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, Marie Antunes, at marieantunes@christendom.edu.
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.
December
2010 edition of The Grapevine Online
Class
Notes / Calendar of Events / Links
to Stories / Prior
issues
Class
notes
Kathleen
Rock ('04) spent the summer Africa with two friends who
have formed "Amen Ministries." The ministry is focussed
on providing Catholic education to the wonderful people of
the village of Afere, Ghana. The primary source of education
is the Muslim school where most of the villagers send their
children. The school we are trying to build will offer an
authentic Catholic education and provide the villagers with
the opportunity to escape the indignity of the imposed poverty
that they live under.
Michelle
(McCoy) Hoeper, husband Jim and children Cecelia (7),
Victoria (5), Kolbe (3) and Blaise (1) are happily looking
forward to next Spring. Baby #5 is due June 10, one week after
Blaise turns 2. The girls share Feb. as their bd month and
the boys are in June & July. We'll see if #5 keeps the
boys' birthdays in summer or if a girl will break the tie.
Any and all prayers appreciated for a healthy baby either
way!
October
was a busy month for Christine Collins ('04) and Anthony
Smitha ('05), who got married on the Feast of the Guardian
Angels (October 2). Fr. Seamus O'Kielty presided over the
vows, and Fr. William Fitzgerald O.Praem. celebrated the Mass.
The weekend after this (Oct. 9), they attended the wedding
of John English ('06) and Breanna Harrington ('06) in
Manchester, NH, during which time they stayed with Christine's
Matron of Honor, Christina (Denton) Lebish ('05) and
her family: husband Nick and baby daughter Claire. On the
way back home, they visited with Sarah (Hibl) Postiglione
('04) and her husband, Marc in their NJ home. The following
weekend (Oct. 16), they sang at the wedding of Emma Fritcher
('07) and Andrew Kenney in St. Louis, MO, carpooling there
with Michael Collins ('07), Francis Feingold ('09) and
Beth Fettes ('09), and meeting up with several other Christendom
graduates and friends of the college in St. Louis. They eventually
went on a honeymoon in Savannah, GA from October 21-November
1, where they happened to meet up with Helen Almeter ('05),
who is the Director of Campus Ministry in the Savannah Diocese.
They've still not completely settled into their new routine,
but they are looking forward to doing that while enjoying
the coming cool weather and holidays. (Photograph taken by
Sir Craig Spiering, the Awesome, of Spiering Photography)
Astonished
that it is already November, Matthew and Elizabeth (Fraser)
Anderson ('09), who were married at St. John the
Baptist Church on July 17th, finally got their act together
enough to submit a photo of the event to ye olde Grapevine.
It was a lovely, very happy day, witnessed by many Christendom
grads as well as many present students and both present and
past faculty and staff. Now Liz and Matt have another date
to look forward to, since they are expecting a baby at the
end of April!
Jim
and Ellen (Storey) Kelly ('94) and their boys Joseph (9),
Peter (5) and Mark (2) are excited to announce the birth of
their first girl, Katherine Anne Kelly. Born August 26, 2010,
weighing in at 9 lbs. She's such a blessing!
"To
uplift and beautify all that is human." These words of
the late John Paul II have been taken to heart by The Saint
Cecilia Group - a volunteer-based organization begun by a
group of alumni. 2010 marks the seventh year that Michelle
Gil [Class of '99], and Amy McNeill ['98], along with Eric
Kingsepp ['98], and Janet Purdy ['97] and a crew of 20 
volunteers,
have planned, organized, hosted, catered and produced the
Annual St. Cecilia Arts Festival. Begun in 2003, the event
has grown from a gathering of a handful of friends for an
informal music and poetry jam in Michelle's living room, to
over one hundred twenty attendees, two hours of performances
featuring local and regional artists. A partnership with the
Young Adults Ministry of St. Mary Parish in Old Town Alexandria
in 2007 brought this evening of cultural renewal to the larger
Catholic community of the Arlington and Washington dioceses.
In 2009, they were joined by alumni Marlena Larson, Craig
Spiering, Imelda Franklin Bogue, Paul English, Francis Feingold,
Christine (Collins) Smitha, Sylvia Smith, and Anthony Smitha.
This year, Dr. Patrick Keats had the house rolling with the
comedic monologue "Take a Pew" [of Coffee House
fame], Dr. Kurt Poterack sang Polish art songs, and Anthony
Smitha returned to serve as guest MC. Other performances included
skits, poetry, song, and music of piano and harp; from Gabriel
Faure's seriously classical En Priere to Monty Python's seriously
funny Dead Parrot Sketch. For
more information on the group or to get involved as a volunteer
for the 2011 Festival, please visit www.saintceciliagroup.org.
Caitlin
(Turner) Marchand ('06)
and her husband Mike welcomed their first girl, Regina Marie
Marchand. She's a halloween baby born Oct. 31st weighing 6
lbs 11 oz. Her two big(ish) brothers Jean Damien 3 and Michael
almost 2 are very excited to have "Nina" around.
The Marchands are still stationed in Enid, Oklahoma so if
anyone is ever driving through the middle of nowhere on their
way to somewhere more exciting feel free to stop by!
Alumni
Michael Meredith ('97) was married to Kimberly Bush on
Oct. 16, 2010 at Our Lady of Angels in Woodbridge, VA-The
wedding Mass celebrated by Father Stephen McGraw ('88).
Calendar of Events
December
7, 2010: Chaplain's Tuesday Series: Verification
December
7, 2010: Library Event - Christmas Caroling in the Rotunda
December
8, 2010: Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception (no classes)
December
11, 2010: Beato Fra Angelico Fine Arts Series - Pianist Jacek
Zganiacz
Press
Releases and Campus News: http://www.christendom.edu/news/releases.shtml
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