raven - st. raymond high school for boysstraymondhighschool.org/alumni/pdf/ravenspring2011.pdf ·...

RAVENVOLUME VIII NUMBER 2

St. Raymond High School for Boys

Celebrating 50 years in the lasallian tradition

Volume 8 • Number 2 Spring 2011

SaiNt RaymoNd PaRiSharchdiocese of New york

monsignor John GrahamParish Pastor

School Administration

Brother Daniel Gardner, FSCPrincipal

Judith CarewAssociate Principal for Academics

Andrew SediaAssociate Principal for Student Life

John MustoAssistant Principal for Student Affairs

Michael NorelliAssistant Principal for Information Services

Campus MinistryBrother Richard Galvin, FSC ‘82

Campus Minister

RAVEN Publication

Christopher Ellis Director of Advancement

Genna Toye Advancement Associate

Valerie Noble Advancement Assistant

Design EP Graphic Design

Photographs Davis Studios, Bronx, NY

RAVEN magazine is published by St. Raymond high School for Boys for

alumni, parents, friends and the St. Raymond community.

Send address changes and class information to the advancement office at

2151 St. Raymond avenue, Bronx, Ny 10462.

Spread the word: Pass this on to a friend or other alumni

interested in learning more about St. Raymond High School for Boys.

RAVEN the Magazine of

st. rayMond high sChool for boys

iNSidEPastor’s Letter 1

Principal’s Letter 2

SChooL NEWS

archbishop from Ghana, africa Visits 3

Senior Wins Film award 3

School Service Projects 4

a Visit from the Consulate General of italy 5

annual march for Life 5

ChSaa Basketball division Champs 6

mSG Varsity: the Challenge 6

homecoming 2011 7

adVaNCEmENt

director of advancement’s Letter 8

Raven Fund Update 8

Ways to Give 9

Construction Update 10

alumni association donation 11

aLUmNi NEWS

Reunions 14 - 15

alums in the Spotlight 14 - 15

Class Notes 16

dear alumni and Friends of St. Raymond high School for Boys,

We are so happy to see Spring! it was a difficult winter with all of the snow storms, closings and rescheduling of events.

We hope that we are back to normal here at the parish. the good news is that we continue to celebrate our 50th

Anniversary—so be sure to keep reading for our final events and gatherings.

the response of our eighth graders for the incoming freshman class has been most encouraging. We actively try to

‘recruit’ our own St. Raymond Elementary School eighth graders and our efforts are proving to be very successful—we

anticipate that more than 200 students will register for the class of 2015. We speak to our families about our parish efforts

to provide a Catholic education while also providing financial assistance to families who have children in our elementary

school and high schools. it seems to be working and i know that our families appreciate the “family discount.”

during the late autumn and winter months we have been refurbishing and renovating our church and it is scheduled to

reopen this april 15. it will be a beautiful and fitting place to worship and thank God for his many blessings to our parish.

Be sure to make a visit to the church as well as to the Boys high School to see the construction of the new annex.

We look forward to our holy Week celebrations and an Easter season filled with holy Communions, Confirmations and

Graduations. We are the parish and schools that never sleep! thank you for your prayers and support.

Sincerely,

monsignor John GrahamPastor

theParish Pastorfrom

dear alumni and Friends of St. Raymond high School for Boys,

Greetings from St. Raymond high School for Boys on the occasion of our 50th anniversary! our celebration opened with a 50th

anniversary mass of thanksgiving at St. Raymond Church last march. Since then, we hosted our annual de LaSalle Leadership

dinner, made a trip to the new yankee Stadium, welcomed students and their families back to school with a Family Pasta dinner

and gathered for a great homecoming basketball game in January. as the celebration nears to a close, we are gearing up for our

biggest event of the year, and quite possibly in our school’s history—the 50th anniversary Gala.

We are always grateful for the support that you have given to your alma mater over these 50 years. that support has allowed

our students to develop as young Christian gentlemen who have attained academic excellence. it has allowed our faculty to

maintain their professional excellence by attending classes, seminars and workshops. it has allowed us to maintain our facilities as

a showplace of educational excellence. So, the common theme and the theme of St. Raymond high School for Boys is excellence.

this edition of RaVEN magazine will highlight many aspects of the school’s programs including student and faculty achievements

and alumni news. i would like to personally invite you to attend our Gala Celebration on April 1, 2011. We will be able to fully

celebrate and appreciate the contributions of the Brothers, faculty members and alumni over the past 50 years of excellence at this

grand event.

God bless and go Ravens!

Sincerely,

Brother daniel Gardner, FSCPrincipal

2 Celebrating 50 years in the lasallian tradition

thePrincipalfrom

the Magazine for st. raymond high school for boys 3

SCHOOLnews

on February 8, 2011 St. Raymond high School hosted Archbish-op Charles Palmer-Buckle of accra, Ghana for a discussion with students of Ghanaian descent. organized by Monsignor John Graham and math teacher Mr. Moses Alabi, the archbishop vis-ited Ghanaian students in the school’s chapel to discuss culture, education and ministry.

a priest for 31 years, archbishop Buckle was appointed arch-bishop of accra in march of 2005. he shared stories of what it was like growing up with 12 brothers and sisters. “We were like a

Jared Ray ‘11, wrote, directed and edited his own fea-ture film this past summer. the film, In Darkness is a six minute thriller that premiered at Lincoln Center on September 15, 2010.

Ray is taking part in the Ghetto Film School (GFS) program in the Bronx. the mission of the GFS is to “educate, develop and celebrate the next generation of great american storytellers.” they aim, among other things, “to broaden the pool of filmmaking talent and subject matter feeding the entertainment industry by providing opportunities for young people who might otherwise be overlooked.” the film school and Jared’s entry was featured in a New york times article on September 5, 2010.

Congratulations to our young director on winning a $1,000 prize. Next year Jared hopes to attend SUNy Purchase or New york University to study film.

tribe ourselves,” the archbishop joked. he told the students that “prayer does not have to be mental gymnastics. Prayer is about building a simple relationship with the Lord.”

Senior Kevin Adjei was truly inspired by the archbishop’s sto-ries. as a student who wishes to attend a Christian college and continue his work in ministry, he related to the relationship arch-bishop Buckle had with his father. “hearing him talk about the strict lessons his father taught him showed me that just because he’s a priest, we’re not all that different,” said Kevin. “my father is teaching me those same lessons on how to be a good man.”

Archbishop Charles Palmer-Buckle of Accra, Ghana (center) with (from left) Chris Sottie ‘11, Daniel McLendon ‘11, Kevin

Adjei ‘11, Augustine Anyanful ‘12, Edmund Nathan ‘14, Joshua Obeng ‘11, Mr. Moses Alabi, William Boateng ‘11, Chris

Amoako-Kwaw ‘13, Christian Asiedu ‘11, Timothy Aheneku ‘11 and Robert Osei-Owusu ‘11.

A Visit from Archbishop Palmer-Buckle of Ghana, Africa

Senior Premieres Award Winning Film

Pictured left to right at the Lincoln Center premiere is art teacher Mr. Ed Mouzon ‘82, Jared Ray ‘11 and his broth-ers Gabriel Pagano and Gabriel Romero.

Thanksgiving School librarian mr. Robert heckmann and 16 students visited St. ann’s Church on thanksgiving day to help those in need. the students attended mass, participating as ushers, and served a traditional dinner to elderly parishioners. Fr. Frank Scanlon celebrated the mass and thanked the volunteers, as well as the entire St. Ray-mond community, for participating in this activity for the past three years.

attending this year were Mayo Afolabi ‘11, Tireri Akaramu ‘11, Omarri Allen ‘14, Jorge Bautista ‘14, Brian Colon ‘14, Jona-than Diaz ‘14, Kevin Escarraman ‘12, Bri-an Ferrer ‘14, Carlos Hernandez ‘14, An-thony Irizarry ‘12, Quiny Lassiter ‘14, Nicholas Nazario ‘12, Andrew Narine ‘11, Robert Osei-Owusu ‘11, Alfred Rivera ‘14, Jeremy Rodriguez ‘14, Edwin San-chez ‘14, Victor Sapia ‘14, Jonathan Sas-tre ‘14, Jeffrey Urrego ‘12, Angelo Vega ‘12, Shawn Villeta ‘14, Ra-Mel Williamson ‘12, and parent Gennaro Pasantes.


Annual Service during the Holiday Season

throughout the day, students served food, escorted parishioners from the nursing home to the parish hall and cleaned up af-ter the meal. after the event, mr. heck-mann remarked that the “students were incredibly helpful and humble—truly per-sonifying what St. Raymond is all about.”

the annual Canned Food Collection, held during the first two weeks of November, benefited mercy Center in the Bronx.

mercy Center offers programs and services to women and their families. dry goods and canned food were collected and deliv-ered to help single mothers create tradi-tional thanksgiving meals for their fami-lies. members of Lasallian youth delivered the goods monday, November 22, 2010 and spent a few hours with the grateful mothers. this was an excellent opportunity for the students to understand and prac-tice a fundamental Catholic responsibili-ty—serving the less fortunate.

Gving Back at ChristmasSt. Raymond students continued the “Year of Kindness” theme during the holiday season by giving back in multiple ways.

on Saturday, december 18, 2010, ten students served Christmas dinner to more than 300 people at St. anthony’s Soup Kitchen and Luis Reynoso ‘12 acted as Santa, delivering gifts to the children. on december 20, 2010, members of the Lasallian Youth Group delivered 62 toys to the Highbridge Commu-nity Life Center at the annual Christmas party, in support of their literacy program. the students mingled and

played with the children from the program, enjoyed pizza and soda and then received a personal gift from Santa. as in past years, gifts were collected in homerooms throughout december.

St. Raymond hosted a Dollars and Cans Drive for the students of our twin school, St. mary’s School in Nyeri, Kenya. Brother Dominic Jordan, FSC, a former St. Raymond faculty member, is the founding principal and a current teacher at the school. during his december visit to St. Raymond,

Brother dominic visited the freshmen classes to share his experiences and stories of working abroad.

this year, faculty members once again collected unwrapped toys for The FealGood Foundation, which assists the families of 9/11 first responders. this annual drive is important to our faculty because of the dedication and hard work of first responder Charles Giles from the class of 1985.

Lasallian Youth members with Brother Robert Deary, FSC, Mr. Martinez, Brother Richard Lalime, FSC and right, Luis Reynoso ‘12 and his helper John Figueroa ‘11 handing out gifts.

Pictured (left) are St. Ann’s volunteers and (right) Brother Richard Galvin, FSC ‘82 and Lasallian Youth members delivering cans to Mercy Center in the Bronx.


Italian Consulate General viSitS St. raymOnd

Mr. Antonio Benetti, the Consulate General of italy, Education department of New york, visited St. Raymond high School on tuesday, November 30, 2010. mr. Benetti was greeted by St. Raymond pastor Monsignor John Graham, Brother Daniel, italian teacher Mr. Michael Blanco and italian iii students Dorian Persaud ‘12, Manuel Baez ’12 and Benjamin Bravo ’12.

the visit by mr. Benetti touched on topics of importance for italian education, including the textbooks used in the italian classes, the italian curriculum at our school and the use of technology to increase student interest. mr. Benetti stressed the importance of cultural education and how a multilingual experience can make the students well rounded young men. From left to right, Mr. Michael Blanco, Benjamin Bravo ‘12, Mr.

Antonio Benetti, Manuel Baez ‘12 and Dorian Persaud ‘12.

Speaker and the March for Life Support Pro-Life MovementBrother Richard Galvin, FSC ’82 accompanied seven stu-dents to the annual march for Life in Washington, dC on January 24, 2011. this annual event is intended to give wit-ness to the importance of life from conception to natural death. the students travelled

by bus and attended mass at St. Stephen the martyr Church, fol-lowed by a march to Capitol hill.

Earlier in the year, the Lasallian youth and Pro-Life groups at St. Raymond hosted guest speaker Ms. Theresa Bonopartis. ms. Bonopartis, director of Lumina/Hope and Healing After Abor-tion, spoke to students about post-abortion issues. according to ms. Bonopartis, Lumina refers and helps those suffering from a past abortion in order to heal. they speak publicly to educate on post abortion and conduct training seminars for clergy, mental health professionals and lay persons. the evening ended with a visit to dr. Emily’s abortion Clinic in the South Bronx where our community united for peaceful prayer.

during the 2010-2011 school year, St. Raymond faculty have remained dedi-cated to excellence in education. in this spirit, Mrs. Judith Carew, associate Prin-cipal for academic affairs, has dedicated faculty professional development to im-proving literacy across the curriculum. the goal of this program is to improve reading, vocabulary and comprehension skills with their students.

the faculty meets regularly and has been able to increase vocabulary instruction and comprehension skills in the class-room. all testing includes assessing these skills.

Faculty Focus:

always onExcEllEncE !

this focus on literacy is intended to increase scores on all state and college preparatory exams, including the aCt and Sat.

Funding for this initiative has been made available to title i teachers through the archdiocese and New york City’s depart-ment of Education.

St. Raymond teachers are working with Catapult Learning Consultants—one of the largest educational services consul-tants in the United States—in group workshops and individual coaching ses-sions. the goal is to enhance teaching strategies and improve student acheive-ment for all students, particularly those who struggle. this is just one component of the school’s ongoing efforts to in-crease the academic excellence of our students.

faCuLty winS the turkey bOwLa St. Raymond high School tradition continued this year with the winners of the intramural Football League—the Dream Team—competing against the faculty in the turkey Bowl. the game was held on the chilly afternoon of thursday, december 2, 2010 on Parkchester’s turf field. the faculty and students battled for 40 minutes with pride and bragging rights on the line. many students and faculty members at-tended to cheer on their respective teams. though it was a close game throughout, the faculty got on the scoreboard first, never relinquished their lead, and won by a score of 13-12. the students scored a touchdown with just 30 seconds remaining, but missed their chance for victory on a two point opportunity. this marks the fifth straight win for the faculty.


The faculty after winning this year’s annual Turkey Bowl game.

&athletics activities

the St. Raymond Varsity Basketball team continued their quest for another City Championship with an amazing week of basketball to open the

month of February. the team bounced back from a tough homecom-ing loss to Xaverian with a home victory against all hallows on February 3, 2011. two nights later, the Ravens visited arch-bishop molloy and left with a thrilling overtime victory. the team then hosted Rice on February 6, 2011—again on just two days rest. Showing no signs of fatigue, the team jumped out to an

early lead and never looked back.

the win against Rice brought the team’s record to 14-8 over-all, and a very impressive 8-2 in the conference. in defeating Rice, who came into the game as the top-ranked Catholic team in the city, the Ravens won the CHSAA Class AA Divi-sion title and will enter the archdiocesan New york playoffs as the top seed.

Varsity Basketball winS CHSaa CLaSS aa diviSiOn titLe

From left to right: Moderator Mrs. Judith Carew and seniors Jeswin Joy, Chris Sottie, team captian Alex Luciano, Timothy Ahaneku and alternate Brian Curran.

St. Raymond high School students once again participated in The Chal-lenge, a popular quiz-bowl competition for high schools in the tri-state area, hosted by mSG Varsity. this elimination style tournament offers students the opportunity to answer questions in categories that include history, arts & literature, science, math, pop culture and sports.

64 public and private schools competed in this knowledge bowl in manhat-tan, with a cash prize and Challenge cup trophy on the line. the team faced St. Barnabas high School on december 30, 2010 in the first round of the tournament. it was a close competition, but the Ravens emerged victorious in the end. on February 1, 2011 the team was defeated by all hallows in the second round.

mSG varSity

Pictured above is Kerwin Okoro ‘12 and left is Daniel Dingle ‘12 competing in the Homecoming basketball game against Xaverian High School.

St. Raymond Celebrates HOmeCOminG 2011


on Sunday, January 30, 2011 St. Ray-mond hosted Xaverian high School at our Annual Alumni Homecoming Game. more than 100 alumni attended, many with their families, to cheer on the Ra-vens. attendees were invited to a lun-cheon and watched the game from the

skybox and behind the home team’s bench. Before the game, Coach Oliver An-tigua ‘93 addressed the alumni, thanking them for attending and for their support over the years. at halftime, a special recognition ceremony was held honoring the 20th Anniversary of the 1991 City Championship Basketball Team. during that ceremony, assistant Coach Mr. Greg Scott ’72 and Mr. Orlando Antigua ’91 shared their own memories of the 1990 -1991 season.

From left to right are alumni and Brother Frank Byrne, FSC, former principal (center), catching up at the Homecoming luncheon.

CamPBELL’S LaBELS FoR EdUCatioN this program awards free educational equip-ment to schools in exchange for proof of

purchase on Campbell Family Brands. Sim-ply submit the UPC code (or scan your store

loyalty card) and St. Raymond will receive points! Qualifiying products include BiC, Campbell’s, Pep-peridge Farm, Post cereals, Prego, Spaghettios, Swanson and V8. Please visit www.labelsforeducation.com for more information on collecting points. Contact Genna Toye at [email protected] or 718-824-5050 ext 140 to learn more about how you can help St. Raymond just by shopping.

wayS to HeLp St. raymOnd by SHOppinG

Members of the 1991 and 2010-2011 St. Raymond Varsity Basketball teams.

EaStER PLaNt FUNdRaSiERthe school will be selling tulips, daffo-

dils, hyacinths, single-stem Easter lilies and Cemetery Palm Crosses during the Easter Season in order to raise money for the school.

orders will be accepted until april 1, 2011 and the order form is posted on the school’s website at www.straymondhigh-

school.org. all orders must be picked up from the school.


What does it mean to be a Lasallian educator? i thought it natural first to seek inspiration from the examples of our own patron saints. and, after some re-search, i was immediately struck by the works of St. Raymond Nonnatus—the had gone to algeria in the 13th century to liberate captive Christians and, when the money for his cause had run out, offered his own life in its stead. his reward at the hands of his captors was humiliation, torture and eventually the fettering of his lips with a padlock such that he could not preach the Word of God. here was an individual who had gone into a foreign land, gave his all for others but in the end, was prevented from doing the one thing he did best—teaching—by those who simply could not recognize the nobility of his mission.

i wonder if this sounds at all familiar to all teachers. as Lasallian educators, we pour the entirety of ourselves into our interactions with our students and, if we are fortunate, we may ransom a captive mind, liberate a heavy heart or lift a wounded spirit. But sometimes we may feel just like St. Raymond toward the end of his life and thus ask ourselves, “from where do i draw the strength to go on?”

you might be surprised to discover that St. La Salle himself had these same doubts. “if God had revealed to me the good that could be accomplished by this institute,” he said, referring to the school he had established for underprivileged children, “and had likewise made known to me the trials and sufferings which would accompany it, my courage would have failed me and i would never have undertaken it.” yet, undertake such a course of action he did and, as a result, left a legacy of charity and perseverance that resonates with us today.

What allowed St. La Salle to both embrace an existence of austerity and challenge and to affect such change in the lives of so many? monsieur Lechassier, superior general of the Congregation of Saint-Sulpice, said “St. La Salle was a constant observer of the rule. his conversation was always pleasing and above reproach. he seems never to have given offense to anyone, nor to have incurred anyone’s censure.” here was a teacher’s teacher—someone gentle, but firm; someone who always thought the best of those around him and, consequently, drew out the best qualities they had to offer as individuals; someone who sought first to understand before being understood; someone who lived by the Golden Rule in the knowledge that others would adhere to it were it modeled for them.

We can and should learn much when looking back on the respective ministries of Saints Raymond Nonnatus and John Baptiste de La Salle. Perhaps this might take shape in first understanding that our students, cut from the same cloth as those children to whom St. La Salle ministered in seven-teenth century France, do not have appropriate role models or funds or knowledge and rely upon us to provide these, whether they understand this or not. maybe this means that we must have patience in lieu of our students’ appropriate knowledge of social mores while endeavoring to draw them ever closer to the teachings of Christ. Such a ministry might even lead us to subsume our own preconcep-tions of our role within our respective ministries and hold that our first and foremost responsibility is to the education of the young men of St. Raymond’s as whole persons, rather than compartmental-izing (and therefore minimizing) them as “behavior problems,” “lazy” or “basically unintelligent.”

Saints Raymond and La Salle believed to the end of their lives that every student, every individual, had the chance to learn and succeed by the efforts of man and by the grace of God. May all the teachers at St. Raymond personify the patience, perseverance and understanding of these men such that we may truly prove to be Lasallian educators.

The LaSaLLian educaTor i A Teacher’s Perspectiveby John Sudol

Who WaS St. JohN BaPtiStE dE

La SaLLE?

He was born in 1651 to wealthy parents who saw

to his every need as a child and encouraged him to

enter the profession of law. Nonetheless, feeling an

early calling to the Church and moved by the plight of

the poor around him, he abandoned his parents’ home after their death,

renounced his own wealth, moved into residence with those teachers who would

become the Christian Brothers movement, and set to work on providing

both academic enrichment and vocational training to

the most delinquent and underprivileged children of

his native France.

St. La Salle succeeded in creating a network of

schools throughout France that integrated religious instruction with secular

subjects, prepared teachers with a sense of vocation

and mission, and involved parents in their children’s

lives.

“yoU CaN PERFoRm

miRaCLES By toUChiNG thE

hEaRtS oF thoSE ENtRUStEd to

yoUR CaRE.”- De La Salle

The following reflection was part of a recent faculty professional development day. The 50th Anniversary of the school is also a celebration of the remarkable faculty—past and present—that honor the mission of St. John Bap-tiste de La Salle every day. These Brothers, lay men and women understand that “example makes a better impres-sion than words,” and that the “education of the young is about guidance, protection, caring, teaching and lead-ing students to God.”


Monsignor John GrahamPastor, St. Raymond Church

&Brother Daniel Gardner, F S C

Principal, St. Raymond high School for Boys

Cordially invite you

Please join us in celebrating our Golden anniversary with an evening of dinner, dancing and memories.

our 50th anniversary Gala will recognize four Lasallian cornerstones, based on St. John Baptiste de La Salle, that have shaped St. Raymond high School for Boys and our students over the last 50 years:

aCadEmiCS, RELiGioUS VaLUES, EXtRa CURRiCULaRS aNd athLEtiCS.

to thE St. RaymoNd hiGh SChooL FoR BoyS

CoRNERStoNE SPEaKERS iNCLUdE:mr. John Palisi ı Br. Frank Byrne, FSC ı mr. mike Norelli ı mr. Greg Scott ‘72

FRIDAY, APRIL 1, 2011ViLLa BaRoNE maNoR

737 thRoGGS NECK EXPRESSWay ı BRoNX, NEW yoRK 10465

50th Anniversary Gala

LiVE mUSiC By ViSioN ENtERtaiNmENt

CoCKtaiLS ı 7:00 PmdiNNER ı 8:30 Pm

Please RSVP to this event with the envelope included in this issue or contact the school for information.a portion of each ticket is tax deductible and is your contribution to the 50th anniversary celebration.


advancementnewsdear alumni and Friends of St. Raymond,

as our 50th Anniversary Celebration continues, there are only great things to report from your alma mater. it was wonderful to see so many of you at the annual homecoming basketball game on January 30, 2011. more than 100 alumni visited the school to catch up with old friends and to cheer on the cur-rent Ravens. and despite the sometimes brutal weather conditions, we also welcomed many alumni back into the fold at our class reunions this winter.

the best part of our 50th anniversary celebration is still yet to come. By now you should have all received an invitation to the 50th Anniversary Gala on april 1, 2011 at the beautiful Villa Barone manor. this event will be the largest alumni gathering in the history of our school, and we hope that you will be there to join us. We have a carefully selected menu picked out for the evening, and live music will be provided by the Bronx based Vision Band—including two of our very own, Charlie Cernaro ‘78 and Mike DePalma ‘77. do not miss out on your chance to reunite with former faculty members, classmates, teammates, coaches, Brothers and everyone who shaped St. Raymond high School over these 50 years into the school it is today.

aside from the Gala, it will certainly be a busy few months and we hope you will be able to reconnect with your alma mater and your fellow alumni. Be sure to take a look at the calendar on the back cover of this issue for information about upcoming events, including our annual Career day, class reunions and the 15th annual Golf outing scheduled for october 4, 2011. if you have questions about any of the events here at St. Raymond high School, please give me a call, send me an email or just drop by the school. Looking forward to seeing you on the dance floor on april 1st!

Best Wishes,

Christopher Ellis, director of advancement

the Director of Advancementfrom

ST. RAYMONDHIGH SCHOOL FOR BOYS

RAVEN FUND

thank you to all of the St. Raymond alumni, friends and supporters who have already made a donation to the Raven Fund this year.

Our goal for this year is $200,000 and we have now raised more than $130,000. Just past the halfway mark, we would love your sup-port to reach this year’s goal. in honor of our 50th year, many alumni have made their first gift to the school. So, if you have not given to your alma mater in the past, thiS iS thE timE to do so. Every bit helps—big or small. The school appreciates your support.

GoaL ı 200,000

academic year 2010 - 2011

to datE RaiSEd130,000 +


ST. RAYMOND HIGH SCHOOL FOR BOYSways to give to

InvestIngFor questions or to find out more about ways to invest in St. Raymond, please contact Christopher Ellis at (718) 824-5050 x105, or [email protected].

gIfts of Cash Gifts of cash are most often in the form of personal checks made payable to St. Raymond high School for Boys. Unless specified by the donor, the school will use the cash gift in the area we judge to be most in need.

gIfts of seCurItIesStocks, bonds, notes or other instruments for which value can be determined in the financial marketplace should be made pay-able to the St. Raymond high School for Boys. donors are en-couraged to have a conversation with the director of advance-ment to determine the most advantageous method of giving donations of securities. the school does have an electronic trans-fer number for transference of security ownership. internal Rev-enue Service guidelines are followed in establishing the value of donated securities. our policy, in most cases, is that the security is sold immediately.

MerrIll lynCh CharItable Donor funDif you currently have funds with merrill Lynch, you may choose to designate all or part of your fund’s growth to be donated to St. Raymond high School.

enDoweD gIftsNamed giving opportunities for endowed funds are available through the office of advancement. Generally for an endowed fund to be created, a donor must pledge an agreed upon dollar amount over a four year period.

MatChIng gIftsall corporation matching gifts forms are to be sent to the direc-tor of advancement for execution according to rules set by the corporation or foundation for the employee match.

wIlls/estates/trustsRemember St. Raymond high School in the long-term by includ-ing the school in your will as a bequest, participating in pooled income funds or establishing an annuity or trust. you can also contribute through gifts of life insurance, iRa’s, tangible person-al property, closely held stock or remainder interest in a home. all of these contributions result in tax savings for you and/or your heirs.

gIfts In KInDdo you know you can support St. Raymond fundraising initia-tives by providing the school with a gift in kind? these donations to St. Raymond are not monetary contributions, and may consist of furnishings, art, computers, special services rendered to the school or other appropriate gifts that may be used by the school or sold to a third party. Gift in kind donations are tax-deductible within legal limits (see also Gifts of Personal Property and Equip-ment explained below).

gIfts of Personal ProPertyGifts of personal property (i.e., antiques, works of art, collec-tions, etc.) are welcomed by the school with approval from the principal. the donor is responsible for securing appraisals on such property according to iRS guidelines.

gIfts of equIPMentGifts of equipment are encouraged by the school. however, when such equipment requires additional and/or ongoing main-tenance that is not budgeted, prior approval by the school is necessary.

Y O U S E A R C H W E G I V E

We are happy to partner with NY Charities.org, a service which assists non-profit organizations in New york City. our alumni, parents and supporters now have the ability to show their support through a convenient and secure website. Simply visit the alumni page on our website and click on ‘Support St. Raymond’. When you click on the ‘Donate Here’ button, you will be asked to provide your credit card billing details—with the utmost security to protect your information.

you can help raise money for St. Raymond high School for Boys. Just start using Yahoo! powered GoodSearch.com as your search

engine and they will donate a penny to the school every time you do a search! the school will also receive dona-tions when you shop online through GoodShop.com.

shoP & searCh Online


the

construction updatesthe construction project for the new extension to St. Raymond high School for Boys is quickly moving along. though the tough winter weather conditions posed unforeseen problems, the building is still scheduled to be completed by September 2011, welcoming returning students and the class of 2015.

Construction began in august 2010 and the foundation for the new building was completed in late February. a model of the new St. Raymond high School for Boys building now resides in our lobby for all to see. the school is excited about the many changes we will see next year.

in addition to the new two story extension, enhancements to the current school building are underway. Two current classrooms are being renovated to become state of the art science labs—one for Biology and the other for Chemistry, Earth Science and Physics. Each will include lab stations around the perimeter with classroom space in the middle, new plumbing and gas lines, new desks, lab tables and equipment.

Last year the school proudly announced

plans for a new 14,000 square foot addition to

the current school building.

these additions include:

a music education center

an art studio

two computer labs

a guidance and college planning

center

classrooms

a rooftop recreation facility

New Building Extension


The aLumni aSSociaTion makes its’ biggest Gift to the School

members of the St. Raymond high School for Boys alumni association made the largest gift in their history when they pre-sented the school with a check for $125,000. Jim Duncan ‘65, Jim Martin ‘68, Bob Brilla ‘70 and John Corcoran ‘78 present-ed the check to Monsignor Graham and Brother Daniel at a Christmas dinner held on december 1, 2010 at Fratelli’s Res-taurant in Pelham Gardens.

the gift will be used to help purchase ma-terials and equipment needed for the

14,000 square foot extension to St. Ray-mond high School for Boys. “We heard Brother daniel’s call for alumni to step up and we wanted to be the first ones to sup-port this history making project that will shape the future of the school,” treasurer of the alumni association John Corcoran ’78 said.

With construction on the new building ex-tension swiftly moving along, the alumni association generously made a leadership investment in the school’s expansion. “We

From left to right are Jim Duncan ‘65, Jim Martin ‘68, Monsignor John Graham, Brother Daniel Gard-ner, FSC, Bob Brilla ‘70, John Corcoran ‘78 and Christopher Ellis.

e hope that the association’s gift inspires

alumni to make their own contribution toward this

important addition to our school’s facility.”

—Jim martin ’68,president of the alumni association

W“

hope that the association’s gift inspires alumni to make their own contribution to-ward this important addition to our school’s facility,” Jim martin ’68, president of the alumni association said.

To learn more about the plans for the new addition, construction progress,

and how to become involved, please contact Christopher Ellis at

(718) 824-5050 ext. 105.


alumninewsREUNIONS during the 50th Anniversary Yearas the 50th anniversary of St. Raymond high School for Boys continues, many of our alumni have gathered to share memories of their days roaming the hallways. For the dates and locations of upcoming reunions, please visit the calendar at the back of this issue or check out our website at www.straymondhighschool.org.

Would you like to catch up with classmates but do not see a reunion listed for your year? No problem! St. Raymond high School will organize a reunion for any class. Contact Genna Toye in the office of advancement at [email protected] or (718) 824-5050 ext. 140.

2001 & 2002

1970 & 1971 the classes of 1970 and 1971 held their reunion on November 12, 2010 at Patricia’s of tremont. thirty alumni gathered to catch up on the past and remi-nisce looking at old yearbooks and telling stories. many of the classmates had not seen each other since graduation. Brother daniel attended and spoke to the alumni about new initiatives and news from the school. the class of 1970 celebrated their 40th anniversary this past may and the class of 1971 will celebrate their 40th this year. Congratulations on these milestones!

ten years after graduating from St. Raymond high School, the classes of 2001 and 2002 reunited on February 4, 2011 at Fiddler’s Elbow in throggs Neck. alumni shared memories and some friendly trash talk about which year had the better basketball team. alumni also heard about upcoming new young alumni initia-tives St. Raymond is introducing.

in 2009, St. Raymond high School invited back its most recent grads on thanksgiving Eve for a reunion in the school cafeteria. this year, the Classes of 2009 and 2010 gathered for the second annual Young Alum-ni Reunion on November 29, 2010. more than 125 recent graduates attended—trading college stories and talking about their days at St. Raymond.

2009 & 2010


Become A CLASS REPRESENTATIVEin order to KEEP IN TOUCH with all St. Raymond graduates, we are recruiting some of our top alumni to serve as class representatives. ideally, we are aiming to have two representatives per class year. Responsibilities include gathering classmate contact information and helping to spread the word about upcoming school events. the commitment is for one year—and only involves help that can be done from home. We are always looking to expand our database, especially email addresses. If you are interested in serving as a class representative or would like more information about the program, please contact Christopher Ellis at (718) 824-5050 ext. 105 or [email protected].

St. Raymond Graduate Signs with the Kansas City RoyalsNicolas Blanco ‘05 was signed as a free agent by the Kansas City Royals in august 2010. the right handed pitcher excelled on the Ravens baseball team while a student at St. Raymond. he attended Fairleigh dickinson University before transferring to SUNy Cortland, where he intends to graduate next year with a degree in Criminal Justice.

after being signed by the Royals last summer, Nicolas was able to join the team for the latter part of Rookie Ball. he appeared in four games, striking out seven batters in just four innings. When he returned from the instructional league, Nicolas spent time with his family while preparing for spring training. “i have no complaints,” Nicolas said. “things are going well for me, and i’m very happy.”

Nicolas joined the Royals this February at their spring training facility in Surprise, arizona. We wish Nicolas all the best as he competes for a spot on the big league roster.

Nicolas Blanco ‘05 (left) with St. Raymond baseball coach Mr. Marc DeLuca.

ALUM Appears on ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire’Richard Angehr ’72 took the stage of ‘Who Wants to Be a million-aire’ this past January for two days. the first day, he earned $35,100. With time running out, Richard was invited back to appear on the show the next day. Facing some difficult questions, he was forced to use his last two lifelines early on the second day of competition. Rather than risk walking away with nothing, Richard bowed out after the second question, cutting his $35,100 pot in half, and leaving the show $17,550 richer.

Richard, an Ellis hospital social worker, currently resides in Sche-nectady, New york with his wife Laura. they have four sons. on the show he told meredith Vieira that he would use his earnings for a family vacation to ireland. St. Raymond high School extends its’ congratulations to Richard and his family.

Richard Angehr ‘72 with Meredith Vieira on the set of ‘Who Wants to be a Mil-lionaire’ in January 2011.


CLASS NOTES

1967 Timothy Greene recently retired from Gei-co and now resides in the Villages, FL.

1969 John Sommo has lived in maine for the past 30 years and currently works as an El-ementary School Principal.

1970 Michael Caputo recently retired from Sony Electronics, inc. and lives in Ridgefield, Ct.

Thomas Nonnon, a successful actor, just finished filming The Tower Heist, starring Ben Stiller, Eddie murphy and matthew Broderick.

1975 Deacon Vincent DeFedele R.Ph, a regis-tered pharmacist, was recently ordained a deacon. he lives in hasbrouck heights with his wife. his two sons, Philip and Chris-topher, are attending law and pharmacy schools respectively.

1977 Gerry O’Sullivan and his wife Lesley cur-rently live in drexel hill, Pa with their two sons owen, 11, and devlin, 18. Gerry is the Vice President for academic affairs and a Professor of English and theology at Neu-mann University, as well as a peer reviewer for The Journal of Catholic Higher Educa-tion.

Peter Ruggiero has recently relocated to Cleveland, ohio where he works at Key-Bank.

Dr. Hector Sepulveda is the associate dean for academic affairs at Suffolk Coun-ty Community College. he also works at Stony Brook University as an assistant clini-cal professor in the department of Preven-tive medicine.

1979 Joseph Matranga, a married father of four—with twin girls age 6 and boys ages 8 and 10, is an active member of our Lady of assumption Church and School in Pel-ham Bay. he works as a developer of com-puter applications for a bank.

Joseph Nigro is Vice President of a profes-sional choir and orchestra, treasurehouse music.

1980 Michael Kenny was elected to a three year term as the Vice President of Local 375 Civil Services technical Guild last year.

1982 Christopher Mele is currently the Execu-tive Editor of the Pocono Record in Strouds-burg, Pa, and is finishing his 24th year in the newspaper business.

1989 Luigi Muccitelli started his own business, mozzarella di Luigi, which offers clients the opportunity to make fresh mozzarella in their own home.

1997David Pina established mr. techKnowledge in 1997, a company that provides technical

assistance to homeowners and small busi-nesses in New york and New Jersey.

1998Anthony Cabrera currently works at REEd academy—a private school for children with autism. anthony recently participat-ed in a bike ride with REEd academy, rais-ing money to build a brand new school in oakland, NJ.

2002Keith Morales works for Crush manage-ment and runs a bar in manhattan, angels and Kings. he is also the owner and man-ager of No one you Know (NoyK) Pro-ductions.

2005Freddimir Garcia graduated from marist College in 2009. he is an assistant direc-tor of Student Financial Services and a Graduate and adult admission Counselor at marist College.

Ricky Torres is currently enrolled at SUNy old Westbury and is in his last year of bas-ketball eligibility.

2008Sylus M. McKenzie has created a fragrance line which enables individuals to custom-ize their own fragrance.

2010Salvador Alberto entered his first year at St. Joseph’s Seminary. he will live at the seminary and participate in priestly forma-tion while taking courses at iona College.

Name ____________________________________________________ Class year ________

Email address _______________________________________________________________

address ____________________________________________________________________

City ____________________________________ State ______________ Zip______________

telephone ____________________________________ (circle one) home work mobile

Company Name _____________________________ Job title _______________________

College attended/degree ____________________________________________________

Spouse’s Name/Children’s Name(s) ____________________________________________

Where have you been?It has been wonderful hearing from so many alumni during our 50th Anniversary year. If

you have any news to share (new job, move to a different city, recently married or had

children) we would love to hear about it. Any updates can be sent to Valerie Noble at vnoble@

straymondhighschool.org, or you can visit the alumni tab on our website or return this form to

St. Raymond High School for Boys, Advancement Office at 2151 St. Raymond

Avenue, Bronx, NY 10462.

Students at the 50th Anniversary Mass of Thanksgiving held in March 2010.

Collie Smith ‘10 and Mohamed Sidique ‘10 at Raven Day at Yankee Stadium

in May 2010.

Mr. Kevin Sullivan ‘70 and Mr. Harry Walpole ‘70 joined by their families at the De La Salle Leadership Dinner held in April 2010.

Faculty members and their families enjoy a meal at the Family Pasta Dinner in September 2010.

Graduates of the class of 1973 at Raven Day at Yankee Stadium in May 2010.

50th Anniversary Year ii

st. raymond high school for boys2151 St. Raymond avenueBronx, Ny 10462

Address Correction Requested

Des

ign

© b

y EP

Gra

ph

ic D

esig

n •

ep

arke

r@ep

gra

ph

icd

esig

n.c

om

tampa, Florida Raven Road trip tuesday, march 15 6pm University Club of tampa

Parent’s association meeting Wednesday, march 23 7pm School Cafeteria

50th anniversary Gala Friday, april 1 7pm Villa Barone manor

Student art Show Sunday, april 3 1pm Elementary School auditorium

alumni hockey Game Saturday, april 9 6:30pm World ice arena

annual Career day thursday, april 14 12pm St. Raymond hS for Boys

Second annual mother Son dance Friday, april 15 7pm School Cafeteria

1980 & 1981 Reunion Friday, may 13 7pm F&J Pine

Parent’s association meeting Wednesday, may 18 7pm School Cafeteria

1965 & 1966 Reunion Saturday, June 4 1pm 900 Park

1975 & 1976 Reunion Friday, June 10 6pm Patricia’s of tremont

15th annual Golf outing tuesday, october 4 10:30am Salem Golf Club

SAVE THE DATE ı UPCOMING EVENTS

if you would like more information about any of these events, please contact Christopher Ellis at (718) 824-5050 ext. 105 or [email protected].

raven - st. raymond high school for boysstraymondhighschool.org/alumni/pdf/ravenspring2011.pdf ·...

Documents