Junior Ring Mass: Conrad Sperry ’26
My name is Conrad Sperry and I am a member of the Class of 2026. Class Rings and Commemorative Pins serve as a symbol of honor and achievement, but also of personal expression. Nothing is more honorable than seeing our high school’s crest on an item that reminds us of all we’ve accomplished to this point. It symbolizes belonging; it identifies you as a student who belongs to Fenwick High School and to our community; that we are a part of something bigger than ourselves. And with that comes a responsibility to live out the bond we have with each other as classmates.
I’m sure everybody here has their reasons for why they decided to attend Fenwick. For me, I had three cousins who all attended this school. All three are completely different people and all had a great experience. They would always tell me stories about their school experience and about all the great friends they made along the way. Despite my awareness, I still had many questions as I approached my first year at Fenwick. Coming from Park Ridge, I entered Fenwick without knowing many people. I didn’t know if I was going to make the sports teams I wanted to make, achieve what I wanted to achieve academically, and build the relationships that I wanted with my fellow students. Quite frankly, I did not know what my legacy would be. I started my freshman year with a few goals to help answer those questions. I told myself that I wanted to be a great athlete, a great student, and meet a lot of new people. At times achieving these goals were hard. I spent many late nights studying, doing soccer drills in my basement, lifting weights, putting up shots, and working on my ball-handling skills, however, I found that in my pursuit of these goals, this pursuit would shape me as a person. They taught me time management, as I would get home from practice late and then do homework until I went to sleep, thus allowing me the opportunity to gain a work ethic. I wanted to be great, so I worked to be great. As I overcame the challenges I’ve faced over the last three years, I told myself that I would always have a positive outlook on my academic experience no matter how challenging it got.
Last year, as a member of the JV basketball team, we had a matchup against Perspectives High School. At half-time, the boys and I were down by 12 points. Normally in a situation like this, teams get down on themselves, but this was different. I stayed positive but knew that this was going to be a physical game. To win this game, my teammates would have to trust me, and I would have to trust my teammates. In the 3rd quarter, the deficit didn’t change much. In the 4th quarter, we were down 10 points still. Then something amazing happened. We went on a run and eventually, I got a steal and scored a lay-up to tie the game. We ended up winning the game in overtime and never got down on ourselves. A game that would normally end up in a blow-out, ended up turning into a Fenwick win due to the positivity and hard work that our team showed in the second half. This experience further solidified my outlook on my schooling experience and to stay positive.
As everyone knows, Fenwick has a mandatory 30 hours of volunteering that all juniors will have to complete to meet graduation requirements. For my hours, I found myself going to the Westchester Food Pantry. Initially, it was a lot of work, but the more I progressed, I realized how good it felt to help the less fortunate. Through the food pantry, I listened to stories from the less fortunate, built relationships with some of the people I would often see, and felt much more well-rounded. Even when I was on dog food duty, I enjoyed every minute of the volunteering. This is an experience that I most likely would not have done without Fenwick, but experiences like this helped me continue in the right direction. Fenwick helped me build many relationships. Through soccer and basketball, I gained many friendships that I most likely would not have. Overall, Fenwick gave me a sense of belonging and community that I haven’t experienced in my life.
Although we have different circumstances in our experiences at Fenwick, the bottom line is the same. We want to be remembered. We want to know that our time as students of Fenwick High School matters and that we have made some sort of impact here on this earth. You’ll carry your rings and pins as reminders of the difference that you’ve made in the life of Fenwick High School, and the difference that our school has made in your own life. Thank you!
November 1: Dominic Munaretto ’25
Dominic Munaretto ’25 provided the Student Reflection at All-School Mass on Friday, November 1, 2024.
Good morning, students, faculty, staff, and guests. I am Dominic Munaretto of the Class of 2025. Today, we celebrate All Saints’ Day, which commemorates all the saints of the Church who have reached Heaven. As defined by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, saints are “persons in heaven, officially canonized or not, who lived heroically virtuous lives, offered their lives in service to others or were martyred, and who are worthy of imitation.” As Catholics, we can view All Saints’ Day as a time to reflect upon the lives of the saints and remember that they are alongside us on our faith journey.
Today’s second reading comes from the First Letter of St John. Chapter 3, verse 2 states, “Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we shall be has not yet been revealed. We do know that when it is revealed we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2). When considering this reading, I found that it reinforced two ideas for me. The first is that we are all destined to do great things. No matter what doubts we hold about our future and our existence, God has a plan for all of us. Not one person in this room knows for certain what their future holds for them, but we can all rest easily knowing that there are good things to come. Additionally, we must realize that some things will not be revealed until the moment in which God deems it right in our lives. Because of this, it is paramount that we remember to trust in God. Without trust in God, we may feel lost and uncertain about where we are headed. If we instead choose to have faith in God and that he has a plan for all of us, then we may find ourselves more confident in the great things that our future holds.
In my personal experience, I have found that learning about the saints and their lives is one way to strengthen beliefs like those that I just mentioned. For example, consider the life of St. Augustine of Hippo. Before his conversion to a faithful life, St. Augustine was a thief, had an illicit child, and was even a leader of a heretical group. In his memoir titled The Confessions, he wrote, “I was torn piecemeal, while turned from Thee, the One Good, I lost myself among a multiplicity of things…pleasing myself, and desirous to please in the eyes of men.” He led a very secular life and found himself at odds with many teachings of the Church. However, after living this immoral life, God was able to lead St. Augustine into a conversion, after which he went on to become one of the most renowned theologians of all time, to the point of being recognized as a doctor of the Catholic Church. This knowledge of Saint Augustine’s life can help show us that who we are right now does not define who we will become. We are all imperfect, just as the saints were. We are all human, and we all have flaws. Nonetheless, we are all called to live holy lives – to be saints! Just because you are unhappy with your identity at the moment, whether it be spiritually, mentally, physically, or socially, does not mean that you cannot change with God’s help to become the great person that God has created you to be. There is no limit to what we can achieve and who we can become with God by our side. Even if you have strayed so far off of the path that you have been told that you are past a point of no return, God will always accept you back. Do not be discouraged by negative people around you; the only eyes whose judgment truly matters are the eyes of the Lord. Who we are at any given moment does not constrain who we can be in the future; by having faith in God, we can embrace a new path and become whatever and whoever we are called to be.
As we continue to celebrate the Solemnity of All Saints, I challenge all of you to embrace who you truly are called to be and accept the Lord as your traveling companion in this life and in the life to come. Who and what we will be in the future is unknown to all of us. Saint Augustine did not think that he would become a saint when he was a young boy stealing to console his boredom. Saint Paul the Apostle did not have a hint of respect for the Christian faith when he was persecuting and killing Christians, but after his conversion, he went down as one of the fiercest defenders of Christianity. Only God knows who we are truly meant to be, and it is up to us to accept his guidance. By trusting in God and realizing that we can embrace a new path at any given moment, we too can become saints, no matter where we find ourselves spiritually right now. Thank you.
October 4: Sean Bell ’26
Sean Bell ’26 provided the Student Reflection at All-School Mass on Friday, October 4, 2024.
Good morning and welcome to today’s Mass. My name is Sean Bell and I am a part of the Class of 2026.
For today’s readings, you will hear about the story of the Annunciation, in which the angel Gabriel tells Mary that she will be the mother of God. Mary was a virgin, so she was rightfully confused about Gabriel’s message. She wondered how it was possible. How can a virgin give birth to a child? It’s possible because Gabriel says, “For no word from God will ever fail”. Following this, Mary pledges herself to be the Lord’s servant and to trust in him, and the angel departs. Despite the circumstances, Mary puts her faith in the Lord, trusting that he will support and guide her.
Even though it sounded far-fetched, Mary decided to trust Gabriel’s message that she would be the mother of Jesus. She accepted this miraculous and life-changing event with complete trust in God, showing her unwavering faith and submission to God’s will, regardless of the situation. I believe that this is something that we can all reflect on. As Fenwick students, we have all experienced a collective struggle that seemed impossible for us to overcome. For me, it could be a physics test that I was certain would be impossible to pass. For you, it could be when you had to take final exams for the first time. Either way, we have all struggled time and time again. Now, as hard as some of the tests are, I know I cannot compare taking one of Mrs. Esposito’s physics exams to giving birth to the literal child of God, but I think that there is still a message that Mary is sending to us which we need to imitate. Mary showed an incredible amount of faith in God’s plan, and I think that we as Fenwick students should do likewise when we struggle.
Trusting in God’s plan, however, can be really, really challenging sometimes. I myself struggle all too often with having 100% faith in Christ. However, whenever I struggle, I tend to think about my grandmother on my mom’s side of the family. You see, when my mother was only 7 years old, her dad passed away due to brain cancer. Three weeks later, my grandmother’s mother (or my great grandmother) also died. I didn’t get the chance to learn about this struggle firsthand from my grandmother, but this is what my mother told me. My grandmother was so unbelievably stressed with the death of her husband and mother that she worried she would have a nervous breakdown that summer. When my mom gave the eulogy at my grandmother’s funeral, my mom talked about the journal my grandmother kept that same summer. In one passage my grandma wrote, “I am full of doubt that I can do all that should be done for you, but Daddy used to say to me, ‘Don’t be afraid, someone will be there to help you.’” I believe that this “someone” for my grandmother was God. God supports us directly by putting supportive people in our lives and protecting us from harm, and God did that for my grandmother. So, we should have faith in God’s plan, because he protects and aids us through all things. My grandma was a fighter. She was one of the toughest people that I have ever known. Learning she was so doubtful and scared of the future was shocking and seemed so out character for the grandma I knew. But her closing words in that entry demonstrated her faith. She wrote, “And on we go to tomorrow.”
I have been lucky to not face such a difficult challenge like she did. But I will. As will all of us. And I think that it is important that we hold strong and true to ourselves through our faith in God. My grandmother did, even though it was really hard. She went on to raise the best mother, aunt, and uncle in the world.
As we go throughout our day today, or even this week or this year, I want you to know that God has a plan for you. Even in times when everything seems difficult, God is giving us the opportunity to grow and learn to create successes for ourselves and others in the future. Whether it is a school assignment, athletic struggle, or social challenge, know that God will always be there for you and will never abandon you. You will fail in life, and that is okay, because every time we fail, God teaches us, and we grow stronger. We are going to encounter all of these challenges in our lives, and we need to put 100% of our faith in God, because he wants the best for us and will be our protector for all of our lives. When you struggle, trust God and remember, as my grandmother said, that “on you will go to tomorrow.” Thank you.
September 13: Ryann Michelle Dawson ’26
Ryann Michelle Dawson ’26 provided the Student Reflection at All-School Mass on Friday, September 13, 2024.
Good morning Friars,
I’m Ryann Dawson from the Class of 2026. Welcome to Mass. Today is the feast day of Saint John Chrysostom. I know that many of us are probably trying to rack our brains, trying to find out if we’ve heard this name before. This isn’t a man we’ve likely had on any of our quizlets, nor slides on Schoology. But, he has a really fascinating story! He was brought to Constantinople to become the bishop due to him being one of the greatest orators of his day. He was a strong and motivational speaker, but more importantly, he preached profound messages that condemned his peers, AND encouraged the rich and powerful to listen to the original teaching of Jesus, and give their wealth to the poor.
This was no easy task and those around him despised him for it. John Chyrsotom was probably the first person to ever be “canceled” when those in power (who were his peers, mind you) had him exiled.
I retell Saint John’s Chrysotom’s story today because of the way it connects to the first reading. In this reading Paul says, “If I preach the Gospel, this is no reason for me to boast, for an obligation has been imposed on me, and woe to me if I do not preach it!”
We have to remember that St. Paul was beaten, whipped, and stoned yet still continued to share the Gospel because God obligated him to. When we think of important people, especially in the church, we often think that their motivation to do these “great works of God was personal pleasure and can imagine that it came easy to them.”
Saint Paul, the same Paul who wrote countless letters, gave numerous speeches, has been declared a saint, a man who Christians all over the world model their lives after. That very Paul describes sharing the gospel as an obligation, as a duty, not something that brought him pleasure or came natural to him.
The same way Saint John Chrysostom’s duty was to expose the wrong around him, and the same way it was Saint Paul’s duty and obligation to share the gospel, we all have obligations engraved inside of our hearts by God. And even though our circumstances may not always be ideal, we all have a duty and responsibility to bear witness to those things. Whether that be in our homes, during family gatherings or in our classrooms and our school community.
As a personal example, in eighth grade my class read a book called Rules about a young child with autism. As somebody with a person with special needs in my immediate family, it was extremely difficult to hear the generalizations and harsh comments made by teachers and classmates about people with disabilities. I knew they weren’t trying to be malicious, but due to their lack of knowledge many of their comments came across as, well, mean. I ended up speaking up in class and sharing my experience, which to be frank felt absolutely terrifying. My comments were met with a variety of feedback. Most of which were positive, but some of them…not so much.
However, to this day, I don’t regret speaking up. Mainly, because of one classmate talking to me afterwards, expressing the same thoughts I did and sharing their same experience as someone with autism. Sometimes the reward for doing the right thing is in quiet whispers and not huge fanfares. My message was still well received overall and I was able to see a major change in my classroom. Now I know I didn’t change the world, but if we all commit to making small corrections, we make big changes in our homes, schools, and even the world.
I understand that committing to using your voice can be scary. If you know me personally this will definitely come as a surprise… but speaking up, even for good causes…well, it terrifies me. By relying on God, however, I’m able to share messages that are important to me with my peers, friends, and community. The only way I’m able to do it through what Philippians 4:7 best describes as the peace of God that transcends all understanding. I find in those moments of fear, I feel God closest to me as the little voice in my ear saying, keep going.
I’m not afraid to stand here and tell you all that I’ve failed at this as well. My mind constantly replays all the times I heard God tell me to do or don’t do something; and I did things my own way. This doesn’t make me a bad person; it just makes me a real one. So don’t beat yourself up over mistakes, because mistakes are inevitable. Instead, let us focus our energy on how we can help others the next time.
As we continue this school year, let’s remember to put St John Chrysostom and St. Paul’s message into action at Fenwick. It’s essential to us to have the courage to stand up for those in the world being mistreated. Even if that means speaking uncomfortable truths to our own friends.
The obligations God puts in our hearts show up in a variety of different ways. One of which is simply helping others out. For example, When you see someone crying in the bathroom, or looking down , don’t be afraid to start a conversation and check in on them – especially if you don’t know them. You never know when God is using you to make a lasting impact on someone’s life. Some of my worst days have been made better by smiles from a stranger.
So, when you walk in the bathroom and see someone with puffy eyes, especially around finals, make sure to ask them what’s wrong. Language and science finals are really rough, we know this. Not trying to scare anybody up there in the balcony but buckle up and trust me when I say it’s in your best interest to invest in Quizlet plus. You would’ve thought I saw a ghost and not the preterite tense when I walked out my Spanish final last year. But the moment I went to the cafeteria after, someone I didn’t really know offered me some of their Dunkin. This may sound “big-backed” of me, but I felt so much better after a chocolate frosted donut. Spreading the greatest form of love, which is God, to others can be as simple as a bite to eat.
As students, teachers, and faculty members of a Dominican school, let us ask God for the courage and wisdom to be people who stand up for what is right.
And on the flip side of that, may we have the humility to accept the correction of others. Let’s all make a conscious effort to make Fenwick a safe loving environment. It’s not just doing the right thing, it’s doing the only thing that’s right.
August 19: Patrick Gilboy ’25
Patrick Gilboy ’25 provided the student reflection at Mass on Monday, August 19, 2024.
Hello Friars, my name is Patrick Gilboy from the Class of 2025. Welcome to another year, or the first, in your high school journey. The start of any school year is anxiety-filled and expectation-induced. The same anxiety and expectations that we will be reminded of before every test or quiz, concert or game. Maybe even the feeling you felt last night trying to finish your summer reading. Regardless, everyone of us will experience a moment, or a couple moments, of feeling stressed or overwhelmed this year. These are the moments we wish we could have a sense of peace, clarity, or a “spirit of truth.” These are the moments which the readings speak of today.
In today’s gospel, Jesus refers to The Advocate as the “Spirit of truth.” He is talking about the ever mysterious Holy Spirit, the 3rd person of the Holy Trinity. The trinity is 3 persons in 1 God. The first of which is the Father; perhaps the man in the clouds that we so often think of Him. Secondly, the Son, the Word incarnate, Logos, Jesus Christ. Finally, the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is not some distant and mysterious figure that is incomprehensible. The Holy Spirit is love. It is the love that the Father and the Son share, in all of us. It is anything but distant. In the second reading, Paul writes: “To each individual; the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit.” So we all see the way God works in our lives differently. The Holy Spirit is what makes our faith, ours. It is the most personal existence in each of our lives. It is the feeling of love toward our loved ones, the random intuition that leads to our spontaneous acts of kindness everyday. It’s the courage that we have to answer a question in class, or the need we feel to talk to God.
The Holy Spirit acts upon all of us individually, through the gifts that Saint Paul mentioned in the second reading. Those gifts are the 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit that we received in Baptism and were sealed in Confirmation. They are Wisdom, Understanding, Council, Fortitude, Knowledge, Piety, and Fear of the Lord. They are our Faith, which we need to rely on in trial and tribulation. Faith will be necessary in high school, there are too many anxieties to get through it alone. Simply asking the Holy Spirit to guide you, and watching it work silently is often the best prayer.
The Holy Spirit will be your advocate in times of anxiety and adversity, I know it is for me. Some of the people that I have resented became my best friends by simply asking the Holy Spirit to open my heart. Countless times that I have gotten asked about my faith, and had words spill out of my mouth that defended it. Even asking for help to focus during Mass then hearing the Gospel convey the perfect message. We can count on the Holy Spirit to guide our lives in faith, our relationships, and even academically. The Holy Spirit will help you in your faith life by giving you the gifts to recognize God in everything. Whether that be praying before your games, your concerts, the first time you hang out with new people, your hardest class, or even on your summer reading quiz. Although perhaps recall the wise words of Father Matt, “Prayer will help for this exam, but studying will help a lot more.” Thank you.
