HGP Class of 2021: Graduation

so hey [Applause] [Applause] yeah is [Applause] [Music] [Applause] this [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Applause] like distracted [Applause] so [Music] building [Applause] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] oh [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] okay [Applause] is [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] foreign [Music] [Applause] [Music] so [Applause] [Music] um [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] so [Music] [Applause] so [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] so [Music] [Music] right [Music] um [Music] is [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] foreign [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] from ladies and gentlemen good morning and welcome to the commencement exercises for the class of 2021 a special welcome to everyone who is also joining us on live online on our youtube channel if any of you are trying to find the link because someone can't find it just go to holygostprep.org and click on the pop-up message my name is ryan abramson i'm the director of admissions and i am the master of ceremonies here this morning before we go any further though i think there is something that has to be said a year ago we were all sitting at home with a total lack of clarity as to what the future would be in the weeks and months of the last year some pretty amazing things have happened around the world scientists developed a vaccine around the country average americans went to work so that we would be safe that we would be healed that we would be fed and the truth is in our small corner of this planet we too had heroes that walked among us they came in the form of our staff our teachers our families and perhaps most importantly for holy ghost prep these heroes came in the form of two men greg garrison and kevin burke what these two men have done over the last 14 months to keep us going to keep us in school to keep us playing sports to participating in activities and most importantly no matter what challenge we face this year they kept our spirit alive and so before our commencement before our celebration begins as we end this school year please join me and giving a round of applause to our president mr greg garrison and our principal mr kevin that wasn't in the script he didn't know i was going to do that i'd like to invite joseph charles warsaw the president of the student government who will lead us in the pledge of allegiance please remain standing afterwards for the national anthem and this morning's invocation by our spirit and chaplain father dan cermany graduates please remove your hats everyone else please stand i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands one nation under god indivisible with liberty and justice for all god bless america oh say can you see by the dawn's early light what so proudly we held at the twilight's last gleaming [Music] we watched were so gallantly streaming and the rockets red glare the bombs bursting in air [Music] [Music] of the free [Music] head of the brains please be seated although we're going to get back up because we're waiting for father dan there he is i'm sorry please stand just to get everybody awake remove your hat and let us take a moment in the middle of this wonderful and joyful occasion to recall as always the lord is with us in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit amen lord as we gather this beautiful morning to celebrate this graduation we pray for our graduates here today the awesome class of 2021 we lift them before you we thank you so much for these great guys we love for their families their teachers for the work you are continuing to do in their lives they are a gift to us and a gift to so many many others and during this season of new beginnings in a world struggling to find its way we ask that you lord make their way clear we ask that you keep their footsteps firm and remind them that you are with them always may they sense the freshness of your spirit over their lives in amazing new ways may they be strengthened instilled with hope for the new roads that you have in store for them as they graduate and move on we ask for your wisdom and clear direction in their lives that you would give them understanding beyond their years allow every gift and treasure that you have placed inside their lives to grow develop and flourish to help make this crazy world gentler kinder and more loving we ask for your peace to cover them we ask for laughter and joy to fill their days be a lamb for their feet a light to their path shine over them fill them with your spirit and bless them with your favor and peace bless this wonderful celebration of their graduation from holy ghost prep and may they go forth to bring your light and love to the whole world amen now you can be seated it's my pleasure to ask mr gregory garrison president of holy ghost prep and a member of the class of 1979 to present the class of 2021 valedictory medal to tomas i'm going to say it wrong tomas vallejo the j-hope to present no i'm so nervous at these things the class of 2021 valedictory medal to tomas [Applause] vagejo [Applause] wow [Applause] good afternoon mr garrison mr burke honored guests families faculty staff and most importantly my brothers in the senior class [Applause] i'll try and make this as quick as possible as i know i'm one of the only things standing between you and taking off these annoying robes two summers ago i got the chance to go to the dominican republic to run a sports camp for children i spent about a week with some pretty amazing guys like mitch demler gabe hackman and brian and evan medra it was there that we heard doc o'connor inspire us with a quote from mark twain that i would like to share with you all today 20 minutes from now you'll be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones that you did so throw off the bow lines sail away from the safe harbor catch the trade winds in your sails dream discover all of us over our time here at ghost have sailed out of our comfort zones and explored the unknowns in our own ways whether it was as freshmen giving speech and debate a shot for the requests of mr fiola trying out for mr chapman's basketball team as they headed towards their 900th when or even being brave enough to make the first move and asking someone out on a date we face each challenge with grace that has prepared us well for the many unknowns that have been thrown our way during our time here we've even welcomed new additions to our community to help us deal with the unknowns like mr demvik and mrs optic who have eased the college burden application process for us mr assani and mrs leia fortino who have been friends and guides to many of us here and mr burke who quite literally entered our lives with the wheelbarrow and since then has been an ally to every single student here but ultimately the class of 2021 was given one of the biggest unknowns in recent history covet 19. the virus has tested us all to some degree whether it's been our physical health the strength of our relationships or even our relationship with god but we've made it to the other side and are stronger because of it while the pandemic may have ripped off our bowel lines it has allowed us to explore many more unknowns for example can you still perform on stage during a pandemic kyle stone prove that you can can the vex robotics team still rank amongst the top 64 in the world the team of liam lawrence dylan wallace giovanni morusso michael gublo and luke workowski proved that yes yes in fact you can can you still create an amazing duo performance from a computer screen just ask justin gabriel or dan chalon can you kill it on the basketball court tyler schmidt and jack mcdermott proved yes you can and lastly can you make it from the halt center to cornwall in under three minutes for your next class i guess we'll never know thanks to that traffic light we are an extraordinary class who have been extraordinary given impossible circumstances we've provided future classes an example on how to be an amazing student conquer the unknown and still still out of our safe harbors when the world around us seems to be less perfect than usual however it wouldn't serve us right to look to the future without some reflection on the unknowns that will remain so i know a lot of us were very disappointed this year when we realized that school wouldn't be the same as those of years past that we wouldn't be able to go to the same basketball games after school or go on the same senior retreat as those of years past or even have the problem that we all wanted i know all of us wish at least something had gone differently but without those experiences we would not be as strong or resilient as we are now so let's sail forward with no regrets one thing i don't think any of us regret was lighting our candles four years ago as freshmen those same candles that we walked out of here with last night at the baccalaureate mass you know i remember that day vividly especially since isaac rubis and i showed up an hour late talk about having butterflies in your stomach just instead of the usual beautiful colorful butterflies these were violent and mean butterflies trying to claw their way out of my stomach i guess my point is at one point we were all very nervous four foot freshmen well everyone except conor blime as we stared down the many unknowns of the halls and stairwells on campus we couldn't help but feel small and somehow isolated at such a large and impressive campus you may have even been skeptical of the idea of a spirit and brotherhood i know i was personally i thought it was a marketing ploy a lie i soon came to realize that i was wrong not long into our freshman year the community decided to have a short memorial service out in the courtyard for the victims of the parkland shooting in florida each of us who spoke naturally had support of our classmates but what made it special was that we had the support of upper classmen and it's times like things that i think encapsulate that spirit and brotherhood it's a community it's a bond that extends far beyond the confines of our class it extends from seniors to freshmen and even extends to every single alumnus scattered across the country what we came to know is a holy ghost is a community of brothers both old and young who will be there to celebrate all of your achievements or be the supportive voice when you're off the right path you know reflecting back on the last four years i can't help but wonder if in my effort to explore every unknown i came across if i didn't stop to enjoy the music if i didn't fully appreciate the walk from cornwall's to the halt center or if i didn't realize just how privileged i was to be able to casually stroll into the safe harbor that is ms docketty's office whenever i needed help or how fortunate i was to go to school with such a unique group of people that have changed my life for the better i mean where else do you have a christie who is so concerned with our well-being that he makes sure to wish us all well on schoology every time he sees a snowflake or the passion that sean costigan has whenever he talks about chemistry or more accurately whether godzilla would be king kong in a fight sean let's be honest with each other i don't care what the movie said have you seen king kong godzilla's just a big wizard can come and climb buildings they don't call him king for no reason for the dedication that maguire chalet puts into every one of his short stories years before his professional life even begins however this community is more than just its students it's the teachers that make our school great it's the teachers that make our that encourage us to sail out of our comfort zones and venture into the unknown if an answer to a question is unknown to you then just spam their emails at 9pm until you get an answer you can ask miss fina or mrs bess it works our teachers here also serve a role other than a professor they can both be coaches and role models like mr mcgee who's been my speech and debate coach for the past four years he has been such a role model always reminding us that we must work hard and be dedicated to the craft that we love our teachers also remind us to not take ourselves so seriously like in mr goulet's class we are guaranteed a laugh i cannot thank our teachers enough for making our paths just a little bit clearer thankfully our teachers instilled in us will make us leave our safe harbors all on our own as james baldwin once said it's true the more one learns the less one knows while we were diligently studying for our classes or more accurately depriving ourselves of more and more hours of sleep somewhere along that road curiosity was born where that curiosity took us was unique to every person whether it was in the classroom or you were like joe nodo who managed to crank out instagram pool almost every day to gauge whether it's where students fell on a variety of thought-provoking subjects ranging from the presidential debates to whether water is truly what this curiosity will serve us so well in college when we realize that every time we come across a new unknown there is another world of knowledge to uncover it's because of the curiosity that we found in these halls that we'll be inspired to throw off the bow lines sail away from the safe harbor catch the trade winds in our sails explore dream discover on behalf of the entire class of 2021 i would like to thank all of our parents family members loved ones and friends thank you thank you for the investment you made into our education and for encouraging each of us to not be afraid and embrace the unknown i'd also like to personally thank my mom and dad for embracing the biggest unknown moving to a country in which they knew no one in order to give my brother and me a better life your faith and love has led me to stand before you today thank you mr garrison for seeing the potential in each one of us thank you for seeing my potential as a little eighth grader and welcoming me with open arms into this community tower teachers thank you for guiding us through uncertain times just as you were trying to guide them yourselves thank you to mr malley and his team for keeping our school clean and functioning every day so that we can receive an education in the best of facilities and finally thank you to all of you here my brothers thank you for the countless laughs and shared experiences and frustrations most importantly thank you for helping me become a responsible person well somewhat responsible anyways i can only hope that i have been as impactful on your journey as you have been on mine and i wish each and every one of you luck out there exploring the unknown but for the next couple of weeks take time to refuel relax and enjoy the little time you have left with your family and friends and always remember that no matter how far you travel you will always have roots here in bensalem and that there is a community that supports you congratulations class of 2021. we did it [Applause] each academic department presents certificates and medals to members of the graduating class mr patrick helsley the dean of academics and a member of the class of 2001 will come forward to read the names and the recipients of these awards they will be presented by the chairpersons or representative representative of each academic department the following awards are in recognition of students exceptional performance in each discipline at holy ghost prep each department presents certificates to members of the senior class who have demonstrated excellence over their four years at holy ghost the the departments also award a single medal this medal is presented to the single student who has demonstrated the highest achievement in each discipline over his academic career at holy ghost prep each student is asked to come to the stage to receive his award please hold your applause until i read the names of all student receiving certificates of excellence and medals mr kevin burke the principal of holy ghost prep will now come forward to to present the national honor society medal the venerable francis lieberman chapter of the national honor society presents one medal at graduation to the senior who has performed the most hours of service to the school and the community in the support of academic excellence this year we actually have two this year's national honor society medals are presented to dylan chad wallace and tyler schmidt ms deirdre best will now come forward to present the awards for mathematics certificates of excellence in mathematics are presented to nicholas andrew braun justin patrick gabriel jack henry mcdermott the overall metal the metals for overall excellence in mathematics are presented to jake miles marek and anthony michael padula mr justin goulet a member of the holy ghost prep class of 1999 will now come forward to present the awards for english certificates of excellence in english are presented to joel andrew bevinor maguire chalet jack henry mcdermott and joseph noto in may 2005 mrs diane garfurth passed away after a courageous fight with cancer she had been part of the faculty at holy ghost prep since 1982 and was a truly talented teacher who had a wonderful gift of motivating her students in literature in memory of her dedication and love of english and holy ghost prep the english medal presented at commencement is named in her honor the diane garfurth medal for overall excellence in english is presented to joseph john warshall the medal for overall excellence in writing is presented to justin patrick gabriel father dan cermany our spirits and chaplain will now come forward to present the awards for religion certificates of excellence in religion are presented to brandon michael dorsey syed mohammed qasim nakvi and tomas vageo [Applause] the medal for overall excellence in religion is presented to conor michael gallagher mrs beth bruno will now come forward to present the awards for science certificates of excellence in science are presented to nicholas andrew braun brandon michael dorsey and eric j pole [Applause] the medal for overall excellence in science is presented to jake miles merrick mr thomas eckerly will now come forward to present the awards for social studies certificates of excellence in social studies are presented to jack henry mcdermott joseph noto and maguire chalet the medal for overall excellence in social studies is presented to thomas vagehold mr rick gabriel a member of the holy ghost prep class of 2000 will now come forward to present the awards for fine arts certificates of excellence in art are presented to andrew tyler hansen john michael nieto nicholas john phillips the medal for overall excellence in art is presented to mitchell henry demler certificates of excellence in music are presented to brandon michael dorsey johann augusto corelli ness and ian nelson zwall yeah the medal for overall excellence in music is presented to jonathan pinkstone the medal for overall excellence in the performing arts is presented to kyle matthew stone mr brandon petkal will now come forward to present the awards for computer science certificates of excellence in computer science are presented to jamie joseph mancuso jake miles merrick and andrew zubick the medal for overall excellence in computer science is presented to michael jacob gublow mrs claudia nicolette will now come forward to present the awards for world language a certificate for overall excellence in latin is presented to joel andrew bevinor the medal for overall excellence in latin is presented to joseph john [Applause] warshall a certificate for overall excellence in spanish is presented to joseph noto the medal for overall excellence in spanish is presented to anthony michael padula a certificate for overall excellence in french is presented to john andrew horgan the medal for overall excellence in french is presented to thomas henry nall good job um over the last four years our students have challenged themselves inside and outside of the classroom a select few have distinguished themselves by taking the most difficult classes that holy ghost prep offers and have excelled and surpassed the very high expectations of the faculty these students represent the highest academic achievers in the senior class mr kevin burke the principal of holy ghost prep will now present the academic silver cups of recognition recipients please come to the stage when your name is called please hold your applause until i have finished reading all of the names the silver cups of recognition are presented to ruben aguilar joel andrew bevinor nicholas andrew braun rohan data brandon michael dorsey liam david fleming patrick gabriel connor michael gallagher christopher edward gachewski michael jacob gublow andrew tyler hanson john andrew horgan thomas henry nall action frederick lee james robert litley alexander richard lutz jake miles merrick jack henry mcdermott johann augusto corelli ness joseph nodo anthony michael padula nicholas john phillips jonathan pinkstone eric j pohl tyler schmidt maguire chalet kyle matthews stone tomas vagejo adam michael verga joseph charles warshall and andrew zubik [Applause] the student marshall medal is presented to the student that has the single highest cumulative grade point average at the end of his four years at holy ghost prep the medal is named for mr paul j pomeroy jr the first principal at holy ghost prep for seven years he guided the academic endeavors of the school along with the very talented and dedicated teachers of holy ghost prep mr pomeroy helped the school earn a leadership role in education throughout the philadelphia area in celebration of his contributions and in recognition of his appointment as the first principal in the school's history the student marshall medal presented at commencement is named in his honor the paul j pomeroy junior student marshall medal is presented to jake miles merrick this school year hasn't followed a script mr abe's not following a script either obviously uh so i'm going to go off script for just a moment the credit was nice and and i appreciate it and mr garris and i are very appreciative of the gesture but as tomas told us in his words it needs to be spread around there's a lot of people to thank i'm not going to thank all of them because inevitably i'll miss someone but i want to send a message to the class of 2021 maybe your last lesson before you leave this campus this year was imperfect in many many ways we made a lot of mistakes a lot of mistakes but you spoke up when we missed that you want evidence of it there was a lot of versions of ghosts online there was a lot of versions of hybrid ghosts and that's because of you because you were willing to say that we can do this better or with that we're doing it incorrectly and we listen to you it's not what you said though that led to the change the lesson is how you said it the manner in which you spoke to us and communicated with respect and love for this community was the reasons that you caused that change don't forget that when you move beyond this campus speaking of things you said last wednesday evening right over there on the walkway as we welcome the seniors to their senior prom mr garrison the fact faculty staff and i were overwhelmed by the gratitude that you expressed before i go on i must give some thanks to ms best mr hogan our facilities department and the mothers guild for their efforts to hold both proms on campus this year in addition before we applaud we also want to recognize the efforts of so many people that helped to hold over 20 events on campus in the last 30 days either in this tent or in the courtyard thank you for all that you've done to make these things happen as you walked through the receiving line your statements of gratitude were simple but the gesture and thoughtfulness of your gratitude spoke volumes to the men that you have become throughout the past year and a half there have been many reasons for resentment but this class as we find a way sorry mr abe made me include that as we found a way to have the events that passed graduating classes expected to have without question you chose gratitude over resentment and more importantly you spoke up and expressed it there's a particular example that was shared with me by mr chapman by the way mr chapman is celebrating his 50th year of graduation from holy ghost prep today and it actually falls on the same day june 5th as his class did and if you're unsure if i'm telling the truth he actually has the tassel from that graduating class just look at it it's been 50 years so congratulations to mr travis chapman shared with me that he's been here for many years and he's experienced many senior days but he has never been thanked as many times by the students for the success of the past school years as your class did now maybe it was the steve's cheesesteaks or maybe it was the permission he gave you to shoot water guns at the underclassmen as they were changing periods either way you spoke up you expressed your gratitude and we heard and appreciate it you seem to already know this but it's worth stating the stress lessens and the struggles end where gratitude begins you have not made it to this point on your own continue to be grateful for those who have helped you on your journey and with that thought in mind we must take this moment to acknowledge our faculty and staff as you move from the campus of holy ghost prep you will surely learn that it is rare in life to be surrounded by so many men and women of such such strong character the faculty and staff of holy ghost prep loves you and we will miss you they are the models of how to live catholic and spirits and values remember these values and the lessons of the great teachers whom you have had here in the past year plus they have gone to great lengths to continue to educate the young men of holy ghost prep as this class has modeled so well for our community we must express our gratitude so let us take this moment to recognize our faculty and staff for their support of the class of 2021 as a class we've achieved many things the 125 graduates of the class of 2021 will be attending 60 different colleges in 18 different states and 51 different cities and together as a class you have earned over 25 million in college scholarships that is more than any other graduating class in the history of holy ghost prep congratulations man two special senior awards were presented before this morning we would ask that the following awardees please stand and be recognized when your name is called the salutatorian at holy ghost prep opens our celebration weekend at the baccalaureate mass and welcomes our parents and guests at bach4 the class of 2021. this year's salutatorian is thomas henry [Applause] nall as part of the athletic awards each year a senior athlete is selected to represent all hcp student athletes and address the audience to offer his reflections on the spirit of hgp athletics this year's student speaker was jack henry mcdermott each year holy ghost prep presents special awards to members of the graduating class that have exemplified excellence over their four years at the school mr craig conlan the director of athletics will now come forward to present the ted garbowsky scholar athlete award the grabowski award is given each year to the student athlete in the senior class who achieves athletic excellence while maintaining a minimum 3.55 gpa the award is given in honor of our long-time baseball coach and guidance counselor mr ted grabowski the head coaches of each scholastic team may present nominees for this award these nominees are then voted on by the head coaches and the winner is selected this year's winner has participated in both basketball and baseball including being the captain of this year's district champion varsity baseball team he will continue his baseball career at amherst college the winner of the 2021 theodore garbowsky scholar athlete award is jack henry mcdermott each year at the commencement exercises holy ghost prep presents three special senior awards to be nominated for one of these awards is a high honor to be selected as the winner is the highest distinction given to a graduate of holy ghost prep the school spirit award this award is presented to the student who has exhibited outstanding spirit and tireless dedication to holy ghost preparatory school and its ideals the winner of this award is a student who has actively contributed to the betterment of holy ghost preparatory school community students are nominated by their entire faculty voted on by the senior class and are selected by the awards committee made up of members of the faculty and administration we asked each nominee to please stand when his name is announced please hold your applause until i finish reading all the names the graduates selected as the recipient of the award should come to the stage to be recognized and receive his plaque we ask these nominees to please stand jake miles merrick zachary richard van arsdale joseph charles warshall and the school spirit award is awarded to zachary richard van arsdad the holy ghost fathers and brothers award for christian living this award is presented to the student who has exhibited a real sense of the christian ideal in his life service inside and outside of the school courtesy respect and a deep sense of christian values the winner of this award demonstrates the highest sense of ownership of the mission of the holy ghost fathers and brothers and works to bring this sense alive in the entire school community students are nominated by the entire faculty and are selected by the awards committee made up of members of the faculty and administration we ask each nominee to please stand when his name is announced please hold your applause until i finish reading all of the names the graduate selected the graduate selected as the recipient of the award should come to the stage to be recognized and receive his plaque the nominees are john donald bonifini connor michael gallagher and tomas vajo the holy ghost fathers and brothers award for christian living is awarded to conor michael gallagher mercedes sapiencia award for scholarship leadership and achievement this award is presented to the student who exhibits all three attributes the highest scholarship strong leadership and outstanding achievement to be only a leader or an achiever is not enough the winner of this award demonstrates everything that holy ghost prep aspires to be and has used his gifts to make a lasting impact on the life of the school students are nominated by the entire faculty voted on by the senior class and are selected by the awards committee made up of members of the faculty and administration this is the highest award given by holy ghost preparatory school we ask each nominee to please stand when his name is announced please hold your applause until i finished reading all the names the graduates selected as the recipient of the ward should come to the stage to be recognized and receive his plaque the nominees are jake miles marek thomas the jehovah joseph charles warshall mercedes sapiencia award for scholarship leadership and achievement is awarded to jake miles mara let's go okay i am pleased to welcome dr richard shumba to holy ghost prep as today's commencement speaker distinguished scholar hgp alumni parent and a good friend dr um shumba has served as a professor of economics at lasalle university for the past 30 years he received a ba in economics and philosophy from lasalle a masters in economics from the university of delaware and a phd in economics from the university of illinois at urbana-champaign his areas of research and develop are in development economics and international economics with a focus on the african countries richard has published three books his most recent two by the cambridge university press he has received a number of awards for teaching excellence and research including serving as a pew fellow at the kennedy school of government of harvard university richard is a frequent contributor of opinion pieces in the citizen a daily national newspaper in tanzania he and his family travel regularly to his village in sinan arusha where they are engaged in educational and development initiatives they have worked with groups of volunteers in tanzania to build a free library for the community which is now used by students from more than 15 schools some of our students have worked on that project during their trips to tanzania richard and various members of his family have served as our hope as our hosts on many of hgp's trips to tanzania he and his wife elaine have sent three sons to holy ghost prep alphonse 2010 dennis 2013 and charles 2020 so he understands hgp and our spirit in charism and having served as a college professor since the early 1990s richard fully grasps the next steps that you the members of the class of 2021 will be taking as you head off to college dr umba has had a remarkable life and career and i'm certain he will deliver a personal message and provide brotherly advice to our graduating seniors please join me in welcoming dr richard o'shumba as today's commencement speaker thank you for that very kind introduction good afternoon when i received the invitation to speak here today i found myself reflecting on my own life i would like to begin by sharing a few of those reflections so you know where i'm coming from in my message to you today i'm originally from tanzania east africa i'm one of 12 children my parents were subsistent farmers who never received their former education when i was in elementary school it was my constant prayer that i would be able to go to secondary school in the late 1960s when i graduated from elementary school only about five percent of students got to go to secondary school the idea that one day i would be a university professor was beyond my wildest dreams but with god all things are possible even those things that we never have imagined would happen god often works through others in our lives and countless people have guided and supported me throughout my life father george christensen espiritan who started my parish in tanzania was my first religion teacher and helped foster my faith after i spent a few years working in tanzania another spirit and bishop dennis durning who was the first bishop of arusha tanzania and his brother's family and the full tuition scholarship to la salle university made it possible for me to come to the united united states and go to college when i arrived i could have gotten lost at last university had it not been for my first econ professor rick garrison who mentored me and encouraged me to pursue economics professor harvey glickman of haverford college also played a key role early in my career guiding me and supporting my research and of course i've been blessed to be able to count on the constant support of my wife elaine and that of other family members friends and colleagues class of 2021 this is your special day but you have not traveled here alone either your parents your family members friends teachers coaches the agp administration and many others have supported you on your journey to this day if kovid has taught us anything it is that we must not take each other for granted as you embark on this new chapter in your lives let me share three recommendations with you first think of others don't just think of yourself second act with integrity have the courage to do what is right even when it's not what is popular and third continue to take your education seriously take the new freedom that you will have in college as an invitation to be more responsible so let's start with thinking about others we have been helped by so many people in our lives class of 2021 i encourage you to pay it forward and look for opportunities both big and small to help others we all have something to offer even if it's something as simple as a word of encouragement for someone else i'm always fascinated by the miracles that we read about in the bible and other religious books one of my formers is jesus feeding thousands of people with just a few fish and loaves of bread while we tend to focus on jesus miracle i like to think about what we can learn from the boy who offered his whole dinner five small loaves and two small fish two strangers he could have had the attitude that what he had wouldn't make any difference or he could have wondered what he would eat if he gave his food away yet he chose to be generous with what he had and jesus did the rest jesus could have produced bread and fish from nothing but he wants us to play a part class of 2021 do your part small as it may seem god will do the rest second about acting with integrity we live in a comparative world with many conflicting messages about what success means whatever success means to you don't compromise your integrity in pursuit of it many things are out of your control your integrity is not one of them but it requires being conscious of what is right and what is wrong and having the strength to always do what is right even if it means standing alone integrity is not a popularity contest third about continuing to take your education seriously you are all ready for college we know that but don't take these years for granted use your time wisely in high school you spent about 25 hours a week in the classroom in college it will be about 13 hours a week sounds nice right and for many of you there'll be no commute you'll find you have a lot more freedom and flexibility in college use it productively and responsibly and use all the resources that your schools offer to to help you succeed whether that be office hours free tutoring religious services the gym or counseling good students ask for help when they need it take full advantage of those services and when you can join in offering them to others finally i would like to share with you a story from my childhood when i was growing up we always said prayers as a family before we went to bed during the last prayer each one of us asked for 14 angels to accompany us to beg the angels were assigned different roles to to protect us from above two below two on the right two on the left two to cover us two to work us up in the morning and just in case we didn't make it through the night two to welcome us into heaven when i was in second grade and starting to learn multiplication i began to wonder if there were enough angels for everyone my family alone needed dozens of angels and i knew many other families they said this prayer as well for fear that there might be no angels left by the time we said our nightly prayers i asked my mother if you could say our prayers early right after dinner when i told her my reasoning she assured me that there would be never a shortage of angels class of 2021 look around you you are surrounded by angels and when we help others are generous to others comfort others study with others celebrate with others and guide others by our words our actions our integrity we can all be angels go out there and let the world know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you are a holy ghost prep graduate may god bless you congratulations [Applause] [Music] last night before we we left the tent after the mass there was a small dilemma we had not yet received our diplomas after some significant delays and manufacturing issues some very animated conversations on the phone and some miracle workers in the form of an alum chris savage and a friend gary lehmann i was assured we would have diplomas this morning i went into greg's office and i said greg what are we going to do i don't know what's going to happen if we don't have diplomas and he kind of looked up at me a little bit he sometimes wears these little glasses and he dipped them below his nose and he said right find a way so we found two ways and so every graduate's going to go home with two diplomas because i didn't know which work which was going to work so we have two diplomas for every graduate so if you're asking why are they getting two yesterday there were none so my phone was buzzing why can't you say vajayo why can't you say vageo i was thinking oh my god thank god we have diplomas so i was i was distracted in my brain so much as our graduates come up they will get their diplomas for mr garrison please pause in the middle of the stage you'll be getting your photograph taken and that photograph will be made available for all of the parents starting next week upon the recommendation of the distinguished faculty of holy ghost prep mr garrison and mr burke will present the diplomas to the graduates of the class of 2021. mr tony chapman a member of the holy ghost prep class of 1971 and mrs jerry carmine will assist in the presentation of our diplomas please hold your applause until we have read all of the names of our graduates christopher michael adams reuben aguilar summa laude giovanni amoroso robert thomas beijer magna laude liam j barnes laude joseph peron iii magna laude andrew beer joel andrew bevinor summa laude christopher thomas bonavalento john donald bonfini magna laude luke joseph morkowski nicholas andrew braun summa laude zachary joseph bronstein laude logan patrick britt landing griffin daniel bert magna laude victor james bird antonio joseph camacho william castner magna laude daniel bryan shalon magna laude liam andrew cole laude john ryan connolly laude michael edward connolly ryan michael kulahan magna laude congratulations sean michael costigan magna laude kyle joseph kunichelli congratulations michael steven delario maya kumar [Music] jack deleo magna laude connor joseph deluca mitchell henry demler laude christopher thomas devlin michael dombrowski congratulations jack william doran brandon michael dorsey summa laude michael anthony esposito magna laude daniel featherstone magna laude gavin ferns hunter james finlay laughing liam david fleming summa laude ryan anthony france magna laude patrick joseph france laude justin patrick gabriel summa laude gianni galdo magna laude conor michael gallagher summa laude albert joseph gallo iii laude christopher edward gachowski summa laude luke glamour jack tucker gravener magna laude michael jacob gublow summa laude gabriel joseph hackman magna laude andrew tyler hanson summa laude zachary keenan john andrew horgan summa laude liam o'connell huey laude kyle james in kalingo magna laude zachary r johnson laude christopher ryan keita michael ketty magna laude thomas david kenny thomas henry nall summa laude w lee magna laude frederick lee summa laude james robert lidly summa laude matthew william long magna laude aidan jude lozada alexander richard lutz summa laude michael james madden laude anthony harry magnum jr justin patrick malkowski laude jamie joseph mancuso magna laude jake miles merrick summa laude he loves the attention too patrick francis mcinerney joseph charles mccann jr laude jack henry mcdermott summa laude conor mcgregor gavin l mcguigan laude sean conner mclaughlin laude brian s medrow evan michael medrow magna laude brian s medrow magna laude i didn't think i said it so i did grant phillip merrigan laude jared rubin muhammad evan christopher mudrick laude [Music] zachary newsham quinn john michael nieto magna laude [Music] johann augusto corelli ness sulu kumar joseph nodo summa laude ryan craig o'hara magna laude anthony michael padula summa laude [Music] okay nicholas john phillips jonathan pinkstone summa laude eric j poll elliott e puckett laude thomas v ranieri [Music] carlos alberto rodriguez jr isaac andrew rubis laude tyler schmidt summa laude john a schroeder magna laude michael christopher seltzer jr gavin nicholas shoe brooks mcguire summa zachary simsack laude luke anthony michael smith michael james smith magna laude cole stevens kyle matthews stone summa laude that's my brother travis toyer sean michael trush shane t turpin [Music] foreign zachary richard van arsdale magna laude adam michael verga summa laude abigail dylan chad wallace magna laude joseph charles warsaw summa laude joseph john zielinski the third [Music] [Applause] [Music] lambda andrew zubik summa laude ian nelson zwarte [Music] [Applause] please stand [Applause] [Applause] foreign gentlemen please move your tassel to the other side graduates please be seated [Applause] it's my pleasure to invite mr garrison to come to the podium to present this year's father james p mccluskey alumni award greg novak class of 1977 a member of holy ghost prep's board of trustees passed away suddenly in april at the age of 61. he will be honored posthumously today with the reverend james p mccleskey award the award is given annually to the alumnus whose profound generosity commitment and support demonstrates a unique understanding of the mission of holy ghost prep to give you a better sense of who greg novak was we have a video message from holy ghost prep teacher and forensics coach now retired mr john bitler john would love nothing more than to be here in person to honor greg but his youngest son john a 2002 hgp grad is getting married today so let's watch this video message from john pitler greetings everyone to mr garrison mr burke the incomparable faculty of which i was honored to be a member for over four decades and especially to the people who are the reason why all are gathered there today the distinguished graduating class of 2021. i would very much like to be there and share this experience with you but as mr garrison may have told you i am in central new york state where my son also a graduate of holy ghost prep class of 2002 is getting married today and not having mastered the quantum ability of being in two places at one time well you know where i am and where i am not even though i could not be at graduation today i wanted to find a way to do what mr garrison asked me to do to present the father james p mccluskey award which is given to quote the alumnus whose profound generosity commitment and support demonstrates a unique understanding of the mission of holy ghost prep and i wanted to do this for two reasons first the recipient is such a distinguished alumnus of holy ghost prep and secondly he is someone i have known i've known him well because during his years here i was both his teacher and his forensic coach gregory novak greg as we always called him was a member of the class of 1977 and in 1976 had the distinction of being one of the first two members of the holy ghost prep forensic society to win a national championship in the national catholic forensic league when i heard of greg's passing two stories came to mind that i would like to share that illustrate the respect he inspired in others and the determination and achievement that he carried throughout his life the first is one that took place at a forensic tournament here in philadelphia greg's competition event was extemporaneous speaking an event where the student chooses unseen from an envelope a current events topic he's given 30 minutes to prepare a 7-minute speech and then presents it to a judge or judges a competitor from another school told me later that as she was sitting at a table in the room where the students were preparing their speeches she looked up and saw greg come back into the room after having given his speech and that he looked angry he took off his coat rolled up his sleeves and sat down a small gesture for most people but not she said for greg she told me that she said to herself oh greg looked serious he rolled up his sleeves when greg rolls up his sleeves he means business i knew then that the rest of us had better watch out the second story is one that greg himself told when he gave the graduation address here in 2019 it was 1976 in detroit and greg had just spoken his way through and passed about 200 other competitors from around the country to be one of the last six students in the final championship round as greg told the story when great when he found out that he had made the finals he looked for me to share the moment and to get some advice frankly i knew it was greg he didn't need any advice i congratulated him and i said just two words burnham which is of course exactly what he went on to do i tell these stories because greg probably from the time he was born but certainly from that time forward went on to roll up his sleeves mean business and burn them after graduating from los alamos university he went on to cornell university for his law degree and then further studies at nyu university he became a partner at pepper hamilton one of the most prestigious law firms in philadelphia an adjunct faculty member at cornell's law school and an acknowledged expert both nationally and internationally on taxation he was a loyal supporter of holy ghost prep and in recent years a member of our board of trustees most importantly though he was the devoted husband of his wife denise and the loving father of four children elise marie gregory matt and maddie and while i can't vouch for for myself he was also a pretty hot shot do-it-yourself guy hg or hgtv caliber the combination of all of these things dedication achievement loyalty love and devotion is what any of us who teach hope we can one day say about our students greg was a man who throughout his life continued to roll up his sleeves mean business and burnham and one of the greatest beneficiaries of that has been holy ghost prep and so it is my honor today to invite mr garrison to present the father james p mccluskey award to greg novak and to ask his wife denise to come forward and accept it on his behalf [Applause] [Applause] thank you thank you so before i begin my closing remarks i want to take a moment to say fail well to a math teacher mr jerry palopinto jerry would you please come forward jerry will be retiring after more than 41 years of profound commitment and loyalty to the entire hgp community he has impacted countless students during his time here and he will be missed by many of his colleagues and friends we hosted a farewell celebration for jerry last week that included a few gifts some festivities even a song parody by mrs carmine and the math department it's quite the event please join me and give jerry a hearty round of applause for all he has done [Applause] this has been quite a year i want to say thank you to our faculty and staff one word comes to mind when i think of you this year heroic truly heroic thank you for all you did to provide the best possible education anywhere for our young men and especially for the class of 2021. thank you second i want to thank our parents our families of the class of 2021. the one word that comes to mind when i think of you is trust you trusted us to deliver on a promise to provide education safely and in person to the highest holy ghost prep standard we could it's a pretty high bar but i hope we were able to achieve it thank you for all of your trust in holy ghost prep gentleman of the class of 2021 i speak to you today truly as one of your older brothers for today you have become members of the unique branch of the holy ghost prep family tree called alumni we are truly a brotherhood that is blessed and united by our mission by our common experience of the seven core components and by the holy spirit to use tomas's metaphor before you leave this safe harbor this afternoon to begin your next voyage i want to offer you one piece of advice and it's a really simple piece of advice stay connected never lose the sense of community and brotherhood that is holy ghost prep it is not as easy as it sounds friends move lives change career opportunities unfold in many respects the future of holy ghost prep rests with all of you look at your brothers look around this campus think about the past four years and consider all those who came before you and what they have left you as their legacy at holy ghost someday long after many of us are gone you in turn will create your legacy for holy ghost prep embrace it and stay connected in a few minutes you will say goodbye to the faculty and staff people who were and are your teachers mentors and now your brothers and sisters these men and women have helped shape you into the responsible thoughtful independent gentleman you've become and we look forward to hearing all about you and the many successes you will undoubtedly have in the coming years your commitment to stay connected and to give back will always ensure that hgp remains a community of one heart and one mind congratulations to you all and god bless you before we leave this afternoon a special thank you to mr chuck hallahan and our musicians and especially our singer don d francesco for helping bring beautiful music to our ceremony this summer this morning special thank you to mr mark wardenby our campus minister for coordinating coordinating last night's baccalaureate mass and an enormous and enormous impossible to measure thank you to rich malley and the facility staff who do an incredible job every day and these past 30 days those guys are back there they want no attention so everybody look everybody wave there they are we are aware of at least one senior whose college information was not included in the listing in the back of the program if you have additional information that you would like to submit to the college guidance office and you do that by the end of next week we will put that in our online update of the scholarship announcements for everyone to see it is our tradition that the graduating class be greeted by the faculty and administration following commencement this year that receiving line will take place on the path on the side of cornwall's hall closest to the art studio mr garrison and mr burke will lead us out of the tent followed by the faculty who will come to the center of the tent and go down to the center aisle and around back around the tent the faculty will then go to the side of cornwell's hall to be greeted by the graduates the graduates will leave the tent last followed by chris adams we ask everyone to please allow the graduates to go through the faculty line before you take them out for pictures or to leave families are welcome to join the mothers guild for a small reception in the founders hall courtyard following commencement you are welcome to take photos on campus and in the chapel and i would like to remind the graduates please remember to return your cap and gown outside of founders hall before you leave now this afternoon would you all please stand now and join us in singing our school song all holy oh holy ghost followed by the closing benediction from father chris mcdermott for the graduates please all remove your hats [Music] so oh holy ghost of brotherhood one heart one mind in unity oh holy ghost our brotherhood a school yet a community come holy spirit guide us we shall [Music] in [Music] [Applause] congratulations one of my favorite poets t.s eliot has a line that he says in the in our end is our beginning and he's quoting mary queen of scots who said that right before she was put to the ax but i think that's very true we've come to an end here one of the things i love about school is the regular predictable flow of the season you look forward to things the opening of basketball season the tryouts for the play the spring concert whatever it is and you move from one event to the next this year we've had to overcome the doubt as to whether those things would even happen so i always say to the seniors savor these moments because they're your last moments here and that's what that means in the end is our beginning so we are now sending them off at this last moment i'd like to ask the congregation all of you parents grandparents brothers and sisters and cousins to extend your hands and blessings over them as we pray for their departure it's an old irish blessing may the road rise to meet you may the wind be always at your back may the sun shine warm upon your face the rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again may god hold you in the palm of his hand may almighty god bless all of us the father the son and the holy spirit [Music] [Music] [Music] [Applause] now [Music] okay i can't hear anything [Music] there's no thank you [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] oh [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] so [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] i [Music]

Channel: HolyGhostPrep

Views: 1,278

Keywords: Holy Ghost Prep, HolyGhostPrep, Holy, Ghost, Prep, High School, Holy Ghost Preparatory School, Secondary School, Bensalem, Pennsylvania, Sports, Class of 2021, 2021, Graduation, Grad

Id: CKhm7dG_Yuo

Length: 134min 32sec (8072 seconds)

Published: Sat Jun 05 2021