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‘Outstanding’ Girls’ Golf Team Heads into Conference Championship

The Fenwick Girls’ Golf Team (8-1) had a great week last week with wins over DePaul Prep and Chicago Latin School, reports Varsity Head Coach Mike Trankina ’84. Earlier this month, the Friars bested Providence, Resurrection and Montini by wide margins.

The team captain is junior Lillian Bateman (Western Springs, IL), who “has become a leader both on course and off,” Coach Trankina praises, adding how consistent, reliable, and often dominant she has been throughout the year. “Lillian’s worst rounds have still been solid posts for the team,” he says, “and she has had two rounds in the 30s. She is coming into form as her putting is starting to come back.”

Ms. Bateman is joined by her sister, Charlotte, who is a sophomore and “is definitely the most improved golfer on the varsity,” according to Trankina The team is rounded out by newcomers but experienced competitive golfers sophomore Jordan “JoJo” Wiktor (River Forest) and freshman Kathryn Sweeney (Hinsdale).

On September 22nd vs. DePaul (at Willow Crest), the Friars had their first-ever match against the Rams’ new girls’ golf team. Fenwick was led by Bateman with a 41 and helped by a 42 from senior/varsity newcomer Blaire Lepore (Chicago), a 44 from Sweeney and a 45 from Wiktor.

“We had a collective 46-stroke victory over the promising young DePaul Prep team,” says their coach. Last Thursday came a “huge victory” over a very experienced Latin School team that returned a few state-experienced players from last year, he added. “We were led with an unbelievable par score of 35 from frosh Sweeney, followed by a 39 from Wiktor, 41 from Lillian Bateman and 42 from Charlotte Bateman.”

Mid-month, Fenwick had another great week with wins over Providence and Trinity. “The Providence match was noteworthy because we had all six varsity players score in the 40s for the 9-hole match,” explains Trankina. Sweeney, the frosh, led with a 40, and Lepore shot a 48. Junior Maeve McEnery (Elmhurst) had a personal best 45 in competition. The Bateman sisters and Wiktor were all in the low-mid 40s, forming the core of a strong and balanced team. Against Trinity, the girls had an equally consistent game with Wiktor breaking the 40 barrier with a 39. Fresman Kathryn Sweeney (Hinsdale) had another 40 and is proving to be a consistent scorer for the varsity.

“We have a very young team that is only going to improve over the next few years,” Trankina adds. “I see a huge future with this team. And our JV team is unbeaten so far this year also!”

The varsity squad is rounding into form for the upcoming postseason. They have Senior Day vs. Mother McAuley today, a final full-team match vs. St. Ignatius on Wednesday and the big GCAC Conference Championship on Thursday at White Pines.

Their only loss to date in 2020 is to Loyola Academy, “only by 6 strokes,” Trankina points out. “The Ramblers are a team that perennially goes downstate and also wins conference. We will meet them again in the conference championship.” GO FRIARS!

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If Dogma Won’t Save Us, Nothing Will

Remembering Fenwick and Fr. Regan in the 1940s: “There was a reason for burning incense. Father James Regan knew it and explained it.”

By James Bowman, Sr. ’49 (originally published The Alumni Wick Magazine, spring 1985)

Father Jim Regan, O.P. taught at Fenwick High School for 29 years and was inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame posthumously in 2002. His picture first appears in the 1943 yearbook and every year afterwards through and including 1971. Fr. Regan was born to eternal life in the year 2000.

At Fenwick in the middle and late ’40s, there was this bald, big-eyed priest, always with the armful of papers and pencil, walking along the corridor taking everything in, or sitting as study-period prefect in the library, also taking everything in. He looked like he knew more than he was saying.

A freshman might know him from the servers’ club, where this priest made the point that the incense better be well lit so the smoke could rise high and full. Why? Because smoke rising stood for prayers rising to heaven, that’s why. The freshman had never thought of it that way. There was a reason for burning incense. Father James Regan knew it and explained it.

For the senior who had him for religion, the message was much the same: there’s meaning in religion you haven’t even thought of. Gospel passages were memorized, such as “Behold the lilies of the field, they neither reap nor sow, etc.” with its punch line, “Seek ye first the kingdom of heaven and its justice.” He said lines as if he meant them, and knew whether you knew them by use of the daily quiz.

Fr. Regan in the early 1940s.

That’s what all those papers in his arms were, daily quizzes from four or five classes. There was a lot of tedious work correcting those quizzes. But if he didn’t correct them and get them back, the senior didn’t know where he stood. Lots of them didn’t want to know, but that’s another question.

He quoted a lot from Time Magazine. A man bet he could drink a quart of absinthe in one gulp and live. He did it and died. Nice, obvious mortality for 17-year-old ears.

Or the story of Franklin D. Roosevelt riding in an open car in the rain without a hat on, to make the point that he was vigorous and capable of leading the country. It was one of the anecdotes Father Regan used to point up the Gospel saying, “The children of this world are wiser in their generation than the children of light.” That is to say, followers of Jesus don’t work as hard at following Jesus as others at achieving their worldly ambitions.

Father Regan intended to make points with his seniors. He was very serious about it (entertaining too), and he had a plan: if dogma (doctrine) won’t save them, nothing will. He meant to inundate us with church teaching. He believed in church.

Skip Mass to go fishing on Sunday?

He could be stunned by disbelief or disloyalty. The student who said it was O.K. to miss mass on Sunday to go fishing, became the center of his attention. How could this be? Whence came this creature into our midst, or this idea anyhow? Skip Sunday mass to go fishing?

Not histrionics by the aggrieved father, but genuine amazement (though played out for effect, to be sure). We heard about it in his high-pitched voice, fast-paced speech (mind and lips working at high speed) and windup pause and slight smile for effect. Silence spoke as well as words.

Fr. Regan in the early 1970s.

Discipline … seemed secondary to the business of the classroom or study hall, the classroom especially. It was basically a college-style classroom, senior religion under Father Regan: daily quiz, return of the previous day’s quizzes and extended discussion of missed answers.

He repeated questions time and again until enough of the students got them right. The quizzes were teaching devices, not just checks on retention. Then lecture. The 42 minutes went fast, and up and out we went with books, gym bags and the rest to what the next 42 had to offer, which was rarely better and usually not as good.

He took religion seriously, aided and abetted by the school’s policy which put it on a par with the other four subjects. He took the Scriptures seriously, extracting meaning from gospel sayings that we’d heard from pulpits for years, thinking they had no meaning.

He used the classroom for what it’s good for: indoctrination and motivation. Counting on his students’ faith to supply the impetus, he would put the question about daily mass: what else can you do daily that is worth as much? Time and again, he asked it in those quizzes. He couldn’t force you to go to mass, but he could drill you in the reality of faith, forcing you to choose.

That’s not bad. It took a lot of work and commitment to the life he had chosen. It’s a lesson for us all. It was then for us 17-year-olds, and given a little thought on the matter, it is now, too.

Read more recollections of Fr. Regan from alumnus James Loverde ’64:

Fondly Remembering Father Regan

About the Author

In addition to being a member of Fenwick’s Class of 1949, Jim Bowman is a long-time Oak Parker and former newspaper reporter. Mr. Bowman wrote the “Way We Were” column for the Chicago Tribune Sunday Magazine as well as corporate histories and other books, including books about religious issues. His eighth book, Illinois Blues: How the Ruling Party Talks to Voters, was published in 2016.

Read more about him.

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“So, You Two Wanna Fight, Do Ya?”

A 1958-62 alumnus takes a fist-in-cheek look back at Fenwick’s lost ‘art’ of pugilism, which began at the school in 1930 as an intramural activity.

By Jim Fineran ’62 (originally published in Fenwick’s First 75 Years, 2005)

It was called the boxing tournament but it actually was ‘fighting’ with gloves and rules, because [for many students] the boxing instruction lasted about two minutes. Tony Lawless was the instructor for what he called the ‘Art Course.’ It was strictly voluntary in that Mr. Lawless decided who was to volunteer and who was not. It was not a good time of year (early February) to be on his bad side. Doctors all over the West Side were exhausted from writing excuses for boys to not participate in the ‘Art Course.’

A left uppercut by freshman Ray Heinz slowed fellow frosh Bob Denvir, who recovered to win the 100-lb. class title in 1960.

The bouts consisted of three one-minute rounds with Referee Lawless intoning ‘That’s a round!’ when the minute was up. Of course, if a couple of guys were really going at it, Mr. Lawless would let the rounds go on longer. The tournament commenced on a Friday night in March with ‘The Silver-Gloves:’ a big night of runner-up and championship fights in eight different weight classes. The gym was always packed. [In 1960, some 1,500 fans jammed into the bleachers and balcony.] Tony would bring in ex-pug ‘Tuffy’ Griffiths to referee. ‘Tuffy’ appeared to have taken a few too many shots during his career because it was not unknown for him to ‘put ’em up’ and start feinting when the bell would sound.

Fenwick’s “Silver Gloves” tourney received prominent coverage in Blackfriars’ yearbooks for more than three decades.

I don’t know when Mr. Lawless started all this [it was in 1930, during Fenwick’s infancy], but I do know it came to an end when Fr. Thomas Cumiskey became principal/president (1962-69). More than once he told me that he thought the whole thing was too brutal. Maybe yes, maybe no, but I never knew anyone who got hurt and I think the boxing did a little character-building.

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Common Sense and the Importance of Obeying Rules

What Fenwick was and is: from the school vault …

Bernardi as a Fenwick student.

“I have been thinking about the anecdotes I recall from my years at Fenwick …,” alumnus Judge Donald Bernardi ’69 wrote some 20 years ago from his Bloomington, IL office to then Social Studies Teacher Mr. Louis Spitznagel. More than three decades had passed since Mr. Bernardi’s high-school graduation:

I will go to my grave recalling the image of Tony Lawless standing on the balcony of the pool prior to our exercise and lecturing on the importance of common sense. Mr. Lawless (see above) was fond of reminding all of us that, although we may walk around with a stack of books a foot high under our arm, it doesn’t mean anything if you ‘don’t have common sense.’ These comments were usually preceded by some event that occurred that day which demonstrated a lack of common sense on the part of one of the students.

Fr. Robert Pieper, O.P. was Fenwick’s Director of Discipline at the time.

The second memory that I recall vividly would be that of either an AM or PM assembly resulting from student rule violations. Generally, the assemblies were not pleasant occurences because we were typically advised of what the rules were and who had been breaking them — and then warned not to break them again in the future. Father Pieper would always end these speeches with the following words: ‘Those are the rules, and if you don’t like it, there is the door,’ as he pointed to the back of the auditorium.

The most vivid recollection I have of being at Fenwick in the 1965-69 era was the atmosphere of discipline created by the faculty and staff. The notion of group discipline was foreign to me when I arrived at Fenwick and it caused me to be on edge and alert to problems constantly throughout the school day. I recall numerous ‘Class JUGs’ [detentions] as a result of various persons in my class having misbehaved ….

“Overall, the high quality of the students and the intense academic competition [at Fenwick] made the transition to college remarkably easy.”

Ret. Judge Donald Bernardi ’69
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Collegiate Friars: September 2020

Catching up with Friar young alumni Karina Banuelos ’18 and Luke Cahill ’16.

KARINA BANUELOS

Fenwick Graduation: 2018
Hometown: Chicago
Grade School: St. Richard
Current School:  University of Illinois at Chicago
Major: Pre-Med Neuroscience with a minor in Psychology

Summer Internship: I had originally planned to intern as a part of the “Women in Science” Field Museum summer program, researching plant and fungal interactions in their lab, but due to the ongoing pandemic, these plans had to change. Instead, I currently volunteer at the UI Health Hospital in the Inpatient/Outpatient Pediatric Center, helping children and their families before their appointments, reading to babies, and trying to bring the most fun, interactive engagements I can to patients, even with COVID limitations. Additionally, I volunteer in the Surgical Services Department of the hospital, assisting nurses by providing pre-op and post-op patients with warm blankets, informational take-home folders, and contacting families after surgery. This experience has allowed me to make connections within medicine and view firsthand the intensive work and passion these women and men put into what they love. I also had the opportunity of completing two neuroscience courses offered through Harvard University this summer!

Career aspirations: Ever since I took Ms. Lilek’s [now Mrs. David] Psychology course senior year, I realized my love and fascination of the human brain and its complications, making it more invigorating to learn about! She made the class interactive, challenging us to create our own experiments, testing them out, and then sharing our unique results with the class. These research experiments peaked my interest into what is now my focus in college and career aspiration for the future! After touring the University of Illinois College of Medicine, I was offered the opportunity to be recently placed with a medical student who is now my Neurology mentor throughout my undergraduate career, which I could not be more thankful for! After undergraduate school, I would love to go onto medical school and accomplish my long route dream of becoming a future neurosurgeon.

Fenwick Achievements/Activities: H.O.L.A Club, Medical Club, German Club, Girls’ Water Polo, Girls’ Bowling, St. Catherine/St. Lucy Tutoring

Fenwick teacher who had the most influence on you: I had a couple of faculty members who had much influence on me throughout high school, such as my German teacher, Frau Strom, and my counselor, Mrs. Docherty. They both immensely aided and guided me when I had several questions about the college process and financial aid, needed help with tutoring, or was just someone to help me catch myself when I felt overwhelmed. If it wasn’t for my sophomore chemistry teacher, Ms. Timmons, I don’t believe that I’d be where I stand today. When there was something I didn’t understand, she always offered to stay late and give extra help before class until I confidently understood the lesson, which later led me to my love of science to this day. Even outside of academics, Ms. Timmons made a memorable impact on me that I will always cherish: When I joined water polo my freshman year, I had absolutely no experience competitively swimming and playing sports in the water. From day one, Coach Liz asked me to set goals for myself and constantly pushed me to achieve my best. In the pool and in the classroom, she made me realize that there is no shame in struggling and making mistakes, because that’s how we learn to build that greater version of ourselves and grow into what we want to accomplish. We should also never be afraid to ask for help, because there is probably someone else out there who has the same question as you!

Fenwick class that had the most influence on you: I had the fortunate and beautiful chance of taking Fr. Joe’s theology class my sophomore year. Fr. Joe is someone you can never forget — always happy, laughing and loving life, and putting others first before himself.  He didn’t care who you were or where you came from; just that he loved each one of us individually, and that’s how he went about his teaching. With the same passion and love he had for God, he displayed it onto the students in an interactive way: By dancing, praising and singing to the Lord, and always praying for one another. Much like Kairos, Fr. Joe’s theology class incorporated the Dominican Catholic pillars of prayer, study, community and preaching into our academic and personal lives, which has allowed me to deepen my relationship with God and remind myself to take each beautiful day as it comes. 

Best Fenwick experience/the one you would like to live again: My freshman year at Fenwick, I knew no one going in. Keeping this in mind, I decided to join clubs that I’d thought would help me meet new people. Joining H.O.L.A (Hispanic Outreach and Latino Awareness Club) was probably one of the best decisions I made early on and would love to live again. I was able to connect and share my story with incoming freshmen during open houses and fortunate enough to meet many families from all backgrounds who were interested in learning more about our culture! Mrs. Gallanari also made this club a safe, inviting, fun and informational place where I was able to meet students from similar backgrounds, take part in food drives and Day of the Dead celebrations, learn more and inform others of the Latino culture within the Fenwick community, and ultimately create relationships with the people who are now my closest friends to this day.  

Fenwick experience that changed you the most: I am blessed and forever grateful to have gone to a school that allowed me to open myself to new surroundings, people and experiences, while having an extensive support system to creating my own path. Attending Kairos was the experience that motivated me to grow into the woman I want to be and realize that we should not take our everyday interactions for granted. Life can be simply based on how you perceive it: “Is your glass half full or half empty?” In other words, never be afraid to compliment or share a smile with that random stranger or to just give your family member an extra- long hug or even check up on your loved ones. Be happy and always spread that love around you, because you never know when someone could be needing it. I also learned that we tend to get ahead of ourselves and become so preoccupied with the world around us, that sometimes we need to hit “pause” on our life, and be thankful for what and whom we have. So, to everyone at Fenwick who has watched me grow as a student, friend, athlete and, now alumna, and to those who have helped me when I struggled, a huge THANK YOU for everything you’ve given me those four years and now!

LUKE CAHILL

Fenwick Graduation: 2016
Hometown: Naperville, IL
Grade School: Washington Junior High
College: Graduated from Regis University (Denver, CO) in May 2020
Major: Finance & Accounting

Summer Internship: 2019 internship – Marathon Petroleum Corporation

Career aspirations:  I started a full-time position in June 2020 working for Prologis, a real estate investment trust, as a Capital Expenditure Specialist in Denver.

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