6 minute read
Legacy Spotlights
Front: Carol Walls Kasch ‘65, Marissa Kasch ‘21 Back: Julie Kasch Mullen ‘86, Beth Kasch Spinazzola ‘84, Scott Kasch ‘92
Carol with her daughter Julie at MCC Graduation 1986
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It is difficult
to imagine that four years in the life of a teenager could have such a profound impact on one’s whole life. But that is exactly what happened for this MCC graduate. Not only did I receive an excellent education that fueled a successful career as a financial analyst at a leading tech firm, but the values instilled during those four years provided the framework for how I approached life. My parents were not wealthy, so I and three of my sisters attended MCC at the generosity of parishioners and families who valued Catholic education enough to sponsor students who could not otherwise afford it. Still, my parents sacrificed to send us to OLL and MCC. I remember my mother contributing to MCC long after we graduated to help repay some of what we received. Of seven children, five of us went on to graduate from college, and my youngest sister went on to earn her PhD. She has returned to MCC several times on Career Day to inspire students to strive for success.
My years at MCC began in temporary and rustic quarters. We started with only a ninth-grade class in the Navy barracks at the Melbourne Airport. The combination of a small class and less than ideal quarters led us to focus on our academics. We started with forty students and only two teachers. Fr. Dolan taught Religion, English, and Latin. There were no extracurricular activities. You could say we got special one-onone attention. I can still remember translating Latin and diagramming sentences almost every day. I have drawn on those skills more than I thought possible in those days. As we started our Sophomore year, our new buildings still were not quite ready, so we spent the first six weeks at Brevard Engineering College (now Florida Institute of Technology) in their few new buildings. Melbourne was much smaller then, and Florida Tech was in its infancy as well. After the first semester, we were finally ready to move into our brand-new school. I cannot tell you how much we appreciated finally having our own school. We were so incredibly proud of those fresh, new buildings. Of course, the school has grown tremendously since those early days. But to us, it was like attending Harvard. Our school now had two grades, ninth and tenth and we were finally feeling like a real high school. I often tell our children I was an upperclassman for four years, as I was always in the senior class. Little by little, we started adding extracurricular activities. We started a Business Club, a Latin Club, and a sports program. By the time we completed our high school education at MCC we had a full staff of teachers, a rudimentary science lab, a home economics classroom, a chapel, an administration building, and a library. We had football, baseball, basketball, track, volleyball, and cheerleading. Although most of the boys played every sport to have enough players to field our teams, we enjoyed those sports and the spirit that accompanied them with all the gusto of a much larger school. Pride ran deep in those early days; everything was fresh and new that we built from the ground up. We even had our own high school band: the Hanging Five (a surfing term) made up of the same boys that played sports who played at all our school dances.
The graduates from our class of 1965 went on to be very successful doctors, lawyers, business executives, and teachers. But, more importantly, many became very active in their churches and communities because of the strong faith and commitment to excellence fostered by MCC.
I had my own firsts at MCC: I was the first person to be engaged and the first person married from our class of 39 students. I was married at the tender age of 18 and had my first child at 19. I finally went on to receive my bachelor’s degree later in life. We had three children, and I am extremely proud to say that they are all MCC graduates. Our oldest daughter, Beth is the first of the second generation of MCC graduates. All three of our children went on to college, with two earning their master’s degrees. They are all successful in their chosen fields, in no small part to the foundation they received at Our Lady of Lourdes and MCC. It was a financial challenge sending all three to MCC, but never one that we regretted. I can honestly say that it was the best investment we ever made.
MCC has grown considerably since my high school years. And now, we are awaiting our youngest granddaughter’s upcoming graduation from MCC. Our granddaughter, Marissa Kasch, will be another legacy MCC graduate who has made us so proud. She has been accepted to the University of Florida where she will start in the fall. UF has a very low acceptance rate, and MCC produced several students who will also be attending UF next year. That is no small accomplishment. I sincerely hope that MCC will be here for our next generation of children. It was always more than just a high school for me, and I can say the same for most of our graduating class. Many of us still keep in touch and meet at our MCC class reunions. These were bonds that were never broken. So, go proudly, MCC class of 2021. We, who came before you, salute you and wish you every success in life.
CAROL WALLS KASCH ‘65
MCC Prom 1965...where it all began with her husband Rich Kasch 56 years ago.
Mr. Jim Kelly is retiring as Head Coach of the MCC Girls Golf team. Coach Kelly reflects, “It has been an honor and privilege to coach the many student-athletes, who dedicated their time, talents, and determination to make the MCC Girls Golf team competitive every year. I would like to thank current and past athletic directors, principals, presidents, faculty, and staff for their support of the MCC Golf program. I am grateful to the parents and family members who supported the program, by hosting team banquets, attending matches and tournaments, and giving our golfers the support and encouragement they needed. A special thanks to all the corporate sponsors and their support of the team, and Crane Creek Reserve, our home course since 2000, and US-1 Golf Center, where Coach Mike and Coach Ben helped develop many MCC golfers over the years. The greatest part of coaching has been watching the golfers develop their game, as they improved with each drive, swing and putt.” Quoting golfer Bobby Jones, “Golf is the closest game to the game we call life. You get bad breaks from good shots; you get good breaks from bad shots – but you have to play the ball as it lies.”
MCC Golf Legacy 1997-2021
TEAM HIGHLIGHTS
4-District Championships-2010, 2014, 2017, 2018 6-District Runner-up-2006-2009, 2015-2016 13-Regional Teams-2001,2005-2010,2013-2018
INDIVIDUAL HIGHLIGHTS
District Champions
State Tournament Qualifiers
1. Kelly Drack-2008 2. Marissa Boccabella-2013
Space Coast Golfers of the Year
1. Meagan Pauley-1999 2. Kelly Drack-2008
