FEATURE
Tom ’75 & Molly Duffey Answering the call Julie Felser
Tom Duffey ’75 and Rev. Warren Sazama, SJ share a common “Marquette High first day” together. Duffey’s first day at MUHS as a freshman was Sazama’s first day at MUHS as a novitiate. Duffey met Sazama during homeroom. “Saz was not only the first Jesuit priest I ever met, he was the first faculty member I met at Marquette High.” About 35 years later, Sazama returned to Marquette High as president, and Duffey was chairman of the board. “One of the very special things about Marquette High is that the connections remained so strong. Our first meeting was at Saz’s State House for lunch; it was like we picked up immediately from where we had left off decades earlier.” Last fall Sazama would call on Duffey to chair Marquette High’s fundraising campaign Companions on the Journey. However, it wasn’t Tom who immediately said “yes”– it was his wife, Molly. “My first reaction was ‘Do it!’ I didn’t even hesitate,” Molly says when she learned of Sazama’s request of her husband. Her instantaneous response might be attributed to their three sons,
The Duffey family (left to right): Matt Duffey ’05, wife Kristin; Tom Duffey ‘75, wife Molly (holding Topper, purchased at the 2001 Topper Auction); Ryan Duffey ’02 (holding dog Bailey), wife Heather holding baby Elly; Keenan Duffey ’08 and Carly Earp.
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Ryan ’02, Matt ’05 and Keenan ’08, having had a positive MUHS experience. Molly says, “They all loved their experience, but loved it differently.” Tom concurs, “Each had a uniquely different experience that uniquely matched their personality. They had the MUHS experience they wanted to have.” Today, Ryan, a Santa Clara University graduate, is vice president at Plastic Components, Inc. in Germantown, Wis., and lives in Brookfield with his wife, Heather, and newborn daughter, Elly Quinn. Matt graduated from the United States Naval Academy, married his wife, Kristin, and is currently deployed as Navy lieutenant (junior grade) on a nuclear submarine. Keenan graduated from the University of Notre Dame and is currently enrolled at that Korbel School of International Relations at the University of Denver. Tom, too, had a positive, MUHS experience, which included involvement in Senior Follies, Conclave, the Marquette Flambeau and Ski Club. However, he admits the school’s Jesuit teachers and Ignatian spirituality had the most lasting impact on him.
“I was not a particularly distinguished student, and certainly not an athlete. But I always felt like I belonged here. If I had to point to one defining thing about my MUHS education, it would be that it made me focus less on myself and more on what my role is in the bigger world,” Tom says. “The Jesuits taught me that we can affect the world around us if we choose to make that philosophical and theological commitment. I’ve always carried that with me. I’m very conscious that what I do and what I think has an impact on everyone around me.” Rev. Doug Leonhardt, SJ ’56 had a profound influence on Tom’s life during high school, which has evolved into a life long relationship. “Father Doug did something for me that profoundly changed the course of my life. I tell him the story all the time, but