Traditions - Summer 2020 (Volume 33 Number 2)

TRADITIONS

Summer 2020 // Volume 33 Number 2

Cretin-Derham Hall

Co-sponsored by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet and the Brothers of the Christian Schools

Learning Goes the Distance Online School: Strong Connections Amid Challenging Times

Cretin-Derham Hall has rescheduled Commencement for Aug. 2, but seniors were able to drive by to pick up their caps and gowns on their original graduation day. We wish all of our graduates well as they celebrate graduation and go forth to serve our world.

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CONTENTS ALSO INCLUDES: 8 // Instagram Takeover 11 // Co-Curriculars Put On Hold 12 // W hat’s Next? Planning for 2020-2021 13 // Our Community Stepped Up. Our Values are Showing!

14 // Graduating in the Shadow of COVID-19

5 // Learning Goes the Distance

Online School: Strong Connections Amid Challenging Times

alumni profiles

CLASS OF2020

faculty focus

22 // Congratulations, Class of 2020!

16 // L ifelong Friends, New Collaborators

24 // Top 12 Students 26 // Award Winners

34 // Tony Leseman ‘01 Proudly Represents CDH

30 // Class of 2020 By the Numbers

in each issue

18 // Finding Simple Solutions

4 // From the President 15 // Chaplain’s Letter

20 // M ary Ellen Klas ‘77 Believes in Truth and Transparency

On the cover // During Online Learning, the CDH halls were empty and the campus was quiet. However, the community of teachers, staff, and students were still connected and engaged in learning despite not being together at school. This was uncharted territory, with plenty of unforeseen challenges and practical concerns, but the community pulled together for the good of our students.

32 // Purple Pride 36 // Advancing Our Mission 38 // Alumni Class Notes 40 // In Memoriam 41 // Did you Know?

Cretin-Derham Hall // Summer 2020

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// FROM THE PRESIDENT

Dismantling Racism In Our Systems and In Ourselves

“Our work with students and families of color has been well-intentioned but needs to be more than that. We must courageously lead our community of learners in an examination of individual and systemic racism in all aspects of our school and our society.”

Hope springs eternal, the saying goes, and we all need hope this year. From a global pandemic that closed our country, to global civil unrest resulting from the murder of George Floyd — we need hope.

Hope and grace allow tragedy to give birth to renewal and change.

The tragic events of this summer, punctuated by protesters of all races, faiths, and politics, have highlighted the enormous impact that systematic racism has on our world. This is not at all intended to be a political statement. This is not taking sides.

This truth presents a challenge to each and every one of us.

We have the power and responsibility to dismantle racism in our systems and within ourselves. This work will take time, but it can no longer be ignored or delayed.

Some of you may know that my wife Kathy and I have a family of seven children, five biological and two adopted. Our adopted children, Monica ’14 and Caleb ’17, are from India and Ethiopia respectively. They both have dark brown skin and experience America in a way that I never can. I love them more than words can express. Among the many things I hoped to teach them, I have tried to prepare them for the racism they encounter in our society. They are wonderful young adults despite my limitations and I continue to learn from them. Particularly now, seeing the world through their eyes is both challenging and enlightening in the most unsettling way.

Personally, growing up and living in a racist society certainly influenced who I am, what I think, and how I act. I know I have a lot to learn and must continue to intentionally dismantle the racism within me. This is the work of a lifetime. I publicly commit to working on myself for the betterment of my family, Church, and community.

Professionally, I am blessed to lead a wonderful Catholic high school with a 162-year history. For the majority of that history, we have served a nearly exclusively white clientele. Recent history has seen a change in the composition of our student body. Our work with students and families of color has been well-intentioned but needs to be more than that. We must courageously lead our community of learners in an examination of individual and systemic racism in all aspects of our school and our society.

Accomplishing such critical work will take time. We won’t fix this overnight.

We must start today, work to make immediate progress, and commit to making change happen over the long term. The passions of this summer cannot fizzle just because we get distracted or simply comfortable again. Imagine if we, the community of CretinDerham Hall, made this a priority and a commitment for the next decade. The reality is that we will not completely change our world in those 10 years, but we will make a dent, perhaps even a big, impactful dent. Believe me, there is nothing magical about ten years — it is symbolically a long time. If we hope to see any lasting change, we need to be in this for the long haul.

I publicly commit, on behalf of Cretin-Derham Hall, to make the dismantling of racism our goal, working within our diverse community of learners. I hope that we can grow with the grace of God, and go forth and lead in a world desperate for a more just society. Racism impacts and dehumanizes all of us regardless of color. Preparing our students for a diverse world is part of our mission.

How do we begin? I believe our Cretin-Derham Hall values (Catholic – Academic – Leadership – Community – Service – Diversity – Equity) will be a source of challenge and inspiration. We will establish a steering committee to take the lead once we return from summer break. Please keep Cretin-Derham Hall in your prayers as we begin this important work.

Live Jesus in our hearts, forever.

Francis M. Miley, J.D. Cretin-Derham Hall President

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Learning Goes the Distance Online School: Strong Connections Amid Challenging Times

We all know how it happened. There was the news out of China, then the first reported case in the United States. Then, Italy locked down. There was the NBA player joking about the virus, who reported that he was infected just a couple of days later. Cruise ships stuck at sea, professional sports canceled, and within just a couple of weeks, COVID-19 was no longer a distant news story, but the largest disruptor of normalcy seen in many of our lifetimes. — Continued on next page

Cretin-Derham Hall // Summer 2020

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Learning Goes the Distance, continued from page 5

The pandemic sparked broad and unprecedented measures to minimize the spread of this new virus and increase the chance that the medical system had the capacity to care for those infected. It soon became clear that even schools would not be able to operate as normal.

As schools shut down across the nation, CDH teachers and administrators rolled up their sleeves to develop a plan for a whole new way to deliver education.

“To keep the students connected with teachers was our number one goal,” said Principal Mona Passman. “We wanted it to be meaningful and relevant and keep the kids engaged. We had to figure out how to do that, how to keep expectations at the right level in this totally new environment. Plus, the sense of community is such a huge part of the CDH experience — how do we maintain that from a distance?”

On Friday, March 13, Assistant Principal Amy Bellus ’90 instructed students to bring home all of their class materials — just in case they didn’t come back on campus right away after a scheduled long weekend.

“Right at that moment, it hit me that we might not be back all year,” said Kerry Salisbury ’21. “I was definitely scared: I’ve never done online school, I’ve always had the same routine.”

CDH was already scheduled for a long weekend for a teacher in-service, added just one additional day of prep, and quickly launched online school on March 19, making us one of the first schools in Minnesota to make the leap.

Online School the CDH Way The logistics of online school were completely different from the regular school day. The schedule was divided into “A” and “B” days to accommodate distance learning. Each class period was given an assigned time for Google Meets (virtual video meetings). The school day lasted from 9:30 am–2 pm, out of a recognition that many students would be taking on more responsibilities at home, such as caring for younger siblings. Students were required to check their email before 9:30 am each morning, be available for scheduled Google Meets, and submit any assignments by midnight the day they were due.

There were no passing periods, no chatting by the lockers, no club meetings during lunch, and no school uniforms.

However, one thing stayed the same: our teachers’ commitment to their education.

“Distance learning caused all of us to reevaluate what is most essential,” said Passman. “Our teachers had to decide what was critical learning and latch on to that; they had to reexamine why they did things the way they do. After teaching the same classes for years, some things become automatic. It wasn’t automatic anymore. Every teacher I’ve talked to says they’re a better teacher after all this.”

The creative educators quickly sought out new ways to not only teach their material but keep students engaged.

For example, Social Studies teacher Morgan Lieske began giving group quizzes in which she invited a small group of 6

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students to a Google Meet and quizzed them as a group — grading on both their answers and their collaboration.

“It’s been a great way to have them talk through concepts and enables me to hear that they are actually talking through the material, not just trying to look up the answers. I will likely continue to do something like this when we return to campus because it showcases the social and interpersonal learner,” Lieske said.

In the Science department, Stephanie Aumann sent all of her Physics by Inquiry students home with a set of lab equipment, sending them instructions for experiments and splitting them into small groups to discuss what they learned.

Theater Director Katie Kreitzer’s Improv class met online each day, creating skits that were a perfect fit for the moment — with improv themes such as a therapist visit via Zoom, friends hanging out on Zoom, fighting with faraway family on Zoom.

She also took advantage of our new virtual world to bring distant alums into the classroom. Three technical theater professionals made time to talk with her Technical Theater class.

“When I surveyed the kids at the end of the year, they all said that was their favorite day,” Kreitzer said. “I’ve always had these alums and their stories at my fingertips, but I’ve never used them. That’s definitely going in the curriculum next year.”

Of course, it wasn’t all easy. Every teacher mourned the loss of the in-person connection.

Teachers were challenged to find new ways of getting feedback. “I can usually read the room,” Aumann said. “Am I going too fast? Do they get it? Can I check-in quietly on someone who looks confused? Here, I had to rely on asking them all for a thumbs up/thumbs down, and hope that students would reach out if they needed help.”

Some students thrived in the new environment. The lack of classroom distractions made it easier for them to focus on their schoolwork, and their grades went up.

Teachers and administrators are already looking at ways to bring that experience into the school setting.

“We’ll continue to take a look at the curriculum and see where we can deliver a quality education efficiently, with options outside of the ordinary school day — perhaps a select number of classes online, like in college,” said President Frank Miley. “I’m not talking about a lot of them, but for those kids who found success in such a format, it may be a good option.

We are dedicated to different learning styles and if this learning structure is really good for some students, this may be an opportunity.”

Other students needed a lot of support through the transition.

— Continued on page 8

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| Lauren Bullis ‘23 in Angie Keske’s AP Human Geography class.

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| Raiders parked their cars for a socially distanced get-together.

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| Amerigo students spent some of their extra time in the dorms working on art projects.

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| Laura Weiss’ English class had a Beach Day to shake up the monotony of online school.

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| Martha Thornton ’99 taught from home with two adorable new coworkers.

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| Mike Steineman ’92 was ready to take on distance education from his kitchen table-turned-office.

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Learning Goes the Distance, continued from page 7 “Some kids had a really hard time with the organizational part of doing online school and that’s where I spent most of my time,” Bellus said. “I was talking to kids about how to organize, check email, make lists, check things off when you get done, and pay attention to what’s due when.”

Bellus notes that much of her job is typically about discipline, so this was new. “I really enjoyed being more proactive about helping our students operate in this new structure and finding ways I can help them. When we return, I look forward to working with kids who may be dealing with academic and social struggles earlier — before they show up in my office for behavior issues.”

Even for students who were able to make the transition easily, the loss of in-person classroom time was difficult.

“Weirdly, I really missed taking tests in class,” Salisbury said, “Just the environment of everyone around me focusing on the same thing and knowing the teacher was right there — it’s not the same doing it at home.”

Of course, academics weren’t the only thing that changed when the school building shut down.

The boys basketball team won their section on March 12 with a buzzer-beater by Curtis Jones ’20. The state tournament was canceled the next day.

“You can imagine the emotion in the locker room when I told them State had been canceled,” said Coach Jerry Kline ’93.

“We went from jumping for joy to suddenly knowing it wouldn’t happen.”

The spring musical, “Holiday Inn,” was halfway through rehearsals when they were sent home, and spent the next six weeks unsure if they would have the opportunity to perform.

Spring sports were first delayed and then called off, blood drives were canceled, and longstanding JROTC traditions never happened.

Class of 2020 Feels the Loss The Class of 2020 experienced a particular kind of loss. They didn’t have the opportunity to experience beloved CDH traditions they’ve been looking forward to throughout high school. Sent — Continued on page 10

TAKEOVER When our students left campus, social media became a primary way to stay connected. A few times, students took over the CDH Instagram account to share their experience of Online School. Twins Keely and Kerry Salisbury ’21 shared their day on March 25.

Hi everyone! This is Keely and Kerry Salisbury, juniors at CDH, and we are going to be doing a “Twin Takeover” for the day where we show you the ins and outs of being a CDH online student! We can’t wait to share with you a typical day at our house, as well as share some tips that have worked for us throughout this experience!

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Before our 10 am school day starts, we lay out our materials and write all our work down on a piece of paper/planners for that given day! Today is an “A” day.

Writing down all the work given to us in the morning is a great way to create a checklist for your day, in order to stay organized throughout the day! We strongly advise you to start doing this, especially while getting used to the new online school routine!

One of the best parts about being technology-savvy at CDH is that we have the option to virtually connect with our teachers via Google Meet. Over half of our classes and teachers use this feature to connect face to face with us, which really helps with any questions we may have as students! Here, Kerry is connecting with her “Women’s Spirituality” class with Ms. Bohrer.

LEFT: The Yearbook class had the chance to pick up their books before the rest of the school.

BELOW: All-staff meetings made for crowded screens in the virtual environment.

With the new change of schedule, I think we tend to forget that staying healthy is just as important as getting our work done! We’ve found that eating a good breakfast and drinking lots of water helps keep our high energy throughout the day! As well as eating healthy snacks too!

To conclude our online school day, we often go on a walk to de-stress and get some fresh air! We hope you enjoyed our tips and tricks on how we do online school at our house! We encourage you to try the things we do to help you in whatever way possible to this new phase in all of our lives! Thank you for watching! Peace out Raiders!

Cretin-Derham Hall // Summer 2020

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Learning Goes the Distance, continued from page 8

home in the middle of March, they missed out on Prom, Lock-In, and the last day of school. Instead of a communal Last Supper, teachers and parents delivered hot meals from Tinucci’s to seniors’ homes and the class participated in a virtual talent show. Graduation at the Cathedral is currently scheduled for August 2 — nearly five months since the last time students were together on campus.

With a heartfelt desire to show the seniors how much they were missed and to celebrate their final months, a surprise was orchestrated by the teachers and parents early in the quarantine.

Seniors were honored by the delivery of yard signs honoring the CDH Class of 2020.

“I can’t tell you how much it meant to look out on our front lawn and see this sign,” said Mary Hernandez, mother of Sam Hernandez ’20. “That CDH remembered our son in this crazy time, and reminded us of what a momentous year it is for him, is just so outstanding.”

Economic Downturn and the Impact on CDH

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Of course, CDH was not only impacted by the need for social distancing — our community has also been hit hard by the resulting shutdown of the economy.

Some of our families have experienced a loss of income because of the impact COVID-19 has on the economy, making it difficult to afford a CDH education. CDH does not want to lose any students because of this crisis and quickly established a COVID-19 Emergency Tuition Relief Fund. We asked our community to support families in need, and our donors stepped up, with many of them making their second gifts of the year.

“For families who have worked hard to invest in and support their children’s education, and who suddenly find themselves without the means to continue that support, the difficult choice to discontinue that opportunity just feels so wrong,” said donor Martha Hanzel Johnson ’87. “Coming together to support each other is what the CDH community does best and what makes the school unique, and we wanted to be a part of that.”

The employees were also affected. When the school building closed, our teachers and most staff continued working from home. However, some staff members simply couldn’t perform their job duties if they were not on campus.

“For those people whose work was solely tied to being in the building, we committed to carrying them financially through the fiscal year, which was June 30,” Miley said. “We made a commitment early on not to furlough or let anybody go. We recognized that we have an obligation to the individual to make sure their basic needs are met — there’s tremendous dignity in that.

It was the right thing to do.”

— Continued on page 12 4

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Co-Curriculars Put on Hold

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| Seniors pose at home with their signs.

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| W hen seniors picked up their caps and gowns, they were greeted by signs and decorations around the campus.

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| T he Awards Assembly took place on YouTube this year, with faculty, students, and parents tuning in live to cheer on the award winners.

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| C ASA went virtual, too, with a Quarantine Cup full of challenges and opportunities to earn points. In one of the challenges, students created memes about online school.

Meme submitted by Monica Calkins ’20.

| A hot Italian dinner was hand-delivered by faculty and parents to each senior as part of the virtual “Last Supper.”

Right as winter sports wrapped up and spring sports were about to begin,athletics were put on pause. State tournaments were canceled. Most activities were rescheduled, delayed and eventually canceled, and spring athletes were in a waiting game until it became clear that their season was canceled too. But that wasn’t all. Robotics ground to a halt. Band and choir performances were postponed. Rehearsals for the spring musical were suspended. Service days were canceled.

The COVID-19 Safer at Home order didn’t just affect academics, it put a stop to the co-curriculars that are an important and beloved part of high school education.

While many of these groups found ways to still collaborate together even if distant, such as a virtual YouTube premier of the musical, team bonding via Tik Tok and banquets via Zoom, the unprecedented break in activities and athletics was heartbreaking.

Many questions remain about what will be allowed or not once school reopens. Once more is known, there will be clarity surrounding the resumption of fine arts, clubs, and organizations, as well as service opportunities.

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MODIFIED TRAINING FOR ATHLETES The Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) has provided direction on how athletes can begin to work out and train this summer in anticipation of the fall season.

Modifications include daily check-ins with a thermometer, managing the number of people in an area by special scheduling, reduced access to any shared areas in the building, enhanced sanitation requirements, and more. The CDH Raiders Edge program, which focuses on strength and fitness, began June 16 and is adapted to take into account all of the new precautions and recommendations from MDH, Stay Safe MN, NFHS, and various athletic associations around the state and country.

Final decisions have not been made about how teams will operate for the fall seasons because schools will need to be responsive to community health needs as the fall season approaches. Given the broad range of factors that will determine if there is a fall season at all, most athletic departments around the state are preparing as if things will play as scheduled, but with adaptations. Athletic Director Think Tanks across the state are discussing protocols surrounding social distancing, limitations on spectators, and athlete hygiene.

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First day of school

Last day of school

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Learning Goes the Distance, continued from page 11

#AllInThisTogether Throughout this experience, the Cretin-Derham Hall community responded with inspiring dedication and creativity.

Virtual meetings replaced classroom chatter. Dining room tables became desks. Coaches stayed in touch with their teams, encouraging them to stay in shape and connect with their teammates. Art classes created expressive work about the experience of living through a pandemic. Parents of younger students jumped in to help honor seniors with special deliveries. Teachers with more knowledge of technical tools and apps for educators coached those with less. Students, teachers, and administrators shared a daily prayer on Instagram.

Special events such as the Grandparents Mass and Awards Assembly were held on YouTube, with a live comment stream from the community, rather than in the Field House. Even the CASA families worked together by completing individual or group tasks to compete for the 2020 Quarantine Cup. “I’m so proud of the collaboration we saw throughout this experience,” said Passman. “We were up and running with real learning very quickly because our teachers were dedicated to

What is next?

Planning for 2020-2021 Cretin-Derham Hall is excited to welcome all students and teachers back on campus for the 2020/2021 school year. With hearts filled with hope backed by a high level of planning, we expect to begin the school year with in-person learning.

We will be prepared to begin the school year by reopening campus with significant precautions or modifications as needed to promote a healthy environment in accordance with state and national guidance. CDH will also be ready and able to pivot to either a hybrid model or distance learning if warranted.

Because the safety, health, and well-being of our students and employees, as well as their families, is our top concern, CDH has convened several committees of teachers and administrators to develop detailed plans and protocols for the safe resumption of classes on campus. Our constituents will also provide input. All plans will incorporate the guidance and implementation protocols for schools provided by national and state leaders.

Specific plans will be shared with families in July.

Stay safe and healthy, CDH!

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making this experience positive and valuable for our students.

We learned a lot along the way, and we figured out how to do this with a high level of quality.”

“We also believe that online school wasn’t the same and we truly missed our students and the energy on campus,” explained Passman. “While I wouldn’t ever want to do it again, we are so very proud of our students and our community who responded with admirable resilience and hard work. Together, we created the best experience we could.”

Read the Pioneer Press frontpage report on the launch of CDH’s Online School published on April 1.

Our Community Stepped Up. Our Values are Showing!

By Mona Passman, Principal

“This generation will carry on the vision of our founders, by demanding and creating a more humane world, dedicated to humanity, peace, and justice.”

— MONA PASSMAN, PRINCIPAL

We are only six months into 2020...in those six months, the world has changed. While we can’t predict what the next six months will bring, we do know that the CDH sense of community continues to evolve and grow even stronger.

Next to Catholic, ‘community’ is undeniably Cretin-Derham Hall’s most revered value. True community is sacred and holy. We have always known this to be true, but this year we experienced the holy presence of God at work in our community in ways we never could have imagined.

We won’t know the true impact of COVID-19 for years to come, but we do recognize that on the surface, our society and our school are operating very differently than ever before.

And yet, the school our founders built continues to thrive.

Our alumni speak fondly of their years at Derham Hall, Cretin, and CretinDerham Hall. Despite our empty halls this spring, any alum who might have visited an online classroom would have experienced a familiar sense of “home.”

They would have recognized their alma mater, a place where teachers, counselors, and staff challenge and care for their students. They would have noticed that students continue to respect their teachers and say “thank you,” at the end of class.

They would have shared that familiar sense of school spirit and pride.

During this pandemic, our community stepped up to continue our tradition of excellence. Teachers spent countless hours designing new lessons within their curriculum so that students could continue to learn. Parents transformed their homes into classrooms and students grappled with the process of learning online. Even our benefactors graciously shared resources so that families who were hit economically by the pandemic could continue to attend CDH. No doubt, we left gaps in the established curriculum, but those gaps were replaced by more valuable life lessons. Unlike more traditional models of teaching and learning, we experienced the pandemic in realtime and not in the pages of literature or a history book. Together, teachers, students, parents, and administrators learned alongside one another about our world, society, economics, science, health, and our faith.

While students may not remember all the content of their courses, they will fondly remember and appreciate their teachers who shared this journey with them.

As educators, we learned that we do not have all the answers. While we could share perspective from our past experience, students could share perspective with fresh eyes. We flourished as a true learning community.

We should also take great solace that this generation will be a force for good in our community as we seek justice in the death of George Floyd and as we work to dismantle racial injustice. Our students share the vision of our founders, the Brothers of the Christian Schools, and the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet.

Their collective voice rings loud and strong and they continue to challenge us.

Like our founders, our students will demand that our community seek peace, justice, and equity. Because of this, our community will be stronger.

This pandemic isn’t over and we have a long way to go to establish racial justice, yet we remain hopeful. When we emerge from this pandemic, our students and young alums will be preparing to lead this world. These new leaders will create lives where being with people is more important than acquiring things.

This generation will carry on the vision of our founders, by demanding and creating a more humane world, dedicated to humanity, peace, and justice. As leaders of our community and our world, they will remain in the holy presence of God and they will love God and the dear neighbor without distinction.

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Graduating in the Shadow of COVID-19 Senior Perspectives on the Spring of 2020

The Class of 2020 has a very unique perspective on the impact of COVID-19 on their lives. Just as they were about to begin their spring at CDH, a time full of special honors, moments, celebrations, and just plain fun, they were sheltered at home.

Just as they were preparing to wrap us their four years of hard work and transition to college, they started going to class online. Just as they were about to enjoy Prom, the Last Supper, Baccalaureate and Graduation, they were social distancing from their friends. There were no senior privileges or even the traditional race out the door on the last day of school. Many things were dearly missed. Many paradigms shifted. Individually, and as a group, the seniors were changed because this was ‘their’ unique experience.

We asked several seniors to share their thoughts on this one question:

What did you learn because COVID-19 was part of your senior experience?

BRIDGET TIERNEY

CURTIS JONES

WILL DOMLER

IZZY OSTROM

ZION GUERRA

I learned to never take anything for granted. It sounds cliche but it’s true.

I see my parents, friends, family, and CDH community working every day to try to come up with new things to try to make it all up to us. I now know, more than ever, that I’m closing this chapter of my life with a strong and loving community, supporting me through it all. COVID-19 has been one of the worst things to happen in my lifetime, but it also helped me to see the light shining through, even during what I thought were the darkest times.

Cherish every moment you have with the people you love, because you never know when they might be taken away from you.

I learned how strong the CDH community is and always has been. It put forth a great effort and made these past few months as special as possible for the seniors.

The seniors have had to move on to their next chapter abruptly, whether we like it or not. However, we have supported each other every day of online school, as have CDH faculty and staff members, and we finished strong.

Being a senior during a worldwide pandemic has taught me many things.

“When things change, you adapt; when you adapt, things change!”

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I have come to realize the power in our CDH community. All the staff members, parents, and other students came together to decorate our school on the day we were supposed to graduate and are still working hard to plan an official graduation for us.

COVID-19 has brought many tears and a lot of disappointment to our class, but it has taught me to never take anything in life for granted.

What I’ve learned from COVID-19 is that you have to be ready for anything at anytime. Life is not easy but it’s what you make it!

// CHAPLAIN’S LETTER

My Friends, “Some friends brought a man who was deaf and mute to Jesus. He took the man aside, away from the crowd. Then he slipped his fingers in the man’s ears.

Spitting, he touched the man’s tongue. Then he looked up to heaven and groaned.

“Ephphatha!” Jesus said, which means “be opened.”

So goes the account of the healing of the deaf and mute man near the Sea of Galilee, as told in the Gospel of Mark.

During these days of the pandemic, that same divine intervention received by the deaf mute is what we hope for, especially when we have been told to isolate and keep our distance from each other.

Many people at CDH desired and longed for an opening up of school, just one more time. They would like to celebrate their accomplishments with each other and finish what they started. But, sadly this year, it was not meant to be.

Since our founding, the Christian Brothers, the Sisters of St. Joseph, the faculty, coaches and staff have been tasked with one mission. The mission is singular in nature. It is deeply rooted in the Gospel and mirrors the charisms of our founders. What is this mission? It is to teach each generation of students to always “be open.”

The fundamental purpose of the school has been to open the minds, hearts, the voices, and the individual personalities of every student. Every class, every extracurricular activity, every sporting event, every service project, every prayer uttered and Mass experienced, is directed to unleashing the potential of each student to always remain open as they learn, as they play, as they serve and as they pray. Their openness creates a better world.

Let’s face it. Every generation of students at CDH have faced obstacles to “be open.” Some have faced other pandemics. Some have faced wars and other great calamities. They were challenged, as this generation has been, by things beyond their control.

Yet, in the midst of these disruptions, both great and small, the thing that has stayed constant at CDH is the time-honored task to always remind the students to be open to it all and learn something from it. The history of past generations of graduates has shown, when challenging things happen in our world, our students have the tools they need to endure the challenge, and prevail nonetheless.

In other words, CDH teaches and encourages students to discover a way to belong in the world as it is. And through their participation in it, no matter what is happening for good or ill, our students are taught to create realities that provide hope when needed, faith when uncertainty exists, and love when fear is tempted to overcome one’s spirit and isolate people from each other.

This pandemic will pass. People will find a way to navigate through it all and gain wisdom from what we have learned through the struggle. But even though we have been thrown off by the suddenness of what we have experienced, the mission of CDH remains clear.

Through it all, by being open to each other, open to the world as it is right now, and open to God, who remains present especially when we need him the most, we can understand and respect the noble purpose of why Cretin-Derham Hall exists today.

“CDH teaches and encourages students to discover a way to belong in the world as it is.

And through their participation in it, no matter what is happening for good or ill, our students are taught to create realities that provide hope when needed, faith when uncertainty exists, and love when fear is tempted to overcome one’s spirit and isolate people from each other.”

May God bless you and your family, Father Patrick Kennedy ’69

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// ALUMNI PROFILE

Lifelong Friends, New Collaborators

Stephen Richardson ‘04 and Jim McGurran ‘04 developed a new ventilator at unprecedented speed.

The flurry of headlines this spring focused on their potentially life saving invention, but that was just one chapter in the lifelong friendship of Jim McGurran ’04 and Stephen Richardson ’04.

The two men got to know each other as kids at St. Rose of Lima. They played sports together and even attended a medical science summer camp in grade school. After graduation, even as they remained close friends, taking long road trips to ski in Wyoming and even serving as godfathers to each other’s children, their professional paths diverged.

McGurran earned a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Iowa and began working for MGC Diagnostics as an engineer. He later earned an MBA from the University of Minnesota and still works for MGC, now as the Director of Product Development.

Richardson attended medical school at the University of Minnesota, where he recently completed his fellowship in cardiac anesthesiology and will remain as a practicing anesthesiologist.

Along the way, they developed skill sets that would one day complement each other perfectly.

It was on their most recent ski trip, in January, that the topic of COVID-19 first came up. The news coming out of China didn’t look good, and their medical backgrounds made them keenly Richardson and McGurran have been friends since aware of the potential grade school. consequences, such as the shortage of masks and ventilators.

A Simpler Ventilator Was Needed When the virus hit the United States a few months later, Richardson had an idea — you could create a rough substitute for a ventilator out of basic materials, potentially saving thousands of lives. Essentially, he envisioned using a lever to repeatedly squeeze a bag filled with air. The idea struck him on Saturday, March 14.

“The problem with ventilators is that they are extremely complex, and they have hundreds if not thousands of parts. So you’re not able to produce them fast. I knew there was a possibility we would have to go the direction Italy had and ration ventilators, and this was a way to combat that,” he said.

The next morning, he was about to get on his exercise bike when he decided there was no time to waste. He called up his old pal, McGurran.

“I wasn’t surprised to hear from him,” McGurran said.

“We had never worked together, but our spheres of knowledge 16 TRADITIONS // c-dh.org

overlapped a bit. At first it was just an idea, but Steve had a real sense of urgency that pushed this project along from the beginning.”

Seven hours later, they had a prototype built and validated.

From there, the race was on.

“Many of my colleagues were getting to spend time at home, and I was busier than I’ve ever been. For four weeks, when I wasn’t sleeping, I was working on this,” Richardson said.

By April 15, the device had been approved by the FDA.

By May 21, 5,000 had been manufactured.

“Our ability to develop this project was really leveraged on relationships,” McGurran said. “Steve and I have a really good rapport and were able to work well together, and we had a wide network across the Cities. I was amazed by the energy companies responded with — we were talking to executives and CEOs right away. However, it wasn’t always easy. When you’re working with this many people, and trying to move this fast, you’re going to go around standard approval systems and people are going to get upset.

We just kept distilling the problem: we’re making a bag smasher.

And then finding the simplest way to do that.”

A Sense of Responsibility to Community Both men credit their time at CDH with helping them develop a sense of responsibility to their community.

“My philosophy and theology classes really made me who I am,” Richardson said. “Throughout this process, I just kept coming back to, ‘what’s the right thing to do?’ There might not be a system in place, it might be challenging, it might hurt the system’s feelings, but what’s the right thing to do? You have to pursue that relentlessly. CDH taught me that not only can I impact the world, but that I have a responsibility to. Jim and I both felt like if we could do this, we should do this. We needed to do this.

This is not something I ever planned on doing, but once we saw a path, we needed to make it happen.”

There’s a good chance their devices won’t end up being needed in the U.S., but that doesn’t mean they won’t save lives.

They’ll be distributed overseas, where they can be used in communities that lack ventilators, or in emergency response situations. Plus, they’ve released the design online, open source, so anyone can create their own.

“We hope these won’t be needed, but if they are, I’m glad they exist and I’m glad I got to be part of it,” McGurran said. “This is not a fun time, but this was a really fun and fulfilling project, and it was an honor to work on it with a great friend.”

“Our ability to develop this project was really leveraged on relationships,” McGurran said.

“Steve and I have a really good rapport and were able to work well together, and we had a wide network across the Cities. “ — Jim McGurran ’04

“CDH taught me that not only can I impact the world, but that I have a responsibility to. Jim and I both felt like if we could do this, we should do this. We needed to do this.”

— Stephen Richardson ’04

Cretin-Derham Hall // Summer 2020 17

“At CDH, I learned how to be a leader and the importance of being part of the solution, so I’m always looking for ways to contribute and make a difference.”

— Cameron Perra ’11

TIMELINE

2011-2012

2009-2011 Perra’s parents regularly brought their children to Honduras to volunteer with Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos while he was a student at CDH.

Taught English in Venezuela for a year after high school, at the Venezuelan mission of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

2010 Visited El Salvador with classmates from CDH, learning about the civil war and liberation theology.

18 TRADITIONS // c-dh.org

// ALUMNI PROFILE

Finding Simple Solutions

Cameron Perra ‘11 takes pride in solving complex problems.

His determination to make a positive impact on the world has led Cameron Perra ’11 to travel extensively, but his most recent contribution came much closer to home.

He currently works as a Policy Analyst for Hunger Task Force, a food bank in Milwaukee. When the coronavirus hit, his job was to understand the new laws being passed, such as the CARES act, and translate it to get resources into people’s hands.

Suddenly, thousands of people needed help, and they were not familiar with the systems that could help them.

“With all of the kids out of school, all of a sudden people who were already on the edge beforehand are now in much more severe situations,” Perra said. “So many people that have never thought about needing to go to a food pantry or wondered where they would get food for themselves or their families all of a sudden are pushed into that situation.”

Perra knew the resources were available to feed these families, he just had to figure out a way to get the information out there. He knew that the goal was speed and ease of use — it didn’t need to be anything fancy. It just needed to work. With free Google Maps technology, he quickly created a shareable, interactive map noting all of the food pickup sites in the city.

It made it easy for people to see the options available in their neighborhood, and has so far been viewed over 123,000 times.

Perra, who majored in International Studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and earned a Master’s in Development Practice from the Humphrey School of Public Policy at the University of Minnesota, has devoted his career to looking for the simplest and most effective answer to complex questions.

Hunger Task Force has developed stronger partnerships with organizations across the state of Wisconsin, and he’s had the chance to lead the charge on programs to collect much-needed resources. For example, he worked on a Dairy Recovery Program to purchase milk from farmers that otherwise would have been discarded, and get that milk to families.

“It’s a super strange disconnect. There are all these people

struggling to get food on their tables and yet farmers who are not able to sell their stuff, end up dumping it,” Perra said.

“Knowing that, we’ve tried to fill the gap there and make some connections, which has been really successful but a lot of work.” Perra noted that this is a new challenge during the pandemic, requiring him to set aside some of the policy analysis and just make phone calls and to figure out solutions.

Impacting St. Paul After seeing the need and the positive impact his work was having in Milwaukee, Perra started thinking about how he could make a difference for his hometown.

“While I was making the map for the Milwaukee area, I saw something on Twitter from St. Paul Public Schools about food dropoff locations, and that made me realize that this thing I was putting together would be useful in the Cities, too.” Perra explain.

“I created it and sent it to St. Paul Public Schools, who put it on their website,” he said. “I’ve lived in Minnesota most of my life, so it was a natural extension to do this type of project for a place I have a personal connection to, my neighborhood where I grew up. If it helps a couple people in St. Paul find food for their kids, then that’s great.”

Perra hopes to continue working in policy, particularly informing the development of new policies. He knows from his work that everything is interrelated — housing, labor rights, health, the economy — and wants to be part of creating lasting solutions.

“The way our society is organized, the pandemic has been felt very differently by different members of society. I am hopeful that this really stark reality that reveals the difference between the haves and have-nots in the U.S. will have some lasting positive effects,” Perra said.

“At CDH, I learned how to be a leader and the importance of being part of the solution, so I’m always looking for ways to contribute and make a difference.”

2018 As a graduate student, Perra evaluated a water filtration program in rural Colombia, ultimately developing more effective training systems that would ensure the filters were maintained and usable for the long term.

2014 Spent time in Santiago, Chile as an intern while in college evaluating the effectiveness of programs intended to spur entrepreneurship.

Cretin-Derham Hall // Summer 2020 19

// ALUMNI PROFILE

Mary Ellen Klas ‘77 Believes in Truth and Transparency

As a journalist, “I think this is the most important story and the most important era I’ve ever lived through.” valuable time as a news reporter, because I think people The coronavirus pandemic brought constantly evolving rules understand there’s value in information right now.” and restrictions that varied state-by-state and sometimes even Klas has always seen value in information, and has focused county-by-county. Shrinking local newsrooms suddenly become her career on transparency and accountability. She reports on the source of information that was essential for daily life. As state government, scrutinizing what elected officials are doing people tried to understand the risks, effective safety precautions, and whether or not they could leave their homes, they needed a and keeping the public informed. source of information that was tuned in to their community. As “In Florida’s capital, there are more people who are experts reopening and mask-wearing became in public relations and managing “One of the things that the politicized, unbiased journalism was media than there are reporters to be essential for public health.

Cretin and Derham Hall traditions managed,’’ she said. “Because we’re As Tallahassee Bureau Chief for the so outnumbered, I am constantly teach us so well is that every Miami Herald, Mary Ellen Klas ’77 saw reminding our team that other people’s human life has value and every this firsthand. agendas are not always our agenda.

“When the pandemic started, the Our goal is to cover the most important person has something to give.” state (Florida) was really micromanaging issues for readers and to hold elected — MARY ELLEN KLAS ’77 the data they would release,” she said. officials accountable.”

“They wouldn’t even tell us where the Klas’ concern about the decline deaths were, or which prisons had of local journalism led her to apply positive cases. We put a group of news organizations together for a prestigious Nieman Journalism Fellowship, which gives 24 journalists worldwide the opportunity to study at Harvard for a and sued to get that information released. Now they’re much year while working on an important project. She chose to study more transparent. If we hadn’t been there to push back, I’m not the decline of local journalism. really sure what kind of information the public would have right “Accountability journalism is something that nobody else now,” she explained. is going to do. There are a lot of ways people can get basic information, but somebody needs to hold the government to Information — A Critical Tool of Community Health account. In my experience, with fewer reporters covering the capital, I’ve watched as legislators, candidates, and executives in The flow of information is critical so that citizens can top state agencies don’t worry so much about the impact they’re understand the state of affairs and their role in personal and public having because there’s just fewer reporters to keep the pressure health. “The pandemic, and the protests sparked by the death of on. It goes the other way too: elected officials respond to good George Floyd, have exposed every vulnerability of our current coverage, and when nobody’s writing about them, there’s a little news environment and how misinformation can be distorted less incentive to make good decisions for their community.” through the power of social media. I can’t tell you how many Her top priority has always been to be a trustworthy source emails and tweets I’ve gotten from readers thanking us for providing information to help them make decisions.” of information for her community. After studying political science Covering the pandemic has been all-encompassing. The and journalism at St. Kate’s, she earned her masters in journalism newsroom became entirely virtual, and reporters who typically at Columbia University, then was hired to report for the business covered sports, the arts, restaurants, and other beats all section of the Palm Beach Post. She moved to Tallahassee in 1988 transitioned to COVID coverage. and met her husband, John Kennedy, who is also a statehouse “I think this is the most important story and the most reporter for the Gannett chain. They have two adult daughters. important era I’ve ever lived through,” she said. “We deal with Klas has been covering state politics ever since. crises often in Florida: we’ve had election recounts and numerous Before pursuing journalism, Klas was an active member of hurricanes, all of those events force resources to be directed in a the Derham Hall Student Council, and was a part of the debate pretty potent way. But right now, we have a bigger issue that’s team, where she learned to understand both sides of an argument, affecting more lives. It’s very much like covering a hurricane, think critically, and communicate clearly. Those skills, and the except a hurricane blows over. With this pandemic, you don’t values she learned at Derham Hall, have served her well over the know when it’s going to be over. It’s a scary time but it’s also a course of her career.



20 TRADITIONS // c-dh.org

Journalism Today “There’s a lot of people who think that journalism today is biased,” she explained. “I make a distinction between local journalism and national journalism, which too often echoes our nation’s deep divides — particularly cable television.”

She believes that local journalists are inherently more in touch with their communities. “All journalists have an obligation to understand where our own biases lie and to not let that be reflected in our writing. [We must] know where to ask questions and lead the reader into a better understanding of the issue.”

“Now, when it comes to basic human rights and treatment, I think we can all agree that a journalist who uses the statement ‘black lives matter’ — that’s not bias. One of the things that the Cretin and Derham Hall traditions teach us so well is that every human life has value and every person has something to give.”

Over the years, Klas has given her community information they can trust. As she continues to navigate an uncertain industry, she aims to keep pressure on local officials and mentor the next generation of reporters.

“In these critical times, local journalism performs an essential service,” she said. “There’s not a lot of job security, and we need to figure out a better way to make it profitable, but journalism is not going away.”

UPPER RIGHT: Klas upon finishing her Nieman Fellowship (5/2019).

LOWER: Klas has been a guest on several national networks regarding the role of journalism and local government, especially during COVID-19. Pictured here: Rachel Maddow Show (3/30/20).

She has also appeared on CNN, Fox News, NPR, BBC and others.

Cretin-Derham Hall // Summer 2019 21

// CLASS OF 2020

22 TRADITIONS // c-dh.org

Congratu

// CLASS OF 2020

lations!

// CLASS OF 2020

12 CDH

2020

TOP

STUDENTS

Cretin-Derham Hall honors excellence in academics at Commencement each year by congratulating the top CDH students in each class.

In recognition of their stellar work at CDH over the past four years, each student was asked to reflect on their experience at CDH, especially as it related to their high level of success.

VALEDICTORIAN Benjamin Craighead Post Graduation Plans: Marquette University Intended Major: Civil Engineering

“My teachers always pushed for me to achieve more. They saw the potential in me before I did, always encouraging me to try more. I learned that hard work brings results. It was four years of hard work to get where I am today.”

SALUTATORIAN Matthew Sticha Post Graduation Plans: University of Michigan - Ann Arbor Intended Major: Computer Science

Elizabeth Paterson Post Graduation Plans: University of Minnesota – Twin Cities

“CDH motivated me to achieve excellence by surrounding me with a plethora of resources as well as wonderful people...my experience at CDH these past four years was one that was constantly changing and involved a great deal of growth and discovery. I was surrounded by so many wonderful students and faculty that helped me on my journey and who I will forever be grateful for. ”

“To me, excellence is finding happiness in your life and giving happiness to others. Once we learn to love ourselves, others, and our lives, we reach excellence.”

Intended Major: Biomedical Engineering

Olivia Kalla Post Graduation Plans: University of Notre Dame Intended Major: Engineering

Cecelia Ziegler Post Graduation Plans: Middlebury College Intended Major: Computer Science and Mathematics 24 TRADITIONS // c-dh.org

“I have many fond memories of my time at CDH, inside of the classroom and out. I went into high school knowing very few people, but have come out of CDH with many strong, everlasting friendships. The challenging coursework has prepared me very well for college and I am hopeful that the foundation I have built at CDH will carry me through my college years.”

“One lesson I learned at CDH is the importance of spending time to truly get to know someone. During my time at CDH, I met so many different people who came from so many different backgrounds.

I learned that although people might seem a certain way on the outside, you will never truly know them unless you take the time to do so.”

// CLASS OF 2020

Anamaria Cullen

“CDH motivated me to achieve excellence because it was obvious every teacher wanted us to do our best. The way they taught me and showed concern toward my success in each class and in life made me want to do better and excel. I think the relationships I have formed and the lessons I have learned from CDH will benefit me well beyond graduation.”

Post Graduation Plans: Creighton University Intended Major: Business

Isabella McDonnell

“I define excellence as achieving whatever it is that you are capable of.

Excellence is living up to your full potential, each and every day. We all have different talents and skillsets, but using yours in a way that helps bring about the most good for the world and others is what makes you excellent.”

Post Graduation Plans: University of Wisconsin – Madison Intended Major: Pre Law – Legal Studies/Psychology

Hannah Conroy

“The combination of the competitive atmosphere found in the classroom and the willingness of all my teachers to help truly helped motivate me to achieve greatness. (At the end of senior year,) online school truly reaffirmed how much I valued the daily interactions with my classmates, friends, and teachers.”

Post Graduation Plans: Clemson University Intended Major: Nursing

Elijah Awada

“In my time at CDH, I have been given a wonderful opportunity to find myself. Through my experiences in theater, service, sports etc., I have developed a confident grasp of my identity and how I can use my skills to better my community. In being surrounded by such a strong support system at CDH, I was able to take risks without fear of judgment or failure.”

Post Graduation Plans: University of Minnesota – Twin Cities Intended Major: English

Anneke van Oosterom

“Cretin-Derham Hall taught me how to be an active member of the community and the importance of giving back. I have learned that service is of great importance to me. Volunteering at various locations and serving as co-chair of the Blood Drive, I have enriched my desire to help others.”

Post Graduation Plans: St. Catherine University Intended Major: Biology and Data Science

Ian Machado

“CDH taught me that if you only do the things you like, you may never discover something you love. Since CDH is a school of diverse excellence, I was driven to take advantage of numerous opportunities available to me.”

Post Graduation Plans: Cornell University Intended Major: Engineering

Olivia Esch

“As I reflect on my experiences at CDH, one value that has been prominent throughout my four years has been ‘community.’ Whether we face adversity or celebrate homecoming, I feel privileged to be part of this special family, both as a student and now as an alum.”

Post Graduation Plans: Virginia Tech Intended Major: Engineering

Cretin-Derham Hall // Summer 2020 25

// AWARD WINNERS 2020

2020

AWARD WINNERS

ExCel Awards

The ExCEL Award recognizes two junior students with superior involvement in the fine arts or athletics, leadership positions and volunteer work.

Ella Klein ‘21 Theodore Paar ‘21

Every year, Cretin-Derham Hall proudly honors students for their achievements in academics, co-curricular leadership, and faith and character. This year’s Honors Assembly was held virutally on April 30.

Several impressive achievements awards are presented to deserving students at the assembly. In addition, each curricular department presents awards to outstanding students, which were presented in May. The students in National Honor Society were honored in May.

Kopp Family Foundation Scholarships

The Kopp Family Foundation Scholarship recognizes two seniors graduating from Cretin-Derham Hall each year. This award honors students who have led by example and consistently work to their ability in the classroom, while involved in service activities and positive in their interactions with others.

Bailey Collmann ‘20 Anamaria Cullen ‘20

Sister Mary Aloysius Sherin, CSJ Scholarship

Triple “A” Awards

The Triple “A” Award honors two senior students for their achievements in the classroom, the arts, and athletics.

Isabella McDonnell ‘20 Elijah Awada ‘20

Hugh Derham Award

Presented in honor of Hugh Derham, the first benefactor of Derham Hall High School, it honors a female who demonstrates excellence in all three areas of athletics, attitude, and academics.

Paige Peltier ‘20

26 TRADITIONS // c-dh.org

The Sister Mary Aloysius Sherin, CSJ Scholarship Endowment was established by Gail Galvani Bell, Derham Hall ’70. Sister Mary Aloysius, a math teacher and former principal, instilled in Gail a lifelong love of math. This award honors a junior female who has demonstrated significant achievement in math.

Lauren Loeffler ‘21

Harvey Buron Spirit Award

The Harvey Buron Spirit award is presented in honor of Harvey Buron, a Cretin teacher from 1961-1981. This award recognizes the male athlete that best exemplifies dedication, hard work and positive attitude.

Will Burke ’20

Len Horyza Memorial Scholarships The Len Horyza Memorial Scholarship honors a teacher, coach and mentor at Cretin High School and Cretin-Derham Hall for 35 years. Two scholarships are awarded in recognition of his service. The first one honors a student who has demonstrated the qualities he encouraged: leadership, perseverance, and commitment.

Claire Davies ‘21 The second award goes to a member of the boys varsity basketball team who demonstrates a strong work ethic in and off the court.

Keegan Hilger ‘21

Derham Hall Carondelet Leadership Awards

This award was created by alumnae in 1995 to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the founding of Derham Hall. This endowment recognizes and rewards two junior female students who have demonstrated exceptional leadership skills and academic excellence and who reflect the charisms of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet.

Carmella McGee ‘21 Cherry Hope Jordan ‘21

// AWARD WINNERS 2020 Raider Awards

Raider Award recipients exemplify the ideals of a positive spirit of sport and the core mission of athletics at CDH. This year, there are three winners.

CeCe Zigler ‘20 Emily McQuillan ‘20 Ted Muetzel ‘20

McDonough Spirit Award

Presented in honor of Mary Ann and Tom McDonough in generosity for their generosity and dedication to girls’ athletics at CretinDerham Hall. The McDonough Spirit Award recognizes the female athlete who best exemplifies hard work and a positive attitude.

Stella Dolan ‘20

Courage of the Raider Award

Presented to two students who have overcome extraordinary odds to return to high competition in sports and activities, this award honors the courage and resiliency that exemplifies a Raider.

Lillian Reid ‘20 Zion Guerra ‘20

Winfield Awards

Named in honor of MLB Hall-of-Famer and St. Paul native, Dave Winfield, this award recognized outstanding work ethic and leadership in athletics.

Sydney Jackson ‘20 Curtis Jones ‘20

Perfect ACT Score Xuan An Le ‘20

Excellence in Fine Arts Awards Established in 2017, this award honors seniors who have done extensive and excellent work across several Fine Arts disciplines.

Eli Awada ‘20 Laura Seifert ‘20

Lepsche Family Memorial Award and Scholarship

The Lepsche family established this award to honor the memory of their late son, Ray Lepsche, Jr. ‘66 who was killed in an auto accident.

This award honors a junior male student who has demonstrated significant achievement in religion.

Knowledge Gant ‘21

Stupka Family Awards

The Robert Stupka III scholarship was established in memory of Robbie Stupka III, ‘02. Two scholarships are awarded to juniors who demonstrate a love for science and the scientific process.

Appointment to U.S. Military Academy Will Domler ‘20

Tatum Evans ‘21 Mary Wicklund ‘21

Padden Award

Presented in honor of James Padden ‘48 who died in the Korean War. The male recipient must have demonstrated excellence in athletics, attitude and academics.

Remembering

Paige Bullis 2002-2019 Class of 2020

Matthew Gleason ‘ 20

Cretin-Derham Hall // Summer 2020 27

// AWARD WINNERS 2020

2020

AWARD WINNERS

There are two special awards that honor students who show exceptional character traits that are highly valued at CDH. On behalf of the CDH community, we congratulate these young men and women of the Class of 2020, as well as all the accomplished young men and women recognized for their achievements this year.

ARCHBISHOP JOHN IRELAND AWARD This award honors Archbishop Ireland by recognizing an outstanding senior male for his zealous faith, leadership, integrity, and commitment to service and social justice.

Archbishop John Ireland was a pivotal figure in the growth of our local church. With his sister, Ellen, John Ireland experienced the expansion of the Minnesota Territory during his childhood. Ordained a priest in 1861, he became the chaplain for the 5th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War in 1862.

Returning to Saint Paul, he became Rector of the Cathedral of Saint Paul and was appointed the first Archbishop in 1888. Archbishop Ireland’s ideas for social reform and the relationship between church and society left profound outcomes.

He established Saint Thomas Academy, the Saint Paul Seminary, and the University of Saint Thomas.

This year, Cretin-Derham Hall recognizes two outstanding senior males for their faith (zeal), leadership, integrity, and commitment to service and social justice. This is the most prestigious award for a male from Cretin-Derham Hall.

They receive this distinction having been chosen by their peers.

Will Burke 2020 Recipient • Archbishop John Ireland Award Our first recipient is known for his gentleness and steady soft-spoken presence. His leadership in various activities inspires others to want to be better people. He leads by example and uses words when it is necessary. His classmates recognize his gifts but more so, his incredible character.

Will plans to attend the University of St. Thomas.

Harry Olander 2020 Recipient • Archbishop John Ireland Award Our second recipient has been engaged in making everyone feel a part of Cretin-Derham Hall. He leads with integrity and heart. He has committed his time to improve school climate which is why he is so appreciated by his class. He has been described as truly kind-hearted and generous. He brings energy to challenges and solutions to issues.

Harry plans to attend St. Olaf College.

28 TRADITIONS // c-dh.org

// AWARD WINNERS 2020

MOTHER SERAPHINE IRELAND AWARD Honoring the contributions of Mother Seraphine Ireland, Cretin-Derham Hall recognizes an outstanding senior female for her zealous faith, leadership, integrity, commitment to service and social justice.

This award honors Ellen Ireland, the oldest daughter in the Ireland family. She immigrated with her family, including her brother, John, who later became the bishop, to the United States and settled in Saint Paul in 1852.

Blessed with a combination of intelligence, warmth, humility, wit, and common sense, Ellen joined the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Carondelet and was given the name Sister Seraphine. By age 30, Sister Seraphine was appointed Superior (“Mother”) and served the province for 39 years. Believing that education leads to social transformation, she established 30 parochial schools, five hospitals, and forty-eight learning institutions, including Saint Catherine’s University and Derham Hall.

This year, Cretin-Derham Hall recognizes two outstanding senior females for their faith (zeal), leadership, integrity, and commitment to service and social justice. This is the most prestigious award for a female from Cretin-Derham Hall. They receive this distinction having been chosen by their peers.

Stella Dolan 2020 Recipient • Mother Seraphine Ireland Award Our first recipient has been described as a humble leader, a caring classmate, and a compassionate young woman of faith. Her classmates describe her as thoughtful, and one who puts others before herself. She is admired for her love of family and her great love of her faith. She creates meaningful relationships with all who know her.

Stella plans to attend Bemidji State University.

Margaret Musolf 2020 Recipient • Mother Seraphine Ireland Award Our second recipient stands out for her leadership and gentle nature. She generously gives of her time and talent to her classmates and those in need. Her positive nature is both contagious and admired. Her integrity is only surpassed by her faith and belief in the goodness of others. She is highly respected by her senior class.

Margaret plans to attend the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities.

Cretin-Derham Hall // Summer 2020 29

// CLASS OF 2020

252 GRADUATES

44%

ACCEPTANCE INTO HIGHLY SELECTIVE COLLEGES

(national rate for same schools is less than 33%)

93

IFFERENT COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES D ATTENDED BY A RAIDER

50%

21

CHOOSING DIFFERENT SCHOOLS IN MINNESOTA

30 TRADITIONS // c-dh.org

31.6

A VERAGE ACT SCORE FOR TOP 10% CLASS (over the past two years)

1

TTENDING AN A IVY LEAGUE SCHOOL

30%

ATTENDING CATHOLIC UNIVERSITIES

1

94%

CHOOSING POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION

GOING TO U.S. MILTARY ACADEMY

2

(4 taking a gap year | 4 enlisting in the military | 7 undecideds)

ARMY ENLISTMENTS

2

AIR FORCE ENLISTMENTS

77%

OF THOSE ATTENDING FOUR-YEAR SCHOOLS RECEIVED ONE OR MORE MERIT SCHOLARSHIPS

71%

ATTENDING COLLEGE IN THE FIVE STATE AREA (MN, ND, SD, IA, WI)

1

TTENDING HISTORICALLY A BLACK COLLEGE

Cretin-Derham Hall // Summer 2020 31

// PURPLE PRIDE

Class of 2020 Commencement August 1, 2020 2:30 pm Cathedral of St. Paul In celebration of the Class of 2020, the graduation ceremony has been delayed in order for the graduates to be able to gather together as a class one last time. More information and details will be sent to graduates and their parents as the event draws closer.

The Grandparents Mass Tradition Continues Grandparents Mass has become a beloved CDH tradition.

To maintain this tradition, even during a pandemic, we held our first-ever Virtual Grandparents Mass on May 15.

The opportunity to gather for Mass is one of the special things about being part of the Cretin-Derham Hall community.

Quarantine and Online School meant there was no opportunity to gather in the Field House with our grandparents, but it did not prevent us from worshipping together.

Fr. Pat Kennedy ’69 said the Mass in our chapel. A poignant reflection was offered by five seniors, Kate Dario, Harry Olander, Stella Dolan, Jack Traxler, and Anamaria Cullen, who spoke about their grandparents and what they have learned from them.

This Mass also marked the 120th anniversary of St. John Baptist de LaSalle being declared a saint in the Catholic Church.

De LaSalle founded the Christian Brothers, who, along with the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondolet are the sponsors of CretinDerham Hall. The Christian Brothers now serve over one million students around the world.

The Mass was videotaped so that safe distancing could be maintained. The virtual format allowed the seniors to be filmed

individually outdoors. Once uploaded to YouTube, the videopremiered at a predetermined time for a virtual assembly enabling our community to gather virtually and share the Mass experience. The Mass was viewed by more than 800 households, bringing student together with grandparents near and far, along with faculty and staff.

The 2020 CDH Grandparents Mass can be viewed by scanning this QR Code.

HOW DO I USE THESE QR CODES? The square barcodes you see referenced in our magazine and other places are a fast way to access website links in a printed publication. Most smartphones have this capability either via their camera or an app. Check your phone to see if you need the app, and if so, follow the app directions. In most cases, you can follow these easy steps: 1. Open your camera or your app.

2. Position your phone so the QR code appears in the viewfinder.

3. The web link will either launch automatically or a notification bar will appear near the top of your screen.

4. Click on that bar to open the link.

32 TRADITIONS // c-dh.org

// PURPLE PRIDE

Mona Passman, Principal announces an additional special award presented to all faculty in honor of their individual and collective dedication to the students of CDH during Online School.

Special One-Time Honor Announced at Annual Faculty Awards Celebration Each year, faculty and staff gather at the end of the school year to recognize those individual employees who exemplified our Cretin-Derham Hall values. Awardees are nominated by their peers and selected by the Academic Committee of the Board of Directors and Frank Miley. The event was delayed this year due to social gathering restrictions, but all faculty were invited to gather either on campus or virtually on June 17, which marked the first time many teachers had been together on campus in several months. More than 60 were in attendance, honoring social distance and wearing masks all around. Others joined in to support their colleagues virtually.

This year, one nomination was, in the words of Science teacher Sylvia Hoffstrom, “not normal, but these are not normal times.” She nominated all CDH faculty for their resiliant and caring response to unprecedented challenges this past school year. This year, in addition to the seven Values Awards, Cretin-Derham Hall is proud to honor CDH Faculty for living the CDH Values during Online School.

The nomination reads: I (Sylvia Hoffstrom) would like to nominate the CDH Faculty for these awards. This group of individuals encompass the Values of CDH. We came together as a group on March 16 and 17 to plan, not knowing what was ahead of us, but we all knew the one goal was to make sure our students were getting the education that they wanted and deserved.

We all became ever-present in the students’ lives via technology, though we all longed to be present with our students in the classroom. By being there for our students, through the computer and various other iPad applications when they needed a kind heart, a gentle smile or nod of “Yes, I see and value you,” we let the students know that we were still here for them.

We formed various groups via Google Hangout to communicate with each other, to teach each other, to hold mini workshops after school to learn a new mode of teaching and hold each other up when we thought we were falling or failing.

All [of this dedication and hard work was done] in the name of CDH and our students.

Yes, this is not a normal nomination, but these are not normal times. Therefore, I would like to nominate the CDH Faculty for a 2020 Values Award.

The Award Plaque will hang in the Teachers’ Lounge. To futher honor the faculty, a gift in their name was given to Dorothy Day in St. Paul.

Congratulations to the CDH Faculty! Thank you for your dedication to our students and to each other. This special award is presented in addition to the other Values Awards.

For more information on the 2020 Faculty Awards click on the QR Code.

Cretin-Derham Hall // Summer 2020 33

// FACULTY FOCUS

Tony Leseman ‘01 Proudly Represents CDH Building Enrollment, One Student at a Time

As Director of Admissions, Tony Leseman ’01, has the unique opportunity to work with all aspects of Cretin-Derham Hall. Of course, his work with prospective students is front and center, and he enjoys welcoming our newest students on campus. But even after students enroll, he remains in contact with students all four years of their CDH experience. He connects with teachers daily and has a wonderful network of alumni that know and love the school. We asked Tony to tell us more about his perspective on CDH from his unique vantage point.

What were you involved in when you were a student at CDH? I was mainly involved in sports at CDH. I played Football, Basketball, and Baseball for all four years. I loved playing different sports, competing with different friends, and being able to focus on more than just one sport.

When you think back to your time at CDH, what has stayed the same?

The commitment of faculty/staff to support students to be their best in and outside the classroom! I recall many teachers during my days at CDH who genuinely cared about me and my experience. Now that I’m a staff member at CDH, I accept that responsibility and it’s so cool that the faculty and staff’s effort and care for students has never altered from then to now.

When you think back to your time at CDH, what has changed?

The lunch menu and social media. I sure miss me some ribticklers and circle pizzas but it’s definitely a good thing that our lunch menu now offers a variety of foods for us to eat, many of which are way healthier. Social media has certainly provided CDH a platform to promote all of the wonderful things going on at CDH. It also means that everyone always knows what everyone is doing in and out of school, which is certainly different than trying to figure out what’s going on by calling my buddy’s home phone line.

What did you want to be ‘when you grew up?’

Aside from wanting to play in the MLB or NBA, I wanted to be a firefighter. I’ve always appreciated their impact on helping others and how much they have to work as a team. I’ve always been on a team and thought a firefighter would be a good fit for me. I was very close to going to firefighter training until I was encouraged to apply for a job at CDH. Funny how things work out.

You get to meet all incoming students in your job as Admissions Director. What have you learned about today’s teenagers?

They are still as awkward as I probably was when I was in 8th grade. I’m kidding. Today’s teenagers are much more connected with each other through social media even when they don’t attend the same middle school. More often than not, a student knows another student who is considering CDH, simply because they play the same sport or they have a mutual friend. Today’s teenagers are also much more involved with the decision-making process of searching for a high school than I remember. I have the unique opportunity to meet each student before their experience starts at CDH and I welcome them through the doors and congratulate them as they go out after four years.

34 TRADITIONS // c-dh.org

What do you wish people knew about CDH? Two things: 1) how impressive our curriculum is; and 2) how beneficial it is to be a CDH graduate. Our academic experience is so comprehensive and expansive, students will truly have a premium high school education that is very competitive against other schools. Our students are able to attend the college or university of their choice and are well-prepared to take the next step in their lives after CDH. I truly believe that our broad curriculum helps open our student’s eyes to the talents they have and what they desire to do long term.

“I have the unique opportunity to meet each student before their experience starts at CDH and I welcome them through the doors and congratulate them as they go out after four years.” — TONY LESEMAN ’01 Your job doesn’t stop once the students are enrolled at CDH. How do you connect with them once they are here, walking our halls?

I definitely like to stay connected with our students after they enroll! They also help my efforts with the next wave of potential students because our students are our best marketing. There are no better advocates to have in my corner than current CDH students.

They sell CDH, not me. I also have the opportunity to coach 9th grade baseball at CDH in the spring. It’s a great way for me to give back to the program that has given me so much and it’s a way for me to hopefully improve the experience of our students. I also lead a few clubs on the side such as Table Tennis, CDH Friendship Club, and I support our annual Empty Bowls by making soup.

The Class of 2020 is leaving CDH in a way that no other class has ever experienced. What is your message to them?

Although there is so much that is not fair to you in regards to how you’ve been forced to end your CDH experience, what makes sense is who you have become today and why. You all have contributed so much to our CDH community in so many ways that words cannot adequately express.

What advice do you have for our incoming Class of 2024?

We cannot wait to have you on our campus and officially begin your CDH experience! Your class is so unique with where some students are coming from, your interests, talents, and much more.

You were destined to be Raiders and I can’t wait to see what tremendous impact you will bring to our CDH community.

Why are the four years of high school so important?

In my opinion, high school is where you will most likely meet some of your lifelong best friends. It’s a time of transitions, new beginnings, and adventure. High school, particularly at CDH, will be some of the best years of your life.

FAST FACTS WHERE DID YOU GROW UP? Highland Park WHAT COLLEGE DID YOU ATTEND? University of Minnesota – Twin Cities WHAT DEGREE? Business Marketing and Education TELL US MORE ABOUT YOUR FAMILY: Married to Ashley for 10 years and blessed with three children; Clara (8), Annie (6), and Luke (4). We live in Highland Park and love raising a family in the same community where I grew up.

GOLFING OR FISHING? I love doing both as often as I can.

PURPLE OR GOLD? Purple FAVORITE MENU ITEM AT THE NOOK? Lodge burger, for sure!

Cretin-Derham Hall // Summer 2020 35

// ADVANCING OUR MISSION

COVID-19 Give Day Supports CDH Families The coronavirus has impacted our community in many ways. For some families, it has made affording a CDH education next year out of reach.

“We want everyone to be able to return as part of our CDH community,” said Frank Miley, President. “We launched this COVID-19 Emergency Tuition Relief Fund to specifically support families struggling due to job loss or furloughs due to the coronavirus. We will do what we can to make sure the pandemic does not put a CDH education at risk!”

Our generous alumni and friends truly stepped up, with many of them making special gifts on top of their regular annual giving. For the first time, we were able to accept gifts on Venmo (@Cretin-DerhamHall), enabling a convenient giving option and drawing in more of our youngest alumni.

Altogether, more than 600 donors came together to give more than $300,000 and donations continue to come in.

The generosity of our donors is having a direct impact on our families during this unprecedented health and economic crisis. If you made a gift, thank you! If you have not given yet and are able to support the CDH COVID-19 Emergency Tuition Relief Fund, please use the QR code or visit c-dh.org/donate to give online or through Venmo @Cretin-DerhamHall.

36 TRADITIONS // c-dh.org

Why Our Donors Give “The request for help to the COVID-19 emergency fund struck me as the perfect place to direct our contribution this year. Our hearts go out to all our students and young adults experiencing a seismic alteration in the present and near-future they anticipated. Financial, relational, educational, psychological, spiritual challenges can present stressors for which they deserve support and hope. May we all rise on their behalf.”

— Mary Ann Goodman Reilly ’57 “In challenging times community is vital, and in times like these I am keenly aware of where I came from, and the opportunities it has afforded me. As CDH grads, my brother and I have always felt supported by this community. Our teachers, coaches, and classmates cheered us through the highs and offered helping hands through the lows. This fundraiser is an opportunity for us to give back, pay it forward, and support the community that has given us so much. If we all band together in that mentality we can ensure this community remains strong for current and future students.”

— John Onwualu ’09 “I know many CDH families may be struggling financially right now. The CDH family always pulls together to support one another, and my donation was part of that.”

— Kaitlin Beaudry Turner ’99

// ADVANCING OUR MISSION

Our Event Calendar is Filling Up Once Again The impact of COVID-19 remains uncertain as the summer will turn into fall. Most of our upcoming alumni and community events have been postponed or canceled. We truly look forward to when we are able to gather again! In the meantime, we encourage you to stay connected to CDH through our social media channels below and know we are keeping our community in our prayers.

If you have any questions, please contact the Advancement Office at 651-696-3318.

2020 Virtual Raffle Drawing (car and pool table) (Taste of CDH has been postponed to April, 2021)

NEW DATE: July 28 | 1 pm Open to the public. Check website for more details.

Reunions

Most reunion events, which are managed by members of each graduating class, have been canceled and will be rescheduled for next year. Please see the CDH website for the most up-to-date information. Milestone reunions, celebrating the Classes of 1960, 1961, 1970, 1971, 1995, and 1996, will be recognized at the ONE CDH event in 2021.

Volunteer Leadership & Class Rep Meeting

CANCELED (August 13, 2020)

Taste of CDH

NEW DATE: April 17, 2021

CDH Athletic Hall of Fame

NEW DATE: June 17, 2021

ONE CDH Event

NEW EVENT coming September 16, 2021

Community Awards Banquet

NEW DATE: October 25, 2021

GiveCDH Day

October 28, 2020

c-dh.org

twitter.com/@CDHraiders

facebook.com/CDHAdvancementandAlumni

instagram.com/CretinDerhamHall facebook.com/CretinDerham Hall

Cretin.

Derham Hall.

Cretin-Derham Hall.

ONE CDH. With pride in our past and faith in our future, we are ONE CDH. Watch for more information on a special event to be held SEPTEMBER 16, 2021.

Cretin-Derham Hall // Summer 2020 37

// ALUMNI CLASS NOTES

Help Locate Our Missing Alums The CDH Advancement Office asks for your help in locating our lost alums for the CDH classes of 1993, 1999, 2001, 2003, and 2007.

We are interested in emails, addresses, and/or phone numbers you have for the alumni listed on this page. Mail updates to CDH Advancement Office, 550 S. Albert St., St. Paul, MN 55116, or contact Peggy Schafer ’79 at 651-696-3318 or pschafer@c-dh.org.

You are also encouraged to update your information online at www.c-dh.org/Updateinformation. Thank you Cretin-Derham Hall Class of 1993 Joshua J. Bates Edward M. Boland Christopher C. Corich Stephanie A. Crowns Dylan DiPrima Andrew S. Guyette Andrew Hahs Maia T. Hendrickson Zachary Howe Arvesta Kelly Tangela Lewis Heidi A. Meisinger Clinton M. Monson Julie Norris Tauer Kathleen M. Pilney Patrick J. Rafferty David Skelton John F. Thomas Will Winterer Cretin-Derham Hall Class of 1999 Todd C. Clouser Matthew J. Derichs H. Domenico D’Valle Rhiannon C. Fermoyle Courtney M. Flynn

Daniela A. Gonzalez Florian Hochstrasser Katherine M. Huemmer Angela M. Hume Lewandowski Alvin L. Irby Jennifer S. Kipka Schepers Andrew J. Kirk Justin T. Kowalski Sarah E. Kretman James J. Krieger Samantha M. Kronschnabel Emily S. Lage Rosalia A. Lopez Noreen P. McGill Michael J. McNamara Tracy A. Monahan Hernan D. Moncada Lucia Ondrova Stacey L. Quant Frank S. Rogers Ann T. Rydell Berg John M. Schaffer Lydia R. Sifferlen George W. Struve Atzuko Tano Mark A. Tracy Gennet T. Tsehaye

Caitlin A. Walters Sara T. Webber Meyer Tomasz P. Werner Kevin T. Williams Cretin-Derham Hall Class of 2001 Jan Benes Matthew J. Bettenburg Angela R. Bright Erik T. Classen Teresa A. Conlan Matthew J. Decker Jessica L. Dickey William E. Drexler Brian P. Geary Elizabeth R. Gilbertson Kathryn M. Grimaluskus Thomas J. Gustafson Timothy C. Haley Sarah M. Jensen Emily T. McGuigan Gregory M. Mucha Katie A. Plummer Rose T. Powell Ian J. Ryan Joseph A. Schneider Steve P. Sir Sarah J. Thonet

Cretin-Derham Hall Class of 2003 Meaghan E. Coonan Christina Crotty Stephanie L. Espersen Alicia L. Fuller Daniel W. Hines Bryan W. Lanzy Stephen M. Lyon Ryan M. Moore Sarah F. Moore Katherine Moyer Tuttle Amy C. Park Daniel S. Pearson Amanda T. Sachi De Ana A. Smith Lindsey M. St. Martin Daniel C. Swenson Vincent A. Trojan Elizabeth K. Tschida Michael D. Tschida Brandon M. Vossberg Lauren E. Walker Rachel M. Ward

Cretin-Derham Hall Class of 2007 Alexandra J. Boyd Eric E. Brost Daniel A. Calderon Jose E. Castro-Gomez Alejandro J. Cerda Margaret J. Coyle Thomas J. DeMarco Andrew S. Doughty Andre S. Dupre Victoria L. Eggenberger Lula Gebrehiwet Alonso Jaque-Pino Dominic A. Krezowski Dominic M. Pitera Bryan D. Racine Lauren E. Ray Bryan W. Rewey Tankiso S. Sekese John L. Tinucci Elizabeth C. Wiggin Jon W. Wikstrom

CDH Alumni Do you still live at your parent’s house?

If not, please update us on where we can send reunion information, class updates, and other news about CDH.

We need your help!

Parents of CDH Alumni

We are making a tremendous effort to update our addresses for our CDH alumni.

Many of them still have your address in our database and we need your help to update our data. Please notify us of your son’s or daughter’s current contact information or have them visit the link below to update us easily online.

Go to c-dh.org/UpdateInformation 38 TRADITIONS // c-dh.org

Let’s be friends. Join us on facebook.com at Cretin-Derham Hall Advancement and Alumni

1960s Bill Rossini ’65 was named to the Mancini’s Hall of Fame for hockey.

1980s Monica Nilsson ’85 is Program Director for Hope Avenue, a homeless shelter. Her work was featured in the Star Tribune.

1990s Mahdi Cocci ’98 is starring as Tom Brooks on the BET show “Bruh.”

2000s Brian Knutson ’00 is working as a US Army Interagency Fellow at the Federal Emergency Management Agency in Washington DC. He is currently working on the supply chain task force to assist the federal government in procuring medical supplies and equipment to support FEMA regions and individual states during the COVID-19 crisis.

Erin Berrisford ’08 sang Fr. Mike Joncas’ song, “Shelter Me,” to raise funds for Catholic Charities of St. Paul and Minneapolis during the COVID-19 health crisis. Her sister Hayley Berrisford Mueller ’06, who is Vice President for Development for Catholic Charities, invited Erin to perform this song. The two are daughters of Sgt. David Berrisford, JROTC instructor at CDH. Danny Docherty ’08 raced in the Olympic marathon trials in Atlanta, alongside 700 of the nation’s top runners.

He ran a 5:30 mile, finishing the marathon in under two and a half hours.

Willie Schneider ’09 was featured on the “Elevator Clinics” podcast discussing his career in player personnel for the Seattle Seahawks.

2010s Emma Kelly ’14 earned her Master of Arts from The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC. Her degree is in World Politics. Her thesis is titled Regime Type and Its Effect on Bilateral Relationships: How Democratization Changed the Relationships Between the Philippines, South Korea, and Japan).

She has been working at a small company called LRG Inc in DC since 2016 as a Program Specialist and plans to stay on staff there.

Jashon Cornell ’15 was drafted in the 7th round by the Detroit Lions.

Jake Lacina ’15 was drafted as a free agent for the Minnesota Vikings.

Dan Greenheck ’16 and Jack Kemper ’16 were both named to the 2020 National Football Foundation & College Football Hall of Fame Hampshire Honor Society.

To qualify, student-athletes must be either a starter or a significant substitute in one’s last year of eligibility, achieve a 3.2 cumulative grade-point average and meet all NCAA-mandated progress towards degree requirements. Dan and Jack both played for St. John’s University.

Jane Hoffman ’16 collaborated with her family to feed front-line healthcare workers.

The matriarch of the family is Dianne Hoffman ’50.

Michael Perra ’16 was named the senior student-athlete of the year at Villanova University, where he competed on the dive team and is graduating cum laude.

1990s // Steven Kozel ’92 spent the month of January 2020 in Prague, Czech Republic, to earn a CELTA certification. CELTA stands for Certificate in English Language Teaching Adults. Steven is now certified to teach English as a second or foreign language anywhere in the world with this special certification.

The certification is granted from the University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom.

Alyssa Karel Ylinen ’07 was inducted to the Catholic Athletic Association Hall of Fame for her basketball achievements at CDH, the University of Wisconsin, and in the German Professional League.

Cretin-Derham Hall // Summer 2020 39

// ALUMNI CLASS NOTES

In Memoriam Thomas Sheehan ’17 was featured by Northwestern University for unfortunately being required to evacuate two different study abroad programs this school year.

He left a program in Hong Kong due to protests there and a program in Istanbul due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Autam Mendez ’18 was named Iowa Community College Athletic Conference Female Student-Athlete of the Year and National Junior College Athletic Association Basketball Player of the Year.

She has been playing for North Iowa Area Community College and is transferring to San Jose State University next year.

Daniel Oturu ’18 declared for the NBA draft.

Will Dusek ’19 was cast in “Polkadots: The Cool Kids Musical” at the Ordway opposite Emma Schuld ’20, which would have been the first professional show for both of them. The show was canceled due to COVID-19.

This is a compilation of deceased alumni and friends we have been made aware of since the Winter 2020 Traditions. Please remember in your prayers our deceased Cretin, Derham Hall, and Cretin-Derham Hall alumni and their families, especially: Robert J. Bray ’35 William G. Strub ’38 Ruth Brings Kremer ’40 Lucille Rihm Foss ’41 Walter N. Welsch ’41 Robert J. Moder ’42 Raymond H. Petschel ’42 Paul E. Carlson ’43 Earl M. English ’43 Jeanne Hannon Larson ’44 Kenneth H. Westman ’44 Dr. Herbert J. Stemper ’45 Phyllis Anfang Cobb ’46 Alfred E. Smith ’47 Roger L. Walsh ’47 James C. Baht ’48 John J. Hougnon ’48 James W. McCabe ’48 Charles J. McMahon ’48 Carl D. Rossini ’48 Gerald F. Sexton ’48 Paul L. Capecchi ’49 Jane King Kaju ’49 Giles E. Kobilka ’49 A. Michael Steffes Jr. ’49 William J. Darrington ’50 Michael J. Garvey ’50

OCTOBER 2020 28

Kenneth L. Lynch ’50 Charles T. Rosenberger ’50 Daniel J. Schneeman ’50 Janet Walsh Peichel ’50 Allen R. Kohler ’51 Michael J. McLaughlin ’51 Mary C. Ronzani ’51 Paul G. Zerby ’51 Elizabeth Fallon McPartland ’52 William J. Legel ’52 Mary Louise Matt CSJ ’52 Robert G. Reis ’52 Joseph M. Vignalo ’52 Jerome G. Bovy ’53 Michael D. Heffron ’53 Conrad A. Razidlo ’53 John R. Schaeffer ’53 Jean Archer Arend ’54 Lawrence E. Baier ’55 Jerrold M. Dion ’55 Catherine Kugler Weyrens ’55 Thomas E. McNellis ’55 Geraldine Murray Jackson ’55 Christoph Niesemann ’55 Patrick F. Petit ’55 Norman J. Dupre Jr. ’56 Roger P. Heinisch ’56

Thomas J. McLeod ’56 Terrence W. Schubert ’56 Lawrence P. Erb Jr. ’57 Kathleen A. Farley ’57 Michael J. Dougher ’58 Guy D. Courteau ’59 Ronald J. Gadbois ’59 George W. Schmid ’59 Paul J. Stehr ’60 Br. Robert Thomas FSC ’60 Patrick J. Daulton ’61 Thomas J. Mahlum ’63 David M. Mordorski ’63 John R. Archer ’64 James P. McShane ’64 Richard T. Limback ’65 Richard C. Haller ’66 Raymond J. Mardell ’66 Jeffrey J. Scherman ’66 Mary E. Smith ’66 Laurence P. Connolly Jr. ’67 Timothy L. Stoffel ’68 Edward P. Lebens ’70 Kevin J. Penne ’70 Kathleen Connelly Schulteis ’71 Robert V. Sittard ’73 Mary Utecht ’73

Think back, give back!

100% of your gift will go to CDH to benefit all students by reducing tuition for each and every student.

GiveCDH — managed by us to maximize your generosity!

40 TRADITIONS // c-dh.org

Jerome T. Boland ’74 Richard D. Ives Jr. ’74 Dodie Duffy Green ’79 James M. Toris ’91 Molly Magler Steffel ’98 Brittany N. Wicka ’05 Joseph W. Radcliffe ’08 Br. Milton Barker FSC Richard Clemen Barbara Delaney Marcelle Devitt F. J. “Steve” Dolan Marlene Goblisch John Gondek

Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondolet — Early Responders to Community Health Crisis

Joseph Gresik Michele F. Haigh Ed Johnson Virginia Jwanouskos George Kronschnabel John J. Leahy Bernice M. Markwardt Renita McElhone William H. Patt Thomas P. Ridley Leonard Schmidt David Skog Peter Thienes Dorothy L. Vavrosky

The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondolet were instrumental in leading the community response to the Cholera epidemic of 1853.

In fact, they opened the first hospital in St. Paul, driven by the need to care for cholera victims.

Having arrived in St. Paul in 1851 at Bishop Cretin’s invitation, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondolet were the first sisters in the diocese. At first, they were focused on starting a boarding school to help spread the Catholic faith to the growing community. This school later became St. Joseph’s Academy. It soon became clear that they needed to expand their mission and outreach to meet the needs of the area. Then, as now, they helped local people regardless of their prestige, nationality or faith.

In the 1850s, cholera was spreading, especially in the communities along the Mississippi River. In St. Paul, many people were sickened and died. As the Sisters cared for the sick, they realized the desperate need for a hospital. Construction began on a new facility on Exchange Street. To meet immediate needs during construction, they offered their school, opened just two years earlier, as a makeshift hospital until the new building was completed.

Students were sent home so cholera patients would have a place dedicated to their care.

According to the Minnestoa Historical Society, “Glowing accounts of the sisters’ good works appeared in the St. Paul papers, which published detailed descriptions of the building in announcing its completion. The editors pictured the sisters “relieving the sufferings of the distressed, or soothing the last hours of the dying,” or wrote of them as “Angels of Mercy,” who provided “the best of nursing, clean and airy rooms, good diet, and attention.”

Even before Minnesota became a state, the Sisters responded to their dear neighbor with lasting impact. In a few short years, they started a school, a hospital/orphanage, and other services in the region. The Sisters’ legacy now includes over one hundred institutions for education and health care across the upper Midwest.

Connect with Us! We have great news to share. Stay connected with the school!

Be proud of what is happening at CDH!

c-dh.org twitter.com/@CDHraiders instagram.com/CretinDerhamHall facebook.com/CDHAdvancementandAlumni facebook.com/CretinDerham Hall

Check out the CDH News Hub In our quest to bring the good news of Cretin-Derham Hall to our community in new and enhanced ways, the News Hub is a destination for finding out the latest CDH news and information. All news articles about the school and our alumni will be published on the News Hub, along with all our publications, social media, and links to external media coverage.

We encourage all members of our community to bookmark the News Hub to stay connected to the great things happening at CDH!

Early St. Joseph’s Hospital, 1854-1890. The first hospital services were dispensed from the Sister’s log cabin chapel during a cholera outbreak in early 1854.

de We welcome your feedback — please email us at news@c-dh.org with questions or comments.

Cretin-Derham Hall // Summer 2020 41

TRADITIONS Cretin-Derham Hall

Co-sponsored by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet and the Brothers of the Christian Schools

// Board of Directors 2019-2020

we’d like to hear from you...

Katie Weinberger Stewart ’87, Chair Brian McMahon ’87, Past Chair Michael Dickson ’83, Vice-Chair Rick Long ’79, Treasurer Beth Woodward Domler ’88, Secretary Lance Bonner ’03 Brother Francis Carr, FSC Michael Cole ’71 Agnes Foley, CSJ Scott Kier Barry Lieske, AFSC Chris Ludwig, CSJ Anne Cullen Miller Stephanie Phythian

Maria Wagner Reamer ’82 Michael Salmen ’83 Cathy Steffens, CSJ Frank Miley (ex-officio) Mona Passman (ex-officio) Kevin Lally ’98, Faculty Representative Martha Thornton Montzka ’99, Faculty Representative

// Administration Frank Miley, J.D., President Mona Passman, Principal Amy Bellus ’90, Assistant Principal

// Advancement Office Rob Bollinger, Vice President for Advancement Annie Broos, Director of Communication and Public Relations Lauren Campbell, Digital Content Specialist Lisa Ford, Advancement Database Manager Peggy Gilligan, Director of Annual Fund Connor Magee, Advancement Associate Chuck Miesbauer ’03, Alumni & Development Gift Officer Peggy Gartland Schafer ’79, Advancement and Alumni Associate

Please address your letter to: Traditions Cretin-Derham Hall 550 South Albert Street St. Paul, MN 55116 or visit our website at c-dh.org.

Traditions Traditions is published semi-annually by the Advancement Office. In an effort to save postage and reduce multiple pieces to one address, we have attempted to mail one piece per household. We would appreciate it if you would share this publication with other alumni in your family.

// Credits

Traditions welcomes letters related to subjects in the magazine. Letters of 250 words or less are preferred. We reserve the right to edit letters whenever necessary.

Photography in this issue is used with permission courtesy of: Ellora Parrington Andy King Photography Cameron Perra ’11 Nick Giles ‘03 Stephen Richardson ‘04 Peter Gleich Keely Salisbury ‘20 KEA Photography Mike Steineman ‘92 Angie Keske Martha Thornton Montzka ‘99 Mary Ellen Klas ‘77 Laura Weiss Michael Murray Photography

Connect with Us!

We have great news to share. Stay connected with the school! Be proud of what is happening at CDH!

c-dh.org

Bits of History Do you have high school memorabilia that need a new home? We are always willing to take old yearbooks, dance bids, buttons, diplomas, rings and other items that may be collecting dust in your house.

Contact Peggy Gilligan at pgilligan@c-dh.org or call 651-696-3319 Email News If you are currently NOT receiving emails from CDH and would like to re-subscribe, please go to our website: c-dh.org > Advancement and Alumni > Update Your Information.

twitter.com/@CDHraiders

Update Your Info

instagram.com/CretinDerhamHall

If this publication is addressed to a family member who no longer lives with you, please notify the Advancement Office at 651-696-3318, or email to pschafer@c-dh.org.

facebook.com/CDHAdvancementandAlumni facebook.com/CretinDerham Hall 42 TRADITIONS // c-dh.org

c-dh.org

“We cannot tolerate or turn a blind eye to racism and exclusion in any form and yet claim to defend the sacredness of every human life.�

Pope Francis June 3, 2020 Mural paintings in Minneapolis and St. Paul were strong expressions of anti-racism and black voices as protests and riots spread across our cities. Two local artists, Ana Nugent and Ellora Parrington, both 2015 graduates of the College of St. Benedict, were part of an organized effort to create murals that could be auctioned off to support organizations supporting anti-racism efforts. This piece was painted at JUUT Salon in Uptown when the business was shuttered up early in June.

NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION U.S. POSTAGE

Cretin-Derham Hall 550 S. Albert St. St. Paul, MN 55116

PAID

TWIN CITIES, MN PERMIT NO. 155

Still Accepting Applications!

Call today to schedule a tour — 651-696-3301 Or visit us at c-dh.org/admissions

Cretin-Derham Hall

550 South Albert St., St. Paul, MN 55116 Admissions: 651-696-3301 Web: c-dh.org/admissions @CretinDerhamHall

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