Historic First Graduating Girls of 2010

Headline Hall of Fame Elections

Brother Kevin Stanton, Rick Roscitt ’69, Gerry McGraw ’72, Steve Dzitko ‘77

Join Hudson Catholic’s ‘Best of the Best’

The 6^th elected class of Hudson Catholic Hall of Famers features our longest serving Brother Principal, three alumni who are professional giants in the fields of telecommunications, money management, and the maritime industry, and the ‘First Graduating Girls’ who transferred into Hudson Catholic for their senior year during the first co-educational academic year in school history.

These elections by the voting members of the Hall of Fame will bring to 29 the number of inductees in the Hall display at 790 Bergen. Introducing our newest Hall of Famers........

Rick Roscitt ‘69

Rick is held in high esteem for his intellect, character, and personal accomplishments, having distinguished himself by forging a successful career in executive suites throughout the telecommunications industry, being a long-serving Trustee at Stevens Institute of Technology, and remaining loyal to Hudson Catholic as a steadfast supporter and thought leader for improving the academic offerings in our curriculum.

He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology and an MBA from the Sloan School of Management at MIT. Rick served in leadership positions for 28 years at AT&T, entering the C-suite as CEO and President of AT&T Solutions in 1995, then becoming President of AT&T Business Services, AT&T’s largest business unit in 1999.

In 2003, Rick became President & Chief Operating Officer of beleaguered MCI, to lead the firm out of its bankruptcy and corporate governance crises and execute its sale to Verizon. Rick went on to serve as Chairman and Chief Executive of SMobile Systems, a software company focused on smart phone and tablet security solutions, and as Non-Executive Chairman for nine years at Sapien Software, a leading software as a service (SaaS) provider. He has served on the Board of Directors at two niche software firms, helping them to be acquired. 

Today, as Chairman and CEO, Rick runs the Delphi Consulting Group, a management consulting firm specializing in board of directors governance, strategy formation, and merger & acquisition support.

Rick has served in higher education as a 20-year member of the Stevens Board of Trustees, presently serving as Vice Chairman of the Board. In 2021, Rick received our John P. Higgins Award, given to an individual who best exemplifies the values and the loyalty that John Higgins brought to HC every time he stepped in the door.

Rick and his wife Nicha created and run the Roscitt Family Foundation, which is a supporter of Hudson Catholic. Rick’s work on behalf of Hudson Catholic is not done, as he continues to assist the Hudson Catholic Administration to build out its STEM program and develop broader pathways for Hawks into Stevens and other Technology & Engineering schools they may choose.

Gerard McGraw ’72

Gerry is a distinguished corporate titan among Hudson Catholic graduates, holding the distinction of being a select member of the C-Suite at Fidelity Management & Research Co., and is a member of the Fidelity Board of Directors, where he chairs the Board’s Audit Committee and serves as the Head of the Legal, Risk, Compliance, Audit and Security functions.

Gerry earned his Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Pace University and began his 40+ year financial, regulatory and operations career at Morgan Guaranty Trust Co. of NY. A holder of Series 7, 24 and 27 licenses, Gerry held senior positions with Smith Barney and Shearson Lehman Brothers, and served within the Member Firm Regulation Division of the New York Stock Exchange.

Gerry joined Fidelity 25 years ago, taking successive roles leading regulatory reporting, operational oversight, and brokerage operations, before assuming President’s roles for Operations & Services, and Fidelity Institutional. He then became Chief Financial Officer, and then Head of Enterprise Functions, before taking on his current role.

A strong supporter of education, Gerry served on the National Board of Directors for Citizen Schools, an organization dedicated to partnering with middle schools to expand the learning day for children in low-income communities, for the purpose of educating children and strengthening communities. His service exemplifies our own LaSallian values of education in service to others.

Gerry has been a loyal supporter of Hudson Catholic over the many years and also received the school’s John P. Higgins Award at the 8^th Annual Black & Gold Golf event in 2021.

Steven Dzitko ’77

Steve has brought honor to himself and Hudson Catholic by virtue of his Hawk athletic accomplishments, Congressional appointment to the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, 13 years of service to country as a Lieutenant in the U.S. Naval Reserve, and dedication of his professional life to the continued safety and security of the United States’ maritime industry.

While at Hudson Catholic, Steve excelled in Track and Field and Football, receiving numerous awards consisting of Local, All County and All State Honors, most outstanding class athlete, and most outstanding athlete of the year honors for football and track. Wall of Honor Inductee Coach Paul Lenzcuk called Dzitko “the greatest athlete I ever coached.”

Upon graduation, Steve held all school records for hurdle, high hurdle, high jump, and pole vault, the latter two remaining intact for the last 45 years. He was the 1977 Jersey City High Jump and Pole Vault Champ and, at 6’5”, broke a 36-year Jersey City high school high jump record set by Dick Brown of Lincoln in 1941 -- the longest standing JCHS track & field record at that time.

Steve continued in Football and Track & Field at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, participating in the Decathlon and, as in high school, establishing school records that are still in place. Upon graduating, Steve served as an Assistant Engineer aboard a US flag steam merchant vessel, responsible for the safe operation of engineering related equipment. He later served as a Marine Senior Surveyor and National Board ASME Authorized Inspector, surveying and inspecting marine vessels during new construction, inspections, and damage surveys, and performing design reviews and nondestructive testing.

In 1992, he founded Windward Marine-Industrial Inc. and remains its chief executive today, leading an organization in the performance of damage, condition and repair surveys of tankers, bulk and ore carriers, container ships, tugboats, barges, ferries, semi-submersible and jackup oil rigs -- during new construction, on dry dock, or afloat.

Steve remains true to his roots, employing Midshipmen from the USMMA as Interns with his company; serving eight years as Assistant Track & Field coach at Seton Hall Prep; and presently serving on the Board of Directors of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and for the Central NJ Alumni Chapter & Flying Bridge of the United States Marine Academy.

Brother Kevin Stanton, FSC

Brother Kevin served at Hudson Catholic from 1983 through 1991, all as Principal, making him the only FSC Principal to guide eight classes through to commencement.

He oversaw the celebration of the school’s 25^th anniversary, held at the Harborside Financial Center during the early days of Jersey City’s waterfront renaissance. Attendant with that was the school’s first major capital campaign, responding to the Archdiocese’s challenge to raise the half million dollars needed to purchase the property adjacent to the school -- the old Bingo Hall that became our parking lot. He also took major steps forward for the school by opening the school’s first Development Office, establishing its first official endowment, and by appointing a Director of Admissions to address the growing competitive nature of Catholic school recruitment.

Brother Kevin did some of his best work around signage -- adding and removing. It was under Brother Kevin’s leadership that we added new attractive signs to the building on both Mercer and Montgomery Streets, proclaiming: “Hudson Catholic High School, Conducted by the De La Salle Christian Brothers.” He was also prescient, being the man who made the decision to remove ‘For Boys’ from the official sign on the school’s Bergen Avenue façade, long before co-educational enrollment became necessary to ensure that Hudson Catholic would remain a vibrant and relevant institution of education in the Hudson County urban milieu.

Which provides a perfect segue to our final honoree.

The First Graduating Girls of 2010

Twelve of the 13 girls of the first co-educational graduating class of Hudson Catholic enrolled at Hudson Catholic for only a senior year, upon receiving news that their school for three years, St. Joseph’s of the Palisades in West New York, would close in June 2009; our 13^th girl came from Holy Family, Bayonne.

Simultaneously, Hudson was readying itself to accommodate girls for the first time in September of that year and was in the process of recruiting girls into its class of 2013. No one had expected we might have to integrate females into the senior and other classes that year.

While the ‘FGGs’ had been accustomed to co-ed ranks in their first three years of high school, to say that the ‘invasion’ of 13 girls into the senior class of 90 boys that had been together as an all-boys program up until June of 2009 would require adjustment on everyone’s part, would be an enormous understatement. Of course, having a ‘rough time’ comes with any experience at which one comes to be known as a pioneer, but it doesn’t make it any more pleasant to know that. You have to go through it to become that pioneer.

Besides the re-orientation of the boys to altered facilities for girls, e.g., restrooms and locker rooms, this also came with expectations for altered behavior. The girls, for their part, were incredibly outnumbered, and came with the obligation to fit in. Needless to say, we could go on about the adjustments that became necessary of both genders, but there can be no doubt that this small group were our pioneer girls, not dissimilar to, and probably faced with bigger challenges than, our pioneer class that inaugurated Hudson Catholic in 1968 -- also Hall of Fame inductees.

The addition of females to the Hudson Catholic student body brought a spirit and perspective that had been missing from our school for over 40 years. That spirit and vitality continue today, with girls comprising nearly 45% of the student body. It all started with these pioneers. Our First Graduating Girls:

Three of our First Graduating Girls, attending the All Hawk Happy Hour in August, are BFFs, L. to R., Cynthia (Cindy) Rodriguez, Jary Carvajal-Moore, and Kristy Fernandez. Photobombing is President-Principal Terry Matthews.

Eight of the First Graduating Girls, graduating!

Our new inductees will be feted at the Hudson Catholic Gala scheduled for March 30^th, venue to be announced in the near future. In the meantime, please join the Hudson Catholic Administration in reaching out to and congratulating our newest Hall of Famers.

It’s Rather Easy:

Gifting Life Insurance to Hudson Catholic

The following article is based upon a Forbes Advisor article entitled “How to Donate Your Life Insurance to Charity” by Cameron Huddleston, dated April 25, 2021.

Mike Dunne CFP ’77 also contributed to this article.

A life insurance policy can allow you to leave a legacy—not just for the people you love, but for a school and a cause, like Hudson Catholic, that is important to you. That’s because, as a non-profit organization, we can receive the payout from a life insurance policy.

According to a survey by the Life Insurance and Market Research Association, a quarter of Americans who own life insurance say that one of the reasons they bought a policy was to provide a charitable gift. And it can be a smart way to give.

There are a few ways you can donate a life insurance policy to Hudson Catholic - by donating a policy, transferring policy ownership, naming the school as a beneficiary, or purchasing a new policy in the name of Hudson Catholic. Be aware that the tax consequences vary depending on the method used.

DONATING OR TRANSFERRING

Donating a term life policy isn’t ideal for charitable giving because the policy is in force for only a certain number of years. Donating a permanent policy can make more sense because the policy stays in force throughout the insured's life or for as long as premiums are paid.

Whether donating a new or transferring ownership of an existing life insurance policy, the end result is similar. Hudson Catholic would become the owner of the policy, and the donor/transferor would receive a tax deduction for the charitable contribution. Then, Hudson Catholic would have the option to either continue to pay the premiums, or the donor/ transferor could continue to pay the premiums and receive a tax deduction for premiums paid. 

Transferring a permanent life policy with cash value to Hudson Catholic removes the policy from an estate for estate tax purposes, and provides the school with a number of options, yielding lower to higher payouts -- surrender the policy for the cash value; sell the policy to a viatical settlements company for a discounted death benefit value; or, hold until the passing of the insured and receive a tax-free payout.

NAMING HUDSON CATHOLIC AS BENEIFICARY

Hudson Catholic can be named as a beneficiary of a policy just as people can be named. For multiple beneficiaries, the death benefit can be divided among them, in percentages. 

It is easy to change beneficiaries for an existing policy. To name Hudson Catholic as a beneficiary, you’ll need to record our Tax ID number, which is 22-3620836. You always retain the right to change beneficiaries over the life of the policy. Please advise Hudson Catholic if you name the school as a beneficiary.

NEW POLICY

Per Forbes, in the example of a 50-year-old alum choosing between donating $100,000 to Hudson Catholic or putting that $100,000 into a single premium whole life policy naming Hudson Catholic as beneficiary, doing the latter could be more beneficial to Hudson Catholic, which could receive $253,661 upon the passing of the insured, based on life expectancy tables.

As an option to making a large lump-sum payment, smaller monthly or annual premium payments can be made, amounts which might make a limited impact if paid directly to Hudson Catholic but put toward an insurance policy with a sizable death benefit, can make an impact that can be multiplied.

If applying for a new policy, the process for naming a non-profit as a beneficiary can be more complicated. There may be an “insurable interest” question asking the applicant to justify the financial loss a beneficiary would experience if the insured died. If an insurer were to refuse to write a new policy naming Hudson Catholic as beneficiary, due to lack of insurable interest, a buyer could simply purchase a new policy, naming an appropriate beneficiary at the time of purchase and, later, either donate or transfer that policy, or change the beneficiary to Hudson Catholic.

OTHER OPTIONS

One other option for a donor to receive a charitable deduction without transferring policy ownership is by gifting a pool of current year or prior life insurance dividends.

Before making any of these moves, be sure to talk with a tax professional or financial planner to ensure you are choosing the right donation strategy for your situation. And reach out to Hudson Catholic to find out how we prefer to handle gifts of life insurance.

Senior Elijah Gertrude commits

to the University of Virginia

Will Play D-1 Basketball on Full Ride

As seen with a proud mom & pop

just before donning a UVA cap for the cameras

Hawk Football 5-0

Hudson Catholic 34, Columbia HS 13

Hudson Catholic 28, Morris Catholic 14

Next up: DePaul

Parent Chris Robert says: "We have been giving the boys sandwiches, chips and gatorade or water after the games. Does anyone have any hooks with a Jersey Mikes or sandwich place where we can purchase our sandwiches for our next game against DePaul?" If you have a referral, send it to Coach Lou Zampella '93 at lzampella@hudsoncatholic.org

Message from the Prez 

The Fall season arrived with a roar at Hudson Catholic! Our opening mass was wonderful and set the tone for the year as Fr. Rocco Danzi, S.J. led the celebration with a special focus on the incredible diversity of our student body. A fantastic Black & Gold Golf Outing on Thursday, featuring many alumni and friends of Hudson Catholic, was a precursor to a wildly successful Open House on Sunday. The halls of Hudson Catholic were packed with visitors from 10am through 1:30pm. While they were visibly impressed with the academic, athletic and extracurricular offerings by our school, each and every family could not stop complimenting the young men and women who served as their tour guides. I always say that the best salespeople for our school are our students, and the Open House certainly proved this to be true.

The Football team is undefeated at 5-0, while both the Girls and Boys Soccer teams won their League Tournament 1st round games. The Fall drama production of Rumors is busy with rehearsals and our after-school activities are in full swing! None of these things are possible without the continued support of our alumni, friends and family. Hudson Catholic continues to be a special place because of the extraordinary people who support us. Thank you! And remember, you can always come home to the Hawks Nest!

Ten Years On

The Class of 2012

The Class of 2012, our smallest graduating class in numbers (87) has come and gone from The Home of The Hawks, with ten years passing since graduation -- 14 years since becoming the most important class in the history of Hudson Catholic, the class we have come to refer to as "The Sign of Faith Class."

If not for the loyalty shown to our school at its darkest hour, by them and their families, we would not have graduated 14 more classes since that time and added to our rich history as a top-flight school in Hudson County. They paved the way for co-education at Hudson Catholic.

Ten years is a great milestone at which to pause and reflect -- reflect on the great experience had together as a class, and on the significance of what their commitment and attendance at Hudson Catholic means in the grand scheme of the school's illustrious 58-year history.

If you are up for a 10 Year Reunion, and might like to help organize your classmates and the event, send a note to Jill Cypher of Advancement at jcypher@hudsoncatholic.org. Jill handles all class reunions, does a lot of the heavy lifting, and generally makes it easy on the organizing classmates.

We not only hope to hear from many of you, but we look forward to seeing you and thanking you in person for your significance in the history of Hudson Catholic.

Meet The Hawks

Accolades Pour in for

Hudson Catholic’s ‘John Keating’

John Keating was the protagonist’s name in the 1989 film drama The Dead Poet’s Society. Starring Robin Williams, it tells the story of an English teacher at an all-male prep school who inspires his students through his teaching of poetry with the use of unorthodox teaching methods. Is this sounding familiar yet? Any parallels spring to mind?

The announcement of the impending naming of The Jack Campion Stage at Hudson Catholic has been received across our community with resounding approval. Here is a sample of some of the comments received about this announcement and about our John Keating, Sir Jack Campion of Our Town.

P.J. Leonard ‘80 “Hands down, the best teacher I ever had.”

Larry Basinski ’70: “Thank you, Jack, for my career.”

John Cunning ’79: “My first taste of Broadway. Thanks, Mr. Campion”

Michael Catrillo ‘79: “He was my inspiration to become an English Teacher.”

Kevin Early ‘80: “Brilliant teacher! Years after, I taught Campion’s daughter in an English Lit course. Parent-Teachers Night was a little jarring! LOL.”

George Bailey ‘80: “Mr C. exposed a bunch of city kids to some of the best works ever written. He would always spur conversation on what was written. In typical Jersey City fashion, we’d be at each other arguing our points. Every once in a while, I’d catch Mr. C. leaning against his desk, arm resting on chin and seeing him smiling….a bunch of kids arguing about the meaning of a certain writing.”

Sara Degnan-Barbi, Hudosn Catholic Vice Principal & Dean of Students: “This is so exciting—I learned so much from Jack—who I always called ‘Sir’. He directed me in Carousel and Beckett in 1994, and Fiddler on the Roof in 1995 (at another local school). I am directing Rumors by Neil Simon this fall, and I saw it for the first time when Jack directed it in 1995. Additionally, Sandra Gonzalez McGrath who runs our elementary theatre group at Hudson was in many shows for him at Holy Family Academy. Our vocal director, Lauren Boch-Mullins, daughter of Bruce Boch, 75, was in musicals for Jack -- The King and I, South Pacific, and Guys and Dolls. So we have three women who learned, from Jack, our love of theater and musical theater, keeping the arts alive and flourishing at Hudson Catholic. And…all of our own children have a love for theater and have appeared on the Hudson stage! I cannot wait to honor him!”

October 8th

RSVP 

https://www.hawkalumni.org/we-remember-tim-eigo/

Your copy should address 3 key questions: Who am I writing for? (Audience) Why should they care? (Benefit) What do I want them to do here? (Call-to-Action)

Create a great offer by adding words like "free" "personalized" "complimentary" or "customized." A sense of urgency often helps readers take an action, so think about inserting phrases like "for a limited time only" or "only 7 remaining"!

Reunion ‘72

Register at hawkalumni.org 

Sunday, October 23,2022, 4:00-8:00 PM

Edwards Steak House

(your host, Pat Donnelly '86)

239 Marin Blvd, Jersey City

New Advertiser with this Issue

Michael Skea '74

Your Trusted Real Estate Adviser at the Jersey Shore 

29th Alumni Mass of Remembrance

November 6^th  10am

In the Rocky Pope Gymnasium

on the Hudson Catholic Campus

Saturday, November 19th 7pm

SAVE THE DATE

Ticket Info coming next issue

All proceeds to benefit the programs and offerings of

Hudson Catholic Regional High School

Library of Hawks

Continues to Grow

54 titles in the Library

at hudsoncatholic.org/library-of-hawks

Newest Hawk Author titles by Brian Altano '74 & Marco Poisler '88

Brian's book on writing the College Essay should probably be required reading for Hawk juniors! Marco's 'Project Logistics' is a specialized, first-of-its-kind  textbook that gives university students the lowdown on global capital projects, to help them prepare as next generation project logistics professionals.  The book is expected to benefit those working in projects stemming from energy transition to broad infrastructure investments.

Alumni Spotlight

Our Hawk Clergy

Hudson Catholic is blessed. Among our alumni ranks, we have 12 Priests and three Deacons (once again, that we know of). In this issue, we profile some of them, and will endeavor to add more as we track some down and update with them.

No profile of Hawk Clergy would be appropriate without first mention going to Reverend Warren Hall ’81, whose assumption of stewardship at Hudson Catholic in the aftermath of near closure 14 years ago helped to put us on course to sustaining our school and advancing it to the point we are at today. Father Warren came back to Hudson Catholic from St. Thomas Aquinas University in Miami at the request of the Archbishop of Newark, John Myers, thus becoming the first Catholic Priest to serve as Hudson Catholic President and head of school. For that matter, his appointment of Sr. Joanne Aumand, SCC as Principal, occasioned the first Catholic nun to serve in the Principal’s role. Father Warren served in his role from July 2008 through February 2011, and for his many contributions to the Hudson Catholic family, we remain in his debt.

Following his resignation, he became Director of Campus Ministry at Seton Hall University. In 2015, he became Assistant Pastor of Sts. Peter and Paul in Hoboken. In 2016, he left the priesthood and now continues his ministry as a Catholic lay person.

Reverend Dmytro Dnistrian, CSsR ’79 sends us “Greetings from Winnipeg (Manitoba)!” where he is the Pastor of St. Joseph's Ukrainian Catholic Church, under the Archeparchy of Winnipeg. For those unfamiliar with this term, ‘Eparchy’ is an ecclesiastical unit in Eastern Christianity equivalent to a diocese in Western Christianity, governed by an eparch, who is a bishop. Father Dmytro is of Ukrainian Byzantine Catholic faith and a member of the Redemptorist religious order. He undertook Theological Studies at St. Michael’s College in Toronto, professed his religious vows in 1983 and was Ordained on May 9^th, 1987 at Saints Peter and Paul Ukrainian Catholic Church in Jersey City. He has served in various parishes in western Canada as well as in New Jersey, given retreats, and preached parish missions. Recently, his classmate, Deacon Peter D’Angelo, communicated with him to convey that the school is doing “great.” Father Dmytro replied: “this is wonderful to hear, and it sounds like a very good idea to feature the clergy who are graduates of Hudson."

The late Reverend Ed Flanagan ‘80 obtained a BA in Religious Studies and Philosophy at Seton Hall University and received a Masters Degree of Divinity from Christ the King Seminary in East Aurora, NY. Ordained to the Priesthood of Jesus Christ in 1988, Father served in parochial assignments in New Jersey, mostly in the Diocese of Metuchen, at Our Lady of Lourdes in Whitehouse Station; Immaculate Conception in Somerville; St. James in Woodbridge; Sacred Heart of Jesus in South Plainfield; Immaculate Conception in Spotswood; St. Bernadette in Parlin; and as pastor of Nativity of Our Lord RC Church in Monroe Twp. While at Nativity, Father Flanagan passed away due to cancer on November 8, 2020. He is buried at St. Joseph Cemetery in Toms River.

Reverend Gino de la Rama ’99 is a priest in the Archdiocese of Newark, serving as the Director of the Office of Priestly Vocations at Immaculate Conception Seminary, Seton Hall University.

He was ordained to the priesthood on May 24^th, 2014, whereupon he served as Parochial Vicar at Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Ridgewood, NJ until 2017, thereafter assuming his present role.

Other Alumni Clergy include John Dennehy '73, John Custer '76, Keith Pecklers, SJ '76, Mike Bihuniak '79, Monsignor Charles Antonicelli '79, Robert Benko '82, and Frank Fano '97. Our Religious also include Deacons Len Mackesy '71, Mike Carroll '78, and Peter D'Angelo '79. Please write to identify anyone we have inadvertently omitted from our lists at advancement@hudsoncatholic.org

The Changing Neighborhood

No, this is not the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, but an artist's rendition of what construction underway in Journal Square will look like upon completion. 

BTLv68 Focus on  '68

Bramhall Avenue, Jersey City, circa September 1964. Prior to ‘arriving’ at St. Patrick’s Grammar School to commence their freshman year of high school, ten boys graduated in June of 1964 from that very school, and so went no further than a different floor or room of St. Pat’s to start Hudson Catholic Regional High School for Boys that September.

One year later, of course, they and their fellow rising sophomores and Christian Brothers community at St. Pat’s moved up to McGinley Square for the opening of the school building in 1965, but without a gym and cafeteria, yet to be completed.

Our pioneer Hawks of St. Pat’s/St. Pat’s and our Class of ’68 were Charles Cavallo, Tom Flanagan, Fred Moss, Dennis Murphy, Carl Russo, William Sellinger, William Tamke, and the late Kevin Adams, Robert Carroll and Charlie Hart.

Hudson Catholic freshmen used the third floor of St. Patrick’s Grammar School for their classes -- Carl Russo recalls his classroom had been his 8^th grade homeroom!

The six Christian Brothers who arrived in Jersey City in August of 1964 laid claim to a house next to the St. Pat’s Church. Carl recalls that the Brothers, rather than the Hawk students, would move from and to each classroom, so as not to disturb the grade school students on the lower floors. From Len Anglin, referring to the first Christian Brothers: "I remember them all: Br. Al - Latin; Br. Robert - Math; Br. Norbert - History; Br. Victor - Science; Br. Bernard - English & Religion; Br. Francis - Principal. Brother Robert helped start the Football Team, Brother Bernard the Basketball Team."

John Sivori recalls that the Hawk freshmen had no lockers that year, so all the textbooks had to come home every night, and get lugged back to school the next morning.

Memories from Dennis Murphy: “We didn't change classes at the end of the period. From September to June we didn't move except to go to lunch, the Brothers just moved from one room to the next………It was great to be part of the school's first athletic team, football. Better still, the freshmen basketball team was terrific and one of the best in Hudson County, fun to watch. They played home games in the St. Pat's Memorial Center (where we also ate lunch). Brother Bernard, my homeroom and English Teacher, was the coach, and Brother Victor, Science Teacher, was the assistant coach. By the time I graduated he was Brother Lloyd.“

 Ed Szabo says: "Amo, amas, amat. Brother Al rocked. 1966."

Above, Freshmen in 1964-65 who became the Class of '68;

Hudson Catholic that first year, in the form of St. Patrick's Grammar School on Bramhall Ave.

Below, an artifact chronicling key dates in the early life of our school

What’s With Those 90’s?

We’ve made great strides over the last two years in acquiring new and renewing contact information for hundreds of alumni. But of each of the decades of classes, that of the 90s is the toughest for us to reach and communicate with because they have the smallest percentage of email addresses on file with the school.

So, as a public service announcement, we implore those of you who receive this communication to spread the word to the 90s crowd and encourage them to submit or revise their personal contact info at hudsoncatholic.org/stay-connected. Help them to overcome the slight lead in the standings currently held by the classes of the aughts!

But Now to Name Names

And Class Years

The latest list of 50 Essential Hawks for whom we would like to acquire an email address and stay in touch. If you can help, please share at advancement@hudsoncatholic.org, or direct them to the ‘stay-connected’ link.

Confusion Reigns Around

Back-in-the-Day Swim Hawks

Confusion continues to reign as to which class year this photo was taken for. 

Jim O’Neil ’83 identifies Marc Gallo ’83, Kevin Boyle ’83 and Martin Skea ’83, all in the back row.

PJ Leonard ‘80 swears he sees Rocco Filerino ‘80 in there, but Rocco, who swam from ’76 though ’80, doubts it at best and disputes it at worst. Rocco also coached the ’86 team and said that this type of photo was customarily taken, from year to year, during that era.

Mike Heidenthal ‘84 guessed Steve Meehan ‘84 to be in the back row. Meehan replied with “looks like me, and then named Sal Nostrame ‘87 in the front row. Heidenthal then claimed himself to be the one under water because he cannot swim.

Marty Murray ‘85 submitted 84/85, claiming “Dennis Woods ‘85, Martin Boutaloupt ‘85, Chris Meehan ‘86 and Pat Fay ‘87” to be in the photo. Pat Fay chimed in to confirm that he is, indeed, in the photo.

Tim Lord '85 offered that Scott Milewski '85 could be in the back row corner,  right

All told, we have 11 Hawks credibly accused of being in the photo of 11, but ranging from 1983 to 1987, which is not possible, given that they range over five class years. This may never be settled, but we're going to guess, on the basis of all the submissions received to date, that this is the 1984 Hawk Swim Team.

“It is necessary that the heroic becomes daily, and the daily becomes heroic."

-- St. Zelie Martin