P&G

Monsignor Peter Buchignani ’58

Half a Century Focusing on Mind, Body, and Spirit

After 20 years of service as a liaison between the Christian Brothers and the Catholic Diocese of Memphis, Monsignor Peter P. Buchignani ’58 is stepping off the Christian Brothers High School Board. His voice has been crucial to a harmonious relationship between the Lasallian school and the Diocese, which has interests throughout the region. “The Bishop would not have any authority per se, over the school itself,” Buchignani says, “unless something went wrong regarding the teachings or the morals of the church.” Such instances are uncommon, but there are more mundane areas that overlap, and Buchignani’s long experience in the Catholic community in Memphis — he celebrated 50 years in the priesthood in 2015 — has proven to be a great benefit.

From his vantage point, he can observe things that people have either missed or weren’t aware of. His breadth of knowledge has helped fend off potential crises, such as having competing fundraisers by well-meaning organizations. And his attention to detail has been fortuitous: One time he noticed that an organization’s mission statement neglected to mention that it was a Catholic institution. That was quickly fixed. And for him, being an effective liaison has always been a matter of looking after the interests of both the school and the Diocese. “I’ve always been very proud that there’s always been a very good relationship between the high school, the Brothers community, and the Diocese,” he says.

Monsignor’s concerns go far beyond making sure that things work smoothly with all concerned parties. He is deeply committed to seeing that Catholic education will not just survive, but thrive. In the Memphis area, Catholic schools are impacted by what’s going on in public schools, in other private schools, and with society and culture.

And certain challenges must be overcome.

“What I see is many Catholic families are no longer willing to make the financial sacrifices to give their kids a Catholic education,” he says. “All the Catholic schools — and the private religious schools — are experiencing that.”

What has altered the landscape in recent years, he says, is the change that was made when the city and county schools merged in 2013 and the six incorporated municipalities outside of Memphis created their own school districts in 2014. Buchignani was named pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in 1995 and presided when it had more than a thousand students in its elementary school. After the changes in public schools in Shelby County, the enrollment dropped to less than 500, and other private schools have experienced similar downturns that continue today.

But Buchignani knows that CBHS and the other Catholic schools have an advantage that he hopes will persuade families to make the financial commitment to a Catholic education. That is because, he says, public schools are missing out on something Catholic schools can provide so well. “I believe that every human being has a spiritual nature and a Catholic school addresses the total person, not just the mind,” he says. “And you can’t do that in a public school. While you can get a good education in public schools, you’re not going to get a well-rounded moral education. If people don’t see to the religious moral education of the children, they’ve got nothing. The beauty of the private religious schools, especially our

Catholic schools, is that we educate the total person. That means mind, body, and spirit.” • — Jon W. Sparks ••••••••••••••••••••••••

Frank Gusmus, Jr. ’72

Building Good Memories on the CBHS Board

For Frank Gusmus, Jr. ’72, his service on the Christian Brothers High School Board of Directors became another in a long list of good memories with the school.

When he was elected to the CBHS Hall of Fame in 1998, he told The Commercial Appeal, “I was one of the first classes that went all the way through at the new location, out off of Walnut Grove. I think my favorite memory is just of the friends and the business associates that I currently see that have come out of the school.”

After graduation, Gusmus went to Louisiana State University, where he was on the golf team as he had been at CBHS. After graduation, he came back home, where he earned his master’s degree in accounting from the University of Memphis, and then worked in public accounting for four years.

He began his career with First Horizon National Corp. in 1982 as a CPA. He held several management positions in the capital markets division throughout his tenure with the company. In 2008, he was named president of FTN Financial, the company’s capital markets business.

Gusmus’ recent stint with the CBHS Board of Directors started in 2012 and, armed with a lifetime of knowledge of finance, he tended to the fiscal duties of the board. “I worked primarily on the finance committee where we basically helped with the funding and helped with managing the cash and investments,” he says. “We made sure that the school was financially capable to do what it’s doing.”

Those years were marked by ambitious developments on the campus, including the Marr School of Business, the STEMM program, funding of the Brothers Development Center multipurpose athletic facility, and other projects.

Gusmus and the board worked with the plant funds, the endowment, and investments, making sure there was adequate funding for all the building projects.

“There were many projects they did,” he says, “and we were just making sure it was done on a sound financial basis.”

Serving on the board was a way Gusmus could give back to the school he had attended, but also where his two sons attended. “I think Christian Brothers is a wonderful institution and it provides a place for boys to grow and mature and do things the right way,” he says. “The mentorship by the Brothers and the lay teachers is to teach the young boys to be good men and to be good contributors to society. They have learned great skills. They have learned good ethics and moral character and academics at the same time. And it’s a fine place for young men to go before they move on to college and for the rest of their lives.”

His affection for the school remains as it was when he was inducted into the Hall of Fame more than 20 years ago.

“I was happy to be on the board and helping in that process,” Gusmus says. “I had the pleasure of working with nice people and got to see the Brothers and the administration accomplish a whole lot and change the lives of a lot of people. It was just a pleasure.” • —

Jon W. Sparks

Gary Stavrum ’84

Staying Involved with the Brothers

Gary Stavrum, Class of 1984, is having a visible — and lasting — impact on Christian Brothers High School.

After graduating from CBHS, and then Christian Brothers University in 1988, he became involved with the alumni association, which eventually led to him starting his service on the CBHS Board in 2009. He was board chairman from 2012 through 2021, a time of significant change at the school.

Stavrum oversaw a major expansion of the Walnut Grove campus that continues today. And even though he’s retired from the Board, he remains involved: “We’re still finishing up this campaign,” he says, “and I’ve agreed to stay on and help fundraise because I started this project and I want to see it to completion.”

He says that a 2012 feasibility study and campus view of facilities helped determine what the school’s needs were. “In 2014, we launched a $25 million capital campaign.” The ambitious plan included the building of a new fieldhouse and renovation of buildings. It also involved constructing the Marr School of Business, the STEMM complex, and the Brothers Development Center.

It was a historic project. “We’d never done a major capital campaign,” he says. “We’ve done some small campaigns, and we built a stadium, which we just invited a few people to help participate in. But the biggest challenge was organizing a campaign of that magnitude and raising that kind of money.”

The capital campaign has resulted in important additions to CBHS. Among them are:

• The McEniry Hall/STEMM Building was dedicated in 2014 as a facility to house ground-breaking science, technology, engineering, math, and medicine (STEMM) programs.

• The Marr School of Business and Economics offers classes in economics, finance, accounting, and marketing. Because CBHS has such a large alumni base, there are ample opportunities for networking and internships for students.

• The Brothers Development Center, a multipurpose athletic facility, opened in the fall of 2016. The 50,000-square-foot facility accommodates more than 600 students who participate in organized sports providing college athletics quality amenities.

“We’re pretty much done with brick and mortar,” Stavrum said. “We’re trying to raise the last bit to finish all the buildings that we’re doing, along with more money for the endowment. So I’ll continue to serve in that way.”

Having served so long on the Board and so closely with the administration, Stavrum has a clear view of the challenges the school continues to face, and he speaks frankly about them. “Private schools are getting more and more expensive and we’re trying to hold our tuition down,” he said. “So there is a greater need to raise money for financial aid. And all private school enrollment is way down, so we’re trying to keep the enrollment up and recruit kids and families. Fewer people are sending their kids to private schools — they’re going out to the county schools or charter schools.”

But Stavrum sees where CBHS has advantages beyond the expansion of campus facilities. It also is a school that is very traditional in terms of values and education.

“It’s a great program with the leadership of the Brothers,” he says. “We have a huge alumni base and it’s a big networking school. You can hardly go into any business without seeing another CBHS graduate, or any type of other industry. As we tell everybody, it’s a big family that we have and it helps you later in life, when you get through college and then in your working career.”

While raising money is always a challenge, Stavrum says that there is much willingness to help. “We have 10,000 living alumni and we’ve been able to see their generosity giving back to the school for what we’ve done. We’ve built up the campus and everything’s paid for without any debt.”

Stavrum adds: “We pride ourselves on helping young men of the city of Memphis. I don’t think anybody does a better job, not just on education, but also teaching them to be men for tomorrow. With the leadership of the Brothers and the faculty and staff, we feel like we’re making a big impact on the city of Memphis.” • — Jon W. Sparks