Welcome
to Christendom's Alumni E-Zine. If you have information that
you would like to share with your fellow alumni, send it to
the Grapevine Editor, Tom McGraw, at tvmcgraw@yahoo.com.
The editor reserves the right to include or exclude any information
submitted for publication in The Grapevine.
The
Grapevine Online is uploaded on the First Friday of every
month. It will have a couple of sections (when information
is available), namely, Class Notes (your basic information
on alumni babies, weddings, jobs, etc.), Calendar of Events,
and Links to various recent stories about Christendom
College and/or the Alumni of Christendom.
June
2006 edition of The
Grapevine Online
Class
Notes / Calendar of Events / Links
to Stories / Prior
issues
Class
notes
It’s
a sad day in the history of Christendom. Well, not Christendom
Christendom. Just in Christendom College’s history. The
second in the long line of succession of International
Men of Leisure is retiring. Having held the position for
about the same length of time as his predecessor IML MP
Jansen I, IML Niall O’Donnell II is trading
in his days of leisure to get married to his beloved Sherry
Spring. They will be getting married on November 4 in
the metropolis of Front Royal. In the meantime Niall is back
in Rome finishing up his thesis, a documentary called The
Path toAssisi about a pilgrimage made to Assisi by the Christendom
students of the Spring ‘06 Rome semester. Applications
for the position of IML III will be accepted throughout
the summer and fall months. A new IML will be crowned,
coronated, and proclaimed as soon as possible. In the meantime,
understand that all previous IMLs have given in to
the temptation of marriage, much like those members of the
Bachelor Pad out in the Plains. If you are up for a couple
good years of leisurely adventure and then a highly structured,
non-leisurely rest of your life marriage, apply today. Julie
Abernethy may be involved in the judging of the applicants,
eh?
On
May 8th, Maria Reilander '04 graduated with a Master
in Theological Studies in Marriage and Family from the John
Paul II Institute in DC. The next day she flew to Rome with
50 other classmates, alumni and faculty from the JPII Institute
to attend a congress marking the 25th anniversary of the founding
of the Institute. The Rome session of the Institute hosted
the congress on the legacy of Pope John Paul II. On the first
day of the congress, Pope Benedict XVI invited all of them
to the Vatican for an audience. He gave a wonderful and encouraging
address. He spent much time making his way down the aisle
kissing babies, shaking hands, smiling. His secretary later
told their president that he had never seen Benedict spend
so much time greeting people as he did that afternoon. In
the picture Maria is the red, standing with her friends Jennifer
and Janie, and there are more of her classmates behind her.
Benedict graciously let Maria take his hand and kiss his ring!
On May 13, the feast of Our Lady of Fatima, and also the 25th
anniversary of both the shedding of John Paul II's blood in
St. Peter's square the Institute visited the tomb of John
Paul II. "I just want to let our recent graduates know
that I offered a special prayer at his tomb for them on their
graduation day," said Maria. After a grace-filled week
in Rome, Maria is now back home in Ontario and looking for
a job!
The
Power family in Aussieland, received a visit from Dr.
and Mrs. O'Donnell back in March. The occasion was the opening
of Campion College, a college in Austrailia which has modeled
itself after Christendom. Campion opened its doors in February
and invited the O'Donnells to attend the the inauguration
ceremonies held in March. While there, the O'Donnells caught
up with the "Power" Family, and are pictured with
Erica, Kate, Ann Louise, and Conor. Good on ya!
Paul
"Wonder Boy" Jalsevac just graduated from Law
School!!!!! As soon as the final test was complete, a loud
"Woohoo!" was heard from his wonderful wife Meg.
Our scoop is that the Wonder Boy takes the bar this July for
Pennsylvania since he'll be starting a federal appeals court
clerkship in Pittsburgh at the beginning of August. After
that - who knows... IF any alumni know of anything that Paul
and Meg should know about Pittsburgh (positive or negative)
that would be great if they could pass it on.
Eryka
Bukowski '05 and John O'Herron '06 were engaged January
21st. They are planning a wedding in November and John is
starting law school in the fall, probably in Richmond. The
co-student achievement award winner from 2006 is looking forward
to starting a spoof newspaper making fun of various and sundry
things as soon as his enrollment has been secured.
After
graduating in December 2004, Angela Ana Gaetano started
working at the Frank Spicer Insurance Agency in Fairfax, VA,
and have been working there ever since as an insurance agent.
At first she shared a small home out in the country in Warrenton
VA with Mary Storck (’03) and Anne Kopec Jansen (’04),
but quickly realized that commuting up to 1 ½ hours
each way was no way to live! She moved to Alexandria several
months ago. For those of you who haven’t spent much time
in Alexandria, she highly recommends checking out Alexandria!
Old Town is very beautiful & historic! Currently, she's
living in the Kingstowne section, and working as a nanny part-time.
She helps watch a cute, lively little girl named Emily. Her
father is fighting in Iraq with the National Guard while her
mother is completing her Master’s Degree. She's really
enjoying living with Emily & her family, except for Murphy
the dog, who lies outside her door and barks (LOUDLY) while
she tries to sleep…."I could definitely do without
him. But, aside from Murphy the dog, life is great!"
says Angela. And that’s all…for now…
Here
is some juice on DJ Corey (pictured here with this
year's 4th grade class). DJ is doing quite well in Silver
Spring, MD. He is preparing to move in late July, but is most
especially preparing for the end of the school year on June
9. On June 13, he is leaving for Rome with a group of 13 or
so boys from The Avalon School, where he currently teaches.
On another good note, he will be attending graduate school
at Johns Hopkins for a Masters in Edumacation Administration
in the fall. He will also be performing with the Rockville
(MD) Musical Theatre this summer as Luther Billis in South
Pacific. If you are familiar with the musical, but cannot
remember "Luther Billis", he has a large tattoo
of a ship on his stomach, wears a grass skirt and does the
hula to the song "Honey Bun" towards the end of
the show. Yes, it is very heavy drama. Come one, come all...
point and laugh at DJ. Performances are July 7-8, 14-16 &
21-23 ( www.r-m-t.org). Lastly, he will teach science at the
Tenley Achievement Program (TAP) this summer in downtown DC,
showing inner-city kids the glories of blowing stuff up. Drop
DJ a line at danieljcorey@gmail.com
if you are around this summer!
MaryAnn
E. (Hester) Gaffney '93 reports that there is a new member
of the Gaffney clan, Meave Elizabeth Maire, born May 3rd,
weighing in at 7lbs 11ozs, 19 1/2 inches long, and healthy.
Thank God. That brings the count up to 6, but still only one
boy. All is well here in chocolate world (i.e. Hershey, PA)
for those of you interested in stopping for a visit.
Christy
Coy '05 and Damien Dodge (pictured right) were married
on April 22, 2006. They went to St. Thomas for their honeymoon
and are living in Virginia Beach now. Damien is in the Navy
and is stationed at Norfolk, VA.
Suzannah
Redner '06 and Jaclyn Weber '06 say hello ;) They
are living a wicked, wild, and utterly decadent life together
in a penthouse treehouse on the O'Reilly's property deep in
Shenandoah Shores;) Jaclyn spends far too much time speeding
around in her electric blue PT Cruiser and drinking wine coolers,
when she is off hours from her job as legal secretary. At
night she manages an online advice column under an alias.
Suzannah turned down an offer to elope to Russia (says it
wasn't fiscally tempting enough) and currently spends her
daylight hours on the computer as assistant to the director
of development at Christendom. At night she nannies, writes
children's literature, and solicits magazines for publication.
And pours Jaclyn her wine coolers. Living with them is the
aloof and obnoxious Archie Bird, male in residence, who provides
non-stop commentary regardless of who's listening.
Since
the end of his second semester at Saint Louis University,
Chris Lane '03 has been making a voyage in Italy and
France. During his week in Rome, he met up with several alumni
and friends of Christendom (some quite unexpectedly). Highlights
included the Wednesday papal audience, nightly debates with
Fadi Auro, and the International Man of Leisure's
famed roof vista. After saying hello to Ss. Francis and Claire
in Assisi, he stopped in Florence, staying at the Istituto
Sacro Cuore and going for the Feast of the Ascension to Gricigliano,
where he saw Abbé Michael Stein of the Institute
of Christ the King. Chris then dropped in to see the Hatkes
in their little village of Gravagna, proceeding thence to
a retreat at the incomparable Benedictine Abbaye of Fontgombault.
Look for him on the pilgrimage to Chartres Cathedral this
weekend, and then in Paris for the rest of June, where he'll
be taking an intensive French course at the Alliance Française."
Joseph
Woodard apologizes for the false alarm given in a previous
Grapevine--he will not be returning to Christendom
this Fall. "If one can be sorrowed, sorely sorrowed I
am," said Joseph. Instead, he will be in Honduras for
about a year, starting June 19th. He will be with the Missioners
of Christa lay group that works alongside the Franciscan Friars
of the Renewal in Comayagua, Honduras (cfrhonduras.com).
Shortly after arriving in Honduras, he will drive down with
some others to the Ave Maria College of the Americas in San
Marcos, Nicaragua. He will spend two months there studying
Spanish intensively, and will then spend the rest of the year
in and around Comayagua, Honduras. He will be involved in
working with the poor and teaching the Faith. The Missioners
and the Friars do some humanitarian work, and a lot of catechizing/discipling,
prayer, youth retreats, village and door-to-door evangelization,
medical work, caring for orphans and widows, etc. "Honduras
is not doing well--there are very few priests, there is very
much crime and poverty, most people don't finish primary school,
and Hondurans are generally ignorant of the Faith into which
they've been baptized (thus the great inroads made by well-funded
Protestant missionaries). Also, after Haiti, Honduras is the
second poorest country in the West. It's a beautiful country,
but can be a terrible place to live. I want to ask for your
prayers while I'm down there, for myself and for the people
I'll be working with, for the missionaries and for the people
of Honduras," said Joseph. To reach Joseph or to find
out how to support this work e-mail him at joe_catholic@juno.com
Elizabeth
Rice '05 graduated from Montessori Teacher Training
in St. Paul, MN with her parents as well as James and Mary
Rice to cheer her on. She will be continuing on to Notre
Dame to complete Catechesis of the Good Shepard training with
Dominique Hain. And then mid-June, she will be moving
back to Virginia to teach at the Renaissance Montessori School
in Manassas. (You should send your children there. *Jedi Mind
Trick*).
Clint
and Andria Hepler have a new baby girl! Charlotte Mary
(pictured left) was born on May 8th, a week early and now
shares her birthday with her mom. She weighed a whopping 5
lbs, 9 oz. Though petite, she's a happy, healthy baby, enjoying
lots of attention from her proud big sister, Penelope.
Trish
Metzger reports the exciting news that four new alumni
have joined FOCUS staff: Helen Almeter ('05), Andy Day
('06), Megan Mead ('06) and Kelly Mulhern ('06). This
brings the Christendom/FOCUS total to 14! (Others are Mary
Claire Almeter, Heather (Rankin) Akers, Ben Akers, Elisabeth
(Boever) Gideon, Katie (Almeter) Schafer, Sarah Akers, Christine
Wright, Anne Wolpert, Marie Antunes and Trish Metzger).
FOCUS missionaries are laboring in 27 "vineyards"
across the country and will be expanding to a few more this
fall. Thanks in part to the recent success of the basketball
team in the Final Four, but mostly to the FOCUS missionaries,
the entire George Mason campus (except four stubborn students)
has converted to the fullness of the truth in the Catholic
Church. Not really, but they're trying. If you want to receive
a newsletter or support a missionary, contact Trish at pmetzger@focusonline.org.
Christen
and Jason Manak had their first baby on May 5th: Christopher
Jason Manak. Here is a picture of him (at right) at his baptism
on May 21st. Birth Weight = 6 lbs. 6 oz., Birth Length = 20
inches, Birth Time = 9:49 PM . . . For a brief while, Christen
was taken in by those those rumors about the Wallflower being
destroyed at the end of the school year. AS IF . . . "the
Wallflower cannot be destroyed that way Christen. There is
only one way to destory the One Wallflower, and we doubt that
way will ever happen. They may think they destroyed it, precious,
but it was a lesser Wallflower. Not the One."
After
four years of teaching, Maria Bissex bids a fond farewell
to Holy Family Academy to become a student once again. She
will be beginning courses this fall at Shenandoah Conservatory
for a Masters degree in Music Education. Hopefully this will
still leave plenty of time for those semi-annual trips to
Roma. :)
John
Paul and Katie (Almeter) Schafer thought last month's
Grapevine announcement needed a little further explanation.
Apparently, the Grapeveine's special Special Correspondent
assigned to the Schafer's did not get all the facts concerning
their son who was born last month. Let us say that individual
has been dealt with, and even compared to what will happen
to those poor unfortunates who think they burned the real
Wallflower, his punishment will be quite severe. The Grapevine's
newly hired correspondent reports that Peter Clement Schafer,
was born on April 23rd, Divine Mercy Sunday. To his parents'
delight, he was born in the hour of mercy, between 3 and 4
in the afternoon (hence his middle name; those of you who
didn't take Duffy's latin might need to look it up). At almost
six weeks and 11lbs., little Pete is relieved to know he no
longer has to worry about having an identity crisis at age
12.
Since
the last Grapevine, Jimmy Blankenship '05 and
the Institute community in Chicago have hosted many notable
guests to their apostolate. Jim Erwin '05 visited.
Jimmy and Jim had a roommate reunion. Also, Dr. Alice Von
Hildebrand, a good friend of the Institute, visited the first
weekend of May to give a conference on Feminism. The Institute
community also had the privilege of hosting the Cardinal of
Chicago, Cardinal George. The Cardinal has just recently given
the decree of "Erection
of a Shrine" to the Institute in Chicago. The Cardinal
toured the facilities before they began the restoration of
the church. Their new shrine will be dedicated to "Christ
the King" (no surprise there). Jimmy will be in Chicago
only a couple more months. He will visit VA in 
August
before he goes to the seminary in Gricigliano this Fall.
After
their bachelor and bachelorette parties on April 8 and 9,
Mary Hack and Jeremy Sheiko (photo at left) were married
on Saturday, April 29, 2006 in Lafayette, Indiana at St. Boniface
Roman Catholic Church (Mary's home parish, to which the Hack
family has belonged since its founding in 1953). A number
of their family and friends joined in sharing their special
day. After five days in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, they returned
to their home in Front Royal, where they are settling in and
enjoying married life. If you'd like to see more snapshots
by their family and friends of the wedding, go to: http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=mq4ndq6.16crihh2&x=0&y=2ij7kq
If you'd like to email either of them, their emails are: mary.sheiko@yahoo.com
and jsheiko@gmail.com.
Ryan
and Lori (Omann) Meyer 03' would like to announce the
birth of their baby girl! Claire Isabelle Meyer was born on
Saturday, April 29th at 2:00 am and was 7 lbs. 9 oz and 20"
long. Mom, dad and baby Claire are all doing great! Claire
even got to go to her first MN Twins game on May 23rd! And
she was even lucky enough to have her name put up on the big
scoreboard welcoming her as the newest little Twins fan! How
exciting!
At long
last Scythian (Alex and Dan Fed and co.)
has breached the walls of the festival circuit and has done
so in a big way. By the grace of God (and a few greased palms)
the Lads have landed spots and some of the nations top Celtic
(and non-Celtic) Festivals. Most notably, on Aug. 12, Scythian
will be headlining the Minnesota Irish Fair where they will
follow up Gaelic Storm to finish off the night. They’re
estimating a crowd of 20,000 people so this will definitely
be a big night for the lads. The next weekend, Scythian will
be playing at the worlds largest Celtic Festival. Yup, you
guessed it – in Milwaukee (who knew). There they’ll
be rubbing elbows with Tommy Makem, The Young Dubliners and
Gaelic Storm (again). For all you St. Greg’s boys, on
Aug. 5th, Scythian will be on one of the main stages of Musikfest
in Bethlehem PA. And for all you locals, Scythian will be
kicking off their summer season in Centreville at the Vintage
Virginia Wine Festival on June 4th, where they will perform
with Old School Freight Train (a great bluegrass band). For
those of you who have kids, on June 17th Scythian will be
headlining the Potomac Celtic Festival NightFest with the
Prodigals. As you can see it will be an outdoor summer for
the fellas. Hope to see you at a festival near you. For more
details and information see www.scythianmusic.com.
The
alumni familes of Briggs, McShurleys, O'Reillys, Furtados,
and Ciskaniks (as well as the Deardurffs, alumni from
that other college in California) are gearing up for another
production of Shakespeare on the Shenandoah scheduled
to air (that is, open air) July 7, 8 and 9 in the Ciskanik
backyard in Shenandoah Shores, Front Royal. All ye local alumni
come on out, bring a picnic and enjoy the show. For further
details, watch for announcements in the Arlington Catholic
Herald or future grapevine news or you can always just ask
Walter. They give all free will donations to St. John's parish
and, besides, Shakespeare plays are so much fun.
Last,
and not least, we are very pleased to catch of glimpse of
the amazing life of the elusive Pearse Marschner '01, who
is glad to be coming home from his travels in July. Despite
reports to the contrary, thus far beholding the true girdle
of the Virgin has failed to make him any thinner. Nor, he
might add, has touching the shrine of the head of John the
Baptist's father made his hands any stronger. On the positive
side, he has been able to perceive a slight light emanating
from the face of the Orthodox Patriarch but that may just
be residual neon green from the Muslim minaret which sits
on the front yard of the very capitol of Orthodox Christianity
and calls Muslims to pray five times a day.
Calendar
of events
July 28-29,
2006: Summer Institute
October
6-8, 2006: Homecoming
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Releases and Campus News: http://www.christendom.edu/news/releases.shtml
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