HERE ARE THE NOTES TAKEN AT LAST NIGHTS MEETING OF THE COMMITTEE FOR CATHEDRAL ACTION The meeting last night, November 20, 2014 sponsored by the CCA (Committee for Cathedral Action) group ran extremely well. Former District Court Judge Peter Velis was the moderator. He was to be impartial, but at times found himself consumed by the passion, the commitment and the dedication that the group of 400+ supporters displayed.Heres a brief recap of the evening. Sr. Joyce Wise, an alum, gave an encouraging opening prayer. Remarks from Al DiLascia, who chairs the CCA group were from the heart. He said that there is a strong consensus to rebuild and that the purpose of CCA is to rebuild Cathedral on Surrey Road to give students the education they deserve NOW and in the future. He then quoted Cathy Manning: “I didnt attend Cathedral High myself -Im from Eastern MA - but Ive worked with hundreds of young people who did, and they are some of the finest people Ive ever met. The diocese of Springfield needs to rebuild CHS and send a clear message that it places a very high value on Catholic education for its teens.” Al went on to say, referring to the Endowment Fund: “If you don’t water a plant, it will die Remarks from Cathedral student Brendan Markey’16 were terrific. Among other things, he talked about the transportation struggleshe and his classmates face getting to school and practices. He also noted he and his classmates “have been without a home for far too long.”Later in the evening, Pat Garrity, Chair of Cathedral board,mentioned that Brendan is another example of Cathedral continuing its tradition of educating todays students to be tomorrows leaders. He is certain Brendan will be a leader in the future. Remarks from Daryl deVillier (’79) were passionate both as an alum and as a past and present parent of Cathedral High School students. He said he didn’t understand the importance of being a graduate of Cathedral until his kids graduated. “Cathedral grads stand out. I don’t know if it’s the Holy Spirit or a miracle, but they do. Through Catholic education and a rigorous academic program, they are expected to be leaders, to be more than average – to be exceptional.” He added, “Anything worth having, you have to fight for.” Elizabeth Samay, a resident of East Forest Park, shared her compelling story on why, after living in East Longmeadow, she bought a home on Wendover Rd, two houses away from Cathedral. She spoke not as an alum, but as a neighbor and a friend. At one point, she quoted Teddy Roosevelt: “The best thing you can do is the right thing, the second best thing you can do is the wrong thing and the worst thing you can do is nothing.” She also talked about the comeback of The Fort in downtown Springfield and Business West calling the institution “iconic,” “a symbol of Springfield” and a “critical part of Springfield’s DNA.” Then she laughed and said that it’s simply a restaurant and that CATHEDRAL is critical to the DNA of Springfield; that it is “a beacon of light that must continue to shine” and that “where God guides, God will provide.” Truly an awesome story, and from someone who is a strong rebuilding advocate. Sheriff Mike Ashe spoke with humor and with conviction on the importance of Catholic education in Springfield. He said he wouldn’t be Sheriff without Cathedral High and he named by name the nuns who made a difference in his life. He spoke about his grandson Matthew who is in Cathedral’s Accelerated Program for 8th graders and is being mentored by Brendan Markey and Jack Mulcahy. He said that Cathedral offered so many opportunities to so many generations and we don’t want to be the generation to let it die. Margaret Boyle from Congressman Neals office and Jim Leydon from Mayor Sarnos office spoke of the support that both the Congressman and the Mayor have for rebuilding Cathedral. Both Boyle and Leydon are alumni. Tim Allen, Tim Rookeand Ryan McCollum all spoke of supporting the rebuild and the Endowment. Tim Allen also said that he had visited Cathedral earlier in the day and heard only positive things about the school from the students. He noted that one of the seniors who gave him a tour of the building drives from Westfield, which is an hour each way. She comes for the academics, in spite of the fact Cathedral currently has sub-par science labs and no softball team. Pat Garrity spoke on behalf of the Cathedral Board. He acknowledged the hard work and commitment from the principal, John Miller; the President, Ann Southworth; and the faculty and staff during the last three challenging years. He gave a few updates such as the abatement is complete and the utilities will be disconnected by Friday, November 21, making way for demolition. At that point he held up the permit request that had come in Wednesday around 2:00 pm from Costello Dismantling. They will start on Wendover Rd. next week and Surrey Rd. as soon as the week of 12/1. He let everyone know Cathedral has reached $4.7 million of the 10 million dollar endowment goal and that they need approximately 375 more pledges to reach that last part of the DAmour Challenge. He emphasized that the $4.7 million represented donations, pledges and commitments. Michael Langone (’91), an East Forest Park resident, said that he is a plumber and that the Plumber’s Union is pledging to donate $1 per worker per hour they worked on the new Cathedral building. This estimated six-figure pledge is to go to the Endowment Fund. A Cathedral faculty member, Jeremiah Begley, spoke with great enthusiasm and conviction and represented Cathedrals faculty extremely well. He reminded people that “investment” comes from Latin and literally means “to put clothes on.” He tied this to the nuns – clothed in habits - who founded Cathedral. He spoke about needing support saying to the alumni, “We need you now and we’ll always need you.” He challenged people to act as ambassadors for the Cathedral school that helped to shape faith and change lives. Both faculty member Begley and student Brendan Markey received a standing ovation.
Posted on: Fri, 21 Nov 2014 21:30:10 +0000
Trending Topics
© 2015