Kathleen ’07 was married on March 17 at St. Ignatius Church in Chestnut Hill; a grand St. Patrick’s Day wedding celebration followed at the Lenox Hotel in Boston. Katie’s daughter Mary ’12 was married in 2015; she and her husband are overjoyed with the birth of their daughter, Whitney Rose Davis, last December. Katie is thrilled with her new title of Nana Kate. Katie enjoyed spending an evening with Marianne and Donald Lucey at BC’s Scholarship Dinner in April. • It’s always a pleasure to hear news from Buenos Aires! Gregory Dayton writes that he sold his share of a gas compression company and bought out the remaining shareholders of an agricultural company. He’s still involved with many projects and is busy raising his children, Theo (17) and Alexia (14). • I wish you all well and look forward to your updates! Correspondent: Hellas M. Assad hellasdamas@hotmail.com
NC 1975 Mary Ciaccio Griffin, of Albany, NY, sent along a wonderful update and began by saying, “I always love receiving the BC magazine so that I can read up on my fellow Newton alums. I thought I would write a little something for possible inclusion next time.” We are so glad you did! Mary and her husband, John, became grandparents for the first time in September: Victoria Anne was born to their daughter Caroline and her husband, Andrew, who live nearby in Loudonville. They are thrilled and get to see the baby often. Many can probably relate to Mary’s sentiment: “I have to keep myself from stopping there on my way home from work!” Son John and his wife, Evie, were married last May in Saratoga Springs (they live in New York City), and son Andrew and his girlfriend, Emma, live in Albany. “Nice to have my family so close,” Mary writes. She and John bought a condo in Vero Beach, FL, a few years back and visit as much as they can. During a visit earlier this year, Mary was invited to attend a Sacred Heart luncheon for graduates of Sacred Heart schools. She writes: “It was great. I sat next to two women who had gone to Newton in the late 1950s, and they were asking me all kinds of questions about Newton when I was there and telling me some stories too. It is so nice to have that connection.” • Coincidentally, my mother, who went to Newton Country Day School, and I have gone to the AASH luncheon in Palm Beach for the past two years. It is truly a wonderfully inspiring event, sharing the camaraderie and special bonds of being a Sacred Heart “girl” with women of all ages and Sacred Heart school affiliations. • It was nice to hear from Mary Ellen Quirk too. Her daughter, Sarah, just finished her first year of law school at the University of Michigan. • I hope you are all enjoying the summer months and getting a chance to spend time with family and friends. Please keep in touch with your news. Take care! Correspondent: Karen Foley Freeman karenfoleyfreeman@gmail.com
1976 Nancy Ouellette Coppolino, MEd’81, died unexpectedly but peacefully last January at Brigham & Women’s Hospital. Raised and educated in Waltham, Nancy earned both her BA and her master’s degrees in education from BC and embarked on a career teaching and advocating for childhood reading. More than just words, books, she believed, were filled with hope, dreams, and possibilities. She taught at several schools and ultimately became director of reading and English language arts for the Waltham Public Schools, from which she retired last year after being diagnosed with a rare form of melanoma in 2016. A resident of Acton for many years, she was active in several organizations in the Acton-Boxborough area. Known for her sense of humor and fierce loyalty, she is survived by her husband of 38 years, Michael; her sons, Michael and Matthew; daughter Krista Curley; and brother Robert. • Bruce McDonald, of Cliffside Park, NJ, passed away peacefully in his home last March. A graduate of the Englewood (NJ) School for Boys, Bruce earned his BS in management from BC’s Carroll School. For decades he worked at Peter McManus Café in New York City and is missed by his “second family.” Bruce is survived by his wife, Anna; his daughter, Ryan Kathleen; two sisters; and a brother. • Nancy Durkin McEvily passed away at home last March due to complications of Parkinson’s disease. Nancy was a graduate of St. Rose High School and earned her BA in economics cum laude from BC. She resided in Interlaken, NJ, for 32 years and loved life at the shore and the company of family and friends. She is survived by her husband of 39 years, Paul; daughter Madeline; and sons Matthew and Brian and their wives. She was a grandmother of four. • Claire Dowling Dean ’78 has scheduled a memorial service for the late, great Nick Dean, gone 10 years, in his beloved Montauk, NY, on Thursday, September 6, 2018. For more info, please contact this writer. • The induction of his beloved Moody Blues into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame must have pleased old friend Richard Carlin, who turned this writer into a fan while living in Welch Hall. Now it’s on to Jethro Tull! • Wilfred Morrison and his wife, Mary D’Amore ’77, welcomed a grandson, Judah Best, last April. Judah’s mom, Tela, is congratulated by her godfather, Gerry Shea. • Wishing all a healthy and happy summer and autumn, and please keep in touch. God bless! Correspondent: Gerald B. Shea gerbs54@hotmail.com
1977 Deb Schiavo, MBA’82, has much to be proud of: Her son, Connor, graduated from Purchase College in May with a BS in biochemistry. He wants to pursue his PhD (further delaying his mom’s retirement plans!). Deb, Connor, and his sister, Taylor, are celebrating with a long-overdue family trip to Italy. Deb is still enjoying her commercial real estate finance work at Square
Mile Capital, and she is looking forward to another year of weekend trips to BC football games. • On a personal note, our son Alexander graduated with an associate’s degree from the University of Hartford, number one in his class, and received the Kenneth L. Meinke Award for Outstanding Achievement in Academic Performance, Attitude, and Commitment and the Marilyn S. Smith Humanities Award. Alexander is going into his junior year and has decided to transfer to UConn this September. My wife, Carol; his sister, Olympia; our son-in-law, Michael; and I are very proud of Alexander. • Andrea Micek Holt is having a very exciting 2018! She relocated to The Woodlands, TX, and opened Jeffrey and Company Jewelers, on Creekside Forest Drive, where she is general manager. Andrea loves the Greater Houston area! Her daughter, Katherine, graduated from the University of Alabama, where she had a fabulous four years and helped cheer on the Bama football team to two national championships! Katherine is now moving on to her “dream” job at SapientRazorfish in Washington DC. • Our very dear friend Luis “Wito” Benítez Quiñones passed away on February 17, 2016. May God rest his soul and bring comfort to his wife, Maria Rosa; children Luis and Jana; sisters Vionnet and Michelle; and grandchildren. Luis was a character, not only at BC, but also during his school years at San Ignacio in Puerto Rico, where his adventures are folklore. He was a good father and husband and an outstanding professional. Luis learned how to manufacture shoes from his father, Don Luis, at a factory in Manatí and worked with Florsheim Shoes for decades. Luis met the love of his life, Maria Rosa Viteri, at El Dorado Beach, and they married in 1976. They settled in Cape Girardeau, MO, where Luis deepened his knowledge of manufacturing footwear at Florsheim. He returned to Puerto Rico in the early 1980s, settled in Del Mar, and took over the family factory. He later accepted a managerial position to run a shoe manufacturer in Costa Rica; several years later he moved on to run another shoe manufacturer, Wolverine Radicals, in Monterrey, Mexico. Luis enjoyed traveling for business. • Kathy Gilsbach informs us that two friends of our class, Tom Pluta JD’75 and Pat McDonough ’71, MA’72, JD’75, passed away within weeks of each other in January and February, respectively, after long battles with cancer. Pat and “Pluta” were well-known RAs in the South Street dorms beginning in 1973 while they were attending BC Law School. Both lived in the Washington DC area and were longtime federal government employees. • God bless everyone, and as my beloved mother, Kyriaki, used to say, “May all good things find the path to your door.” Correspondent: Nicholas Kydes nicholaskydes@yahoo.com
1978 Hello to the great Class of ’78! Sorry to have missed all of you who made it to our 40th reunion; I didn’t get to Boston after all. My son, Jack Evans, graduated in May 63