ALUMNI: Letter from Greg Calcagno ’83, upcoming events class news, In Memory and Little Lancers

FROM THE ALUMNI DIRECTOR

Dear Alumni,

Since 2015, the Alumni Association has been hosting Grand Reunions on campus for Holy Cross and Saint Francis High School alumni marking 10, 20, 30, 40 or 50 years since their graduation. Alumni responded enthusiastically, excited for the chance to celebrate with their former classmates, and grateful that the school oversaw the event planning details.

Reunion alumni were quick to point out that they did not want to wait 10 years to enjoy the next class gathering. As soon as we could, the Alumni Association added a Golden Grads Mass and Brunch for alumni who graduated 50 or more years ago. We weren’t done. This year, the Grand Reunion expanded to honor classes from every five years, beginning with the 10-year reunion.

Alumni now have more chances to return to campus to reconnect, reminisce and celebrate. An added bonus of the new format is alumni have the opportunity to interact with Lancers from different classes. It’s always fun to see family members at the same reunion. Reunion guests may come from different decades, but they share similar high school traditions and Holy Cross values. No matter how many years since they graduated, they are all important parts of the Lancer Family. We like to remind them that they are Lancers for Life!

There is something magical that happens when alumni return to campus and get opportunities to interact with their former classmates, teachers and coaches. As the memories flood back, alumni describe how Saint Francis impacted their academic, spiritual and social growth. These stories spur my memories of becoming more compassionate through volunteering at Villa Siena, boosting my confidence while conquering my hardest classes (thank you, Roger Johnson!) and forming lifelong friendships.

Many alumni were similarly transformed by their four years at Saint Francis. In this issue, you will meet several Lancers whose hearts and minds have changed as a result of a high school experience. Just as much as we want to form our students, we care deeply about our alumni. We are grateful when you stay connected and when you give back to students and educators because of the wonderful experience you had on campus.

I look forward to welcoming you back to campus for Saint Francis activities. To ensure you receive alumni information and invitations, and to share your personal milestones in Progress Class Notes, please visit sfhs.com/alumni/connect.

Our tradition continues … Go Lancers!

Greg Calcagno ’83

Alumni Director gregcalcagno@sfhs.com

Twitter: @SFHSalumni

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SFHS.com/alumni/giving

Hundreds of Saint Francis and Holy Cross alumni reconnected on campus for the Grand Reunion.

Class Notes

Stay Connected, Lancers! Visit sfhs.com/alumniconnect to: • Update your contact info to learn about SFHS alumni activities and opportunities • Submit Class Notes and share your latest news

Barb Re Ondriezek HC ’62 shares that she and her husband, John, celebrated 55 years of marriage this past August.

Lana Afanasiev Guiffre HC ’69

shares that she remembers singing in combined concerts with Saint Francis and says hello to her Class of 1969.

Nadine Deach del Villar HC ’72 is thankful for the memories from St. Joseph Elementary School and Holy Cross High School and appreciates the Catholic education she received.

Robin Tischer-Smith ’73 broadened her knowledge of various academic subjects while attending Saint Francis and became interested in learning languages. She majored in the foreign languages and cultures program at Chester University, becoming fluent in Spanish and Italian, and has been able to use these languages in business and in life.

Dave Wetlesen ’74 is semi-retired. He is a substitute teacher for the local schools and teaches swimming.

Julie Gilberg Anderson ’81 and her husband, Andrew, were married on Nov. 10, 2021, at St. Mel’s Catholic Church in Fair Oaks, Calif. They honeymooned in Maui.

John Brazil ’84 lives in Mountain View with his wife, Libby. He works for the City of San Jose, managing the Transportation Options Program. After 63 years, his parents continue to live in their original home one mile from campus. Christine Capper-Singh ’84 lives in Mountain View and has three daughters, ages 29, 15 and 13. She also has a dog, Jax, and raises backyard chickens. After 26 years at Stanford University in program management, Christine recently decided to start a new career as a real estate agent.

After living in Zurich for the bulk of the 2020-2021 COVID-19 lockdown, Guillermo Söhnlein ’84 recently relocated back to Atlanta, until at least June 2023, when his youngest son, Caleb, graduates from high school. After that, Guillermo will likely head back to Europe. His oldest child, Rebecca, is following in her dad’s footsteps, starting her second year of law school. His middle child, Daniel, is in the process of launching a new startup. Guillermo continues with his ocean, space and sustainability work by concurrently launching a submersible exploration expedition in the Bahamas, a robotic mission to Venus and a self-sustaining off-grid community in eastern Georgia. Angela Wittman Tomaka ’84 lives in Los Altos with her husband, Paul. Her son, JT, recently graduated from San Diego State University. She enjoys taking piano lessons and gardening.

Linus Lau ’96 works as a music composer for films. One recent film he scored was “Last the Night,” which premiered in June.

Jennifer Ferrari Capelo ’97 is the events coordinator for Capelo’s Barbecue Restaurant & Beer Garden in Redwood City. Jennifer works alongside her Texas native husband, John, to bring Southern barbecue to the Bay Area. In addition to the restaurant, they offer catering and operate a food truck.

Joe Sabeh ’97 married Monica Pokorny on Aug. 28 at RitzCarlton Half Moon Bay. Lancers in attendance included Christin Whittell Ancich ’97, Rob Mibach ’97, Bryan Owen ’95, Shawna McGlennon Owen ’97, Mike Owen ’97 and Rob Poole ’97. They honeymooned in Italy.

Continued on page 25

Class Notes

Jillian Crowley Koncewicz ’11 Liz Smith ’98 received her second regional Emmy as a producer and writer with the PBS TV series “Changing Seas.” She also coproduced the feature documentary “Youth v Gov,” following 21 youths taking on the U.S. government in a ground-breaking lawsuit over their constitutional right to a healthy climate. The film, which is available on Netflix, has screened at 51 festivals around the world, winning 25 awards during the past year.

Blake Everhart ’07 is the producer and editor for various unscripted television shows as well as the Critics’ Choice Award-winning documentary ”Clive Davis: The Soundtrack of Our Lives” and the documentary “Coachella: 20 Years in the Desert.” He is also the producer of curated content for the Coachella and Stagecoach music festivals.

Courtney Budenholzer ’11

attended Sacred Heart University as a film student. She is working for a Bay Area company called Fridays Films as a video producer. She and her fiance moved to Nashville from New York during the pandemic and are very happy there.

Jillian Crowley Koncewicz ’11 and her husband, Kelan, were married in September 2021 in Orleans, Mass.

Brandon Potts ’12 is an investor at Framework Ventures, a thesisdriven venture firm that invests in and builds alongside early-stage crypto networks and founders. Framework recently announced the launch of its $400M Fund III. Brandon was selected to the Litquidity 30 Under 30 list.

Continued on page 26

Little Lancers

Alumni, if you are the proud parent of a Little Lancer, please email LittleLancer@sfhs.com to receive a Lancer gift for your baby. Please include your address and the names of all family members.

Tierney, daughter of Joe and Adrienne Bateson Riccardi ’03

Klay, son of Nick and Julie Abbatelli and grandson of Dan ’78 and Lisa Isola Abbatelli ’79 Dean, son of Austin and Ellen Belinsky Ward ’08

Charlee (6 months) and Alice (3), children of Courtney Hagan ’98 Hughes and Jackie Hughes

Casey Douglas ’14

Casey Douglas ’14 proposed to his girlfriend, Paige Lueker, in Lawrence, Kan. Casey received a juris doctorate from the University of Kansas School of Law.

Nicholas Cauchi ’19 graduated from the United States Marine Corps officer candidate school and will continue his education at the University of Arizona, pursuing degrees in political science and Russian language. He expects to graduate from UA and commission as a second lieutenant in the USMC in May 2023.

A fencer at Columbia University, Ashton Daniel ’19 was ranked No. 1 in the U.S. in 2021. This year, he won the NCAA fencing tournament and was the first ever to win the NCAA and Ivy League championships in the same year.

Nicholas Cauchi ’19

In Memory

Br. Thomas Frey, C.S.C., who was a Holy Cross Brother for 72 years and spent more than 50 years teaching at various Holy Cross high schools, including Saint Francis, died Aug. 10, 2022.

He taught at Saint Francis from 1968 to 1969 and returned again in 1991 to 2004 to teach physics and religion and assist in Campus Ministry. A humble man of deep faith and prayer, he often turned to St. Joseph and St. Brother Andre Bessette as intercessors before God for the needs of others. His devotion to the rosary inspired him to start the practice of saying the rosary after school with fellow educators and students, which is a tradition that continues to this day in the chapel at Saint Francis. During his years here, Br. Tom could also be found at just about every Lancer funeral he knew about, praying alongside Br. Eamon Schaeffer, C.S.C., to support Saint Francis families in mourning.

After he retired and moved to Austin, Texas, he continued to serve in whatever ways he could. In his early retirement years, he drove older Brothers to doctors’ appointments, and throughout his time in Austin, he brought communion to the infirmed Brothers and accompanied many of them as they journeyed from this life to the next.

Luigia Maria and Guido Andrighetto, parents of Steve (Donna) and Domenic (Sherry), parents of Anthony ’09 (RIP), Dante ’11, Mario, Mary ’18, Domenic ’13, Alex ’14, Lucas ’18 and Nicolas ’22 James Balquist, father of James ’85 and John ’91

Lucianna Barsanti, mother of Dan ’67 (Shelly), Mike ’80 (Michelle), Steve ’82 (Janette) and Joyce (Don) Kudrna, grandmother of Lisa Tripp ’91, Gina ’95 (Chad) Alves, Robert ’08, Alyssa ’10 and Nicole ’12

Guido Budelli, father of Bob (Tana), Diane Garibaldi ’68 HC (John), Dick ’70 (Robyn ’74), grandfather of Bobby (Sierra), Mikie (Brooke), Christopher (Naomi) and Adam ’06 (Sofia), Francesca Budelli Harter ’03 (Brady), John Ross (Alicia), Michael (Keely) and Joe (Sonia) Garibaldi

Nancy Cariani, mother of Leslie ’84, Jennifer ’84 and David ’88

Tom Casey ’80, brother of Greg ’83, Chris ’85, Keith ’89 and Peter ’92 Kristie Driscoll, mother of Vanessa Driscoll Mulcahey ’05, Kara ’07 and Danielle ’13

Roger Geerts, husband of Sherri, father of Scott ’81, Todd ’82 and Eric ’83 Tom Gonzales ’96, husband of Becky, father of Emma and Leo

Mary Annette Holmquist, mother of Theresa ’74, Cynthia Holmquist Sackman ’77, Carrie Holmquist Kaufmann ’78 and Mark ’82, grandmother of Tony Sackman, Kyle Sackman ’06, Rebecca Sackman Angelo ’07 (Danny Angelo ’07) and Stephanie Kaufmann ’09

Ruth Houlihan, mother of Karen Frohoff (Bill), Tim (Stephanie), Michael (Paula), Gerald (Karen); and Kevin (Nick), grandmother to Ryanne, Patrick, Brian ’05, Kelsey ’07, Matthew ’09, Kassandra, Lilah and Keira, greatgrandmother to William, Jackson, Nora, Luke, Sophie, Ariah, Liliana, Liam, James Timothy (JT), Rylie and Hallie Harvey Incerpi, father of Marc ’82 and Jon ’84

LaRena Lommatzsch, mother of Mike ’76 and Patty Lommatzch Romero ’83 (Luis), grandmother of Thomas Romero ’08, Adriana Romero Simmons ’10 and Daniel Romero ’15

Susan Loosse, mother of Meredith Loosse Lobeck ’89 and Amanda Loosse Hrncirik ’98

Nutan Malhotra, wife of Pankaj, mother of Urvashi ’12 and Arnav ’21

John Meccariello, husband of Lillian, father of John S. ’74, David, Lyne ’81 and Maria Williams ’89

Norman “Norm” Rousseau, husband of Jean, father of Peter (Karen Kleinman), Suzanne ’80 (Paul O’Leary), David ’81 (Lynn Warner), Mark ’82 (Leslie Wells) and Michelle Rousseau Coulter ’85 (RIP) Sue Scruggs, mother of David ’74, Jeff ’75 and Todd ’77

Dan Winn ’61

Gathering as a community at a liturgy

Photo by Abhijit Nambiar

#Lancerlife

Saint Francis High School from the point of view of yearbook photographers

The junior class making some noise

Photo by Paige Allen

Starting the day with fellow classmates at senior sunrise

ASB members speak to the student body

The senior class shows off its Lancer spirit

Photo by Paige Allen

Photo by Abhijit Nambiar Photo by Abhijit Nambiar

Water polo coach Terry O’Donnell ’87

Fighting to score a goal Photo by Abhijit Nambiar

The student cheering section in full force at a football game

Photo by Abhijit Nambiar

from the archives FUTURE

FORWARD

To celebrate January’s ribboncutting ceremony and opening of the new, state-of-the-art Innovation Center, we thought a look back at campus technology over the decades was in order.

Tinkering in Electronics Club in 1963

Larry Steinke, Saint Francis technology director, in 1998, a year after he began teaching physics at the school In the science lab at Holy Cross High School in 1972, before the school merged with Saint Francis High School

Cutting-edge tech in 1987 in the Saint Francis computer lab with the recently introduced Macintosh Plus with its standard 1 megabyte of RAM and new SCSI port

HOLY CROSS EDUCATOR

Liz Franco ’93, associate campus minister, explains the power of retreats

WHY ARE RETREATS SO TRANSFORMATIVE? Going on a retreat gives students an opportunity to step away from everyday routines and connect with peers on a deeper level. They reflect on their time at Saint Francis and on their relationships. They think and talk about things that they wouldn’t normally talk about. And, they’re making new friends and allowing their hearts to open up a little bit more, which gives them permission to be vulnerable.

HOW HAVE YOU BEEN CHANGED BY YOUR ROLE IN LEADING RETREATS? As I’ve grown with this program, I have found that through my interactions with my student leaders and the students and adults who come on retreat, it’s hard for my heart not to be changed. Just listening to everyone’s story changes your heart. When that happens over and over again, it connects you to what it means to be Holy Cross.

WHAT DO YOU WANT STUDENTS TO TAKE AWAY FROM THEIR RETREAT EXPERIENCE? That they are loved by the people who surround them — their families, their friends, their God, their teachers. A lot of times students don’t feel noticed or heard so when they go on retreat, I want them to feel all of those things. When I train my student leaders, I’m very intentional about telling them that when a student is speaking, nothing else matters in the world because they are sharing from their heart. When you put that attitude in every scenario on retreat, it binds people.

HOW ARE YOU A LANCER FOR LIFE? I’ve been here for 25 years, I’ve met my husband John here, and I’ve raised my children here. But it comes down to a personal note. When my husband was sick with brain cancer, this community surrounded us with love and support, and they’ve continued to do that in all parts of our life. Not only just with me, but with John and my kids when they were growing up and as students here. There’s this care that exists, and it transforms you. Honestly, I couldn’t imagine being anywhere else. Now, John’s doing great, and he’s literally a miracle. When the doctor says the tumor is stable, that puts perspective in life. Sometimes when we get worried about the little things, it really comes down to those basic things that make us feel human.

PROGRESS

Saint Francis High School Institutional Advancement 1885 Miramonte Ave Mountain View CA 94040-4098 Saint Francis High School Institutional Advancement 1885 Miramonte Ave. Mountain View, CA 94040-4098

Blast from the Past

This rally photo from 1987 is proof that many of our educators are Lancers for life. Whether they are still teaching or returning to campus for football games or alumni events, they have impacted generations of students.