Honoring Those Lost to Terror, and Those Who Keep Us Safe
October 2nd
Uniformed Heroes Mass at St. Aedan’s
& 9/11 Observance at Hudson Catholic
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In honor of the many who have protected us at home and abroad, Hudson Catholic invites all uniformed personnel, especially its alumni, but also members of the extended communities of law enforcement, firefighting, first response, and military service, to join us on Saturday, October 2nd, at 6pm for a Uniformed Heroes Mass at St. Aedan’s Church. This is an opportunity for us all to pray and worship together in thanks for the safety of those assembled, and in memory of those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in their service to us.
The Uniformed Heroes Mass will be followed by Hudson Catholic’s 9/11 Observance, to remember the eight individuals of the Hudson Catholic community who perished that day. This somber occasion will, appropriately, be keynoted by Port Authority PD Lt. William Keegan (ret.), Night Commander for the Ground Zero Rescue & Recovery effort. Bill is a member of the Class of ’73 and the Hudson Catholic Hall of Fame (’09).
Occasions such as this are important to mark in the life of a school community, for the sake of fostering the fellowship, remembrance, and community that is the essence of the human experience. Mass and the Observance will be followed by refreshments and social to enable our fellowship.
So that we may properly plan for space, food, and beverage, please let us know of your plans to attend the Observance and Social by September 24th at hudsoncatholic.org/heroes.
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8th Annual
Black & Gold Golf Classic
Sponsored by Investors Bank
Tees off Sept. 16th
Rick Roscitt’ 69, Gerry McGraw ’72,
Jerry Walker, Amy DeGise
to be Honored
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This year, we have chosen to honor two distinguished alumni, captains of industry, who have generously supported Hudson Catholic over the years and in time of need, along with two community giants for their deep resume of service to the Jersey City and Hudson County communities with which Hudson Catholic is indelibly intertwined.
Rick Roscitt ’69 and Gerard 'Gerry' McGraw ’72 have been designated as co-recipients of the John P. Higgins Award, and Amy DeGise and Jerry Walker are to receive Hudson Catholic’s Golden Service Award.
Rick forged a great career in executive suites throughout the telecommunications industry, principally AT&T, MCI, and other niche firms in the industry. He presently runs the Delphi Consulting Group, which specializes in board governance and strategy formation. He is Vice President of the Board of Trustees for his college alma mater, Stevens Institute of Technology, and is working with our administration on initiatives aimed at developing broader pathways for Hawks to enter Stevens. More news on that is forthcoming.
Gerry sits on the Board of Directors of Fidelity Investments, where he chairs the Audit Committee. Gerry began his 40-year financial, regulatory and operations career with Morgan Guaranty Trust Co. of NY, went on to hold senior positions with Smith Barney and Shearson Lehman Brothers, and served with the Member Firm Regulation Division of the New York Stock Exchange. In his 25 years at Fidelity, he led brokerage operations and regulatory reporting, then rose to the President’s role, first for Operations & Services, then for Fidelity Institutional Businesses, after which he assumed the role of Chief Financial Officer and Head of Enterprise Functions, and lastly taking on his current role as the Head of Legal, Risk, Compliance, Audit and Security.
A strong supporter of education, Gerry serves 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.
Jerry Walker is a former St. Anthony and Seton Hall basketball star. In 1989 under legendary Coach Bob Hurley, St. Anthony finished the season as the #1 ranked team in the nation. They are considered by many to be the greatest team in New Jersey history. Jerry and his teammates enjoy legendary status, having been inducted into the NJSIAA Hall of fame in 2017. But Jerry's best work has come on the streets of Jersey City as a community activist, in leading the non-profit organization "Team Walker". Founded in 1996, Team Walker has been offering after-school programs and recreation to Jersey City children for 25 years. In 2014, the Team Walker Learning Center opened on Communipaw Avenue after 12 years of planning. Some of "Jerry's kids' have advanced to and graduated Hudson Catholic.
Amy DeGise is a teacher by training and an accomplished executive in the public education arena by trade. Amy holds a master's degree in educational technology and a bachelor's degree in history education from Montclair State University. She has served as a history teacher at County Prep, and as the instructional vice president of the Hudson County Area Vocational Technical Association Executive Board. Amy also served as an At-Large Representative on the Jersey City Public Schools Board of Education. She currently serves as the Apprenticeship Coordinator in the Career Planning & Development Department at the Hudson County Schools of Technology. In her role, she helps connect high school and continuing education students to on-the-job training and internship programs to help advance or jumpstart their careers.
Whether in the private, public, or non-profit arena, our honorees have acquitted themselves as stalwarts for the education of our children, and demonstrate the LaSallian value of being of service to others.
To support our signature event benefitting our 500+ young men and women, please go to
hudsoncatholic.org/black-gold-golf-classic
to take a Hole Sponsorship or an ad or testimonial in our commemorative event program.
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Reminder:
Tree of Life Reservations
Due by August 31st
Go to hudsoncatholic.org/tree for more details, to reserve your leaf and provide an inscription, and submit your payment.
New leaves will be unveiled on Sunday, November 7th, following the Annual Alumni Mass of Remembrance on campus.
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Alumni Spotlight
Real Deal. Michael Skea ’74 recognized as #18 by Volume in NJ by REAL Trends America's Best Real Estate Professionals! You can find Mike at WardWight Sotheby’s in Spring Lake, where he is a Broker Associate.
Dedicated to Helping Others. Wayne Reynolds ’90 retired from the Newark Police Dept in 2013, after 17 years, to pursue a career change in medicine, graduating as a Doctor of Ostheopathic Medicine from the Rowan University School of Ostheopathic Medicine. Wayne is now seeking introductions to hospital administrators, or internal or family medicine program directors, in search of a new career role. Reach out to Wayne directly at 862-755-6203.
Rocket Man. Matt Giambusso ’98 is Senior Research Scientist and Leader of Experiment Operations at the Ad Astra (Latin for “to the stars”) Rocket Company in Houston, TX, nearby NASA’s Johnson Space Center.
Matt was commissioned into the US Naval Academy at graduation, majored in Aerospace Engineering, and wanted to be a pilot but wound up a submariner. He deployed to the USS Hartford from Groton, CT, a fast-attack submarine in support of the global war on terror, taking him to the Mediterranean and South America. After a stint at the Pentagon, and with a growing interest in space propulsion, Matt resigned from the Navy to pursue further education, obtaining his PhD in Physics from the University of Houston.
At Ad Astra, Matt is working on a next-generation prototype electric rocket, such as the one conceptualized in “The Martian” starring Matt Damon, which would be needed for missions of that length. When pressed, Matt admits to believing that manned space flight to Mars will happen in his lifetime.
Among the science teachers who have a right to beam with pride about Matt are Sister Eleanor Ustach and Mr. Phillip Gazzale.
Matt married his high school sweetheart, Angela Vargas, who he met in musical stage productions at Holy Family Academy under the direction of legendary HC drama teacher, Mr. Jack Campion. He went off to do his navy thing and he and Angela reunited nine years later, in DC. Matt and Angela have three daughters, ages 8, 6, and 3. It is not lost on him that Hudson Catholic is now co-ed. Matt is part of a legacy Hawk family, his father Lou graduating in the Class of 1971 -- Proud Hawk Pop.
Free Riders. Genesis Maravillas and Akshaye Tamasar ‘21,were featured recently among 15 graduating seniors who received Associates Degrees from St. Peter’s University for their performance in the Dual Enrollment Program. As the two top performers in the DEP, they are now the lucky and deserving recipients of the Presidential Scholarship at SPU, bringing with it full tuition awards.
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Hawks Will Return to the Nest
5 to 45 Year Reunions Slated
for April 1st/2nd Reunion Weekend
The Office of Advancement will be undertaking the first-of-its-kind Reunion Weekend Event in the Spring, aimed at bringing nine different classes back to school for celebration of their ‘5’ and ‘10’ year reunion cycles.
This means that in 2022, the following Class Years will be celebrating these anniversaries:
1977 45 years
1982 40 years
1987 35 years
1992 30 years
1997 25 years
2002 20 years
2007 15 years
2012 10 years
2017 5 years
Jill Cypher, Director of Advancement for Marketing & Events, will lead the organizing of the weekend events. In order to do so, Jill will need to hear from members of these classes interested in helping organize the activities for their reunion, tracking down some classmates who we may have fallen out of touch with over time. Ideally, we would like to have 5 members of each class to share the load.
We hope all reunion classes will elect to reunite at Hudson Catholic, which is the reason for the reunion season in the first place. You all have such great memories of your time spent between Bergen Mercer, Tuers, and Montgomery Streets. Why not take a stroll down memory lane, no matter how long or recently it has been since your last return to the Home of the Hawks!
This stands to be a milestone event in our school history. Interested alumni should contact Jill at jcypher@hudsoncatholic.org or 201-332-5970 ext. 118.
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A Call for Dummys
Mannequins, that is!
The student body of 530 will be back on campus in full next month. In preparation, the Hawk Store is stocking fresh new designs of apparel and other logo merchandise. We expect to make these products available to the alumni base for online purchase in the near future.
Right now, the Hawk Store is in serious need of a couple of mannequins for modeling our new arrival school uniforms and athletic wear. Please contact Advacnement@hudsoncatholic.org if you can help to have these items donated to the school.
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Where Are They?
Looking for an email address, phone number, or mailing address
Contact Advancment@hudsoncatholic.org
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1973
Joseph Accomando
Thomas Botts
William Maher
Joseph Malloy
Michael O'Brien
1985
Thomas O'Donnell
Sung Park
Ronaldo Villa
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1995
Raul Delgado
Hector Torres
2004
Justin Fair
Ricardo Gonzalez
Nicholas Lopez
Jose Santana
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FYI
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Past issues of Building The Legacy are available at hudsoncatholic.org/hawknews
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Advertise your business card here for $25 per issue. Contact Advancement@hudsoncatholic.org
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Post change of address, phone or email to hudsoncatholic.org/stay connected
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Plan a visit back to the Hawks' Nest. Advancement@hudsoncatholic.org
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The Office of Advancement ~ Gary, Jill & Jenine
201-332-5970 x118
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Special thanks to our sponsors: |
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