Bonaventure magazine | Summer 2022

Vol. 14, No.2, SUMMER 2022

BONAVENTURE The Magazine of St. Bonaventure University

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A True Bonaventure Man

Joe Flanagan retired in July after being the face of the alumni office — and thousands of alumni events — for 36 years.

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Championing the Sciences

The Maydonovitch siblings, grateful for the foundation that Bonaventure gave them to go out in the world and be successful, have funded a chemistry fellowship at the university.

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True Grit

The student-run business consulting club known as C4 is alive and thriving today because its core group of students refused to stop working with local businesses through the pandemic.

INSIDE

Off the Shelf . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 The Pathway to Success . . . .18 Class Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Weddings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Alumni Voices . . . . . . . . . . . .42

Editor, Beth Eberth Contributors Susan Anderson, ’11 Danny Bush, ’13, ’15 Tom Donahue, ’76

Tom Missel Jennifer Pulver

Submit Class Notes: www.SBUmagazine.com Address changes: www.sbu.edu/alumniupdate Additional contacts: Office of Alumni Services www.sbu.edu/alumni (716) 375-2302

Bonaventure Magazine Office of Marketing & Communications 3261 W. State Road P.O. Box 2509 St. Bonaventure, NY 14778 (716) 375-2000 magazine@sbu.edu

Bonaventure: The Magazine of St. Bonaventure University is produced twice a year by the Office of Marketing and Communications.

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Thank you for the warm welcome Pres ident’s Mes s a ge

I

could sense it during the interview process earlier this year with trustees and so many members of the campus community.

I saw it with my own eyes, in staggering numbers, when I went to the NIT in New York, just three weeks after I was named president.

But not until I attended Reunion, June 3-4, and had the chance to talk with so many alumni did I fully comprehend the unique and special community that is St. Bonaventure University.

When you’re being interviewed, everyone tends to be on guard a bit, wanting to make sure they paint a positive picture so they don’t send you running for the exit if they’re too candid.

The engagement I had with folks at the Reunion, however, was organic and spontaneous. All Betsy and I could feel at the events we attended Friday and Saturday was a remarkable sense of community that affirmed what everyone had told us about Bonaventure.

When my interest was piqued in pursuing the presidency, I noticed that one of the more prominent social media hashtags the university was using was #BonaFamily. The weekend I spent with more than 1,000 alumni made me realize that wasn’t just some catchy marketing slogan. It’s the absolute truth.

I saw it when alumni greeted Joe Flanagan, our retiring alumni director and my guide through much of the weekend (pg. 16), like he was a brother they hadn’t seen in years.

I saw it when people became choked up talking to me about what this university had meant to them in shaping their lives and how they view Bona’s as their second home. It didn’t matter if they were alums who’ve had Bonnies season tickets since they graduated or people who hadn’t been back to campus in 20 years. Either way, the theme of “home” was conveyed to me continuously

Betsy and Jeff Gingerich

throughout the weekend.

And I saw it in your embrace of Betsy and me and how warmly you welcomed us into the family. This truly is, as so many alumni told me, a “special place.”

Even though I didn’t officially start my presidential role until June 21, I was given a great gift being able to attend Reunion and the Board of Trustees meeting the following weekend. Being able to dive head first into this special community just days after arriving in Olean allowed me the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of what makes this place unique.

What became clear with each passing conversation is how impactful the Franciscan mission is on our students and alumni and how much they appreciated our friars and the values we cherish. I met so many fundamentally good people who want to contribute to the world and make it a better place.

They want to because of their transformational experience at Bona’s.

It also gave me pause because I left each weekend feeling a tremendous

responsibility to carry on this extraordinary tradition of student transformation and to continue the incredible momentum Dr. DePerro and Dr. Zimmer have established over the last five years.

Indeed, challenges lie ahead for St. Bonaventure. Issues about affordability, the saturation of colleges in the Northeast, and the rapidly evolving policies related to Division I athletics will keep us on our toes for years to come, but I am more confident than ever that with your continued support we can navigate these choppy waters.

I look forward to meeting many more alumni as I prepare to hit the road soon to launch the public phase of our Bolder Bonaventure campaign. To those alumni and friends of the university I’ve already met, thank you for making Betsy and me feel like we already belong to this incredible community.

Dr. Jeff Gingerich University President

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Off th e Sh el f

William McKeever, ’85, has published “Secret Places of Western New York: 25 Scenic Hikes” with his wife, Jennifer Hillman. A full-color guidebook to 25 unusual, hidden or out-of-the-way scenic treasures along wooded trails from Niagara to Zoar Valley and beyond, the book is available at secretplacesofwny.com.

“The Iron Scar: A Father and Son in Siberia” is the ninth collection by Bob Kunzinger, ’83.

“Iron Scar,” a memoir of travels across and through Siberia, is available from Madville Publishing of Texas. The book is the literal and metaphoric journey of moving across life and learning to let go and has been praised by people such as actor Martin Sheen and bestselling author Tim O’Brien.

Kunzinger is a writer living in Virginia.

W.E. “Bill” Wynne, ’68, hopes his debut book, “Understanding and Combating Racism: My Path from Oblivious American to Evolving Activist,” will not only explain his journey of enlightenment about how and why systemic racism continues to exist in America, but also to help others see what he’s seen, learn from his journey, and act in a positive way to minimize it.

Wynne had earlier found himself to be “educated but untaught, involved but unknowing, Catholic but spiritually reserved, white but unwittingly blinded by the ubiquitous whiteness surrounding him.” Over the years, these realizations caused him to turn his interest to racial and social justice concerns, a passion that has evolved throughout his adult life.

In his book, Wynne draws upon his 4

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work in the nonprofit sector, a decadeslong engagement in which he held leadership roles in many church and community organizations, and his friendships with a diverse group of people and professionals to present his “Path from Oblivious American to Evolving Activist.”

Lori (Danielson) Tritt, ’81, is the author of “Little Joe’s Triumphant Christmas,” a children’s book about a new elf, Little Joe, who struggles with his new job in Santa’s workshop. A special, kind friend helps him realize his potential and how hard work pays off.

Tritt is a retired first-grade teacher who lives in North Carolina.

The book is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Xlibris Press.

A short film by Chris Dell, ’07, was screened at the Upstate New York Film Festival in Williamsville June 6.

The film, “Wild Iris,” is a 12-minute short that was shot in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Dell wrote, directed, produced and was the lead actor in the horror thriller. The plot is about a father (played by Dell) looking for his daughter who went missing on a school volleyball trip. However, all the evidence he gathers indicates to him that he might actually be the perpetrator.

The film was shot in one night on a $1,000 budget. For more about the festival, visit www.unyff.com.

John McCarthy, ’83, ’89, has released two books on creative thinking and innovation. “The Innovator Next Door: 50 Stories of Creative Inspiration to Spark New In-the-Box Thinking” features stories about people’s innovative thinking to address interesting challenges, such as the invention of the windshield wiper and the idea behind putting wheels on suitcases.

In the second book, “Driving Forward in Reverse: 50 Car Metaphors for Counselors, Teachers, and Life Coaches to

Help Others Navigate Life,” McCarthy offers multiple auto-related metaphors applicable to change processes. From license plates to pit crews to traffic lights, this book uses car experiences that educators and mental health professionals can use with students and clients in conceptualizing issues in life.

Both books were published by Suncoast Digital Press in Sarasota, Florida.

McCarthy’s professional writings have been featured in Huffpost.com, Cleveland.com, The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, The Psychotherapy Networker, and Counseling Today. He was a professor in the Department of Counseling at Indiana University of Pennsylvania from 2001-2021 and served as a lecturer at Seattle University in 2021-2022. He blogs at creativestrengths.com.

Joyce Pavia Hanson, ’80, owner of Hanson Marketing Communications, is a co-author of “What is Blockchain? An Easyto-Understand Guide That Simplifies the Basics of Blockchain,” available on Amazon.

The ebook includes chapter quizzes and gives readers the opportunity to receive free digital currencies to practice navigating in the crypto space.

Hanson is an instructor in the Master in Communications program at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. She writes about blockchain, cryptocurrencies and Web 3.0.

With the publication of “The Cinematic Challenge, Filming Colonial America volume 3 – The International Era 1976-2000,” John P. Harty Jr., ’69, has completed his decadelong goal of publishing a complete history of the production of films about Colonial America released in the 20th century.

He has tried to give a clear, objective presentation of both the consensus and progressive interpretations of the Colonial period as represented in the motion pictures

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“Revolution,” “The Black Robe,” “The Last of the Mohicans,” “The Broken Chain” and “The Patriot.”

Harty believes that by relating these Colonial films to the broader historical and cultural context within which they were made it will enable readers to better understand why so few Colonial films were produced and how difficult the road was to critical and financial success. Volume 3 is available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble and other retailers. Harty is a regular guest contributor to the international film magazine Cinema Retro, which is read in more than 20 countries worldwide.

Dr. Chris Mackowski, a professor in the Jandoli School of Communication, has published three more books on the Civil War in recent months.

“Decisions at Fredericksburg: The Fourteen Critical Decisions That Defined the Battle,” was published by the University of Tennessee Press as part of its Command Decisions in America’s Civil War series.

The battle of Fredericksburg took place Dec. 11-13, 1862, on the eve of President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, set to go into effect on Jan. 1, 1863. The federal government needed a battlefield victory to help give teeth to the proclamation. Instead, federal commander Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside led the Army of the Potomac to its most lopsided loss of the war.

Civil War buffs love to ask “What if,” and a new book co-edited by Mackowski offers readers the chance to explore some of the war’s most popular questions.

“The Great ‘What Ifs’ of the American Civil War: Historians Tackle the Conflict’s Most Intriguing Possibilities,” published by Savas Beatie, is a collection of 14 essays co-edited by Mackowski and Brian Matthew Jordan, Ph.D. Savas Beatie also published “Grant vs.

Lee: Favorite Stories and Fresh Perspectives from the Historians at Emerging Civil War,” which Mackowski co-edited with Dan Welch. For the book, Mackowski and Welch drew on the work of 22 historians to tell the story of the last 11 months of the war in Virginia.

Maggie Doyne, who was awarded an honorary degree in December 2015 from St. Bonaventure, has released her memoir, “Between the Mountain and the Sky: A Mother’s Story of Love, Loss, Healing, and Hope.”

Doyne is co-founder of the BlinkNow Foundation and Kopila Valley Children’s Home and School in Surkhet, Nepal. At age 19, she used her babysitting money and worked with the local community to build a home for orphaned children in wartorn Nepal. In 2010, she and her team opened a school for 500 of the region’s most impoverished children. Throughout the past decade, BlinkNow and Kopila have worked to deepen and grow the organization through grassroots community development efforts.

Doyne’s memoir is a coming-of-age story about a young woman suspended between two worlds, as well as the love, loss, healing, and hope she experiences along the way. Her inspiring tale shows readers an important truth: The power to change the world exists within all of us.

Doyne and co-founder Tope Malla have been recognized around the world for their sustainable community based work at BlinkNow.

>>> WE LOVE MAIL! We are happy to print brief summaries of new books, CDs and other multimedia works published by SBU alumni, faculty and staff. Send a summary press release to magazine@sbu.edu or via snail mail to: Bonaventure magazine 3261 W. State Road P.O. Box 2509 St. Bonaventure University St. Bonaventure, NY 14778 All books mailed to the magazine are shared with Friedsam Memorial Library for its collection.

Chris Meadows, ’93, ’98, points out some of the roadblocks, challenges, and opportunities that await student-athletes and families who pursue D-1 scholarships on the road of travel basketball in his book, “I AM D-1, How to Conquer the World of Travel Basketball.”

In his decades of training and coaching basketball and seeing athletes go on to Division 1 programs, Meadows has seen some tremendous success stories, as well as players and families who struggled along the way, for various reasons.

Over the years, he compiled experiences and observations into concrete thoughts that became the foundation for this book.

This book is written for the parent who wants to support and advocate for their child as well as for the student-athlete as they learn to own the journey.

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University school named after late President DePerro SCHOOL OF HEALTH PROFESSIONS

The School of Health Professions at the university was renamed and dedicated in May as the Dennis R. DePerro School of Health Professions.

Les Quick III, ’75, and his wife, Eileen, in concert with Jim, ’76, and Nina, ’79, Meyer donated a total of $8 million in support of the School of Health Professions. They enhanced their gifts last year on one condition — that the School of Health Professions be named for Dr. DePerro.

Les Quick and Jim Meyer co-chaired the search committee that ultimately led to trustees hiring DePerro in November 2016.

The Health Professions initiative was championed by DePerro from the moment he officially became president of St. Bonaventure in June 2017 until his passing March 1, 2021, due to complications from COVID-19.

“Without his vision, we wouldn’t be here today,” Meyer said. “What we should remember about the students who are going to graduate from this school is that they are so needed, particularly in the communities around St. Bonaventure and in Western New York.”

DePerro was also awarded an honorary doctorate by the university, an idea first broached informally shortly after he passed away but not kick-started until Jack Steger, ’22, approached his fellow senior class officers. The Class of 2022 was the last class at SBU to share a full pre-pandemic year with DePerro.

DePerro’s wife, Sherry, and sons, Andrew and

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Dr. Dennis DePerro’s wife, Sherry, and sons, Andrew (left) and Matt.

Matt, accepted the degree.

Though he served less than four years as president, DePerro left a lasting imprint on the school and its future.

Located in iconic Francis Hall, the School of Health Professions offers four undergraduate programs (B.S. in Health Science, B.S. in Public Health, RN to B.S. in Nursing, and a Dual Degree Nursing Program) and four graduate programs (Master of Public Health, Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies, Master of Science in Occupational Therapy and Master’s Entry to Nursing Practice).

Just five years old, the DePerro School has 158 undergraduate and 74

graduate students.

The Quick and Meyer families have long been generous supporters of the university.

Les Quick earned a B.B.A. in finance from St. Bonaventure and has served more than 25 years on the university’s Board of Trustees. He is a founding partner of Simon Quick Advisors.

Jim Meyer earned a bachelor’s degree in economics in 1976 and an MBA in 1979 from St. Bonaventure.

He served as an SBU trustee for 10 years. In December 2020, he retired after 16 years at SiriusXM where he rose through the ranks to become CEO. Nina Meyer is a 1979 journalism and mass communication graduate.

SBU adds two new undergrad majors

The university is accepting students in two new majors starting this fall.

The Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication, Social Justice and Advocacy is grounded in the Franciscan principles that define St. Bonaventure while being married to the pragmatic coursework of its renowned Jandoli School of Communication.

SBU has added a major in Economics to its suite of undergraduate programs in the School of Business. The B.B.A. and B.S. degree programs are designed to help students examine the production and consumption of goods, and analyze real-world issues such as international trade, poverty, taxes, crime, and education.

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ADMISSIONS

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Freshman enrollment for fall at a 20-year high The university’s confirmations for fall are at a 20-year high, up 22% over fall 2021 and more than 53% higher than fall 2015.

The university expects to welcome 580 freshmen to the Class of 2026. The previous four freshman classes at St. Bonaventure — 2018 through 2021 — were the four largest in the last 13 years.

The university has seen increases in nearly all of its recruitment territories, with significant increases in its Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and local New York and Pennsylvania markets. Out-of-state students come from 26 states and eight countries, making up more than 24 percent of the freshman confirmations.

Initiatives such as the addition of 24 new academic programs since 2015 have helped fuel the success. For fall 2022, all five of the university’s academic schools saw an increase in freshman confirmations with the Jandoli School of Communication leading the way with a 46% increase.

Since 2015, overall student enrollment has increased at the institution by 30% to 2,604 undergraduate and graduate students. The university expanded its online graduate programs over the last several years, attracting students from all over the country. Last fall, overall graduate enrollment reached a record high of more than 800 students.

A front row seat on Radio Row

Five students representing WSBU 88.3 FM The Buzz had a front row seat to hone their interview skills and expand their professional network as they broadcast from Radio Row during Super Bowl Week in February. Only a handful of college radio stations are granted access during Super Bowl Week amid the dozens of national and international news outlets. Pictured with Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen are (from left) Nate Solomon, ’24, Tom Seipp, ’23, Nic Rohloff, ’22, Carter Raymond, ’23, and Tyler Smith, ’23,

Welcome new Board officers and trustees!

Honor society conducts Fill the Pack school supply drive

Students in St. Bonaventure’s education honor society, Kappa Delta Pi, teamed up with the Olean City School District to provide teachers in the district with spring school supplies. “As preservice teachers, we have seen the need for school supplies in the classroom and know that it is an all-year need,” said Victoria Cleary, ’22, who served as 2021-22 president of the Kappa Delta Pi chapter at SBU. Pictured above from left are Olean School District business administrator Jenny Bilotta, SBU students Lauren Sparacio, Dyllon Gartley, Grace Weber and Victoria Cleary, and Olean Interim Superintendent Dr. Karen Geelan.

St. Bonaventure’s Board of Hickey Barry Trustees elected new board officers — all of them alumni — at its June meeting. The board also appointed four Schumacher Horan new trustees.

Michael Hickey, ’84, was elected as board chair. Steve Barry, ’88, and Carol Schumacher, ’78, were elected vice chairs, and Fr. Dan Horan, O.F.M., ’05, was elected secretary.

New trustees named to the board were Patrick “Pat” Doyle, ’81; Sr. Margaret Magee, O.S.F.; Mark Murphy, ’91; and Susanna Stitt, ’99.

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2022 Commencement

St. Bonaventure saluted 749 graduate and undergraduate students and honored three remarkable alumni at its 162nd annual Commencement in May. Receiving honorary degrees during the ceremony were Adrian Wojnarowski, ’91, ESPN Senior NBA Insider; Tom Marra, ’80, retired president and CEO of Symetra Financial Corp.; and retired Brigadier Gen. Maureen Keenan LeBoeuf, ’76, the first woman to chair a department at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

For more photos and an archived video of the ceremony, visit www.sbu.edu/Commencement. q From left are Acting President Dr. Joseph Zimmer, Maureen Keenan LeBoeuf, Adrian Wojnarowski, Tom Marra, and Board of Trustees Chair John Sheehan.

“

Make sure you surround yourself with truth-tellers, with those whose love is unfailing and honesty unflinching.

Adrian Wojnarowski, ’91

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2022 Reunion May 20-22

The university’s first Alumni Reunion in three years was held May 20-22 as we welcomed back the Class of 1972 and prior classes.

Highlights of the weekend — in addition to just being able to share a laugh over a Burton burger — included class dinners, open houses and a conversation with members of the 1970 Final Four team.

Check out more photos at www.sbu.edu/BonaFlickr.

Save the date for Reunion 2023 | June 16-18

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2022 Reunion June 3-5 Classes celebrating their 10th through 45th class reunions gathered on campus June 3-5. The classes of 1973 and after made the weekend count as they visited old campus haunts and reminisced with former roommates.

Check out more photos at www.sbu.edu/BonaFlickr.

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2022 GradUnion June 17-19

Two years after the pandemic forced the Class of 2020’s graduation celebration to an online platform, nearly 120 members of the class flipped their tassels in person in the Reilly Center.

Dubbed as GradUnion 2020 — a hybrid weekend of graduation and reunion — students also were able to participate in the traditional Baccalaureate Mass and Candlelight Ceremony as well as a picnic and events hosted by the Alumni Office. Congratulations, Class of 2020. We can’t wait to see you back for your regular alumni reunion in 2025!

Check out more photos at www.sbu.edu/BonaFlickr.

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Your class has learned the hard way that life is not always fair. And somehow, someway – you have figured out how to move forward, how to keep going and live the dreams that have been forming in your hearts.

Alice Miller Nation Director of the Franciscan Center for Social Concern

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Love Action Transforming

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into

Alumna Cari Matejka, ’03, ’04, wants every child she meets to have a bright future, whether they’re from the city of Olean or a small African village. That’s why Matejka became a teacher and also why she founded a nonprofit in Uganda.

Matejka, CEO of Literacy of Love (LoL) and an Olean middle school teacher, began her journey to help educate children in economically depressed regions around the world through partnerships with the Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) program at St. Bonaventure.

For two years, Matejka connected her middle school students to students in the Bahamas through the School of Business’ SIFE program (now known as Enactus). Matejka traveled twice with the SIFE group to the Bahamas to work with students and eventually learned about Embrace It Africa, another outreach mission at the university. In 2012, Matejka visited and taught at the Ugandan village where Embrace It Africa volunteers spearheaded their work.

By 2016, the East African children had captured Matejka’s heart and she began to build her own nonprofit organization, Literacy of Love. The organization’s mission is to provide a home and support for children so they can develop a sense of belonging and to ensure an education to children who would otherwise

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t Ssema is Literacy of Love’s first graduate. He is the owner of a salon in the village and plays soccer for a local team. p A family outing at Mpanga National Forest, where Cari and the children made a music video for an upcoming project that features LoL’s talented dancers, singers, and songwriters.

not have an opportunity to attend school.

It’s also very important that the children be purposely raised with the integrity of their culture, Matejka said. The children’s home provides basic care, but more importantly, it unites the children through a common opportunity for an education.

“This is not a place to adopt children, but to grow children into adults who can change their own community. Valuing, reinforcing and intentionally using common cultural practices and not insisting on foreign ways gives the program authenticity,” she said.

These children come from poverty that is unknown to those in rural Western New York. The homes in Mpigi are typically made from mud with one large room and no indoor plumbing. Water is gathered daily from a communal source. Many children arrive at the LoL home with little or no education, malnutrition, disease, and disabilities. Having a steady home for these children gives them a stable core, a sense of family.

Currently, LoL is home to 50 sponsored children. Another two to 10 children in desperate need remain on a waiting list. Matejka explained that these children are typically family members of children already at the home or members of the community who hear about their work via word of mouth.

Most of the children’s families are so poor that they cannot provide the most basic needs, Matejka said.

The Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts at St. Bonaventure is hosting a photo exhibition called “Literacy of Love” that runs through July 31. This exhibition of Cari Matejka’s photos showcases the often difficult but always hopeful life in Uganda.

Additional pictures from Matejka’s visit this summer to the home will be on display in October at Olean Public Library.

To learn more about the LoL organization, visit: www.literacyoflove.org @literacyoflove @literacyoflove carimatejka1@gmail.com

“LoL provides structure, counseling, and guidance for the children so that they can see hope for their future,” she said.

The pandemic hit Uganda as hard, if not harder, than in the United States. During the worst of the pandemic, LoL provided not only a home and food to its children, but also food and medical assistance to many of the children’s families.

While Matejka was in Uganda in December 2021, a widowed mother was invited to spend the holiday with her two children who live at the home. The woman told her children and Matejka that the home was “paradise” – where her children have a safe home to live, can attend school, have clean clothes to wear and food to eat every day.

With a strong foundation formed with the school, the future mission, Matejka said, “is to become an independent community in which graduates of the program help to start businesses, mentor younger students and help change the future for these children and their families.”

Students who started in the program in elementary school are now graduating college and trade schools. A young man named David has graduated medical school and is a doctor.

Another, Jude, completed college to become a medical lab technician. Both will be part of the medical center that Matejka plans to build this summer.

Many children at the home are taught trades such as welding, barbering, and tailoring. Several students are already realizing their goals with small businesses, such as a pig farm, a welding shop, operating a tourism business and a tailor shop.

With these grown children now becoming productive citizens of Uganda, Matejka feels sustainability is in sight: Several of these business owners are now taking LoL’s older children as apprentices and teaching them their trade.

For Matejka, hope for a future for these once destitute children is becoming a reality.

“Sometimes I feel I am torn between two worlds, but I work every day to keep the mission growing and moving forward,” she said.

She is appreciative of her Bonaventure ties and the inspiration that Embrace It Africa ignited. Three of her core supporters are alumni and one is a former Bonaventure faculty member.

She says Franciscan values shine through the people who

p Those assisted by LoL range from babies to grandparents. These preschoolers will be the first generation in the program to never miss school or feel the desperation and threat of an insecure education.

help her carry out LoL’s mission to break the cycle of generational poverty while providing a family that gives these children hope.

“The needs are endless, but the possibilities are endless, too,” Matejka said.

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A true BonAventUre man

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Joe Flanagan, ’74

Story by Tom Missel | Photos by Danny Bush

Joe Flanagan retired in July after being the face of the alumni office — and thousands of alumni events — for 36 years 16

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was giving the eulogy so I wasn’t going to risk being late to my dad’s funeral.

I didn’t expect anyone except the pastor to be at the church when I arrived. I certainly didn’t expect to see Joe Flanagan sitting at the back of the church, especially since I told him pointedly the week before, “I really appreciate the sentiment, Joe, but DO NOT cut your vacation short to come.”

Ann (Flynn) McCarthy has been “great friends” with Flanagan for 50 years, both graduates of Bona’s Class of 1974. That tale didn’t surprise her at all.

“That’s Joe. I was at two funerals in one week this summer and he was there,” McCarthy said. “Joe’s Franciscan to his very core and unfailingly kind. In all of his years at Bona’s, he went way beyond what his job description called upon him to do.

But a lot of the things he’s done are only known by the people he did them for. He never wanted any applause.”

Flanagan didn’t have much choice but to be applauded June 4 when he received, to a rousing ovation, the Alumnus of the Year Award at the Alumni Reunion Weekend reception in the Reilly Center. His colleagues kept the award a surprise, primarily because he would have pooh-poohed the idea had he known in advance.

“If there was ever a guy who should be saluted, it’s Joe,” McCarthy said.

After 36 years of devoted service to his alma mater — two as a residence director and 34 as alumni director — Flanagan retired July 19. (He’ll stay on board starting this fall as a part-time employee to coordinate the Mountain on the Road series with Fr. Dan Riley, O.F.M., founder of Mt. Irenaeus).

“I think the hardest part will be not being here all the time to see where we’re going because we’re in such a good place right now,” Flanagan said. “You want to see where the university is headed with this new president and still be a part of that because I think Jeff is going to be great. I’ll miss serving with him.”

“

This job gave me a vocation where I was working for something bigger than myself.

Joe Flanagan

The back of Flanagan’s alumni trading card is filled with some remarkable stats: attending or overseeing close to 2,000 alumni events; going to hundreds of funerals and wakes; and traveling more than a million miles on the job — and that’s only driving miles. He’s lost track of all the air miles. Good thing he loves to travel.

“I went a day early to an alumni event in Washington state not long ago just to drive into Oregon because I hadn’t been there yet,” said Flanagan, who only needs to cross off Alaska and Hawaii on his list of states to visit.

Oregon was the last of the continental 48.

Flanagan readily admits that St. Bonaventure has played a pivotal role in shaping the spiritual and professional person he’s become.

“This job gave me a vocation where I was working for something bigger than myself,” Flanagan said. “I always knew this place is bigger than any one person’s sense of who they are. We’re bringing the gospel, and I mean that in a very wide sense, to the world. And the spiritual aspect to this job made me feel very comfortable and supported, especially with the friars. That’s something that’s kept me going even on the worst days.”

The two people with whom he’s worked most closely the last 24 years — Lucia Scotty for 22 years and Lindsay Retchless for the last two — called Flanagan the “ultimate boss.” When Scotty’s mother was dying from cancer in the late 1990s, Flanagan was generous in allowing her time away from the office to tend to her mom.

For all his dedication to the university, Flanagan

Alumni Services Director Joe Flanagan, ’74 (center), is usually the person surprising a graduate with the Alumnus or Alumna of the Year Award at Reunion Weekend. It was Flanagan’s turn to be surprised in June, however, when Acting President Dr. Joe Zimmer (left) and Vice President for University Advancement Bob Van Wicklin announced him as the 2022 recipient.

never lost sight of what matters most: family, friends and faith.

“He’s the kindest, most caring boss I’ve ever had,” said Retchless, who will take over Flanagan’s role as alumni director in July. “He always tells you to put family first, and he means it.”

Fr. Dan has known Flanagan since he was a sophomore at Bonaventure and called him “a deeply thoughtful man who’s always held family and faith at the center of his life.”

“It’s been a privilege to work with Joe because he’s so much more than the person who organizes our (Mountain on the Road) trips,” Fr. Dan said. “He’s a true Franciscan minister to our alumni who shares his thoughts when he’s in the room. I don’t know of anyone in love with the university’s mission more than Joe.”

Tom Missel is chief communications officer at St. Bonaventure.

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The Pathway to Succes s Begin s With Yo u

Championing the sciences

Katie Heitzman, Class of 2022, talks with Corinne and Daniel Maydonovitch in the chemistry lab. Looking on is Dr. Scott Simpson, associate professor of chemistry.

H

Maydonovitch siblings fund chemistry research fellowship aving enjoyed rewarding careers after gaining a strong base of knowledge at St. Bonaventure, siblings Corinne and Daniel Maydonovitch are now establishing a chemistry research fellowship at the school.

Corinne, a member of the Class of 1972, enjoyed a 40year career as a clinical researcher at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. Dan, who graduated in 1977, worked as a chemist at Exxon before earning a doctorate from the New England College of Osteopathic Medicine. He spent the next three decades practicing family medicine.

“We’re just very grateful for the foundation that Bonaventure gave us to go out in the world and be successful,” said Corinne. “That’s why we are so appreciative and want to give back to the university and to the students.”

The Maydonovitch Research Fellowship in the Department of Chemistry will support one student per year for a 10-week summer research experience with a chemistry fac18

BONAVENTURE MAGAZINE

ulty member. It will provide an immersive learning experience, allowing the student to gain hands-on, employable skills. The fellowship will also enable faculty to expand their scholarship and generate peer-reviewed publications with students.

“This tremendous gift creates the time, space and resources necessary for our students and faculty to engage in complex research projects,” said Dr. Megan Walsh, acting dean of the School of Arts and Sciences. “We are deeply appreciative of all that Corinne and Dan do to ensure that we sustain and grow our vibrant chemistry program. Their dedication will enrich the experiences of our current students and also many future students in the years to come.”

THE MAYDONOVITCH SIBLINGS have long championed the sciences at St. Bonaventure, helping to usher in a new era by supporting the construction of the Walsh Science Center and renovations of De La Roche Hall.

In 2016, they established the Anne and John Maydonovitch Endowed Scholarship in memory of their parents. Following that

www.s bu.edu/d o n ate

they were among the lead donors who helped the university acquire upwards of a million dollars in instrumentation for the Chemistry Department Research Lab located in De La Roche Hall.

This research fellowship is another way of saying thank you — to St. Bonaventure and to the parents who taught them the value of knowledge and hard work.

The siblings grew up as the middle of four children in South Plainfield, New Jersey, in a family where problemsolving was a nightly enjoyment and higher education a long-range goal. Their father, a first-class machinist at Lockheed Martin, would talk about the day’s work challenges. Their mother loved tutoring her children and helping with schoolwork.

“Our parents came of age during the Depression,” said Corinne.

“They had to help their families financially and didn’t have the opportunity to pursue higher education. So it was important to them that their children attend college.”

was a male dominant environment. I came to love working in the military, where there was a real sense of camaraderie.”

Dan developed a fondness for family practice early in his medical career. “People want a physician to know and understand them. I enjoyed taking care of families through the generations, from zero to 90,” he said. “It was especially rewarding to make house calls.”

They hope the fellowship offers students the chance to challenge themselves, pose incisive questions and get excited about their research.

Dr. Scott Simpson, associate professor of chemistry and

ST. BONAVENTURE was an obvious choice for the brother and sister as one of their uncles, Fr. Basil F. Lobby, O.F.M., Michael LaRock, Class of 2022, works in the chemistry lab. taught chemistry here for 11 years before bethe recent awardee of a National Science Foundation CAcoming the university’s purchasing agent in the early REER grant, said that the Maydonovitch Research Fellow1960s. ship will empower students as they learn to navigate the Though there were four chemistry majors in their family, Corinne soon learned it was not a major sought by many fe- complexities of research and gain hands-on skills in the lab.

“It definitely gives our students a competitive edge both males at the time. in and out the classroom,” Simpson said. “Many colleges do There were only two or three female chemistry students not provide opportunities for meaningful undergraduin class with her, and men still outnumbered women on ate research. Through the labor of its faculty, support campus. from its alumni and the drive and curiosity of its stuShe explained, “In a way, St. Bonaventure prepared me dents, St. Bonaventure University does.” for my time at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, which

Bonaventure Fund donors provide vital scholarship aid The Bonaventure community has much to celebrate. We have welcomed Dr. Jeff Gingerich as our 22nd president, and this fall we will welcome the largest incoming freshman class of the last two decades. Credit for this milestone belongs in part to our generous donors.

Your yearly gift to The Bonaventure Fund helps boost scholarship aid. As you read this, the admissions team is busy recruiting the Class of 2027 with the scholarship and financial aid packages you helped create.

Please continue the good

work. Make your Bonaventure Fund gift today by completing and returning the enclosed envelope or visiting www.sbu.edu/donate.

The students you help today become alumni who help tomorrow. And that’s what being a Bonnie is all about!

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2022 SCHOLARSHIP LUNCHEON

The Pathway to Succes s Begin s With Yo u

University, students gratefully pay tribute to scholarship donors

Members of the St. Bonaventure community gathered in the Doyle Hall Conference Center on May 5 to honor scholarship and grant recipients and pay tribute to the donors whose generosity makes such a difference in their lives.

Guest speakers included scholarship recipient Jordan Mejia, a member of the Class of 2023, and St. Bonaventure trustee emeritus Leslie C. Quick III, ’75.

Mejia, a broadcast journalism major from Manhattan, shared how the power of the Bona network and the inspiration of scholarships put him on the path to success. When his grandmother, who was his primary guardian, passed away in 2019, Mejia feared he would have to put aside his higher education goals.

“I thought my dream of attending college was over,” he said.

“But thanks to scholarships, I am able to have this fantastic opportunity at St. Bonaventure and not only make an impact on campus as a resident assistant and a member of the Medical Emergency Response Team, but also in the surrounding

Leslie C. Quick III, ‘75, and his wife, Eileen, joined Jordan Mejia, Dr. Joseph Zimmer and Bob Van Wicklin at the spring scholarship luncheon.

community as a volunteer emergency medical responder with Allegany Rescue and EMS.” Mejia is the recipient of the Robert M. Spaulding, ’51, Memorial Scholarship and the Fr. Mychal Judge, O.F.M., Endowed Scholarship.

Dr. Paula Scraba, O.S.F., advocates for others

“The job I don’t get paid for is the job I enjoy the most.”

Dr. Paula Scraba, O.S.F., (above) is well-known on campus for her wide selection of Bona gear. At right, she and Griffin Witte, a physical education major, take a break from the Special Olympics Unified Basketball Competition hosted on campus each spring.

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For Dr. Paula Scraba, O.S.F., an associate professor of physical education, that job is being a minister-inresidence.

“There is something very unique about servant leadership,” she said. “That’s why I live in the residence halls with students and do the hospitality of Popcorn Tuesday. We come together to break bread. It provides the opportunity to build relationships.”

Known affectionately as “Dr. Paula,” Scraba also leads the SBU initiatives with Special Olympics New York and guides the Physical Activity Club (PAC), Student Athletic Advisory Council and the Student Athlete Fellowship and Wellness Club. She is also team chaplain for soccer, softball and lacrosse.

Griffin Witte, a rising senior physical education major from Webster, New York, and member of Bona’s swim team, PAC and the wellness group, has volunteered with Scraba for the past two years.

“I’ve seen firsthand how hard she works to be involved with the campus community and to help establish connections between people,” he said. u Enjoy the full story online at

www.sbu.edu/DrPaula

www.s bu.edu/d o n ate

Continuing the legacy of

Felix A. Jacques, Ph.D.

J

ane Jacques, 94 years old and a resident of Portville, New York, has been attending St. Bonaventure’s scholarship luncheon for 20 years. She and her sister, Lillian, established the Felix A. Jacques Scholarship in 2002 in memory of their brother.

A dedicated and beloved biology teacher, Dr. Jacques worked for the university for 38 years.

In 1965, he was awarded a grant of $40,000 for biological research from the Heart Institute of the National Institute of Health. He also helped establish the first Faculty Senate at the university and served as chair of the Health Professions Evaluation Committee.

A member of the U.S. Army Air Corps in World War II, Dr. Jacques earned a bachelor’s degree (1950) and a master’s degree in zoology (1953) from the University of Iowa. He received his Ph.D. in biology and physiology from St. Louis University in 1960.

It was Dr. Kenneth E. Anderson, chair of the Department of Biology, who encouraged Dr. Jacques to join St. Bonaventure’s faculty in 1963.

He was a member of numerous professional societies, such as the American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS), the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), The American Physiological Society, and the National Association of Advisors for the Health Professions. He was a member of the American Association of University Professors. He was also the chief health adviser for the university from 1977 until his death in 2001.

“Felix loved teaching. Even after he retired, he continued to come into his office in the biology department almost every day,” Ms. Jacques said. “My sister and I felt that the best way to perpetuate the legacy he left with so many students was to create a scholarship fund.”

Through the years, Ms. Jacques has received notes from her brother’s former students as well as recipients of his scholarship, sharing news of their lives and careers.

5Felix A. Jacques, Ph.D., was a faculty member for 38 years at St. Bonaventure.

6Seated (from left) are Jane Jacques and Dane Surra. Standing (from left) are scholarship recipients McKenna Preston, ’22, Mary Sabatelle, ’22, and Sam Mallare, ’23.

If you would like to create a scholarship in honor or in memory of someone important in your life, please contact Angela Nelson, director of donor engagement, at (716) 3752308 or anelson@sbu.edu.

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true Grit

Pandemic doesn’t deter business students in C4

Q

By Tom Donahue : What’s the difference between the leg-

endary rock band The Beatles and St. Bonaventure University’s student-run business consulting club known as C4? : When the going got tough, The Fab Four broke up. And the only hurdle before the lads from Liverpool was a clash of egos.

A

C4, on the other hand, had to confront a global pandemic, a big red stop sign that froze the world in its tracks, threatening to not only halt the work of C4, but send the club back to square one, if not dismantle it completely.

But C4 is alive and thriving today because its core group of students refused to stop working with local businesses through the pandemic, said Dr. Todd Palmer, associate professor of management, chair of SBU’s management and marketing programs, founder of C4 and the club’s faculty adviser.

“I’ve worked with a lot of student teams, but nobody has owned it like these students,” said Palmer.

“They found a way to continue working with several Allegany bars and cafés through the pandemic year because they were sincerely worried about them.

They would not stop, and it was an honor to be part of their journey.”

Hold that thought as we fast-forward to today, when we find C4 as a key player in a multifaceted network of programs aimed at helping local businesses find and solidify their footing in still-challenging economic times.

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Students in their C4 Jackets and their adviser, Dr. Todd Palmer (far right), pose in front of the giant Bonnies logo on the side of the Burton, a principal client through the pandemic.

Those players include St. Bonaventure’s Innovation Center, which puts SBU students at the core of efforts to help budding entrepreneurs turn ideas into startups, then into thriving, scalable businesses.

The center was created in 2020 with a pledge of $500,000 from Olean philanthropists James Stitt, executive chairman of the Cutco Corp. in Olean and a former member of St. Bonaventure’s Board of Trustees, and his wife, Carol, former longtime executive director of the Cattaraugus Region Community Foundation.

The Stitts, along with Palmer and Dr. Matrecia James, dean of St. Bonaventure’s School of Business, helped establish the center and recruit its executive director, Tom Cullen, a 2000 SBU graduate and one of the many Bonaventure alumni with whom Palmer has networked for many years. Cullen had startup experience of his own, having spent nearly 20 years in Chicago where he founded a high-speed trading firm and a software development consulting business.

Then there’s the Laine Business Accelerator, a program that provides startup companies and established entrepreneurs with a three-month boot camp featuring a range of services to fine tune and grow their businesses, from management training and office space to venture capital financing. Funded by the Olean Business Development Corporation’s Erick Laine Entrepreneurship Fund, the Laine Accelerator is a collaboration involving more than a dozen businesses, nonprofits and educational institutions, such as the Olean Campus of Jamestown Community College.

The accelerator is named for the late Erick Laine, former CEO and chairman of Cutco, and a former member of St. Bonaventure’s Board of Trustees.

Serving as the third leg in a tripod of support for local businesses is C4. When five Cattaraugus County businesses were selected as the Laine Accelerator’s very first clients in 2021, they were strongly encouraged to work with C4.

“It ended up working out incredibly well,” said Charlie Randall, who earned a BBA in marketing in May and is now an admissions counselor at SBU. “It meant that businesses were coming to us, and were committed to working with us, instead of us having to go door to door asking if businesses needed help. It really set us up for success. Last year was the craziest and most successful that C4 has ever seen.”

But back to the pandemic year.

In March of 2020, campus was shut down and students were sent home to finish that spring semester in virtual classrooms.

Campus reopened for fall semester 2021, but under strict new rules aimed at preventing the spread of COVID-19.

For instance, Randall, who was starting his junior year, couldn’t walk out of his on-campus apartment to visit a fellow C4 classmate who lived in the apartment right next door.

“I wasn’t allowed in there, and we couldn’t meet anywhere on campus. We couldn’t organize,” said Randall.

But the need for C4 was greater than ever. “A lot of businesses were in total chaos,” said Palmer, and among those hardest hit by COVID-19 restrictions were bars and restaurants.

“We were back on campus, but we were socially distanced and had all these rules. That’s when the guys in C4 came to me and said, ‘Hey, Palmer, we still want to do this.’ One of my graduate assistants, Mark Vaccaro, was really keen on this. Mark had worked in C4 for three or four years prior and was now my grad assistant in charge of C4, but he realized that because of COVID he was in charge of nothing.

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u If you are interested in working with C4, the SBU Innovation Center and/or the Laine Business Accelerator, please contact Dr. Todd Palmer at tpalmer@sbu.edu.

Kristen Reynolds, who worked closely with the Burton as a member of C4, earned her MBA from St. Bonaventure in May. 24

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“I remember Mark saying, ‘We have to do something,’ and he was talking to the other members of the club. I forget whose idea it was, but someone said, ‘Let’s meet at someone’s house off campus.’”

At the time, Vaccaro, now an auditor for the Big Four accounting firm Ernst and Young in New York City, was in the last year of the university’s five-year accounting/MBA program, and when he peered into the future he didn’t like what he saw.

“People lose interest in a club pretty quickly when there’s no work for them to do,” he said.

Instead of hitting the “pause” button, C4 got to work, recruiting not only new businesses with which to engage, but new C4 members.

“Dr. Palmer had this idea to bring together bars and restaurants that were having problems as a result of COVID,” said Vaccaro. “So we brought in about 10 students who were interested in C4, split them up, and had them reach out to different bars and restaurants in town.”

Engagements were opened with several Allegany taverns and restaurants including the Burton, the historic Main Street bar and restaurant.

While C4 members were able to connect with the business owners through virtual platforms, campus COVID restrictions made it difficult for the club to conduct a key aspect of its operation: weekly group debriefing and strategy sessions.

So every Sunday, Palmer and his C4 students met in the backyard of a student’s off-campus house in Allegany, sitting in a big circle, careful to maintain social distancing and other COVID safeguards.

Jon Boilard, who earned his BBA in accounting in May, was one of new C4 recruits that year and remembers being impressed by the commitment of the club members.

“Just seeing everybody’s determination, traveling to this person’s off-campus house and sitting in the backyard, no matter what the weather was like — and sometimes it was freezing out — was something I wanted to be a part of,” he said. “Everyone was serious about what they were doing and we all wanted to do well. You don’t find that a lot of places.”

Randall admits that there were few “hard deliverables” presented to the club’s handful of clients in that COVIDrestricted year.

But that’s not the point, said Palmer.

“At least we were treading water. The students understood that maintaining the club’s structure, recruitment and training was absolutely essential,” he said.

And if the club had not continued to meet?

“To be honest, we would have probably had to restart everything,” said Palmer. “A university is a collection of all

these little communities that make the place go, and if you let a community go it takes a long time to rebuild it. The fact that these students were able to keep C4 going was super important.”

If you wonder if that matters, fast-forward again to present day and ask David Przesiek of Scottsdale, Arizona, who earned a dual degree in marketing and management from St. Bonaventure in 1989 and has enjoyed a career in the risk-related side of health care.

When the Burton came up for sale in 2019, it caught the attention of Przesiek and three of his Bona buddies, John Flanagan, ’89, Brian Attea, ’89, and Kevin Patwell, ’88.

“Three of us had worked at the Burton, two of us met our wives there, and all of us have a very strong connection to the university,” said Przesiek. “So when it popped up for sale the text messages started flying. We ended up making the deal happen in December of 2019. It was actually Friday the 13th.”

Not a good omen, you might say.

“We’d done our risk analysis, but the one thing we didn’t factor in was a pandemic — and it happened four months later,” said Przesiek.

Meanwhile, because of the new owners’ strong ties to the university, they’d already expressed an interest in connecting with St. Bonaventure students.

“We worked with Dr. Palmer to get a couple of students, and that’s where C4 came in,” said Przesiek. “And God love them, because this was during the pandemic, right? First you’re closed, then you’re open, but with very limited capacity, limited hours and really tight rules for masking and other things. So the students were trying to navigate those waters along with us. We challenged them to come up with ideas to expand the scope of the Burton from a business perspective, and they did great work.”

The Burton became a focal point for C4, said Vaccaro, who worked the account with Kristin Reynolds, who earned her MBA from St. Bonaventure in May. “They were new owners and were all Bona grads, so they really wanted to work with the school and establish a long-lasting relationship. Working with them and keeping them at the center really helped us,” said Vaccaro.

As a direct result of C4’s work, the Burton started a trivia night. “It created another night for us and the students love it; I mean they love it,” said Przesiek.

C4 was also challenged to help bolster the Burton’s social media presence and their work “changed our strategy,” Przesiek added. “The students sharpened the messaging, created more consistency and helped with the recruitment of more followers. What they brought us was greater connectivity to our customer base, particularly to students.”

“

This upcoming year C4 may be working with up to 10 companies. I think it’s going to be a great year because of those students who busted their butts two years ago to have meetings in a backyard.

Dr. Todd Palmer

David Przesiek, ’89, is a co-owner of the Burton.

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A similar C4 success story is told by Olean native Dr. Kryn McClain, co-owner and operator of Paragon Behavioral Health Services. Paragon has 80 employees and maintains three offices, one of them in Olean, its main office for outpatient programs. Paragon is one of the businesses selected as the Laine Accelerator’s five inaugural clients last fall.

“We didn’t know we’d be gaining access to C4.

Frankly, I’d never heard of C4 before,” said McClain, who earned her master’s in community mental health counseling from SBU in 2011.

Assigned to work with Paragon were C4 members Randall and his classmate Cecilia Lauciello, who will complete requirements for her bachelor’s degree in management this summer. McClain, remembering her own days as a college student, had modest expectations, which Randall and Lauciello blew up on day one.

“They were just phenomenal. I was definitely not that mature and motivated at that age,” said McClain. “The quality of these two was something I don’t think I’ve ever seen in undergraduates. They were on point, professional and they knew their stuff.”

The relationship was so beneficial that McClain hired Lauciello as Paragon’s social media content manager.

“She manages all our social media and she’s just rocking it,” said McClain. “Her voice, her tone, how she writes, her research … Our numbers have gone up over 100 percent in our engagement, so she’s on it, she’s wonderful. We can’t say enough good things about CeCi. I think of Bonaventure and the School of Business in the highest regard.”

The praise showered on C4 students doesn’t surprise Professor Palmer.

“Take social media, for instance,” he said. “Charlie Randall can spend hours talking about analytics, how to analyze competitors and how you’re comparing to them.

And Maddie Heyden and Brianna Shay (both BBA management, 2022) worked extensively with their client, actually setting up and implementing marketing events.

Then there’s Jon Boilard, a great accountant who worked extensively with his client on their accounting

p Dr. Kryn McClain (left) and Paulina Colonna, co-owners and operators of C4 client Paragon Behavioral Health Services. q Charlie Randall, who earned his MBA in May, in a virtual meeting with Paragon’s Dr. Kryn McClain.

system. These students are really good, and the nice thing about our students is they can do whatever, from research to nuts and bolts.”

School of Business Dean James is also impressed by the work of C4.

“These students take what they learn in the classroom, and through experiential learning, and apply it in the business community in ways that make an immediate and long-term positive impact,” she said.

“Dr. Palmer and the student consultants embody our mission and personify engagement impact and innovation. I am very proud of C4.

I believe these are the young leaders who will change the business world for the better.”

But the C4 story likely has a different ending had that core group not been committed to working through the pandemic.

“That was absolutely essential,” said Palmer. “It was these students, who quietly embodied Franciscan values better than anyone, who moved this along. This upcoming year C4 may be working with up to 10 companies. I think it’s going to be a great year because of those students who busted their butts two years ago to have meetings in a backyard.

“Unlike the Fab Four, C4 kept the band together.”

(Tom Donahue, ’76, is the content webmaster at St. Bonaventure.)

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C l as s Notes

4 SHARE YOUR CAREER NEWS WITH THE BONA NATION! 4

To submit professional news for the next issue of Bonaventure magazine, drop us a note in the enclosed envelope, fill out an online form at www.SBUmagazine.com or email magazine@sbu.edu. Submissions may be edited for clarity or length.

1962

Tim Holland was one of the featured authors at the May 21 Suffolk Mystery Authors Festival. He participated in a panel on “Setting it right,” the art of making the setting of a story work for both the characters and the reader. Information about the festival and the topic can be found at www.timholland.com. In addition, Holland has joined the board of directors of the Williamsburg Book Festival, which will be held Oct. 1 (see www.williamsburgbookfestival.org). On June 22, his new novel, “Deception – A Sidney Lake Lowcountry Mystery,” was released.

Marilyn (Bonsee) Stetar, who retired after a long career in management at M&M Mars, earned certification in English as a Second Language (ESL) at The New School in New York City. She teaches ESL at Kaplan International as well as volunteering at The English Speaking Union and The International Center in New York City, and the University of Southern Silesia in Wroclaw, Poland. She also co-chairs financial literacy programs for The Transition Network in New York City. Stetar divides her time between her home in Clinton, New Jersey, and the Upper West Side.

1964

In 2021, Vincent Virga’s first novel, “Gaywyck” (1980), was celebrated in “The Romance Novel in English: A Survey in Rare Books, 1769-1999,” by Rebecca Romney as the creator of two new genres – the gay gothic and the gay romance. Virga has researched, edited, captioned, and designed more than 650 picture sections for trade books, including dozens of international bestsellers. He has authored a number of books, including “Eyes of the Nation: A Visual History of the United States,” and “Cartographia: Maps as Cultural Documents,” both written with the support of curators at the Library of Congress where Virga

NAAB News

As part of the National Alumni Association Board’s spring meeting, incoming president Pat Doyle, ’81, thanks outgoing president Kayte Malik, ’03, for her leadership, service and dedication. Doyle’s two-year term as president began July 1.

had an office in the Publishing Office for two decades. Virga is also the cofounder of a museum in Ballina, Ireland, The Jackie Clarke Collection, which was visited by students from St. Bonaventure several years ago. “In this, my 80th year, I feel mighty blessed,” he writes. In 2021, Virga celebrated the 56th anniversary with his partner, James McCourt.

1969

Mary Ann Holden was honored by the Genesee Valley School Boards Association as the 2021 recipient of the Albert Hawk Award for her contributions to education and service to her community’s school board. Holden is in her 20th year on the

Dansville School Board and 16th as its president.

1971

Retired Lt. Col. Paul Bishop is teaching for the University of Phoenix and serving as a U.S. Naval Academy Blue and Gold Officer. He served for 20 years in the Marine Corps and for 28 years as a U.S. Army Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps instructor. Molly Kulesz-Martin, Ph.D., having retired in 2021 from Oregon Health & Science University, is professor emerita of the SUMMER 2022

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C l as s Notes

Department of Dermatology and Cell & Developmental Biology, Solid Tumors Program chair emerita of Knight Cancer Institute, and mentor of Integrated Training in Quantitative and Experimental Cancer Systems Biology (ICSB). She is director emerita of the Montagna Symposium on the Biology of Skin, which is approaching its 70th anniversary, and founding director of the Biology of Skin Foundation to support this annual meeting and its global educational and public health mission. In 2020, she joined the St. Bonaventure University Board of Trustees.

1972

Brian Biggane was awarded first place in sports writing by the Florida Press Club for a story on the 61-year love affair between longtime football coach Howard Schnellenberger and his wife, Beverlee, which appeared in the February 2021 edition of The Coastal Star, a monthly newspaper in eastern Palm Beach County. Thomas Servoss is celebrating 38 years selling real estate in Melbourne, Florida.

1973

Daniel O’Neill retired after a 17-year business career in New York City and a 25-year teaching (history) career at St. Anthony’s High School on Long Island.

June 2022 marked 15 years since he received a kidney transplant. The donor was his wife.

about fire, EMS and police chaplains.

1978

Kim Dixon is president of Partnering for Peace: Friends of Peace Corps and Rotary (www.partneringforpeace.org).

Partnering for Peace is an all-volunteer nonprofit organization with the goal to form partnerships between Rotary International Rotarians and the United States Peace Corps volunteers and returned volunteers. Dixon served with the Peace Corps in the Republic of Georgia (2014-2016).

She also served in a refugee camp from the 2008 war when Russia invaded Georgia. After her service, she returned for another 1½ years to work on additional projects on her own, primarily to support the first hospice in Georgia (www.afgeorgia.org). She awaits an opportunity to safely visit again. In the meantime, Dixon has relocated back to Raleigh, North Carolina, and is looking forward to bringing her new husband, Thomas J. Ziko, to see the beautiful Bona’s campus and favorite old haunts.

Victoria M. (Scaccia) Peltier welcomes former classmates and friends to touch base with her with their own updates. She is retired but remains an inclusive early childhood educator and advocate by volunteering in her church

and community. Peltier has been studying more about faith and humanity as well as better ways to educate all learners since COVID forced schools to close and isolated many from any contact with teachers or online learning sources. She is also a volunteer mental health peer supporter and advocate. She has five children and seven grandchildren. Tom Ren has relocated to Roaring River, North Carolina, to be closer to his immediate family and start easing his way into retirement on a little piece of wilderness paradise called “Blessed Solitude.” He says, “With 1,000 feet of Roaring River bottom and 48 wooded acres with a creek and several springs, I truly feel blessed.” Ren had spent almost 41 years in Colorado.

1981

Marguerite C. (McDonald) Garrison was a recipient of a 2021 Meritorious Presidential Rank Award. A Presidential Rank Award is one of the most prestigious awards in the federal career civil service, and these awards are critical to recognizing the hard work and important contributions of dedicated civil servants in the American federal workforce. The Presidential Rank Award of Meritorious Executive is the secondhighest annual award given to selected

1975

Ginger (Broderick) Stawicki retired after more than 43 years in education, including as math instructor, juvenile detention education coordinator, social and mental health management and behavior intervention specialist (great way to end my career assisting and helping elementary students and staff). She has moved to Lake Murray in Prosperity, South Carolina, and welcomes any Bonaventure buddies to visit! Bob Straub is an ordained deacon for the Catholic Diocese of Richmond, Virginia, and a chaplain for the Prince George Fire & Emergency Services. He was among those featured in a diocesan newspaper article (catholicvirginian.org) 28

BONAVENTURE MAGAZINE

Bona Basketball Rally

Alumni from the Class of ‘79 supported Bona’s basketball at a winter gathering at the Glennon home in Leesburg, Virginia. Pictured from left are Mary Ann (Hickey) Glennon, Lauretta (LaValley) Viglianco, Eileen (Barry) Kalukin, Debbie (Leitner) Frey, and Donna (Rucci) Collins.

C l as s Notes

career senior executive service (SES) members. The award may be given to no more than 5% of the members of the SES in any given year. Meritorious Rank Award recipients receive 20% of basic pay, a framed meritorious certificate featuring a silver emblem signed by the president and a silver Rank Award pin. Garrison is deputy inspector general for Administrative Investigations with the Department of Defense.

1982

Daniel Marren was a co-recipient of the Bar Association of Erie County’s 2021 Award of Merit, an honor that is reserved to recognize extraordinary circumstances. Marren was recognized for exemplary dedication for ensuring the courts were operational during the COVID-19 pandemic and for commitment to the service of the bench, bar and public at large. Marren retired from the New York State Unified Court System in 2022 after 16 years as the confidential law clerk to the District Administrative Judge of the 8th Judicial District, Hon. Paula Feroleto, JSC (Justice of the Supreme Court). Marren was in private practice for 20 years before entering public service.

1983

Kathleen (Holland) Kurtz has moved into the systems side of the residential construction industry after 38 years on the operations side. “I am excited to be putting my many years of experience into a new position,” she writes.

1984

JG “Greg” Faherty, owner and CEO of www.a-perfect-resume.com, launched a new résumé preparation service, www.milliondollarresumes.com, specializing in custom résumé/cover letter/LinkedIn/executive bio packages for senior executives and CXOs. A certified professional résumé writer with more than 20 years of experience operating his résumé business, he has also provided résumé writing classes for schools, business organizations, companies, and nonprofits. Recognized as a leader in the indus-

try, Faherty has consulted for several internet résumé companies, helping them create business strategies and goto-market plans. He is also the author of “The New Guide to Writing a Perfect Resume.” Joe Martone was named communications manager for the Diocese of Buffalo. He is responsible for managing the day-to-day communications in the diocese that contains 160 parishes in an eight-county region, with more than 560,000 Catholics, 38 Catholic elementary schools, 13 high schools and seven colleges and universities.

1986

Linda J. Harris, a certified public accountant, has joined Johnson, Mackowiak & Associates (JMA) of Fredonia as partner. She will focus primarily on the tax aspects of the practice, which includes overseeing tax preparation and consultations regarding individuals, estates, corporations and partnerships. Before joining JMA, Harris owned her own certified public accounting firm, Linda J. Harris, CPA. Prior to that, Harris worked in the private sector as a senior accountant for a large manufacturing firm and had worked at JMA when the firm was known as Coppings, Johnson, Mackowiak and Myott. An active member in her community, Harris is involved with several charities including 4-H, the M.S. Society and the Community Reinvestment Committee.

1988

Steven Barry, who has been with KPMG for 34 years, was promoted to national partner in charge of inspections.

His new responsibilities include monitoring audit quality in KPMG’s Americas Region and splitting time between KPMG’s offices in Washington, D.C., and New York. Thomas Berry completed the 126th Boston Marathon on April 18. He started running five years ago and has finished more than

80 races, including several marathons and ultra-marathons. He finds it a great way to stay fit and exercise.

Berry plans to run the New York City Marathon this year and focus on completing the remaining major world marathons. Michael Wood became a certified safety professional (CSP) in November of 2021. Wood is senior vice president of Quality, Health, Safety and Environment with TEAM Industrial Services.

1993

Eileen (Franczak) Cavalier has been promoted to chief financial officer at Citizen Advocates, Inc., a nonprofit organization that makes lives better for people with intellectual /developmental disabilities, people with mental health care needs, and people in recovery from substance use disorder. She has worked in various finance roles in the New York state nonprofit arena for the past 25 years.

1994

Carrie Carter has returned to TTR Sotheby’s International Realty in the role of senior vice president. Carter has been licensed as an associate broker since 1996 and has served numerous neighborhoods within Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia. Rebecca (Smith) Hoag completed a master’s degree in religious education from Felician University in May of 2020.

She earned her degree while teaching middle school religion classes (as well as serving as campus minister and STREAM coordinator) full time at St. Mary’s Elementary school in Lancaster, New York, a position she held for seven years. In July 2021, she started a new position at the parish as director of faith formation.

1995

Becki Whitcombe is the majority owner and managing partner of Curtin SUMMER 2022

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C l as s Notes

Gerald Stragazzi, a Class of 1960 alumnus, attended the National Invitational Tournament game at Madison Square Garden game with his sons, Mike (left) and Matt.

Whitcombe, LLC. In October of 2021, she was honored to be named the Outstanding Pro Bono Community Honoree by the Lake County office of Prairie State Legal Services, in recognition of the pro bono services she has provided over the years.

Ryan Gallo is head men’s basketball coach and assistant athletic director at St. Mary’s High School in Lancaster, New York.

Gallo has coached basketball and football at the professional, collegiate and high school levels for the last 25 years. In March, Gallo’s men’s basketball team won the New York State Catholic High School Athletic Association Class B state championship.

Paul and Jackie (Smith) Murphy, members of the Class of 1985, attended the NIT game with their daughter, Bridget.

Paul is pictured with Bona legends Jim Baron, ’77, ’86, and Jim Satalin, ’69. Baron was the captain of the 1977 NIT championship team coached by Satalin. Paul attended that game with his late brother, William C. Murphy, Class of 1976.

Dr. Marc DelMonico led the 2021 effort of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) to approve competencies for minister formation and certification for Catholic pastoral care in prison ministries, and for certified Catholic correctional chaplains.

In his role as USCCB director of certification for ecclesial ministry, he worked with colleagues in the Catholic Prison Ministries Coalition and the National Asso-

Cheering on the Bonnies at MSG

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1997

ciation of Catholic Chaplains (NACC) to develop these competencies, which will help prepare Catholics across the country for the work of providing spiritual care for those who are incarcerated or affected by incarceration in any way, including those in immigrant detention. DelMonico also worked closely with NACC as it updated minister formation competencies for Catholic pastoral caregivers in the health care field, including for certified Catholic health care chaplains, and for pastoral ministers to the elderly, sick and those receiving in-home care.

For more information, visit DelMonico’s website, churchmd.com. Dr. Julie Fitzpatrick was appointed to a three-year term as chair of the Department of Business Administration and Accounting in the School of Business at the State University of New York (SUNY) at Fredonia. The department, home to 13 full-time faculty members and more than 300 students, has been accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) for its programs in accounting, public accountancy, finance, management, and marketing since 2017. Fitzpatrick joined the faculty at SUNY Fredonia in 2007 and is an associate professor of finance.

1999

Cla ss Notes

Michael Fessel (also ’05) was named elementary principal and curriculum coordinator at Clymer Central School District in Western New York.

Shannon Hunter is regional vice president of care management at LIFEPlan CCO NY, one of seven New York State Care Coordination Organizations formed in 2018 to meet the needs of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities by collaborating with service providers through a health home model.

2001

Andrea Emery was promoted to senior manager of program finance at SRC of North Syracuse.

Emery started her career with SRC in 2014, most recently serving as manager of program finance, a role in which she forecast and tracked revenue and costs, providing guidance to analysts and program managers across the enterprise. In her new role, she will provide active direction and coaching to the finance team and work closely with colleagues to provide business insight.

Tim Spring was promoted to regional manager for the Northeast Region at LeafGuard.

2002

Heather Ahern left the telecom industry, where she spent the last 20 years, and started a new chapter in her career as a business development specialist with AmerisourceBergen in its Community & Specialty Pharmacy division. Ranked #8 on the Fortune 500, AmerisourceBergen is one of the largest global pharmaceutical sourcing and distribution services companies, helping health care providers and pharmaceutical and biotech manufacturers improve patient access to products and enhance patient care. Penny (Soto) Myler was promoted to associate registrar for curriculum management at St. John Fisher College in Rochester in November 2020. She previously

worked for 15 years in the admissions office, and held the position of assistant director of transfer and graduate admissions.

2004

Timothy Shaffer, Ph.D., will start a new position this fall as the first Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Chair of Civil Discourse at the University of Delaware’s Joseph R. Biden, Jr. School of Public Policy and Administration.

Shaffer will be responsible for developing and guiding the delivery of the SNF Ithaca Initiative’s academic curricula and experiential learning programs. SNF Ithaca serves not only as UD’s home base for civil discourse, but as a national hub where students from across the country come together and develop the civil civic engagement skills that will strengthen democracy.

An interdisciplinary scholar, throughout his work and research Shaffer focuses on the role of civic professionals in institutional settings such as governmental and non-governmental organizations in relationship with diverse communities. In joining the SNF Ithaca Initiative and Biden School, Shaffer will help grow new course offerings focused on civil discourse and a series of new programs and special events designed to foster a healthier vision of democracy.

SBU board transitions

It was Bonnies succeeding Bonnies on the Board of Directors for the Meeting Planners International (MPI) Upstate New York Chapter. In May 2021, Sam Toscano, ’89, transitioned to president of the chapter, succeeding Theresa Wutzer Moore, ’87. Toscano gifted the outgoing president an SBU T-shirt. Toscano, of Syracuse, is the sales manager at 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel in Clayton, New York. Moore is the associate director for the New York State Council of School Superintendents, handling conference design and communications. Both alums are certified meeting professionals.

2005

Brian Sidney-Smith (also MBA, ’06) is a regional sales manager with G.L. Huyett.

2006

Keith W. Brennan, MD, is a board certified physician in internal medicine with a specialty in geriatric medicine (New York University Langone Winthrop Hospital) and has been appointed as associate professor of internal medicine for the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. He lives in Long Beach, New York, with his spouse and twin daughters. Ryan

Several Bonnies were present when the Buffalo Division No. 1 Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH) held a ceremony at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church (OLPH) in Buffalo to present a $2,000 donation to the parish. Standing in the front row are church pastor Fr. Paul Siel, ’77, New York State AOH District 2 Director Craig E. Speers, ’72, and AOH Division President Kevin Lafferty, ’02. The funds will be used for the repair of stained glass windows in the church.

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C l as s Notes

Talbot and his colleague Matt Parrino won two prestigious awards for their work on SHOUT! The Buffalo Football Podcast. The duo won first place for Best Podcast in the New York Press Association 2021 Best Newspaper Contest and first place for Best Sports Show at the Syracuse Press Club Awards. Talbot and Parrino cover the Buffalo Bills for Syracuse.com and NYUP.com.

2008

Jody Bill is an instructor of special education at the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa and teaches in the Early Childhood/Early Childhood Special Education program. Emily Ciraolo (also ’09) joined Cisco as CX Communications manager to support program and change management initiatives for the company’s customer experience organi-

Alumni team wins Olean Macker

Three St. Bonaventure alumni representing Bysiek CPA, PLLC, won the championship of the Gus Macker Corporate Cup June 10. The co-ed basketball tournament is held annually in Olean.

Area businesses enter teams in a double-elimination March Madness-style bracket and compete against each other until a winner is determined. The Bysiek CPA team went undefeated in the tournament. Pictured from left are alumni Arnim Alexander, ’15, Ed Bysiek, ’02, and Mckenna Maycock, ’19. Future Bonnies in front include Royal Alexander (Class of 2044) and Sylvia and Juliana Bysiek (Class of 2036).

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zation. Katelyn E. (Dieffenderfer) Niedermier has been appointed an administrative law judge by the New York State Office of Temporary & Disability Assistance. Previously she was a senior staff attorney at Neighborhood Legal Services, Inc., where her practice was focused on eviction defense, fair housing litigation and tenant advocacy.

Niedermier lives in Buffalo with her husband and daughter. Ian Nolan was named director of new communities for KIPP Texas Public Schools in October of 2021. Prior to this new role, Nolan served as a regional director of operations for Great Hearts Texas for two years, and was an assistant principal of operations for three years at IDEA Public Schools in San Antonio. This marks his 11th year in education and sixth year in operational leadership.

2011

Kryn (Palmquist) McClain is president and co-owner of Paragon Behavioral Health Services, which earned Great Place to Work certification in 2022.

This year, 84% of Paragon’s 80+ employees said it’s a great place to work – 25% higher than the average U.S. company. Founded in 2017, Paragon is a 100% women-owned behavioral health company with locations in Olean, as well as Reading and Ephrata, Pennsylvania. Paragon’s services include individual intensive behavioral health services (IBHS) for autistic children and youth, mental health counseling, and autism testing and assessment. This year, Paragon is set to launch a group IBHS program for 3- to 5-year-old children and is partnering with a virtual reality software programming company to develop a platform of applications to assist autistic youths with independent living skills. Last year, Paragon was a finalist in Olean’s Laine Business Accelerator Program, which partners with St. Bonaventure’s Innovation Center.

Through this program, Paragon developed infrastructure to grow, strengthen its network within the community, and set on a course to continue scaling services. This resulted in a 500% growth in the outpatient mental health program in Olean.

2012

Spencer Timkey (also ’13) completed his first winter as owner of The Boardroom Snowboard Shop in Ellicottville, which was founded by his parents in 1984. He worked there throughout his Bona tenure before purchasing the business in the summer of 2021.

The Boardroom specializes in snowboard retail, equipment rental, outerwear and specialty branded apparel. Timkey worked with a local artist to develop a modern logo as the store initiated a rebrand. He and his wife, Molly, welcomed their son, Tanner, last November.

2015

Michelle (Love) Robertson (also ’20) is a school counselor at St. Mary’s Ryken High School in Maryland, where she recommended seven students for St. Bonaventure’s Bonnie and Reilly junior scholarships. “All seven candidates were awarded the scholarships,” she writes. “It is a privilege to recommend such high achieving students to an incredible school like St. Bonaventure.”

2019

Cassidy Kyler is the director of special programs for Tupper Lake Central School District.

2020

Genaro “Tristan” Colon has earned top honors in a number of Brazilian jiu jitsu competitions, including, in 2021, the Long Island Challenge Series 1 Champion, the North American Grappling Association Atlantic City Champion, and the Pride Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Champion. In 2022 he earned the Grappling Industries Champion title. Colon is an Exos performance coach at Google in New York City.

Chris Matthews makes history with new Jordan player edition

When he wore the Brown and White as a member of the St. Bonaventure men’s basketball team, Chris Matthews, ’10, rained threes in the Reilly Center.

Today, he’s known worldwide to millions as “Lethal Shooter.”

He’s one of the world’s most in-demand shooting coaches, working with numerous NBA and WNBA athletes to perfect their shot. He’s also worked with a long list of celebrities, frequently featured on his social media accounts.

Followed by more than two million fans on Instagram, Matthews has found stardom through features by ESPN, Jordan Brand, Sports Illustrated, an appearance in a Mountain Dew commercial, and showing off his form in NBA2K with game creators showcasing his shot. He even has a cameo in the Netflix movie, “Hustle.” His work as a shooting coach has earned him respect from all corners of the basketball globe and the biggest names in the basketball and entertainment worlds.

Now, some of those stars will be wearing a set of Lethal Shooter Air Jordans. Matthews made history in June with the announcement of his Air Jordan 36 Low player edition. He’s the first trainer to have a PE assigned to him by Jordan Brand.

The shoe features a black and gold design that was made to be worn both on and off the court.

His favorite feature, though, might be the insole which bears his “Stay Locked In” logo in concrete with flowers printed on the tongue.

“The flower represents making it out of the toughness of Washington, D.C.,” he says. “I grew up in D.C., born and raised, so to have a shoe that represents my city and someone who didn’t give up is a blessing.

“I wanted to be the first trainer ever with a shoe.

I want to break barriers, but to do that takes a lot

Chris Matthews

of hard work and believing in yourself. If you’re a part of something where you feel like concrete is keeping you down, if you keep working hard, that rose is going to come through the concrete.”

A McDonald’s All-America nominee in his native D.C., he started his collegiate career at Washington State before transferring back to the East Coast with the Bonnies. He was one of the first key building blocks in turning around Bonaventure’s program under head coach Mark Schmidt, immediately making his mark by draining 81 three-pointers in his first SBU season of 2008-09.

Matthews graduated as the program’s single-season 3-point record holder, drilling 101 treys as a senior.

In just 61 games of action, he ranks seventh all-time in career Bonnies threes (182). He was also instrumen-

tal in creating a culture of winning.

Bona teammates who were underclassmen his senior season would go on to capture the A-10 championship just two years later.

“Coming to St. Bonaventure is one of the things that helped me in life because it was so welcoming,” Matthews said. “It was a place that felt like home. There were times I had down moments, but I was able to speak to people who helped me there.

Bona’s really played a huge role in my life to where I am today.”

For now, Matthews’ sneakers will remain a limited edition for family and friends and potentially be up for retail sale next year. In the meantime, stars such as Drake, Future and 2 Chainz will be wearing the shoes this year.

Read a longer version of this story at gobonnies.com.

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Wedd in gs

Erin Woodruff and Jeff Madigan, ’08

Katie Sinclair, ’16, and Samuel Govan

Bonaventure Magazine Wedding Guidelines To submit your announcement for an upcoming edition: • use the enclosed envelope • email magazine@sbu.edu • use the online form at www.sbu.SBUmagazine.com

All photos must be of good reproductive quality. Pictures submitted electronically must have a resolution of at least 300 dpi. Original images from a camera or cell phone work best. Photographs that have been shared on social media or via text have likely been compressed and will not be large enough to reproduce in the magazine.

The university is prohibited from publishing copyrighted photographs, unless accompanied by written permission from the photographer.

Photos are published at the discretion of the editor. Photos that include banners or other insignia of the Brown Indian mascot will not be accepted.

Don’t forget to notify us of your new name or address!

Update your contact information at www.sbu.edu/alumniupdate or send an email to alumni@sbu.edu.

St. Bonaventure University takes pride in its alumni and joyfully shares the news of their lives and achievements.

St. Bonaventure is supportive of our Catholic Church’s teachings. Publication of announcements provided to us by our alumni does not necessarily imply an endorsement by the university.

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Caitlyn Morral, ’18, and Gunnar Brooks, ’15, ’18

Brooke Shaughnessy and Kevin Mjaatvedt, ’11

Wedd in gs

Jessica Laursen, ’17, and JW Cook, ’17

Lauren Saglimben, ’17, and Dean Whitcomb, ’08

Kelly Leskovics, ’12, and Jed Staszyn, ’13 SUMMER 2022

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Wedd in gs

Rachel Szal, ’12, ’13, and Blake Morrison

Michelle McKernan, ’12, and Nick Muccioli, ’10

Lauren Hill, ’16, and Mike Lawhead, ’15 36

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Wedd in gs

Emma Patwell, ’15, ’16, and Brian Carey, ’16

Amy Miller, ’12, ’13, and Brandon Cooperstock

Julie Mann and Gregory Schulz, ’01

Allie Deal, ’19, and Conor Farley, ’19 SUMMER 2022

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Wedd in gs

Abigail O’Connell, ’18, ’19, and Peter Sauter, ’18, ’19

Maggie Young, ’14, ’17, and Taylor Rosenberg, ’14 Birth s / Ado ptio n s

Aileen Kelly to Katie and Matt Welton, ’01 Calvin John to Pamela and Jeffrey Connors, ’02

Greer Meryn to Meredith (Volpe) Euwer, ’02, and James Euwer

Annalivia Quinn to Mary and Logan Abplanalp, ’07, ’20

Sophia Lee to Laura (L’Esperance) Cole, ’09, and Alex Cole, ’08 38

BONAVENTURE MAGAZINE

Emma Sue to Amber (Willoughby) Maynard, ’08, ’12, ’17, and Rob Maynard

Allison Lynn to Katelyn (Dieffenderfer) Niedermier, ’08, and Jared Niedermier

Sophia Necole to Taylor (Janak) Spear, ’11, ’12, and Martin Spear, ’11

Amos Stanley to Molly Ingult, ’13, and Dan Michael, ’11

Annie Rose to Haley Chouinard and Patrick Hosken, ’12

Gianna Catherine to Lauren (Capotorto) Didio, ’13, ’15, and Trey Didio, ’14, ’15 Penelope Ann to Jennifer (Hassen) Burkardt, ’15, and Nick Burkardt

Brody Michael to Courtney (Newhouse) Crow, ’18, and Bradley Crow, ’16

Bob Lanier

Al umn i Death s

A legend on And off the Court

The morning after learning of Bob Lanier’s death, Mike Vaccaro, ’89, said: “The spirit of St. Bonaventure is bigger than any one person, but no singular soul in 164 years has ever brought more honor, dignity, glory and love to bear at Bona’s than Bob Lanier.” Later that day in the New York Post, Mike reflected on Lanier’s legendary life, the foundation of which was laid at St. Bonaventure.

B

By MIKE VACCARO, ’89 | Courtesy of the New York Post

ob Lanier was home, for the final time. He may have been born in Buffalo, blossoming into a star at Bennett High School after getting cut from the team as a sophomore. He may have become an essential part of two different NBA franchises, in Detroit and in Milwaukee, both of which retired his No. 16 jersey. He may have earned a bust at the Naismith Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass.

Above, Bob Lanier speaks to a cheering crowd in 2007 when the basketball court in the Reilly Center was named after him. In the upper right, Lanier is pictured with teammate Billy Kalbaugh and Larry Weise, head coach of the Final Four team.

And he may have settled into a happy civilian life as an assistant coach to Don Nelson with Golden State, and then as the NBA’s global ambassador under two commissioners, David Stern and Adam Silver, spreading more goodwill at the game’s grassroots level than anyone ever has. He did that from the warmth of Arizona.

But for Lanier, who died May 10 at 73 after a short illness, home was St. Bonaventure. Home was the company of teammates with whom he led the Bonnies to the brink of immortality. Home was this small, out-of-the-way corner of the Southern Tier, where he left behind a vintage pair of his size22 Chuck Taylors and an enormous chunk of his heart.

“I learned to be a man here, and how to treat people the right way,” he said in a quiet moment that December weekend in 2019, when Lanier and the rest of the 1969-70 Bonnies gathered to be feted on the 50th anniversary of the team’s remarkable trip to the Final Four. “I learned about love and about loss and how to handle them both.”

There was an unspoken melancholy surrounding Lanier that weekend. He’d been through some health issues, and just getting to Olean from Arizona had been a chore.

Most of his life, he was a gregarious, outgoing soul, eager to engage on any subject you like. Now, he spoke in quiet, hushed tones.

“It’s good to be here,” he said. “It’s good to be with my brothers.”

Lanier’s passing left an entire sport in mourning. Lanier was an eight-time AllStar, won the 1974 All-Star Game MVP, averaged 20.1 points and 10.1 rebounds in 15 seasons when his nightly opponents included the likes of Wilt Chamberlain and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Willis Reed and Nate Thurmond, Dave Cowens and Wes Unseld. He was legit as a player, don’t worry about that.

But he was also an active voice in the National Basketball Players Association. He was something of a greeter for young players entering the league, forever offering his phone number, telling them to lean on him whenever necessary, generous with advice. And he spent so much time spreading the league’s

CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE >> SUMMER 2022

39

Alumni Deaths

Al um n i Death s A directory of deceased alumni is available on Bona’s Online. Register at www.sbu.edu/alumni.

Rev. Thomas Kemp, ’47, Stafford, New York Rev. Blaise F. Reinhart, O.F.M., ’49, Loudonville, New York Dominic L. Santoni, ’49, Binghamton, New York Rita S. (Schleigh) Dunne, ’50, Pitman, New Jersey Joseph M. Letro Jr., ’50, Canfield, Ohio Anthony J. Murray, ’50, Troy, New York Louis P. DiMarino, ’51, West Chester, Pennsylvania Walter P. Horylev, ’51, Hilton, New York Warren C. Lutzel, ’51, Charlestown, Rhode Island Edward D. McDonald, ’51, Le Roy, New York Maj. Gen. Norbert J. Rappl, ’52, Rochester, New York John A. Wolfteich, ’52, Rockville Centre, New York Edward T. Constable, ’53, Mason, Ohio Dr. Alan B. Whitehouse, ’53, Leawood, Kansas Edward F. Rhodes, ’54, Binghamton, New York Ralph J. Stellwagen, ’55, Aurora, Colorado Joseph W. Burden Jr., ’56, Williamsville, New York CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS PAGE >>

gospel that, as Kenny Smith noted on TNT just hours after his passing, “he wasn’t just an ‘ambassador.’ He was actually The Ambassador.”

And, of course, there was this eternal tribute from Kareem, as Roger Murdock, in the movie “Airplane!”: “Tell your old man to drag Walton and Lanier up and down the court for 48 minutes!”

It was Lanier’s misfortune to spend 10 years with some terribly pedestrian Pistons teams, then five years with the Bucks when they were very good — just never good enough to bypass the 76ers or Celtics in the East. That was disappointing.

But the genuine heartbreak of Lanier’s life came in March 1970. The Bonnies beat Davidson and N.C. State and were crushing Villanova midway through the second half of the East Regional final when Lanier collided with Nova’s Chris Ford — a future Detroit teammate — and tore his medial collateral ligament.

So while his teammates played Jacksonville in the Final Four a week later, trying to figure out how to guard twin 7-footers Artis Gilmore and Pembrook Bur-

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rows, Lanier was in a hospital bed in Buffalo, eating his heart out.

There were times when he could joke about that. The Bonnies never did get a crack at UCLA, which was between the Kareem/Walton eras and had Steve Patterson playing center.

“Steve Patterson!” Lanier exclaimed over the telephone one night in 1990.

“You call Steve Patterson, tell him to meet me on any court he wants, and I’ll drop 35 on him tonight, at age 42! In my street clothes!”

But he also felt a nagging sense that he’d let his teammates down. Those teammates never felt that way of course. They’d been treated to an up-close view of greatness. And the folks who care about the Bonnies …

Well, when Lanier was introduced at halftime that December weekend in 2019, the ovation lasted two minutes — and would’ve stretched further if Lanier hadn’t pleaded for a moment to talk.

“The injury hurt my heart,” Lanier said. “But this university has always shown me nothing but love. This is home. And it is so good to be home.”

Gerald T. Caffrey Jr., ’56, Hallstead, Pennsylvania Klem A. Czelusniak Jr., ’56, Lansdale, Pennsylvania Sheldon C. Staves, ’56, Liverpool, New York John C. Brigham, ’57, Medford, New Jersey Dr. Eugene J. Chap, ’57, Rehoboth Beach, Delaware Francis R. O’Connor, ’57, Fayetteville, New York Daniel J. O’Neill, ’57, Fairport, New York Bernard G. Streb, ’57, Reston, Virginia Paul H. Titus, Esq., ’57, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Richard T. Barber, ’58, Chesterfield, Missouri John F. Connors Jr.,* ’58, Sanibel, Florida Lt. Col. (Ret.) Anthony B. Cresci, ’58, Augusta, Georgia James F. Harron, ’58, Brookfield, Connecticut Robert M. Iagrossi, ’58, Clifton Park, New York Anne M. Lennon, ’58, Rochester, New York Martin J. Luff, ’58, Juno Beach, Florida Rev. Frederick F. Lukehart, ’58, Youngstown, Ohio Charles L. Schmitt, ’58, Liverpool, New York James C. Dunfee, ’59, Vestal, New York Elmer C. Henretta, ’59, Rochester, New York Fr. Neil J. O’Connell, O.F.M., ’60, Allegany, New York Joseph M. Quirk, ’60, Westfield, New Jersey Thomas D. Dolan, ’61, North Richland Hills, Texas Thomas E. Evans, ’61, Marietta, Georgia Dr. Richard Fossati, D.D.S., ’61, Englewood, New Jersey Roy T. Mulcahy, ’61, Vestal, New York William F. Smith, ’61, Appleton, New York Penn J. Steuerwald, ’61, Valatie, New York John M. Bierfeldt, ’62, Little Valley, New York James L. Delmonico, ’62, Baldwinsville, New York Joanne Fragale, ’62, Newport News, Virginia Joseph R. Ganem, ’62, Pleasant Valley, Connecticut Sylvio G. Landry, ’62, Fort Myers, Florida Hugh J. Muldoon, ’62, Carbondale, Illinois Rev. James T. O’Hara, ’62, Erie, Pennsylvania Mary M. (Stinneford) Andersen, ’63, New Hartford, Connecticut Samuel D. Costa, ’63, Smethport, Pennsylvania Dr. Joseph F. Greer, ’63, Conway, Arkansas Michael A. Kvasnak, ’63, Bosque Farms, New Mexico Detlef J. Frank, ’64, Kettering, Ohio John E. Reynolds, ’64, Buffalo, New York Lawrence H. Richards, ’64, Westerville, Ohio Edward J. Waters, ’64, New Canaan, Connecticut Michael J. Gamble, ’65, Kane, Pennsylvania

Former university president Fr. Neil O’Connell passes away at 84

Fr. Neil J. O’Connell, O.F.M., former president of St. Bonaventure, died March 24 at the age of 84.

He was a professed Franciscan friar for 63 years and a priest for 58 years.

In 1990, Fr. Neil was appointed president of St. Bonaventure, serving until 1993. After leaving St. Bonaventure, Fr. Neil served in a number of pastoral ministries in New York City, while continuing to teach part time at various colleges and universities.

In 2016, Fr. Neil retired from active ministry at St. Anthony Friary in St. Petersburg, Florida. He returned to Western New York, moving to the health care facility at St. Elizabeth Motherhouse in Allegany in 2019.

Al um n i Death s

Peter B. Hanley, ’65, Edgewater, Florida Louis G. Marquardt,* ’65, Succasunna, New Jersey John P. Wehner, ’65, Rochester, New York Charles R. Bauer, ’66, Bay Head, New Jersey Dr. Dennis J. Daley, ’66, Long Pond, Pennsylvania Mary (Doyle) Dluhy, ’66, Washington, D.C. DeAnn F. Dollard-Morris, ’66, Davenport, Florida Donald A. Johnston, ’66, Rochester, Minnesota Erna A. (Stalzer) Langdon, ’66, Candler, North Carolina John J. McCormack Jr., ’66, Vero Beach, Florida Sr. Frances M. Sheehey, ’66, Allegany, New York James J. Cullum Jr., ’67, Delray Beach, Florida Jonathan A. Fox, ’67, Matthews, North Carolina E. Timothy Kenneally, ’67, Rockville Centre, New York Rita (Fahey) O’Sullivan, ’67, Watertown, Connecticut Philip E. Stark, ’67, Olean, New York Gerard M. Verdi,* ’67, San Rafael, California Peter M. Burns Sr., ’68, East Longmeadow, Massachusetts David B. Brown, ’69, Boca Raton, Florida The Hon. William J. Quinlan, ’69, Troy, New York Sr. Claudia M. Hagerty, ’70, Immaculata, Pennsylvania Robert J. Lanier, ’70, Chandler, Arizona Edward B. Honeck, ’71, Buffalo, New York Msgr. Kevin T. O’Neill, ’71, Buffalo, New York James J. Snyder, ’71, Olean, New York Betty M. (Simons) Elder, ’72, Olean, New York Rev. Ronald J. Pecci, O.F.M., ’72, Beacon, New York Jean R. (Redding) Bassano, ’73, Allegany, New York Dr. Joseph E. Jani, D.P.M., ’73, Moon Township, Pennsylvania John R. Burns Jr., ’74, Falconer, New York John J. Cronin, ’74, North Tonawanda, New York Marie A. Inneo, ’74, Chesapeake, Virginia Marylou (Campbell) Irons, ’74, Eldred, Pennsylvania Robert E. Stout, ’74, Allegany, New York Margaret C. (O’Malley) Bothner, ’75, Olean, New York Pamela J. (Spears) Briggs, ’75, Marrero, Louisiana Paul W. Ogiba, ’75, Vail, Arizona Sr. Mary C. Barton, LL.D., ’76, Fallsington, Pennsylvania Carol A. (Szot) Batt,* ’76, Amherst, New York Thomas F. Strickler, ’76, South Bend, Indiana James P. Kinsella, ’79, Marstons Mills, Massachusetts Shannon A. Spillane, ’80, Annapolis, Maryland Martha Krampf, ’81, Easton, Maryland William J. Miori, ’81, Depew, New York Dr. Ann E. Reda, ’82, Pequannock, New Jersey Ann E. (Lanio) Thaney, ’82, Webster, New York Daniel H. Daniels, ’83, Olean, New York Michael V. Jurbala, ’85, Syracuse, New York Ronald P. Shoup, ’85, Duke Center, Pennsylvania Garth P. Swanson, ’86, Stafford, New York Joan D. Joseph, ’87, Cuba, New York Gary M. Harvey, ’89, Allegany, New York Kathleen L. (Graves) Shelander, ’91, Eldred, Pennsylvania Brian P. McArdle, ’93, Pomona, New York Paul Bigwarfe Sr., Watertown, New York Christine M. Conner, ’02, Allegany, New York Stacy L. Amodio, ’03, North Collins, New York Ruth A. Kirkpatrick, ’03, Allegany, New York

Friends & Parents

Violet (Corson) Butler, Olean, New York Delores S. (Schreckengost) Cross, Cuba, New York Kevin Healy, Camino, California Mary R. (McCormick) Kenrick, Orchard Park, New York Anne M. Kloc, Rochester, New York Raymond J. Marten, Rockaway Park, New York

Joyce M. Resch, Rochester, New York James F. Sullivan, Lewis Run, Pennsylvania Dr. Donald J. Bucalo, D.D.S., Enfield, Connecticut Thomas A. Buttafarro Sr., Jamestown, New York Martin J. Dolan, Huntington Station, New York Richard W. Doney, Schenectady, New York Jean E. Hannon, Rochester, New York Marion Hoey,* Cheektowaga, New York Dennis Hughey, Hamburg, New York Carol L. (Laffey) Morrison, Depew, New York Brian E. O’Connell Sr., Olean, New York Richard J. Reuscher, St. Marys, Pennsylvania Frank B. Roth, Waynesburg, Pennsylvania Richard J. Smith, Charlotte, North Carolina Charles J. Swick, Meadville, Pennsylvania Ronald Tormey, Bradford, New York Charles M. Ward, Allegany, New York

In Memoriam

Christine Conner, who served several years as an adjunct faculty member in the university’s counselor education program, passed away April 24.

John F. Connors Jr.,* ’58, a member of the St. Bonaventure Athletics Hall of Fame and a key part of Bonnies men’s basketball nationally ranked teams during his undergraduate years, passed away Dec. 25, 2021. A co-team captain in 1957, Connors earned recognition as Bona’s most valuable player that season and played on two St. Bonaventure NIT teams (1957, 1958). Connors had served as a member of the university’s Board of Trustees and Athletics Hall of Fame Committee.

John J. McCormack Jr., a 1966 alumnus, former member and vice chair of St. Bonaventure’s Board of Trustees, and longtime supporter of the university, was a retired executive at TIAACREFF. In 2000, he established the John J. McCormack Jr. Scholarship. He passed away Feb. 6.

Dr. Vinay Y. Pandit, who taught marketing at St. Bonaventure for 26 years, passed away March 15, 2020.

David Schummer, who taught philosophy full time at the university from 2003 to 2007, passed away May 1.

Ann L. Swan,* a member of the Board of Trustees, passed away April 16. She and her husband, the late William E. Swan, ’69, were passionate supporters of St. Bonaventure throughout their lives. In 2012, Ann Swan committed a $3 million gift to St. Bonaventure’s School of Business Campaign as a means of honoring Bill’s commitment to the Franciscan tradition while also continuing the couple’s extraordinary legacy of philanthropy. The William E. & Ann L. Swan Business Center at St. Bonaventure is named after the Swans.

Paul Titus, a member of the SBU Class of 1957, passed away Feb. 19. An ardent supporter of his alma mater, he championed the faculty, staff and students. He also served 10 years as a member of the Board of Trustees. His son, John Titus, graduated from St. Bonaventure in 1991, and his grandson, Paul L. Menke, earned his master’s degree from the university in 2017.

*Seraphim Legacy Society member SUMMER 2022

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Al umn i Vo ices

BonaBound

More students than ever arrive on campus with their own wheels. But that wasn’t the case for earlier generations. In the previous issue of the magazine we asked alums how they got to campus – carpool with a buddy from their hometown, a brutal bus ride from New Jersey, or perhaps thumbing it across Route 17. Here’s what grads from the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s had to say.

THE DAY BEFORE OUR CHRISTMAS BREAK STARTED IN 1956, Bonaventure hosted its annual party for the underprivileged children in the area. To help finance the party, along with many other events, we put a new watch (not self-winding) in a box and sold chances on picking the time that the watch would stop running.

The nearest guess would win the watch and about $200 in cash.

To my great surprise, I was the winner. After all the shouts of “FIX-FIX” died down, we went to the Burton to celebrate our good fortune and such a great day.

Obviously, since I was the big winner that night, the beers were on me. Before the evening was over, all my prize money and the bucks in my wallet were gone. To get back home to Philly the next day, I had to borrow the train fare (boarded in Olean) from Ray Mulvey, the owner of the Burton. Yes, I did return to the Burton, paid Ray back and even lived to enjoy a few more beers.

Pax et Bonum, Bob Haenn, ’58 I HITCHHIKED BETWEEN SBU AND THE NEW YORK CITY AREA a number of times in the late ’60s. It was a seven-hour drive back then. I remember one amazing trip. I walked from Devereux Hall out to Route 17 in front of campus, stuck out my thumb, and the first car stopped and took me all the way home. We stopped at the iconic Roscoe (N.Y.) Diner for lunch. I tried to pay but the driver wouldn’t let me.

Bill Donovan, ’68 FOR THE NEXT EDITION: If you could return to St. Bonaventure as a student for one day, what’s one thing you would do? Tell us in 100 words: magazine@sbu.edu. We’ll print a collection of responses in the winter 2022-23 issue of Bonaventure magazine.

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BONAVENTURE MAGAZINE

Al umn i Vo ices

EVEN THOUGH IT’S BEEN MORE THAN 50 YEARS, I remember my first night on campus.

I never had a car at school. My dad drove me to campus and I moved into my room, 201 on second Fal. I immediately bonded with several other freshmen on my floor.

That first night on campus, while my dad slept in the dorm, five of us from the floor went out to Route 17 to hitchhike to the Bowlean bowling lanes in Olean. After a few minutes, a Volkswagen Beetle stopped to pick us up. Inside were five girls. We crammed into the car and as the 10 of us drove toward Olean I remember thinking to myself, “This is going to be an amazing four years.”

I was right about that and to this day I remain lifelong friends with guys from second Fal! Glenn Keidel, ’72

TRAVEL FROM BROOKLYN TO ST. BONAVENTURE IN THE ’60s was, to say the least, an adventure. For the first three years it was on the often-delayed “Weary Eerie Wacklana” (Erie Lackawanna Railroad) from Hoboken to Olean (with attendant subway, Port Authority train and taxi). By senior year, it was a trusty ’59 Rambler (a tank, but it ran in the winter!), carpooling with paying classmates and stopping at a McDonald’s at the halfway point in Binghamton.

Gerard J. Monaghan, ’67 I CAME TO ST. BONAVENTURE IN SUMMER OF 1966 FOR A JOURNALISM INTERNSHIP. My future husband’s best friend drove the three of us to campus. It was a trip of only an hour from our small Cattaraugus County town; for me it might as well have been a journey to another world. I was 17, spending weeks on campus with other students to learn about journalism through the direction of Dr. Jandoli.

I don’t remember the car or anything significant about the trip except for the early morning fog cropping up as we hit Ischua. I do know the trip changed my life as I eventually became a full-time student at Bonaventure and married my boyfriend/carpool mate. Way more memories than can be expressed in 100 words envelop me as I write this, along with so much appreciation for my Bonaventure education and experience. One car trip laid the foundation for so much of my life.

Carolyn Delaney Hopkins Kirsch, ’72

WHEN I ENTERED SBU IN THE FALL OF 1965, I was among the first women to live on campus – in Shay-Loughlen hall. At that time, Bona’s had a large number of students from the NYC metropolitan area – New York City, Long Island, New Jersey and Connecticut. Interstate 86 did not exist. To travel home and back to Bona’s we had to use Route 17 – very scenic and very time consuming! It was two lanes … the ride from campus to Long Island, where I lived, was eight to nine hours, depending on the number of stops along the way.

The rule of thumb for a ride back then with a fellow Bonnie was $5, one suitcase. The rides were always fun and adventurous with good memories. A true Bona Venture.

Bonnie Bowes Duran, ’69

SUMMER 2022

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3261 W. State Road P.O. Box 2509 St. Bonaventure, NY 14778

If the magazine is sent to your son or daughter who no longer maintains a permanent address at your home, drop us a note to magazine@sbu.edu.

A new gathering space for students, alumni and the surrounding community celebrates the late Ryan Marchiori, ’08, ’09, and his love of the outdoors. The Marchiori Pavilion in front of Devereux Hall features two natural gas fire pits, a large gas grill and ample seating.

Marchiori passed away after a car accident in the fall of 2019. His family established a memorial fund that allowed for a donation to the Warming House with the remaining funds leading to the creation of the pavilion and fire pit. Senior class gifts from the classes of 2020 and 2021 were specifically donated to this project, along with contributions from friends and alumni. The pavilion quickly became a favorite meeting spot during reunion and other summer events.