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A Heartfelt Message of Gratitude, Forgiveness and Love

Families and students in attendance at the 2018 NHS Induction Ceremony heard a rare blend of wisdom and wit from Mr. Tom Draski – with famous quotations ‘peppered in’ for emphasis.

The Fenwick National Honor Society (NHS) recognized 147 seniors at this year’s induction ceremony held Oct. 14th at St. Vincent Ferrer Church in River Forest, IL. Science Teacher and Tennis Coach Mr. Tom Draski was invited to address the inductees and their parents. (Mr. Draski is the 2018 Rev. George Conway Outstanding Teacher Award Recipient.)

Mr. Draski

Mr. Draski prepared remarks mixed around teaching ideas, personal stories and quotations. His speech was themed around the NHS’s four pillars and on a personal message: Seven words that can make you rich.

1st NHS Pillar: Scholarship

Mr. Draski questioned the group on how smart they really were:

  • Are you smart enough to recognize good friends?
  • Smart enough to recognize the wisdom of their parents?
  • Smart enough to recognize what makes you happy?
  • Smart enough to see thru problems?
  • Smart enough to recognize how unique and special God made you?

To highlight these points, he employed quotes from Mark Twain, Nathaniel Hawthorne and Christiane Collange.

2nd NHS Pillar: Leadership

How do individuals inspire others to do more than they thought they could do? Are you a leader in your family, among your friends? Quotes used by Mr. Draski to highlight leadership came from John C. Maxwell, Robin Sharma and Mary Pickford.

3rd NHS Pillar: Service

Mr. Draski stressed remembering service, to each other, to our country, to our planet and to God.

  • Service is our beliefs and thoughts turned into action.
  • Service can happen all the time, not once in a while.
  • Service is sharing peace with others.

Quotes used to highlight this pillar came from Saint Mother Teresa, Sister Mary Macaluso and Mary Kay Ash.

4th NHS Pillar: Character

What is character?

  • If you have character, you always do your best.
  • If you have character, you are a person with a giving heart.
  • If you have character, you know the real secret of happiness.
  • If you have character, you look on the bright side.
  • If you have character, you know what is important to fight for.

Quotes used to highlight character came from John McCain, Thomas Edison, J.M. Barrie, Henry Ward Beecher and Abraham Lincoln.

After talking about the four pillars of NHS, Mr. Draski gave the group a message on how to become rich. It involves investing in the use of seven words. These seven words may not make you rich financially, but your heart will overflow with treasure:

THANK YOU

Mr. Draski emphasized the importance of using these words to anyone who has made an impact on your life in many different ways — from teachers, to coaches, to friends and classmates, to relatives, to people you meet only once in your life, and especially to your parents. (Quotes used in this section by Mr. Draski were by Albert Schweitzer, Georgia O’Keefe, and Confucius.)

I’M SORRY

Mr. Draski mentioned times we put off saying we are sorry. Don’t put it off. Feel a weight lifted from you and gain respect from another. (Quotes: from Louisa May Alcott.)

I LOVE YOU

Practice saying I love you often. Don’t be afraid of saying I love you. Tell your friends you love them. Tell your parents you love them. And tell all the rest of the remarkable people in the world who have made you who you are, “I love you.” Mr. Draski used quotes in this section from Walter Winchell, Jennie Churchill, the Bible-Leviticus 19:18 and Erma Bombeck. “I love you all,” he told the church audience.

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Fenwick Junior Spent Two Weeks as a Cardiothoracic Surgical Intern

The adjective resourceful doesn’t even begin to describe Xonhane Medina, an ambitious teenager who excels in the classroom and in the pool as a girls’ water polo player.

By Mark Vruno

If there’s one thing that Fenwick go-getter Xonhane Medina doesn’t lack, it’s heart.

Most 16-year-olds can’t pronounce the medical term cardiothoracic, let alone know what is means. But last summer, Fenwick student Xonhane Medina ’20 — now a junior — spent two weeks in Northern California as a cardiothoracic intern at Stanford University. (For the record, cardiothoracic surgery is the field of medicine involved in surgical treatment of organs inside the thorax — generally treatment of conditions of the heart and lungs.)

Fenwick Girls’ water polo head coach Jack Wagner has a hard enough time pronouncing Medina’s first name. He affectionately calls her “Shawn.” And anyone who knows the gruff exterior of Wagner knows that Jack doesn’t brag. Here he was, however, bragging about Xonhane – not about her MCAC All-Conference status as a sophomore last season (his Friars took second in state, by the way). He was boasting about this phenomenal internship she orchestrated.

“This kid, she set up her own funding!” he exclaimed.

Every day, Medina received a new pig heart on which to slice and clamp.

Due in part to being a huge fan of the “Grey’s Anatomy” TV series when she was younger, Ms. Medina was interested in doing some type of a medical-related internship. She began her search online. Her cousin’s fiancée is a pediatric surgeon at the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital in Palo Alto, CA, so Stanford was on her proverbial radar. A similar opportunity at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, also had captured her attention.

“I knew they were a reach,” Ms. Medina admits. For one thing, Xonhane knew her family could not afford the $6,500 price tag. Yet, as the late advertising guru Leo Burnett once said: “When you reach for the stars you may not quite get one, but you won’t come up with a handful of mud either.” So, Xonhane reached high.

Not knowing how to begin the process, she reached out to Paul Morgan, a director at the Daniel Murphy Scholarship Fund, who became her educational sponsor.  Medina is one of the Fenwick students receiving financial aid from the Murphy organization, which for 29 years has been providing high school scholarship assistance and educational support to Chicago students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

She reached higher, next asking for letters of recommendation from Fenwick teachers, including Andy Arellano (speech) and Shana Wang (English) as well as, of course, Wagner, her coach. In early March she received her letter of acceptance. Subsequently, she received $4,000 from the Oak Park-based Farther Foundation. She put that money toward the $3,000 housing fee and air fare. She had enough money left over to buy some Stanford sweaters. “That was literally the only thing I bought,” reveals Medina, who, when she’s not doing homework or working out in the basement pool at Fenwick, works weekends as a cashier downtown at Navy Pier.

Internship Itinerary

The Cardiothoracic Surgical Skills and Education Center Stanford Summer Internship is designed to educate high school and pre-medical students considering careers in science, medicine and public health in basic and advanced cardiovascular anatomy and physiology as well as medical and surgical techniques that will be used in pre-medical and medical school. In 2018 the two-week experience ran from June 24 – July 7.

The typical morning (9:30 a.m. – 12 noon) was dominated by lectures, according to Medina. Anatomy of the entire body was led by a pair of third-year medical students. Then, discussions on different types of surgeries were led by senior scientist Paul A. Chang, co-founder of the Cardiothoracic Surgical Skills and Education Center. She learned that there are two main heart surgeries: 1) valve replacements and 2) coronary artery bypass grafts.

Xonhane clamped onto her two-week internship experience on the West Coast.

After lunch came four full hours of hands-on, laboratory time. “This was my favorite thing,” Xonhane offers, enthusiastically. Each day, she and her lab partner received a new pig heart on which to slice and clamp. They learned how to use several cardiovascular, surgical instruments, such as:

  • forceps: a pair of pincers or tweezers used in surgery or in a laboratory.
  • Debakey forceps: a type of atraumatic tissue forceps used in vascular procedures to avoid tissue damage during manipulation. (They are typically large, and have a distinct coarsely ribbed grip panel, as opposed to the finer ribbing on most other tissue forceps.)
  • Gerald Tissue Forceps: a light- to intermediate-weight instrument with very narrow tips specifically used to handle delicate tissue. They are often used in cardiothoracic procedures. About seven inches in length with serrated tips, Geralds feature 1 x 2 teeth to securely grasp the tissue, but also have a stop peg to prevent an overly harsh grasp that may crush the tissue.
  • Mayo: Straight-bladed Mayo scissorsare designed for cutting body tissues near the surface of a wound.
  • aortic cross-clamps: surgical instruments used in cardiac surgery to clamp the aorta and separate the systemic circulation from the outflow of the heart.

She and her partner even had to apply sutures or stitches to aorta-dissected hearts. “We had competitions [with other interns] to see who could stitch the fastest,” Medina reports. “We also competed to see how fast we could ligate six [blood] vessels on the aorta.” The athlete in Xonhane liked the contests, but the fierce competitor is quick to point out that she came to Fenwick for academics — not for water polo.

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Guest Blog: WHY DONATE TO FENWICK?

As 2018 draws to a close, an alumnus shares his personal story about the importance of all alumni Friars giving back to their beloved high school alma mater.

By Jack Flynn ’51

Jack Flynn, Fenwick Class of 1951

When I graduated from Fenwick in 1951 and moved on to the University of Notre Dame, I discovered that I was better prepared for college than many of my classmates. I also thought that I was at Fenwick during their Golden Years with almost a complete staff of Dominican priests in every position except athletics.

When my son, Michael, graduated from Fenwick in 1977 and went to Michigan, he also found that he was much more prepared for college than most of his classmates. He also discovered that he had such a wonderful group of Fenwick classmates that it was great to get a job in Chicago and be socially engaged with the same pals he had in high school, plus some from grammar school.

“Young men and women with strong learning skills, faith and discipline can succeed even during these difficult times.” – Fenwick Friar Jack Flynn

 

Jack’s son, Michael, graduated from Fenwick in 1977. (Photo courtesy of NAI Hiffman.)

Now I have four grandchildren who have graduated from Fenwick and seem to be on a path to do better than the parents or their grandparents. [One grandson presently is a junior.] Young men and women with strong learning skills, faith and discipline can succeed even during these difficult times. It takes great leadership and strong support from alumni and friends to keep Fenwick at the top of its game.

High school is very important in the development of young people, and I would guess that 80% of the students are indebted to Fenwick for a good portion of their success in college – and that carries forward. Close to 100% of the students that were serious about doing well in high school are probably delighted by the outcome.

We should all step forward to support Fenwick with a meaningful gift. Fenwick is not asking you for a great sacrifice, but at least to do something that indicates you feel good about the education you received.

Please consider making a gift today.

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Advent Has Come!

Bishop Barron tell us, “The only way up is down.”

By Brother Joseph Trout, O.P.

Welcome to Advent! This is one of my favorite seasons of the church year, though it can easily get lost, sandwiched between Thanksgiving and Christmas. That really is a shame because of how odd this season is: We begin by thinking about the end of the world. Yes, the Catholic Church begins its new liturgical year and the build-up to Christmas by pondering the end of time.

Of course, we claim the return of Christ in the last days truly is what we all want because he will put an end to suffering and injustice, so it’s not exactly a doomsday message. However, it is still sobering to ponder where all of life is going and to wrestle with the truth that we don’t live in a particularly just world now. I don’t know about you, but I would love for a world without “harm or ruin,” as the prophets promise. I’d also love to live in a world where I don’t make any mistakes that cause pain around me. Alas, that is not this world yet.

That is why advent is a season of hope — hope for the coming of perfect mercy and justice. It’s a gritty virtue for people in need, not the fluffy one often imagined. It’s the virtue of being on a journey towards God and trusting goodness really will reign one day. It’s for those who don’t have everything they want and know they need something more. We need Christ, the light who shines in the darkness. We also need to ponder the darkness if we want to appreciate the light.

Though it says nothing about advent or Christmas, I find Bishop Barron’s video, “Dante and the Spiritual Journey,” a great way to get this season of hope started. Dante’s Divine Comedy tells of the life as a pilgrim and the ways we can get lost on the journey. Barron’s line that catches me every time I watch the video is: “The only way up is down.”

Los Angeles Auxiliary Bishop Robert E. Barron

Without spoiling the video for you, Barron reminds us that we have to wrestle with the reality of our sins, the limits of earthly life and finite creation if we ever really want to find joy. We can’t receive the love of God and others this season if we don’t let go of selfishness first. After all, ’tis the season of paradoxes where we begin at the end and embrace the omnipotent God of justice in the form of a defenseless child. So why not go down to go up first?

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Fenwick Faculty Profile

8 Friars’ Teachers and/or Administrators Hold Advanced, Doctoral Degrees in Their Fields of Expertise

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Fenwick’s academic doctors (from left): Drs. Lordan, King, Woerter, Porter, Quaid, Slajchert and Peddicord. (Dr. Kleinhans is not pictured.)

In addition to Fenwick President Fr. Richard Peddicord, O.P., who has a Ph.D. in Moral Theology from the University of Ottawa/St. Paul University, seven of his colleagues also have earned advanced, doctoral degrees:

  • Dr. Jonathan King
    Theology Teacher
    Ph.D. in Historical Theology, St. Louis University     
  • Dr. David Kleinhans
    Science Dept. Co-Chair
    J.D. (Juris Doctor) in Intellectual Property, John Marshall Law School
  • Dr. Gerald Lordan, O.P.
    Faculty Mentor
    Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction, Boston College
  • Dr. Marissa Porter
    Latin Teacher
    Ph.D. in Classics, University of Texas – Austin
  • Dr. James Quaid
    Director of Student Services & Enrollment Management/Social Studies Teacher
    Ph.D., Educational leadership, Foundations and Counseling, Loyola University Chicago
  • Dr. Michael Slajchert
    Theology Teacher
    J.D., Loyola University Chicago
  • Dr./Fr. Dennis Woerter, O.P. ’86
    Director of Campus Ministry & Chaplain
    D.Min., Preaching in the Practice of Ministry, The Iliff School of Theology (Denver)

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Forever Friars: Ronald C. Smith, Class of 1951

Known as “Red Dog,” the U.S. Navy veteran and long-time teacher of the law was 84 years old.

Ronald Charles Smith, Professor Emeritus at The John Marshall Law School, died at about 2:30 a.m. on October 19, 2018, at St. Benedict’s Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Niles, IL, where he had lived for several months while undergoing treatment. He is survived by his wife of 47 years, Mary Ann Scherer Smith; his sons, Michael (Liv Rainey) Smith and Matthew (Carolyn Chandler) Smith; his goddaughter,  Margaret Thompson Blumberg, and his cousins Philip, Jonathan and Mark Thompson.

A memorial service will be held on Sunday, December 16, 2018, between 2:00 and 4:00 p.m. at Loyola University’s Piper Hall, 970 West Sheridan Road, in Chicago.  Free parking is available at the Loyola lot at Sheridan and Winthrop.

The family asks that, in lieu of flowers, memorial donations be made to The Ronald C. Smith Scholarship Fund at the Rickover Naval Academy High School, 5900 North Glenwood, Chicago, IL, 60660. Please make checks payable to Friends of Rickover/Smith Scholarship.  Or donations can be made on-line at www.friendsofrickover.org.  As Ron was a devoted U.S. Navy veteran and a strong supporter of the education, this would be a most fitting memorial.

Ron Smith at Fenwick (1951)

Ron Smith was born in Chicago on December 9, 1933, and grew up mostly in the Chicago area. He graduated from Fenwick High School in Oak Park in 1951, and received a B.S. in Humanities from Loyola University in 1955. In college, he earned several honors and participated in many activities, most notably debate and the student newspaper. After teaching speech at Loyola for a year, he joined the U.S. Navy in 1956 as a naval helicopter pilot and personnel officer. In 1962, he left active duty to enter law school but remained a Naval reservist until retiring as a Lieutenant-Commander in 1977. (While in the Navy, Ron, a “seadog” with bright red hair, acquired the nickname “Red dog,” which he had the rest of his life.)

Ron attended Loyola (Chicago) University Law School from 1962 to 1965, writing for the law review and taking part in law school activities. After graduation, he clerked for Justice John V. McCormick of the Illinois Appellate Court in 1965-1966. During that year, a law school friend, Janice Metros Johnston, said that her husband Gil was running the legal writing program at The John Marshall Law School and suggested Ron apply to be an adjunct.  That post began his long association with John Marshall.

After the clerkship in 1966, Ron was a legal counsel for the Santa Fe Railroad, where he learned about governmental regulation and administrative procedure. In 1968 Dean Noble W. Lee asked him to come to JMLS. Ron taught many different courses but eventually specialized in constitutional law and criminal law.

In 1968, when Illinoisans voted to hold a constitutional convention, Ron decided to run with Elmer Gertz, a lawyer who lived in Ravenswood and Albany Park area near Ron, to be delegates to the convention. Elmer, a noted civil rights lawyer, and Ron ran as a team against two “machine” candidates backed by the regular organization of the Cook County Democratic Party. When the convention met on December 8, 1969, Ron and Elmer took their seats as members of the convention allied to the “independent bloc” of about ten delegates. Ron was a member of the Committee on the Executive, where he sponsored the amendatory veto provision.

Prof. Smith’s bio photo for John Marshall Law School.

In 1972 Ron ran for the Democratic nomination for the Illinois State Senate.  The party regulars conspired to deprive him of the seat by running a candidate who would win, but then resign the nomination in favor of a replacement chosen by the party.  Ron’s lawsuit, Smith v. Cherry, 489 F.2d 1098 (1974), was a notable federal elections lawsuit until legislation changed the situation. Unwilling to leave government life, he served as a member of Governor Walker’s Ethics Board, among other appointed positions, while continuing to teach at John Marshall until 2014.

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Fenwick Hires Full-Time School Resource Officer

“The safety and security of our students always is our first and foremost priority.” – President Father Richard Peddicord, O.P.

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Fenwick has hired one of its own as a School Resource Officer. James Sperandio (pictured above), from the Friars’ Class of 1985, retired in June from the Village of Oak Park Police Department, where he served for 27 years; the last 19 as a detective.

“The safety and security of our students always is our first and foremost priority,” stated President Father Richard Peddicord, O.P. “They truly are our most valuable resource, and we need to do whatever it takes to protect them when they venture across our ‘moat and draw-bridge’ from the secular world.

“We Friars are celebrating our 90th academic year here at Fenwick in 2018-19,” Fr. Peddicord continued, “and this is the first time we will have someone in this capacity on a full-time basis.” Officer Sperandio, who nearly everyone knows as Jimmy, has worked part-time for several years at Fenwick. “His is the smiling face behind the glass at our reception window,” Peddicord said. For the past 11 years Mr. Sperandio has taught a non-credit “Street Law” class at his high school alma mater.

Get to know Fenwick’s Officer Sperandio by reading this blog from May of 2017: https://blog.fenwickfriars.com/tag/jimmy-sperandio/

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The Myth of Science vs. Religion

By Father Richard Peddicord, O.P.

Dr. Stephen Barr visited Fenwick’s Professional Development Day on Friday, September 14.

A recent Pew Research Center national poll revealed that a majority of Americans believe that science and religion are “mostly in conflict” with each other.  In light of this, people may be surprised to learn that the theorist behind the Big Bang Theory (Georges Lemaître), the founder of genetics (Gregor Mendel), the father of modern geology (Niels Stensen), and the discoverer of sunspots (Christoph Scheiner) were all Catholic priests. It’s as if the 17th century Galileo affair is taken as the norm for understanding the relationship between science and religion—when, according to Dr. Stephen Barr, professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Delaware, the Catholic Church has been one of the greatest patrons of the sciences.

Fenwick also welcomed Dr. Chris Baglow from Notre Dame.
Dr. Philip Sakimoto, also from Notre Dame.

Dr. Barr was at Fenwick High School on September 14th to engage theology and science teachers from around the Archdiocese of Chicago on the relationship between science and religion. The day-long in-service day was sponsored by the Science & Religion Initiative of the McGrath Institute for Church Life of the University of Notre Dame. It was organized by Fenwick’s Theology Department Chair, Br. Joseph Trout, O.P., and Science Department Chair, Marcus McKinley. Dr. Barr was joined by colleagues Dr. Chris Baglow (above) and Dr. Philip Sakimoto (left) — both of the University of Notre Dame.

According to Br. Trout, like Americans in general, a good number of high school students believe that science and religion are implacable enemies. Their sense is that one must choose one or the other. Moreover, many believe that science has outright disproved religious truth claims. When all is said and done, there is a sense that accepting the theory of evolution means that one must deny the existence of God.

In his presentation, Dr. Baglow admitted that some Christian groups do indeed attack and deny Darwin’s theory of evolution. They hold that it is contrary to biblical teaching. They espouse a literalist interpretation of the Book of Genesis, and deny the overwhelming consensus of the scientific community on the propriety of an evolutionary account of the origins of the cosmos, life and humanity. This is a real conflict; one cannot harmonize the science of biological evolution with a literal read of the first three chapters of Genesis.

A dialog between faith and reason

His Holiness Pope Pius XII

The Catholic tradition of theological reflection, however, is not committed to a literal approach to biblical exegesis. Over 1,500 years ago, St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430) espoused a metaphorical and symbolic approach to interpreting the sacred text. St. Thomas Aquinas (c. 1224-1274) argued that the Bible teaches that God created the world, but “the manner and the order according to which creation took place concerns faith only incidentally.” In the 20th century, Pope Pius XII’s encyclical Humani generis paved the way for Catholics to hold that God creates through the process of evolution. Theological propositions can and do develop over time, given the growth of human knowledge and more penetrating insights into reality.

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Forever Friars: Remembering Poet Tom Clark, Class of 1959

Poet, biographer and Fenwick alumnus Tom Clark ’59 died tragically in mid-August. Mr. Clark, 77, was struck by a motorist while walking in his hometown of Berkeley, CA, on August 17th, the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) reported. He died of his injuries the next morning.

Clark as a Freshman Friar in 1956.

Clark was born in Oak Park in 1941. “Many Fenwick men from our class attended Ascension grammar school with Tom. I was among them,” writes Tom Maloney ’59, who resides in Chicago. Mr. Maloney remembers his classmate’s artistic abilities. “No one could draw like Tom Clark,” Maloney recalls. “He was a great artist.”

Founded in 1974 by Allen Ginsberg and Anne Waldman, as part of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche’s 100-year experiment, Naropa University’s Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics is located in Boulder, Colorado,.

Writing, however, became Clark’s forte. “He is considered one of America’s finest poets,” Maloney continues. “He was an accomplished and knowledgeable baseball writer. Add to his literary achievements a biography on Jack Kerouac,” the 1950s’ Beat Generation novelist and poet (portrayed at left).

Clark was, indeed, a prolific writer, compiling two dozen collections. He once said that his literary influences came from Ezra Pound and William Carlos Williams, leaders of the rebellious “Imagist” poetry movement in the 20th century.

He graduated from Fenwick and went on to the University of Michigan, where he was a student of former U.S. Poet Laureate (2006-07) Donald Hall, Jr. Last year before his own death, Hall called Clark “the best student I ever had.”

During his productive writing career, Clark penned more than two dozen works, including Fractured Karma in 1990 and the controversial Great Naropa Poetry Wars 10 years earlier.

After earning his under-graduate degree in 1963, Clark became poetry editor of the Paris Review. A glowing recommendation from Hall convinced Editor-in-Chief George Plimpton to hire the then 22-year-old. Fifteen years ago Clark told poetry publication Jacket magazine that his “sole stipulated condition [at the time] was that I be allowed to send out rejection notices to all the poets who’d lately had verse accepted by my immediate predecessor, X.J. Kennedy.” Plimpton embraced the rebel in Clark, who would stay on for 10 years and bring to the Paris Review’s pages the work of so-called New York School poets, including Frank O’Hara, Barbara Guest, Amiri Baraka, singer-songwriter Lou Reed and, later, Ron Padgett.

Beatniks in England

While studying for his master’s degree in 1965 at Cambridge University under a Fulbright scholarship, Clark had a chance encounter with Allen Ginsberg. He ran into the Beat poet at a pub in Bristol, and the two men proceeded to hitch-hike to London. He then enrolled at the University of Essex for two years.

Clark in 1972

In the New York Times, peer poet Padgett has described Clark’s subtle work as “music to the ear” that always left readers feeling “elevated.” Billy Collins, another poet laureate, called Clark “the lyric imp of American poetry” in a Boulder News article. (Clark once resided in Boulder, CO.) In reviewing Clark’s 2006 poetry collection, Light & Shade, Collins wrote: “Tom Clark … has delivered many decades’ worth of goofy, melancholic, cosmic, playful and wiggy poems. I can never get enough of this wise guy leaning on the literary jukebox, this charmer who refuses to part with his lovesick teenage heart.”

From 1987-2008 Clark taught poetics at New College of California in San Francisco. More recently, he wrote regularly on a personal blog, “Beyond the Pale,” even hours up until his death.

“Tom and I were married for 50 years,” writes his widow, Angelica Heinegg. “It’s a time of shock and sorrow for me and my daughter, Juliet. But we are slowly adjusting to the new reality.” They scattered his ashes on September 9th.

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