2016 for the second time in seven years, he became motivated to create not just a journal of his special times with his family but also a guide for how other dads could create a lasting legacy with their kids. The book is available on Amazon.com.

… doing cool stuff

1980 Charles Bobertz, CSB/SJU professor of theology, has written and published The 1976 Gospel of Mark: A Liturgical Reading (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic Press, 2016). Written

Alumni Achievement VIC MOORE ’72

When CSB/SJU students converge on the State Capitol each year, they are experiencing Vic Moore’s tireless support of Johnnies and Bennies.

Organizing Johnnie/Bennie Day is just one of many ways Moore’s nearly 40 years of experience in Minnesota’s legislative and executive branches benefit CSB/SJU. Moore served as Senate Majority Leader Roger Moe’s chief of staff and then was a lobbyist before joining Franzen & Moore, the legislative consulting firm he co-owns, in 2007. His contributions include sharing his expertise on legislative policy and procedures and state budgetary issues as a mentor through the Eugene McCarthy Center for Public Policy and Civic Engagement and serving on the SJU Alumni Association Board and as president of J-Club, among other contributions, in addition to being highly involved in his community and church.

Tom Lais began a Pan-Africa Cycling Tour in January 2017.

Founder of Destination Base SJUALUM.COM

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CLASS NOTES

MARK MUEDEKING ’77

Mark Muedeking’s legal career is underscored by unwavering integrity and international and domestic achievement. Muedeking, a partner in the international law firm DLA Piper Washington, D.C., played on Saint John’s 1976 National Championship football team and went on to receive his Juris Doctorate from the University of Notre Dame with the highest of honors.

He has more than 30 years of legal experience with the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Olympic Committee and the International Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland. Muedeking serves on several boards, including the Army War College Foundation and the Ethics Standards Committee for the Standards for Excellence Institute for Non-Profit Organizations, and represents disabled military veterans.

Exercise, Lais’ adventure and route can be found at tourdelais.com.

1987 Jeff Donius has received recognition for his decorative concrete contracting business, including a second-place award from the American Society of Concrete Contractors’ (ASCC) Decorative Concrete Council (DCC), and a first-place award from the Corrosion Society (NACE)’s CoatingsPro Magazine. He also has received certification from both the American Concrete Institute (ACI) and Michigan Concrete Association (MCA). After leaving Saint John’s, Donius went on to receive a graduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania in government and international relations, become a Presidential Management Fellow, and to work for the federal government in Washington, D.C., before switching careers.

1998 John Sandahl (pictured in red with Frisbee) and Aaron Hushagen won the Grand Masters (40+)

Photo by Marshall Goff, UltiPhotos

Alumni Achievement

National Ultimate Frisbee Championships in July in Denver, Colorado. Sandahl began the Ultimate Frisbee Club at SJU his freshman year. It has spawned a whole generation of players at the highest level and playing into their “twilight” athletic years.

44 SUMMER/FALL 2017

2004 Brian Eder started a “100 holes in one day” golf event after almost losing his younger sister, Christine Erickson ’09 to a brain aneurysm. The event, called Birdies4Brains (b4bmn.org), has grown immensely in its first six years and has raised more than $300,000 for Minnesotans impacted by brain injury. The event combines two of Eder’s passions: family and golf.

2007 Michael T. Anderson is the host of The Not So Late Show, an award-winning talk show airing on WOW! Channel 6 at 9:30 p.m. in Lawrence, Kan. As host, Anderson, a former SJU basketball team manager, conducted his 200th interview, with Kansas University head basketball coach Bill Self.

2010 Clarence Manuel, a fifthyear doctoral student in Pharmacology at Saint John’s University in Queens, New York, has received a PreDoctoral Fellowship from the American Foundation for Pharmaceutical Education.

The fellowship, worth $10,000, will support Manuel’s research.

He also received a scholarship and travel award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to participate in "The Whole Scientist" program at The Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine.

Marriages 2000 Amy (Marc ’10) to Ben Clasen, Nov. ’16 2001 Ashley to Beau LaBore, July ’17 2004 Rebecca to Josh Hanen,

Aug. ’16

2009 Lori (Heinz ’09) to Jacob Welch,

April ’17

2010 Bianca Burbank to Tom Henderson,

May ’17 2011 Katelynn (Sobraske ’11) to Paul Rolfes,

May ’16

Katie (Jedlicka Sieve ’11) to Jake Sieve,

July ’17

Bailey (Walter ’15) to Jason Ziegler,

June ’17 2012 Beth (Grega ’13) to Ben Eidenschink,

Jan. ’17

Mackenzie (Ludowese ’08) to Conor Rooney, Sept. ’16

Ashley (Rynda ’13) to Aaron Stolte,

Aug. ’16 2013 Michelle (Jacobs ’13) to Kevin Beach,

June ’17

Amy (Bechtold ’16) to John Gans,

June ’17 2014 Melissa (Stuckey ’14) to Preston Hardy, May ’17

Cassidy to Jared Hines, June ’17

Madeline (O’Brien ’14) to Anthony Wieneke, July ’17 2015 Kayla (Deutz ’14) to Aaron Antony,

Aug. ’16

Chloe (Holtan ’15) to Tyler Delwiche,

Oct. ’16

Bailey (Zallek ’15) to Nick DeVetter,

July ’17

Elizabeth (Fischer ’15) to Mitchell Fader, June ’17

Alyson (Pulvermacher ’16) to Adam Happ, July ’17 2016 Kaitlin (Duda ’17) to Tarik Hujdurovic,

March ’17 2017 Mariah (Zamzow ’17) to Brian Burroughs, May ’17

Megan (Flynn ’17) to Luke Morrey,

July ’17 2018 Jena (Thurow-Mountin ’19) to Andrew Mountin, June ’17

Births 1989 Carol & Michael Nemanich, boy,

Patrick, Jan. ’17

1995 Heidi (Euteneuer ’97) & Kurt Meyer,

girl, Grace, March ’17

1999 Karey & Scott Frieler, girl, Gabriela,

July ’17 Elizabeth & James de Leon, boy, Henry, Feb. ’17 2000 Sara (Pedersen ’04) & Adam Sagedahl, boy, Oliver, Oct. ’16 2001 Shannon Grothe-Schmitt & Robert Schmitt, boy, Caden, May ’17 2002 Rita (Imholte ’03) & Wade Moravec,

girl, Greta, Feb. ’17

Jenne & Matt Weber, girl, Waverly,

Jan. ’17

Amaya & Luke Yurczyk, boy, Conrad,

April ’17 2003 Michelle (Minke ’02) & Cam McCambridge, girl, Rowan, June ’17

Kelli & Andy Maurer, boy, Tristan,

Jan. ’17

Anna (Kokesch ’03) & Eric Reeve,

girl, May ’17 2004 Amy & Jed Riegelman, twins boy and

girl, Forrest and Aurora, Aug. ’16 2005 Collen (Niznik ’05) & Joe Federer, twin

girls, Ruby and Kassidy, April ’15 2005 Theresa (Guentzel ’05) & Thomas Reichert, girl, Grace, May ’17

Yvonne & Yaw Saarrah-AKyerekoh,

girl, Synclair, March ’17

Jamie & Brian Mathiasen, boy,

Cashton, Feb. ’17 2006 Cassy & Brian Adamek, girl, Mila,

Feb. ’17

Amanda (Kack ’07) & Lance Flannery,

boy, Caleb, Dec. ’16 2007 Emily (Simone ’09) & John Harrison,

boy, John, Feb. ’17

Heather (Laudenbach ’09) & Dustin Kociemba, girl, Morgan, March ’17

Nicole & Seth Lembeck, girl, Lucy,

March ’17

Marisa (Hlavka ’08) & Mike McKeever,

girl, Nova, Nov. ’16

Laura & Kyle Triggs, boy, Matthew,

March ’17 2008 Kimberly (Murphy ’08) & Erik Ellingboe, boy, Cooper, May ’17

Paula & Bob Walsh, girl, Emma,

May ’17

Angela (Rodgers ’10) & Cole Hickman,

boy, Garrison, Dec. ’16

Quinn (Bennett ’10) & John Krebsbach, boy, Rory, Feb. ’17

Amy & Westley Olmschenk, boy,

Everett, April ’17 2009 Kimberly (DeLaRosa ’11) & Preston Allex, girl, Lorna, June ’17

Alumni Achievement DAVE PHILP ’77

Dave Philp has had tremendous success in his 39 years as a Twin Cities realtor, but Philp measures his worth by how much he gives back to others rather than how many houses he sells. Philp, a 2010 winner of REALTOR™ Magazine’s national Good Neighbor award, cultivates organizations that encourage local realty offices to contribute to their communities. He started the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors’ “Give 2 Give” matching funds program, serves as committee chair of the Minneapolis Area Board of Realtors Foundation, helped establish the Coldwell Banker Burnet Foundation and has had a hand in raising more than $10 million for the Ridgeview Medical Center Foundation, which generates the extra margin of funding needed for Ridgeview to provide critical resources for Waconia and surrounding communities.

SJUALUM.COM/CLASSNOTES

CLASS NOTES

Alumni Achievement CARL PROCARIO-FOLEY ’82

2009 Kathryn (McMurray ’09) & Dan Haller,

1950 Mary Hickner, spouse of George,

boy, Thomas, May ’17

Amanda & Joseph Polingo, girl,

Brennah, June ’17

Sara (Felland ’09) & Brandon Baker,

girl, Rowyn, Jan. ’17

Clarey (McKeown ’07) & Brendan McInerny, girl, Frances, March ’17 2010 Heidi (Sutter ’09) & Joel Coleman,

boy, Henry, June ’16 2011 Katrina & Nathaniel Sand, girl,

Adelaide, April ’17 2013 Jennifer (Strege ’13) & Jacob Lillehaug, girl, Annaleise, June ’16

Ashley & Samuel Tillemans, boy, Levi,

April ’17

mother of John ’71 and Robert ’84, sister of James Martin ’48 and

deceased brother John Martin ’42,

Feb. ’17

John Morrow, Jan. ’17 Mary Roche, spouse of Larry, June ’17

John “Jack” Smith, Jan. ’17

John “Jerry” Ulschmid, Feb. ’17 1951 Patrick Bresnahan, July ’17

Robert Burris, July ’17

Robert Hagerott, brother of deceased,

Edward ’60, Jan. ’17

William Pepelnjak, Aug. ’17

John Spalding, father of deceased,

Dan ’78, April ’17

Lee Torborg, father of Joe ’91 and

brother of Ralph ’55, deceased,

brothers Rev. Elmer ’51, Rev. Lawrence ’48, May ’17 1952 Frank Buysse, April ’17

Dan Coborn, father of Chris ’81,

Tom ’91 and deceased brothers,

Robert ’43 and William ’56, March ’17

Larry Donlin, brother of deceased,

Charles ’49 and twin brother

Gerry ’55, March ’17 1952 Peter Engelmeyer, father of Mike ’82,

Feb. ’17 1953 John Franta, father of Mike ’91 and

Tom ’87, son of Otto 1917, Feb. ’17

Rev. Ambrose Hessling, OSB, Dec. ’16

Marlene McKeown, spouse of deceased Jim ’53, April ’17

James Ostrom, brother of deceased,

Richard ’48, May ’16

Retired Col. James Rogers, March ’17

William Sather, brother of deceased,

Robert ’50, Feb. ’17

Conrad Schuster, June ’16

Charles Speck, Feb. ’17 1954 Joe Eikmeier, March ’17

Rev. Matthew Mazzuchelli, OSB,

Jan. ’17

Rev. Kenneth Russell, June ’17 1955 Rosemarie Doerr, spouse of John ’55,

March ’17

Rev. James Jeffrey, May ’17

LeRoy Lilly, father of Patrick ’79,

Daniel ’84 and deceased son,

Michael ’78, April ’17 Barbara Nilles, spouse of Mike,

Aug. ’16 Patricia Spanier, spouse of Flip and

the mother of Doug ’83, July ’17

Richard “Dick” Whalen, Feb. ’17

Deaths 1939 Betty Mae Rice, spouse of deceased, Carl Procario-Foley’s career embodies the mission of the former Ministry Preparation Program, which prepared Johnnies and Bennies for longer term work with church ministry. He has served his church, college and community in many ways and touched countless lives in his role as director of the Office of Mission and Ministry at Iona College in New Rochelle, New York, where he also is an adjunct instructor. He has earned numerous awards and has been recognized for his work to foster inter-religious relationships, including the 2016 Bridge Builder Award of the American Jewish Committee in Westchester County, New York, and the Rochelle, New York Coalition of Mutual Respect’s Yitzhak Rabin Peacemaker Award, an honor he shared with his wife, Elena Procario-Foley.

46 SUMMER/FALL 2017

William, June ’17

1940 Howard Pramann, Aug. ’16 Dorothy Pramann, spouse of deceased, Howard, Nov. ’16 1941 Vernon Berning, March ’17 1942 Frances Fitzpatrick, spouse of deceased, Donald, April ’17

Albert Flor, father of Tim ’78, April ’17

Robert “Bob” Hughes, Feb. ’17

Rev. Magnus Weddinger, OSB,

brother of Bernard ’52, James ’57 and

deceased brothers, Alois ’43 and Rev. William ’49, Feb. ’17 1943 Richard Grasser, Feb. ’17 1944 Richard Minton, MD, Dec. ’16 1946 Lenore Mahowald, spouse of deceased, Robert, mother of John ’72,

Feb. ’17 1947 Rev. Jerome Gerum, Dec. ’16 1947 Harry John, June ’17 1948 Jack Freundl, May ’16

James Martin, father of John ’77 and James ’79, March ’17 1949 Margaret Abeln, spouse of deceased,

John, mother of Paul ’74 and

Mark ’76, Feb. ’17 1950 Shirley Brusseau, spouse of deceased,

Gaylord, Feb. ’17

Rev. Gilbert De Sutter, July ’16

John Hammes, June ’16

Eugene “Gene” Hawkins, brother of

George ’49, July ’17

1956 Elaine Carlson, spouse of Lane ’56,

Dec. ’16 1956 Harry Christian, father of Paul ’84,

Brad ’89 and Brent ’92

Robert Clements, July ’17

Ruth Ann Howard, spouse of deceased,

Ron, Feb. ’17

Bishop John J. McRaith, March ’17

Gerald Rummel, brother of deceased,

Richard ’54, March ’17 1957 James Gilmartin, Aug. ’14

Patrick Henry, Jan. ’17

Rev. Finian McDonald, OSB, Feb. ’17

Msgr. William O’Connell, Aug. ’15

William O’Connor, son of Mike ’57,

June ’17

Anita O’Connor, spouse of deceased

Mike ’57, July ’17

Roger Schrantz, father of Chris ’85,

Aug. ’16 1958 Thomas Branley, Sr., April ’16 Molly Commers, spouse of Fred,

April ’17

James Coyne, April ’17

Dennis Kelsh, April ’17

Arnold Rasmussen, brother of

Mike ’64, May ’17 1959 Margaret Boyle, spouse of Dave,

mother of Robert ’81, Oct. ’16

Nicholas Ellena, Feb. ’ ’17

Laurence Goodspeed, March ’17

Roger Johnson, April ’17 Marion Lechowicz, spouse of Joe,

Feb. ’17

Roger Mowry, April ’15 1960 Kenneth Broton, Jan. ’17 Shirley Dlugosch, spouse of John,

March ’17

Sister Mary Hawkins, OSB, March ’17 Jan Paul, spouse of John, April ’17 1961 Patrick Brennan, July ’12

Jamie Como, Aug. ’16

Thomas Effertz, father of Dave ’93 and Joseph ’99, Feb. ’17 Mary Nordlund, spouse of Jim,

Oct. ’16 1962 Helen Gareri, spouse of deceased,

Peter, Feb. ’17

Rev. Bryan Hays, OSB, March ’17 1964 Wally Hinz, son of deceased,

Charles ’39, March ’17 1965 Sister Wilma Davis, Jan. ’17

Patricia Kay Lane, spouse of Mike,

March ’17 1966 Richard Latterell, brother of Bob ’68,

May ’17

1967 Dr. Frank Pintozzi, Nov. ’16 1968 Conrad Kulus, brother of John ’65,

Alumni Achievement

MICHAEL BAUMANN ’87

Feb. ’17 Peter Smith, Dec. ’16 Richard Tomczik, Aug. ’13 1969 Stephen Jackelen, Aug. ’17

Rudolph “Rudy” Majerle, March ’17 1971 S. Geraldine Arnold, CSJ, June ’17

John Wegner, May ’17 1973 Jean Hiesberger, June ’17 Maxine Launderville, mother of Rev. Dale, OSB, July ’17 Patricia Milbert, mother of Dr. Jeff ’73 and William ’85, March ’17

Rev. Mark Thamert, OSB, April ’17 1974 Mary Johnson, spouse of Charles,

sister of Steve Ellenbecker ’74, John Ellenbecker ’78 and Robert Ellenbecker ’84, July ’17 1975 James Fergle, Jr., father of Jim ’75 and Jeff ’80, July ’17 1976 S. Diane McCalley, CSJ, Jan. ’17 Jean Rothstein, mother of James ’76,

Paul ’87 and Peter ’88, March ’17 1977 S. Olivia Forster, Feb. ’17

Paul Knaeble, son of deceased,

Harold ’41 , March ’17 1978 Wong Siu Mei, mother of Herman Li and Sam Li ’83, July ’17

Michael G. White, MD, March ’17 1979 Lenard Eichten, brother of Greg ’82 and Leon ’83, June ’17 Marilyn McKenzie, mother of Pat ,

April ’17 1981 Autumn Palomaki, daughter of Brian Crevoiserat, Feb. ’17

Louise Wolf-Novak, spouse of Tom,

daughter of Hugo Wolf ’55, sister of

Brian Wolf ’79, Michael Wolf ’84 and

deceased brother Gregory Wolf ’87,

Feb. ’17 1986 Ana Maria Campos, mother of Gabriel Olszewski, Feb. ’17 1988 Thomas Illg, April ’17 1990 Nash Wicka, son of Tom, April ’17 1991 Patrick Davitt, June ’17 1994 Arthur Albanesi, father of Arturo,

Feb. ’17

Arnold Angeloni, Jr., June ’17

Daniel Dieser, Feb. ’17 1997 Marios Hortis, April ’17 2011 Jake Schumacher, April ’17

Michael Baumann has forged an impressive career as a risk management specialist and an equally impressive track record of devotion to the Catholic Church. Baumann helps privately held and publicly traded corporations manage their risk in his role at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s Bloomington office. He has extensive experience in the placement of a variety of professional liability risks and is a member of Gallagher’s Agriculture and International Risk Management Practice Groups.

Baumann and his wife, Barb ’90, are recognized for their support of and dedication to St. Ambrose of Woodbury Church, particularly for their long-term commitment to counseling future Catholic couples regarding their partnership in Christianity.

SJUALUM.COM/CLASSNOTES

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CLASS NOTES

Alumni Achievement EFREM SMITH ’92

THE 5 BROWNS Saturday, September 9 @ 7:30 p.m.

Escher Auditorium, CSB The Rev. Efrem Smith’s contributions as an author, church leader, community builder and motivational speaker have earned international recognition and helped transform the lives of countless individuals and communities.

Smith carries out his passion for bringing the church to marginalized populations through his work as president and CEO of World Impact, which strives to empower urban poor by fostering leadership and community revitalization through church-planting movements in urban areas. He has delivered keynote speeches at events such as Campus Crusade for Christ and Compassion International, serves as a teaching pastor at Bayside Midtown Church in Sacramento, Calif., and published four books, “Raising Up Young Heroes,” “The Hip Hop Church,” “Jump” and “The Post-Black and PostWhite Church.” Saint John’s recognized him with a Caritas Award in 1997.

MUCCA PAZZA Saturday, September 16 @ 7:30 p.m.

Escher Auditorium, CSB JOHN MCCUTCHEON with the CSB/SJU Orchestra Saturday, September 30 @ 7:30 p.m.

Escher Auditorium, CSB THE OK FACTOR Wednesday, October 4 @ 7:30 p.m.

Sacred Heart Chapel, Saint Benedict’s Monastery MIKE SUPER – MAGIC & ILLUSION Friday, October 20 @ 7:00 p.m.

Escher Auditorium, CSB THE BRIEF WONDROUS LIFE OF OSCAR WAO A play by Literature to Life Friday, October 27 @ 7:30 p.m.

Stephen B. Humphrey Theater, SJU

THE REMINDERS featuring DJ Man-O-Wax and Amirah Sackett Friday, January 26 @ 7:30 p.m.

Escher Auditorium, CSB JESSICA LANG DANCE Friday, February 2 @ 7:30 p.m.

Escher Auditorium, CSB Syndee Winters in: Lena: A Moment with a Lady Saturday, February 10 @ 7:30 p.m.

Escher Auditorium, CSB BASKERVILLE! A Sherlock Holmes Mystery Friday, February 16 @ 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, February 17 @ 2:00 p.m.

Escher Auditorium, CSB VAN CLIBURN INTERNATIONAL PIANO COMPETITION Yekwon Sonwoo – Gold Medal Winner Sunday, February 25 @ 2:00 p.m.

Stephen B. Humphrey Theater, SJU

THE CROSSROADS PROJECT: RISING TIDE Friday, November 10 @ 7:30 p.m.

Stephen B. Humphrey Theater, SJU

THE ROSE ENSEMBLE Welcoming the Stranger: the Invitation of Saints Benedict & Scholastica Friday, March 16 @ 8:00 p.m.

Great Hall, SJU

DAYMÉ AROCENA Saturday, November 18 @ 7:30 p.m.

Stephen B. Humphrey Theater, SJU

CHE MALAMBO Saturday, March 24 @ 7:30 p.m.

Stephen B. Humphrey Theater, SJU

BIG BAD VOODOO DADDY Wild & Swinging Holiday Party Friday, December 8 @ 7:30 p.m.

Escher Auditorium, CSB

To order call 320-363-5777 or visit csbsju.edu/wow

48 SUMMER/FALL 2017

J.T. Starzecki ’96 is always thinking and planning ahead.

Soon after he arrived at Saint John’s University, the accounting major – now young global executive – mindfully asked himself “what can I do every day to make this experience special?” And from the moment he left Saint John’s, he has been mindful of giving back to SJU so he could make his four-year transformative experience possible for future Johnnies, including making a “crystal clear” provision in his will to SJU. Growing up in a working-class family, Starzecki appreciated early that without the help from a previous generation of Johnnies he may very well not been able to attend SJU or have the life he leads today.

“If you look at where you are today – career, family, friends – it’s a thread that connects back to SJU and CSB,” he said.

He also thinks back to the “greatest” Johnnies he knows or pictures and he seriously wonders what if they wouldn’t have been able to come to SJU because of the lack of financial support. “If my planned gift allows those next greatest Johnnies to come, I am grateful to carry on the legacy,” he said.

As chief marketing officer for Sirius Minerals Plc in the United Kingdom, Starzecki works and travels abroad frequently. He attributes his strong business network and foundational relationships to SJU. Back in the states, when he hosted a housewarming party, more than 35 friends from CSB/SJU showed up to celebrate.

“This is a testament to lasting friendships,” he said. “My only regret during my time at SJU was the people I didn’t get to know during my four years.”

Starzecki, godfather to sons of three of his Johnnie friends, said for him it’s not about paying it back but going forward and providing someone else the opportunity and memories he wouldn’t trade for anything.

“Carrying on the legacy is an opportunity,” he said. “You may never meet the people who indirectly helped to make this experience possible, but the impact is still significant.”

Planned. Giving. Impact.

To learn more about making a bequest to Saint John’s, contact Jim Dwyer ’75, director of planned giving at (800) 635-7303 or jdwyer@csbsju.edu.

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2017

OCTOBER 6-7 Come home for Homecoming 2017.

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Find out more at csbsjuhomecoming.com.