BCHS Alumni news

1. BC Alumni Newsletter
March 2021

2. Alumni Spotlight
Back in January when
we hosted a virtual
cocktail party before
the Art Auction we
were joined by Mer-
cedes. It was an
amazing treat to
“meet” Mercedes and
hear about her time
at St. John’s High
School. We know you
will enjoy catching
up with this wonder-
ful and inspiring
Alumni.
One thing that growing older offers is a retrospective
journey that bolsters the perspective about one’s
past. My years at St. John’s High School laid the foun-
dation for earning a Ph.D. and eventually chairing
the Department of Education at Agnes Scott, a wom-
en’s college in Atlanta. Be realistic about the chal-
lenging moments, but celebrate the successes.
I am a 1955 graduate of St. John’s High School, now
John S. Burke Catholic High School. In those years,
the student body also came from a broad geographic
area (except West Point families) but there the like-
ness ends. Our faculty was all nuns; no lay teachers.
Lunch was brown-bagged from home. Water from a
fountain. I can remember taking my turn sweeping
under the classroom desks with a brush and dust
pan. Don’t remember a janitor. We had NO SPORTS,
neither female nor male. Our athletics included ei-
ther a lunchtime walk, weather permitting, or re-
trieving a basketball from under the auditorium/gym
stage for a game of basketball. The girls, of course
play half-court, which brings up a repeating theme of
the second half of the 20th century, female inequity.
More about that later. The building itself was on
about a half acre. In my minds eye, it looks like a tall,
fortress-like building, originally called Garr Hall. But
looking back, it’s not the building that dominates my
feelings.
THEN AND NOW. A CONTRAST
Mercedes Smith
St. John’s High School ‘55
How St. Johns Built Student Success
This is a good point to transition to how the facul-
ty contributed to my academic success and pre-
pared me for life. I fondly remember the nuns be-
cause they cared for and nurtured each student in
a way that was palpable. As an example of my
warm feelings, I chose Mercedes as my confirma-
tion name, because my most favorite St. John’s
teacher was Sister May Mercedes. Retrospectively,
the nuns individualized learning before there was
a name for it. To this point, I was encouraged by
the principal, Sister Mary Agnes, to take a 3rd year
of French, a 4th of Latin, and algebra, essentially
taking all the advanced classes offered. Being the
only teacher qualified to teach these, she sched-
uled all my independent studies with her. In es-
sence, she did double duty as my counselor and
teacher. For me, it meant preparation for yearly
Regents exams so I could qualify for the academic,
college-bound diploma and scholarships. Besides
urging me to reach for higher scholarships goals,
Sister Mary Agnes encouraged me to run for stu-
dent council president. I did and won against a
make classmate. I consider the strong student
body vote for me an honor. All this focused dedi-
cation paid off when I graduated as Valedictorian,
and earned 2 New York State scholarships, plus a
few others to Catholic Colleges. Sister Agnes de-
serves no small credit for her part in this achieve-
ment.
Post High School Memories
The first steps in my long career were spent on
earning my degrees over a 15 year period. Since, I
was married with 2 children during the bulk of my
educational and early career years, I had to ration
and prioritize both time and energy. Other women
will recognize having juggled the same roles as
mother, wife and career. I clearly remember a time
my son was sick. I found myself explaining to my
professor why I had failed his pop quiz due to my
inability to focus on a homework assignment. For-
tunately, my husband was a constant champion.
While living in Atlanta, I completed my undergrad
and Masters course work at Georgia State Univer-
sity. In the late ‘60s we temporarily moved to Con-
necticut. While there, I taught at a middle school
and spent weekends and summers researching my
Master’s thesis, which investigated the women's’
suffrage movement in England during the late
1800’s. As my husband and I turned our thinking
to my Ph.D., he suggested that I interview at Yale.
My experience at Yale is a quintessential– example

3. l of what educated women faced when they dared try to
enter major elite universities, or step into the men’s job
market. As the interview waned, I was prompted to call
in my husband from the waiting room. The ultimate in-
sult was when the Professor turned and explained to my
husband, not me, that Yale did not accept women. Short-
ly afterward, we returned to Atlanta where I completed
my PhD. The Yale experience was not the only gender
discrimination experience I endured. I was refused a
credit card in my name, and denied a small boat handling
certificate bye the Connecticut Power Squadron. They
did offer it to my husband which he vehemently refused.
My Favorite Career Opportunities
Achieving a Ph.D. opened doors for me. I enjoyed years
of college teaching and administration, with the afore-
mentioned time as Department Chair at Agness College.
Then followed my opportunity to serve in two emerging
fields: middle schooling and after-school programming. I
can’t fully express how exciting it was to be on the cut-
ting edge of both these movements.
Middle schooling, during its birthing in the 1960’s and
1970’s, clearly was a revolutionary concept. The founda-
tional philosophy behind middle schools is grounded in
the academic, emotional, social and spiritual nature and
needs of the 6th through 8th grade child. To truly meet
their needs, these years must be recast as a distinct devel-
opmental phase, no longer viewed as an extension of
childhood, but a transitional period from childhood to
adolescence, deserving recognition as a unique passage in
human development. Most significantly, this is the time
they begin to develop their identity, who they are as a
person. The middle school years heretofore had been
written off as just a phase. Adult attitude was, just wait,
the phase will pass if we just ignore it. As we shall see,
this new concept had and still has ramifications for every
aspect of the school setting. I first encountered middle
schools in Connecticut where I team taught with two
other teachers, and learned to love middle schoolers. But
it was when I accepted a professorship at Georgia College
following my PhD graduation that I was immersed in
middle school philosophy. My Dean, John Lounsbury,
known internationally as the Father of Middle Schools,
took me under his wing. The more I learned about mid-
dle schooling, the more I became convinced of its validity
and value. So how does middle school fulfill early adoles-
cents’ developmental needs? By building an ecosystem
that responds to their needs.
Taking physical development first. At this age chil-
dren's bodies and minds develop more rapidly than dur-
ing the first 2 years of life. This often results in awkward-
ness as their bodies morph in weird, scary ways. Different
body parts change at different rates. Fast growth often
causes physical pain. Girls usually develop earlier than
boys, which also adds social implications. Sud-
denly, body odors need adult intervention, per-
haps a school nurse to discuss personal hygiene.
Good air flow is a must, and likely air condition-
ing as well. They need more sleep because their
rapid growth rate consumes enormous energy.
To accommodate this need, many schools have
adjusted the scheduled middle school arrival to a
later hour. Otherwise, they may find their stu-
dents falling asleep on their desk, or just exhibit-
ing an inability to focus on learning. As you can
see, middle school years can be a tough time for
some kids.
Focusing on the emotional development, it’s
critical for educators and parents, to recognize
that the physical maturity of early adolescents
far out paces their oft fragile emotional develop-
ment. Their awkward attempts to declare inde-
pendence can aggravate adults who wonder
what happened to the recently adult-pleasing
child. Think of the emotional impact this might
have. A boy, puzzled about this new body that
constantly changes, is worrying about tripping
over his feet as he passes a cute girl in class.
Heaven forbid that a teacher should call on him
to answer a question and embarrass him further!
Now let’s focus on social development, which
comes easily to some kids and challenging to
others. Helping children learn positive ways to
interact with other children and adults should
be a focus of teachers and parents. Also, early
adolescence is a uniquely opportune time to
build character, nurture confidence and practice
making good-friend choices. Learning to regu-
late their emotions, and use conflict resolution
are vital skills. Not yet being emotionally ma-
ture, early adolescents may also struggle with
peer pressure. Such challans offer opportunities
for adult guidance. These children also need op-
portunities to contribute and to take charge
which can build their confidence. Finally, as they
enter 6th grad, stability supports them as they
try new things, often making mistakes. Moving
to a new
environ-
ment tend
to upend
their confi-
dence and
may under-
mine their
confidence
and self
esteem.

4. My involvement with after-schooling piggybacked on my
work with middle schools. When I first became aware of
after school programming, it was called after school care,
in reality babysitting. I was approached by a lady who
had a vision of founding an organization that provided
guidance toward enriching middle school after school
programs. Together we secured funding and so the Geor-
gia Afterschool Association was born. We published the
first curriculum plans for early adolescence, including
community service, which in those formative years was
restructured as service learning. Th latter is characterized
by the preparation for and debriefing after the service,
that make community service a truly learning experience.
Concluding Thoughts
As Burke Catholic ventures into middle schooling, I want
to emphasize how congruent their values are with those
of traditional middle-age schooling. The founding gener-
ation of middle schooling used a more secular word,
“spiritual” rather than religion, to include students of all
faiths. They emphasized a “value-infused curriculum”
that prepared middle schoolers for real world responsi-
bility, in short, to fight for social justice, which is exactly
what your motto says. I clearly witnessed my mentor,
Dean Lounsbury, act from this moral center, without re-
gard for negative impact on his career. Your motto, Non
Vox Sed Votum, states exactly that. Action, not words, is
the measure of a person. Burke Catholic’s mentoring pro-
gram parallels the service learning of the foundling mid-
dle school movement, which included “identifying, devel-
oping and encouraging individual students talents to be
used for the good of others.” As far as changes in the
middle school philosophy I believe that in the past 50
years, part of our society has moved away from these val-
ues. Burke Catholic values can only strengthen those of
the original middle school movement.
Writing this allowed me to unpack memories of my work
with and for early adolescents. I thank you for that and,
I’m certain your venture into middle schooling will be
successful. My best wishes are with you.

5. Class of '67...Life was different then. Tuition
was $10-15 a month. Most of Burke Catholic
High School faculty members were the won-
derful Sisters of the Presentation of the
Blessed Virgin Mary. Our teachers were hap-
py, dedicated and people of great faith. Only
boys ran to be school president on the Stu-
dent Council. We girls could be vice presi-
dent!! When we started at Burke, the only
sport for girls was cheerleading. We did get a
gym and basketball team in time. I was in-
volved in Liturgy Club, Math League, school
plays and Student Council. Our prom was in
the gym. Community Service was im-
portant. Fun fact-my mom worked for John S.
Burke at B. Altman's in Manhattan.
Did Burke Catholic influence my
life? It sure did! I became a Presentation Sis-
ter over fifty years ago. In 1976, I was assigned
to teach Math and Religion at Burke. I was in
my twenties, teaching students for whom I
babysat and the brother of one of my old boy-
friends! I brought students to volunteer at
Special Olympics and we took trips to the
Catholic Worker in Manhattan. We got to
meet Dorothy Day. I had fun running Ski
Club and Tennis Club (ask Mr. Douthit!)
I helped to start the tennis team and
was asked to start the Girls' JV Bas-
ketball Team. We won one game the
first season-my last season, we only
lost one!
I still ski and play tennis. I have
golfed in most of the Burke Outings.
One year I won closet to the pin,
beating out a Burke grad who
thought he had won! Today I am a
pastoral associate at St. Joseph Parish
in West Milford, NJ. I have been
working with the elderly, the sick and
the poor for over 35 years.
Voice of Eagles Past
Sr Janet Brisky ‘67

6. The Burke Catholic Hall of Fame recognizes and honors BC alumni, faculty, staff, and extended
family who exemplify the highest ideals of Catholic education and live by the standards of our school
motto, “Non Vox Sed Votum” – Not Words but Deeds.
Since 2002 we have been honoring the inductees at our annual BCHS Family, Friends & Alumni Gala.
We are looking forward to celebrating our 2020 Hall of Fame Inductees when we can all gather togeth-
er again. In the meantime, we will highlight one these amazing men and women in each month’s
newsletter.
2020 Burke Catholic Hall of Fame Inductees
Rory Brady
Andrew Rivas
Katherine Juliano
Cynthia Philips
Burke Catholic Hall of Fame
Cynthia Phillips BC ‘70
Cindy exemplifies our motto Non Vox Sed
Votum. She has spend her life applying her
Catholic education and the values she
learned at Burke to help others less fortu-
nate in her community. Cindy has an ongo-
ing dedication to making her community
and the world a brighter place.
Peter Haggerty BC
Cindy was a good friend of mine from
grade school on. Cindy always had a
kind word and was a friend to all dur-
ing her elementary school years at St.
Joseph’s in Middletown and Burke
Catholic. Her smile and her laugh are
infectious!
Sharon Diana Therriault BC ‘70

7. ’

8. It is almost that time of year...
ge
p-
n
-
o
Send us your prom pictures… kdwyer@burkecatholic.org
The BC Family & Friends Facebook
Page is a great way to keep up on all
the happenings at BCHS. Check our
page often for updates and to learn
about upcoming events. You can al-
ways reach out to us there with any
questions.
Are you in?

9. BC Day of Giving
May 26, 2021
Celebrate with us…
BC Day of Giving
Join us in celebrating BC’s Inaugural Day of Giving on May 26. Celebrate
all things BC while supporting our students. This is a day the entire BC
community: alumni, parents, faculty and staff will show their love for
BC and our students.
Together we can continue to build a school where success is a tradition.
Stay tuned!
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for all the
latest Day of Giving updates and ways you can
make an impact.

10. Points of Pride
BCHS had articulation agreements with 4 prestigious Catholic Colleges.
All eligible graduates are guaranteed
ACCEPTANCE and SCHOLARSHIP .
BCHS continues to Redefine the Possible

11. BC Family, Friends & Alumni Gala
Update...
New date coming soon...

12. our
Our 1st Annual BC
Alumni BBQ is just
around the corner!
Mark you calendars.
It’s going to be a great
day!
SAVE THE DATE

13. our
Camden Olivero & his partner Dan Feliciano (a Middie but don't hold it
against him) are proud to announce the opening of ClothesLyne.
Inspired by the growing gig and share econ-
omies ClothesLyne is the Airbnb of the laun-
dry world. As an e-commerce marketplace,
ClothesLyne provides an outlet for laundry
haters to outsource their time-consuming
laundry needs while also creating an income
source for service providers. To facilitate the
connection ClothesLyne developed an
online and app-based marketplace that pro-
vides customers with several different ser-
vice providers (traditional Laundromats and
nontraditional gig workers) based on the
customer’s laundry needs. All
laundry services include pick up
and delivery at the customer’s
preferred address as well as a
menu of upgrades to ensure
each customer's needs are met.
Additionally, the marketplace
provides employment and an in-
come source at rates well above
minimum wage for our service
providers. ClothesLyne will
launch in May in our local com-
munity.
For more information check
out www.clotheslyne.com and
follow us on social media @clotheslyne
Business Spotlight
Camden Olivero ‘18

14. MENTORSHIP AND
JOB OPPORTUNITIES
Faith Ferguson (BC Class of ‘82) -Stage Coach Inn
We are hiring! Calling all hospitality professionals to
join our stellar team Stagecoach Inn is a great place
to work and we welcome everyone to apply for all
positions on our website. We are looking for bar-
tenders, servers, dishwashers and housekeepers.
Click here to apply: https://stagecoachny.com/work-
with-us
Kevin Hickey (BC Class of ‘99) - Currently looking
for 10-13 REMOTE Data Scientists for a leading Euro-
pean Bank for a multi year contract with the poten-
tial to convert to full time. Start Date slated for
Monday, May 3rd. Please contact me
at Kevin.Hickey@txminc.org for a confidential dis-
cussion
Ellen Roesch (BC Class of ’78) – CEO of Ellen
Roesch Your College Coach. Let Ellen simplify the
college process for you. She offers full service college
selection and application coaching. Ellen is experi-
enced and knowledgeable in selection criteria, appli-
cation success & how to write a great essay. You will
get personal one-on-on attention from beginning to
end. Priced to fit all budgets and needs. Learn more
at yourcollegecoach.org. You can reach Ellen at
taxlawyer20@gmail.
Jeanine Grillo (BC Class of ‘12) - Jeanine is gradu-
ate of St. Thomas Aquinas (2016) and works as a
Senior Associated for Innovation & Enterprise Solu-
tions at KPMG. She has been working with students
through KPMG’s University and Internship Program
and also offers services independently. Jeanine is
ready to help young professionals navigate the job
market and coach them early on in their careers.
Contact Jeanine at jgrillo@kpmg.com
MILESTONES
Collen Coda ‘95 - Partner at 22C Capital
LLC
Kevin Hickey ‘99 - Senior Vice President
at TXM Group
Lexi Avanzato‘08 - Started as Project
Manager at Pantel Electric
Meghan Kerr ‘13 – Display Manager at
Dentsu, Ireland
Madison Olivero ‘15 - named Officer,
Investment Consultant II at Merrill Edge
Heath Hoovler ‘18 - Athletic Depart-
ment Intern at Hanover Area Junior/
Senior High School
Michael Wajda ’19 - passed his FAA
flight examination and is now a licensed
commercial pilot. He is a sophomore at
Utah Valley University studying aviation
science where he has a 3.9 GPA. Mi-
chael will next work to earn his flight
instructor certifica-
tion.

15. A Re-Imagining of Catholic Education in Orange County
Burke Catholic Academy
Burke Catholic Academy is a new middle school program that allows for students to
attend 6th-8th grade on the campus of John S. Burke Catholic High School.
To be chosen by the Archdiocese of New York to launch this innovative pilot pro-
gram is a testament to Burke Catholic’s commitment to being the premier college
preparatory school in the New York Hudson Valley Region.
We are excited to expand our legacy of academic excellence to our new Burke
Catholic Academy middle school students.
Registration information contact:
John Douthit, President – jdouthit@burkecatholic.org
Tracy Sullivan, Director of Admissions – tsullivan@burkecatholic.org

16. Your gift will have an immediate impact on all BCHS students.
Light the way for today’s students, so that they can find their way to impact
the world.
To make your gift today, please visit
www.burkecatholic.com
To double the impact of your donation check to see if your company participates in a matching
gift program - please visit
https://doublethedonation.com/BCHS
BC Alumni Newsletter
February 2021
ReVitalize, ReEngage, ReConnect
Office of Alumni and Advancement

17. If you would like to be in-
cluded in the next news-
letter or have a Milestone
or story you would like to
share, contact Karen Dwyer:
kdwyer@burkecatholic.org
Contact Information
John S. Burke Catholic High School
Office of Admissions, Alumni and Advancement
80 Fletcher St, Goshen, NY 10924
(845) 294-5481 ext 132
burkecatholic.com
facebook.com/burkecatholichighschool
facebook.com/BCadmissionsandadvancement
twitter.com/burkecatholichs
instagram.com/burkecatholichs