alumni spotlight on pat kerrigan...in june of 2018, marlo was notified that she was a state finalist...

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Introducing the Pope St. John XXIII Legacy Society pg 12 Alumni Spotlight on Pat Kerrigan pg 10 Alumna Marlo Tomich a Finalist for Presidential Teaching Award pg 7

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Page 1: Alumni Spotlight on Pat Kerrigan...In June of 2018, Marlo was notified that she was a state finalist for the Presiden-tial Award for Excellance In Mathematics and Science teaching,

Introducing the Pope St. John XXIII Legacy Societypg 12

Alumni Spotlight on Pat Kerriganpg 10

Alumna Marlo Tomich a Finalist for Presidential Teaching Awardpg 7

Page 2: Alumni Spotlight on Pat Kerrigan...In June of 2018, Marlo was notified that she was a state finalist for the Presiden-tial Award for Excellance In Mathematics and Science teaching,

W I S D O M • C O U R A G E • F A I T H F A L L • 2 0 1 8 2

Table of ContentsA Message From Our President .................page 3Spirit Nights Explained..................................page 4Meet our New Staff.........................................page 5Gift Matching.................................................page 6Alumnus Wins Presidential Award..............page 8Upcoming Events....................................pages 9-10Pat Kerrigan in the Spotlight............pages 11-12Pope St. John XXIII Legacy Society..........page 14A Word from Student Government.........page 15Swing with Pride Recap.....................pages 16-17Class of 2022..............................................page 18

PRIDE MAGAZINEis published by Roncalli Catholic High School, Omaha, NE. ©2018,

All rights reserved. Materials in PRIDE may be reproduced provided prior permission obtained from the editor and credit is given.

RONCALLI CATHOLIC PRESIDENT:Ann O’Connor, 1978 Alumna

RONCALLI CATHOLIC PRESIDENT EMERITUS:Rev. Lloyd A. Gnirk

RONCALLI CATHOLIC PRINCIPAL:T.J. Orr, 1996 Alumni

RONCALLI CATHOLIC DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR:Maureen Irish

PRIDE MAGAZINE EDITOR and DESIGNER:Quinn Scahill

Support from our advertisers make Pride magazine possible. Please consider joining current advertisers in supporting our Pride magazine communication efforts. Each issue is sent to nearly 2,500 contacts. The electronic advertisements are linked directly to your own business’

website and readers are encouraged to consider our advertisers.For more information contact Maureen Irish at

[email protected] or 402-571-7670 x. 113

Schedule a visit today!Call 402-571-7670

Page 3: Alumni Spotlight on Pat Kerrigan...In June of 2018, Marlo was notified that she was a state finalist for the Presiden-tial Award for Excellance In Mathematics and Science teaching,

W I S D O M • C O U R A G E • F A I T H F A L L • 2 0 1 8 3

A W

ord from O

ur PresidentFaculty and Staff Are Recharged and Ready for a Pivotal Year

While the halls at Roncalli Catholic were quiet this past summer, the Development Department was hard at work planning, organinzing, and restructuring systems in order to raise more funds for the school. After an invigorating strategic planning session on August 3rd with stakeholders involved, the vision for the future of Roncalli Catholic High School has never shown more promise. Faculty, staff, board members, and community members passionate about the school came together for a day of planning and orga-nizing, all with one single goal in mind: improving and maintaining greatness at Roncalli Catholic.

This year, the Benilde Program will begin its third year, and we could not be more proud of Mrs. Critchfield and her students. We believe that something very special is happening at Roncalli Catholic because of this unique program that allows daily academic support for students who are able to cognitively adhere to a college preparatory curriculum, but may have educational needs that can make it difficult for them to achieve their full potential on their own.

Another development for RCHS this fall is the introduction of the Career Academy in conjunc-tion with Metro Community College. The program is open to junior or senior students who are inter-ested in pursuing career fields such as nursing, civil engineering, theatre technology, architecture, welding, information technology, and many others. Students can use this opportunity to gain credits towards an Associate’s Degree or certificate in these fields while still in high school. There are 22 Academies to choose from featuring career fields in high demand areas, with a near 100% employ-ment rate following completion of the academy program at Metro Community College. RCHS is the first Catholic High School in the state to offer an option like this, and our staff is tremendously excited about the possibilities for our students. Please stay tuned for more updates on this new offering for our students!

In other news - RCHS hosted the 29th annual Swing with Pride golf fundraiser on August 6th at Indian Creek Golf Club. The event was sold-out and was also the most-attended event in all 29 years of the event’s history. To top everything off, we had a world champion boxer come out to say hello! Read more about Swing with Pride on page 16.

On top of all these things, we will be introducing the Roncalli Catholic Pope St. John XXIII Legacy Society on September 19th with a free seminar, “The Eight Key Questions About Charitable Giving.” Nick Taylor, an expert in this field, will be with us to explain the benefits of planned giving. Read more about this opportunity on page 14.

As I look ahead to this year, I expect great things for the school. The outlook for 2018-19 is extremely bright, and our staff are eager to continue trailblazing in a new and positive direction for Roncalli Catholic High School.

Ann O’Connor, President, Class of 1978

Page 4: Alumni Spotlight on Pat Kerrigan...In June of 2018, Marlo was notified that she was a state finalist for the Presiden-tial Award for Excellance In Mathematics and Science teaching,

W I S D O M • C O U R A G E • F A I T H F A L L • 2 0 1 8 4

Spirit Nights: How Do They Benefit Roncalli Catholic High School?Every year RCHS partners with local restaurants and chains to organize Roncalli Catholic Spirit Nights. The purpose of these mini-fundraisers is to bring families together in a casual setting to raise money for the school.

These events take place only once or twice per month, but the funds raised from these Spirit Nights can add up to quite a large sum during the course of the year. All that is required of RCHS supporters is that they dine in at a restau-rant and mention that they are supporting RCHS through the Spirit Night.

Who can attend: Spirit Nights are open to anyone who wants to support RCHS! Students, parents, alumni, or friends are all welcome.

How to Support RCHS: If you attend a Spirit Night at Chick-fil-A, all that is required is for you to mention that you’d like to support RCHS. After mentioning RCHS, a portion of your pur-chase will be donated directly back to Roncalli Catholic!

Where and when can you support RCHS: Spirit Night dates are listed below, but you can only support RCHS at the designated locations for Zio’s (7834 Dodge St.) and Chick-fil-A(6310 N 72nd St.), and at their designated times in the evening.

RCH

S SPIRIT NIG

HTS

Chick-fil-A (6310 N 72nd St, 4:00-9:00pm) Monday, October 8 Thursday, Nov. 29 Monday, Dec. 10

Zio’s Pizzeria (7834 Dodge St, 4:00-8:00pm)Thursday, October 4 Tuesday, Nov. 6Monday, Dec. 3

Page 5: Alumni Spotlight on Pat Kerrigan...In June of 2018, Marlo was notified that she was a state finalist for the Presiden-tial Award for Excellance In Mathematics and Science teaching,

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RCHS Welcomes New Staff to SchoolMy name is Larry Swoboda. I earned a bachelors degree from UNO and a

masters degree from Lesley University in Massachusetts. I have been a math teach-er at Omaha South Magnet School for the past 30 years. St. Philip Neri – Blessed Sacrament has been parish since 1990. I am married and we have been blessed with 3 children, 3 dogs and a cat.

Hello, my name is Ryan Finley and I am the new Health and PE teacher here at Roncalli Catholic High School. Before I came to Roncalli, I taught 5 years in the Omaha Public School system as a PE teacher and coached track & field at Oma-ha North. After that, I coached track at the University of Nebraska-Omaha for 4 years. Recently, I was a Trio Coordinator with the Creighton Upward Bound pro-gram (college prep). I have enjoyed being a part of education and believe it’s my calling.

I grew up in Omaha and graduated from Omaha North High School then went to the University of South Dakota on a track and field scholarship. I was the 1st in my family to go to college and receive a degree. I received a Bachelors and Masters. This is also where I began working with youth.

I believe if it were not for my family, friends and former teachers/coaches I would not be where I am today. God blessed me with many people that believed in me. I’m truly grateful and I believe that someone helped me, so it’s my responsi-bility to give back and help the next generation.

My name is Theresa Tworek-Jensen, and I joined the Business Office as the Accounting Assistant in July. I’m grateful to have been welcomed by many wonder-ful and caring staff members so far. Even though I am new around here, I can tell that the teachers and staff believe in each and every student, and that they want to live out the mission of Roncalli Catholic.

My husband, Tom Jensen, and I will celebrate 32 years of marriage this year and have been blessed with an awesome family. We enjoy spending time with our grown children: Dan and his wife Kelley, Cecilia, and Nathan.

I am so happy that the Lord put me on the path to Roncalli Catholic, and my family is ever grateful to the Lord for His blessings.

Larry SwobodaMath Teacher

Ryan finleyhealth & Physical education

teacher

Theresa Tworek-jensenaccounting assistant

Welcom

e to Roncalli!

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How to Maximize the Impact of Your Donations to Roncalli Catholic

Roncalli Catholic has been extremely blessed to be surrounded by a faithful community of support-ers that are always willing to sacrifice for the greater good of the school. Alumni and friends of the school have donated time, money, and resources into RCHS, and RCHS staff work carefully to put every single dollar to the best possible use.

The Annual Fund has seen major gifts more than triple in the last four years, and the we are now seeking to continue this upward trend in charitable giving. The good news is that there is one ultra-simple way to maximize the power of your donations.

Most large companies will offer gift match-ing when an employee donates to an institution. The Development Department has attempted to update records of supporters in order to discover which com-panies they are working at and which of those com-panies offer gift-matching. While the RCHS Develop-ment Department is continually updating employment records of donors in order to track which donations may be matched, there are other, easier ways to see if your donation can be matched.

The simplest thing to do is to contact your HR person and inquire about matching gifts. Ev-ery company has different criteria and matching thresholds. If your HR representative is unable to provide you with an accurate response, you can email [email protected]. Hep Development is a company that tracks this type of information, and they will be able to help you determine how to maximize the impact of your gift to Roncalli Catholic High School.

We hope that if more people are educat-ed about gift matching opportunities, the Annual Fund and the President’s Circle will continue to flourish. The Annual Fund is critical to opening up opportunities for our students and improving the standing of the school. Every dollar counts!

Ma

tching G

ifts

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W I S D O M • C O U R A G E • F A I T H F A L L • 2 0 1 8 7

Snapshots Around the School

Archbishop Lucas celebrated Mass with students on September 13th!

Dafnis Delgado, Maureen Irish, Carol Cosmicki, Ann O’Connor, and Fr. Matt welome students on the first day of school.

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Alumna Marlo Tomich a Finalist for Presidential Teaching Award

Marlo Tomich, a 1995 graduate, has been an educator since 2001 at Westside Community Schools, teaching sixth grade at Carl A. Swanson Elementary School for the past 17 years. She teaches language arts, mathematics, and all grade level sections of the science curriculum while integrating technology and community building.

In 2013-2014, Marlo was awarded the Westside Bravo Award, which recogniz-es teachers who skillfully and successfully tap into the unique academic, social, emo-tional, and/or physical talents of students and who inspire students to fully engage in school and/or community life.

In June of 2018, Marlo was notified that she was a state finalist for the Presiden-tial Award for Excellance In Mathematics and Science teaching, where she was invit-ed to Washington, D.C., to be honored on behalf of the National Science Foundation. Marlo was nominated for the award back in June 2016 by a former parent and col-league. Marlo was chosen for demonstrating high quality instructional teaching that is in-formed by content knowledge that enhances student learning.

Marlo earned a B.S. in elementary education from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and a Master’s of Arts and Sci-ence in curriculum and instruction from Doane College. She is certified to teach kindergarten through sixth grade elemen-tary education.

Tomich will be recognized Friday, September 23 in Fremont at the NATS Conference.

When contacted, Tomich said, “Throughout the past two years I have reflected a lot on my education as both a student and a teacher. I know the importance

Tomich holding Presidential certificate between Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy U.S. Chief Technology Officer, Michael Kratsios, and National Science Foundation Director, Dr. France A. Córdova.

of building relationships with your students, teach-ing with your heart, differentiating curriculum to meet the the needs of all learners and to love what you do. I try to practice these components in each lesson I teach. I want to thank Roncalli for their love and support I received after returning home from DC. Thank you to all of the teachers and staff thatguided me along my educational path and encour-aged me to be the best I can. I am proud to part ofsuch a supportive community.”

Page 9: Alumni Spotlight on Pat Kerrigan...In June of 2018, Marlo was notified that she was a state finalist for the Presiden-tial Award for Excellance In Mathematics and Science teaching,

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Upcoming Events at Roncalli Catholic

Roncalli Catholic is pleased to announce a free camp for 5th-8th grade students on Saturday, October 6th. Parents only need to register online and arrive on campus. Stu-dents do not need to bring any supplies.

Dawn Burton will instruct Fine Art students, Elizabeth Hagan will instruct Culinary students, James Laville will be instructing STEAM students, and Marshall Keough will be the instructor for Music students.

Parents can register students here:https://goo.gl/forms/zFQ9XVhdE7E5sQsf2

Taste of PrideFriday, December 7th

$45 per person$360 per table

For the first time ever, Roncalli Catholic will host a wine tasting event, complete with a Sommelier, hors d’oeuvres, and spirits available for purchase.

On Friday, December 7th, Taste of Pride will begin at 7:00pm (doors at 6:30), and there will be a tasting of reds, followed by a break and a tasting of whites. Beer will also be available for purchase.

This event will be replacing High Tea, and will be restricted to those that are 21 and older due to the nature of the event.

Events at RC

HS

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Upcoming Events at Roncalli CatholicEvents a

t RCH

S

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Pat Kerrigan’s story could be written in reams, but he insists that his life has not been special. Before going any further, you may not realize that Pat Kerri-gan began an IT career in the late 70’s on the ground floor of an emerging company. He may or may not let you know that he won the attendance award while at Archbishop Rummel, only to be absent on the day that the award was given out. He probably wouldn’t tell you much about his Alumni of the Year Award in 1995, either, his involvement in the Career Academy at RCHS, or his investment in a private island in the Carribean.

In fact, if you never asked Pat any of these questions, he probably wouldn’t have told you. He’s interested in other people, and he is invested in their stories and their struggles. Because of this selfless atti-tude and commitment to improving the lives others, Mr. Kerrigan is a shining example of the values that are in-stilled at Roncalli Catholic, and he continues to do great work for the school as an alumnus.

Patrick Kerrigan was born in Omaha as one of eight siblings. After graduating from St. Pius X Grade School, he enrolled at Archbishop Rummel in 1966. Pat also had two brothers follow him to the school, Kevin (class of 1973) and Robert (class of 1981). Pat admits that he was just an average student as a freshman, but with the guidance of a counselor and fellow students, he worked his way up the academic ladder and eventually graduated 10th in his class in the spring of 1970. While attending Rummel, Pat lettered in golf and basketball, but was most proud to be named as a member of the National Honor Society.

After graduating from Rummel, Pat attended the University of Nebraska at Omaha and graduated in 3.5 years with a double major in math and phys-

Alumni Spotlight on Pat Kerrigan: A Rummel Grad Looking to the Future of Education

ics. After working a few different jobs in the IT industry, Pat was hired as the very first employee at Information Technology in 1977 as a software developer. Pat was deeply involved in the creation of several independent systems developed by the company and was an instrumental part of the staff which developed the company’s core banking applications. In 1981 he was named head of the Administration Division of the company and ultimate-ly was promoted to Chief Operating Officer of the company before his retirement in 1999.

However, Pat shrugs off his role in the com-pany, saying, “The programming I did was fairly trivial - stuff I did in three weeks you could do now in four hours with an Excel spreadsheet.”

Another thing that Pat wouldn’t tell you about is his work ethic. Starting at the age of 12, he began working as a caddy at the Omaha Country Club. He says that this early job may have been the most influential for him, as it instilled a work ethic that would follow him for the rest of his life. While work-ing as a caddy, Pat was able to meet a mentor, as well as countless other influencers, that he has stayed in contact with throughout his adult life.

“Most of the very successful people I have met in my life, they have all worked from a very young age. I think it’s important to start working early in life.”

One thing that Pat does like to talk about are his ideas about education, and in particular, his ideas on how to change education for the better.

Alum

ni Spotlig

ht

Pat on the Rummel Golf Team as a sophomore.

Pat in Chicago in September of 2018.

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For instance, Pat believes that the Career Acad-emy at RCHS holds a lot of promise because it blends textbook learning with hands-on learning. Instead of burying yourself into a textbook, students are able to learn more wholly, and both the brain and the body can learn in sync. Pat believes that when you can have both real world experience and classroom experience, that is when lessons can really have an impact. Pat refers to this as ‘the hand working in conjunction with the mind’. This is why Pat chose to provide funding for students that wish to enroll in the Career Academy - he believes that programs like these are the future of education.

In an ideal world, Pat believes that students would spend a portion of their time at school in the tra-ditional academic setting, and then another portion of their time would be spent at a part-time job where they can apply what they have learned and put it to use.

“My vision of education is to make graduates first self-sufficient and then considerate of others who, through no fault of their own, are incapable of self-suf-ficiency.”

“I see a worthy goal of combining the two to develop students into useful adults, ready to take on the responsibilities of life. Too often, I see graduates that don’t understand their responsibilities as adults.”

Although pondering the future of education is his passion, Pat is also busy as the current President of the Palm Beach Holding Company. This venture started out fifteen years ago as a passive investment with old friends, Mike Branker and Don Dillon, but it has turned into a full time occupation. Branker has ancestral rights to a pristine beach in the Caribbean Sea on the island of Barbuda, which is just north of Antigua. If you can imagine a picture-perfect paradise island, this is about as close as you can get. While just 26 miles from the international airport in Antigua, Barbuda Bay has been lost in time and is virtually unspoiled by visitors.

The original plan was to build a high end resort on this extremely remote island, but the process was very slow and laborious. Every block, nail, saw, and board had to be shipped in, and with no electricity or running water on the island, everything becomes much more difficult. Then, after nearly completing the project, Hurricane Irma made landfall in September of 2017, decimating the small island and destroying the Light-house Bay Resort that Pat had worked so incredibly

hard to put together. A storm surge cracked the floors, causing the buildings to collapse.

“I never set out to be an island develop-er. Sometimes in life - in fact most times in life - your best decisions are those where you decide not to do something. In a perfect world I would be done with Barbuda and the investments.”

Besides figuring out the next moves at the Palm Beach Holding Company, Pat also owns real estate in the Omaha area, and he serves as part owner and Chairman at Solid State Networks, which is a technology company based out of Tempe, AZ. Pat is also a member of the University of Nebraska at Omaha’s Advi-sory Board for the College of Arts and Sciences, their STEM (Science Technology Engineering & Math) Committee and a de-facto advisor to the UNO Math Department.

Barbuda before Hurricane Irma

After the hurricane

Continued: Alumni Spotlight on Kerrigan

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Snapshots from Around the School

The RCHS Volleyball team prepares for Chick-fil-A Spirit Night

Fr. Matt blesses the school building on the first day of class

RCHS football had a strong showing in their first game against Gross Catholic, winning 35-14.

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Introducing the Pope St. John XXIII Legacy SocietyThe Pope Saint John XXIII Legacy Society hon-

ors those who have named Roncalli CatholicHigh School as a beneficiary in their will or trust, re-tirement account, charitable gift annuity orcharitable trust, life insurance policy, or through the establishment of an endowment fund.We are honored to acknowledge these special bene-factors during their lifetimes.

The Legacy Society provides an opportunity for benefactors to make their philanthropy a per-petual legacy. These gifts create an infrastructure of support that strengthens Roncalli Catholic High Schooland better equips our mission to reach future genera-tions. If you have named Roncalli Catholic High School in your estate plan, please let us know. Wewant to thank you for your generosity and welcome you into Pope St. John XXIII Legacy Society.

On Wednesday, September 19th, Roncalli Catholic will host a free seminar to explain the bene-fits of charitable giving and the importance of leaving behind a legacy. Mr. Nick Taylor, JD, will be present to speak about, “The Eight Key Questions About Charita-ble Giving.”

The seminar will take place at two different times on Wednesday, September 19th. One session will take place from 7:30AM to 9:00AM, and another session will be held from 4:30PM-6:00PM. If inter-ested in attending, you need to RSVP at http://www.ndhinc.org/tax--estate-planning.html.

Some of the topics to be discussed will be:• The specific impact of the new tax law on charita-

ble giving and new planning suggestions• Mandatory distributions at age 70 1⁄2 and how

to best coordinate with• charitable giving• How to get better income tax benefits from your

charitable giving• Ways to improve your cash-flow while making

charitable gifts• Legacy planning and more

Please contact Roncalli Catholic Development Director Maureen Irish at 402-571-7670 orconsult your tax/financial advisers to assist you with a planned gift.

Planned GivingA planned gift is the process of making a signifi-cant charitable gift during a donor’s life or atdeath that is part of his or her financial or estate plan. A planned gift to Roncalli Catholic HighSchool enrolls you as a member of our Pope Saint John XXIII Legacy Society.

Ways to Give a Planned Gift:⁄ Include Roncalli Catholic High School in your willor revocable trust.⁄ A life-income gift that names Roncalli CatholicHigh School as a remainderbeneficiary, such as a charitable remainder trust ora charitable gift annuity.⁄ A gift or assignment of qualified retirementplan assets, such as an IRA, 401(k) or403(b).⁄ A gift of life insurance.⁄ Name Roncalli Catholic High School as a bene-ficiary of a bank account.

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A Word from Student Government

When most people describe Roncalli the first word that comes to mind is “family.” Yes, this is true, but for me, Roncalli is a positive environment where I feel comfortable being myself. I’m able to participate in the activities I love to do. Not a day goes by where I don’t consider Roncalli home. Currently, I am involved in cross country, soccer, student ambassadors, and student government. I’ve been doing Student Government/Council ever since freshman year. It gave me the ability to meet new people, be creative, and show support for my school. Being a part of this group has really helped me grow as a per-son. I look forward to the busy times of the year. We all spend countless hours working hard, learning more about each other, and making memories that will last a lifetime. Everyone on Student Government and Student Council form special bonds with each other. We are able to share all the good times and work through the hard times when things don’t go as planned. This year I am the Student Government Vice President. As seniors, it is our time to try new things, take in every moment, and make it count. We’d like to see a progression in the relationship between administration and student government. This year, we have a group of teachers involved in the spirit committee. Our goal is to come together, collaborate, and help each other put on events that will get students excited to show some school spirit. Student Government wants every student who walks through the doors to feel like they’re in a loving, welcoming, and positive environment. We have plans for signs going up around the school to brighten up the hallways. Each month we will have activities between the homerooms to earn spirit points. This will cre-ate some friendly competition that’ll bring the students and their homerooms closer together. Personally, as vice president, my motto for this 2018-2019 school year is “let’s make it happen.” I am ready to put in all the time and effort it takes to accomplish bigger and better things. Roncalli has meant so much to me the past 4 years, so now it’s my goal is now to make it the very best it can be. I look forward to what the rest of the school year holds. I can’t wait bring new ideas to the table and make it happen!

This will be my fourth year on Student Government. I’m ecstatic to be President this year and to con-tinue to improve on what Student Government does. Last year, Student Government organized a spectacular homecoming, winter formal, and prom. We also put on the Pride Powder Run, a fundraiser that raises money for a student scholarship. In addition to organizing these events again, we are so excited to bring back foot-ball tailgates for all the home football games, brand new activities for Hullabaloo, and much more (including monthly surprises). My goal for this year is to make sure that we are much more organized and consistently publicize our events. I also want to encourage people who aren’t on Student Government or Council to come help with dance decorations and other events we put on.

Finally, my last big goal is make sure that we are always improving our events from the last year. For instance, this year we have made a lot of changes to how the Pride Powder Run will work to help relieve some of the confusion from last year. Currently, however, Student Government has been working hard on homecom-ing, which is going to be a game changer for how we organize dances. I’m extremely happy with how the year is going and I’m so excited to help continue to improve Roncalli as a part of Student Government.

John BellPresident

Elizabeth KenneyVice President

Maggie Murphysecretary

This is my third year being a part of student government and I couldn’t be more thrilled and eager to help plan all the many events that go on at school. Being a part of student government is truly an amazing experience. There is nothing better than when we all work hard together to put on a fun event for the school and you can see all the smiles on the student’s faces. Every year we all come together to form this little family, and I love working with this group and being able to help make a difference in and out of school.

One of my goals this year is to make positive changes that will impact our school year and make it more successful. I also want to bring creative ideas to the table that would help us bond and bring our school together. As the secretary of student government, I have my own goal of staying organized and communicat-ing well with the entire group. I also want to make sure I am keeping track and taking detailed notes of the ideas the group shares. I am very excited to see what this year holds, as well as feeling bittersweet with the many last’s that are to come with my senior year.

A W

ord from Student G

overnment

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A Record-Breaking Year for Swing with PrideEarly morning showers broke up to provide

clearer skies for a record-breaking 54 foursomes at the 29th Annual Swing with Pride, A. Len Leavitt Memorial Golf Open on August 6. The event is a long-standing Roncalli Catholic tradition and raised just over $52,000 to support the school’s 385 students resuming classes on August 15.

Held at Indian Creek Golf Club, the annual fundraiser united 200+ alumni, current and past parents, staff, and friends of the school for a day of fun on the greens. Several foursomes repre-sented many generations of RCHS alumni and supporters, including the Leavitt family with four generations in attendance, and the Burns family with three generations present.

An unexpected guest appeared as well,

Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford, the World-Champion boxer from Omaha, arrived at noon to play a round of golf with the Leavitt family.

The Swing with Pride, A. Len Leavitt Memori-al Golf Open was started in 1989 by A. Len Leavitt (deceased) and Roncalli Catholic President Emeritus Fr. Lloyd Gnirk as a means to raise funds to support educational opportunities for students. Len Leavitt, who died in 1997, was a long time chair of the event. His family continues to assist with the tournament to benefit Roncalli Catholic students, teachers, and staff.

Participants had a boxed lunch on the patio prior to the noon shot-gun start with a cocktail hour and BBQ dinner immediately following golf. Silent auctions as well as raffle and pin prizes were an-nounced during the dinner.

Greg Schwietz and Greg Logsdon, graduates of the class of 1968. The first graduates of Archbishop Rummel, which would merge with the Notre Dame Sisters to become Roncalli Catholic.

Terence Crawford, Dom Wiley, Matt Leavitt, Chad Cruise, and Samantha Cruise.

Three Generations of the Burns family came out to play!Denny Manson, Ed Burns, John Burns, and James Burns.

More than 220 guests had a BBQ dinner after the tournament.

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RCHS varsity football had a strong showing against Gross Catholic to start the season, winning 35-7 at Bryan High School.

Standout athlete Alex Rodgers had 3 touchdowns, one on a 79-yard punt return, and the other on a 54-yard run.

SWP Continued: Winning TeamsCongratulations to our winning teams: John Andrews, Jonathan Andrews, Nick Andrews, and Jay Brader (Red Feather to Black Bird). Matt Bowers, Adam Hurt, Bob Hopzapfel, and Kegan Casey (Black Bird to Gray Hawk). Stephen Klich, Dan Grasso, Mike Brodie, and Bob Giddings (Gray Hawk to Red Feather). Matt Bowers, Adam Hurt, Bob Hopzapfel, and Kegan Casey had the lowest score of the day - a 56!

Congratulations to flag winners for the longest drive in the fairway: Scott Thompson, Matt Bow-ers, and John Hogan. For longest putt made: Kathleen Hodgen and Jim Rodis. Closest to the pin in one swing: John Johnson, Mike McSharry, and Greg Martin!

Snapshots Around the School

Student government were hard at work in August, preparing Homecoming decorations and improving the format of the dance itself.

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RCHS Welcomes the Class of 2022 to Campus

Roncalli Catholic High School welcomed 89 new freshman on August 13th. Despite a rainy day, the Freshman were greeted with open arms and enjoyed a free lunch while getting used to their new surroundings.