Fenwick’s senior-class retreats have been different in 2021, but things are slowly returning to a more “normal” state.
Call it “Pandemic Prayer Power” perhaps, but the coronavirus cannot stop the Fenwick Friars’ KAIROS senior retreats, which have taken place — safely and socially distanced — this winter for members of the Class of 2021!
FenwickKairos Director and Math Teacher Mrs. Maria Nowicki
“This year has brought many different challenges,” says Kairos Director Mrs. Maria Nowicki, “but getting back to Bellarmine [retreat house in Barrington, IL] in February was needed, and I know that God had a hand in helping us get there. Our young people have a lot to deal with, and they need God and [need] to know His great love for all of us.
“It has been beautiful to see our students sharing stories of faith and inspiration or simple moments, like 30 kids trying to build a snowman together, especially after the many hardships of the last year,” Mrs. Nowicki continues. “My heart has been touched with the incredible amount of gratitude the senior class has shown when there is so much they could be down about.” What three recent retreatants took away:
“I know I am young, but I can say truthfully that I am going to try and ‘Live the 4th’ every day for the rest of my life. I believe it has shaped me more into the person I am supposed to be and will have a forever impact on how I choose to live my life.”
“I learned to value my friendships and family more, to never forget everyone has hardships that I may not be aware of, and that God loves me and everyone He created so much.“
“On Kairos I found that if God brought you to it, He will bring you through it.”
Fenwick won the 3AA Illinois Regional competition in 2021 and placed sixth at the State Meet, where it was one of only two Catholic/private school teams in the Top 10 field.
“Thank you so much to all 40 team members and [to] Ms. Sabbia, who put in so much time and effort to get Fenwick ranked once again as the No. 1 Catholic school,” praises long-time Moderator/Coach Roger Finnell ’59. The State Meet is organized into four divisions, by school enrollment, Mr. Finnell explained, and this year “no Catholic school had a better score [than Fenwick’s 541] in the two most difficult divisions.” (See below.)
Toby Yang ’24 is the State Champ for Algebra 1!
Freshman Toby Yang ’24 (Oak Park, IL) had a perfect score in Algebra 1 and is the Illinois STATE CHAMPION! (Also see below.) He is the second Friars’ student in the 41-year history of the state math contest to have a perfect score in a written event. “The only other was Logan Maue ’21 last year [as a junior] in Algebra 2,” Finnell reports. Maue also hails from Oak Park.
Junior Finley Huggins ’22, another Oak Parker, tied for second in Algebra 2; Maue tied for fourth in Pre-Calculus and senior Daniel Majcher ’21 (Chicago) tied for 7th in Pre-Calc before item analysis broke the ties. (Scroll down for complete competition results.) In February, Huggins posted the highest score in either division at the Archdiocese of Chicago’s Math Contest, which Fenwick won (again):
Mr. Finnell deserves all the thanks in the world for all the work he puts into the team each and every year. I have had the great pleasure of having the last three out of my four years at Fenwick being taught math by Mr. Finnell. (I was taught calculus one year by the also legendary teacher Mr. Arscott.) Mr. Finnell has also been in charge of many of the BFG shows I have done. So, from a variety of angles, I have gotten to see and appreciate firsthand all the effort that he puts into making Fenwick such an amazing, special place. He has taught and inspired generations of Fenwick Friars, and I am so incredibly grateful that I had the privilege to be taught and mentored by him.
Logan Maue
This year, practicing for the state competition was filled with difficulties: the state competition date was moved earlier and combined with regionals, among others too. Regardless, we were still grateful that a state competition was occurring in any capacity. Nearing the state competition, Mr. Finnell had many days in a row coaching practices. Still, in light of these difficulties, the team did remarkably well, placing Top 10 in the state once again. The seniors will be heading off to the mysterious water of college. As awesome as the seniors are, I begrudgingly admit that the years to come for the Math Team will be bright, even without us. With Mr. Finnell as the coach (and for every year since the foundation of the ICTM competition), the Fenwick Math Team has performed extraordinarily well for decades, creating a legacy of excellence. Now with phenomenal standouts, such as Finley Huggins and Toby Yang, and many other exceedingly talented Friars (and future Friars, I am sure), this legacy of excellence will undoubtedly continue.
The past four years on the Fenwick Math Team have been excellent. I enjoyed every last second pouring over past problem sets and finding unique solutions to difficult problems. However, the memories I will be carrying with me for the rest of my life are the memories of getting to hang out with my friends, especially the seniors. The seniors on this team are so incredibly talented, with an incredibly diverse range of talents and interests. From many other activities and varsity sports, the number of talents and accomplishments the other seniors have outside of the math team could also fill pages. From Sam Sikora recently qualifying for weightlifting nationals to Ronan Kristufekbecoming a three-time Irish Dancing Mid American Champion (and that’s only two things from two of the seniors!), a group of incredible people come together to compete on the Fenwick Math Team. Getting to be in the company of all these wonderful people has been a blessing, as behind all these layers of accomplishments are the amazing, kind, funny people who I have gotten to know. The memories of the carpools to Concordia, the long haul to Champaign, the time we went to Steak ‘n Shake, and simply talking with each other in the quiet moments all stick out as core memories. Though I will miss these times, I am ever more grateful for them happening.
And here are the regional and state results:
REGIONAL SCORES
Overall Team
1. Fenwick 541 2. Hinsdale South 367 3. Glenbard South 339 4. Riverside-Brookfield 285 5. Fenton 64
Individual Awards
Toby Yang- 1st in Algebra 1 Mallory Turner- 3rd in Geometry Finley Huggins- 1st in Algebra 2 Hugo Nunez- 2nd in Algebra 2 Logan Maue- 1st in PreCal Daniel Majcher- 2nd in PreCal
Algebra 1 Team
1. Fenwick 106 2. Hinsdale South 100 3. Riverside-Brookfield 76 4. Glenbard South 40 5. Fenton 26
Geometry Team
1. Fenwick 54 2. Hinsdale South 42 3. Glenbard South 40 4. Riverside-Brookfield 28
Algebra 2 Team
1. Fenwick 110 2. Glenbard South 98 3. Hinsdale South 78 4. Riverside Brookfield 52 5. Fenton 26
Pre-Calculus Team
1. Fenwick 96 2. Riverside-Brookfield 54 3. Glenbard South 46 4. Hinsdale South 32 5. Fenton 10
Calculator Team
1. Fenwick 70 2. Hinsdale South 45 3. Glenbard South 35 Riverside-Brookfield 35
8-person Frosh-Soph Team
1. Fenwick 40 2. Glenbard South 35 3. Hinsdale South 30 4. Riverside-Brookfield 25 5. Fenton 5
8-person Junior-Senior Team
1. Fenwick 65 2. Glenbard South 45 3. Hinsdale South 40 4. Riverside-Brookfield 15
STATE FINAL SCORES (Awards given for top 10)
Overall Team
1. U of Chicago Lab 800 2. Glenbrook North 732 3. Vernon Hills 649 4. Libertyville 629 5. U of Illinois Lab 609 6. Fenwick 541 7. Marist 456 8. Lake Forest 447 9. John Hersey 418 10. Hononegah 418
Friar Individual Awardees
Toby Yang- 1st in Algebra 1 Finley Huggins- 7th in Algebra 2 Logan Maue- 5th in PreCal Daniel Majcher- 8th in PreCal
A senior Preaching Team Member reflects on second-semester fears –and faith – for today’s the Feast of the Annunciation.
By Katie Malchow ’21 (Hinsdale, IL)
When I sat down to write this reflection Sunday morning, nothing within the readings struck me at first. So, I did what every second-semester senior would do: closed my iPad, went downstairs and watched ‘March Madness.’ It wasn’t until I was driving around my neighborhood later that day around 5:30 when I knew exactly what these readings meant to me.
In today’s gospel, we see Mary visited by the angel Gabriel, telling her she will be the mother of God’s son. The angel said four simple words: “Do not be afraid.” Now you are probably wondering why on Earth it was when I was driving Sunday evening the meaning hit me, but it has to do with these four words.
There’s a lot to be afraid today: college acceptances, uncertainty of what the future holds, or maybe you just have a really hard Econ test today that you probably should have studied a little bit more for. These stresses and anxieties can be overwhelming, but we have to have faith. We have to have trust. We have to have faith in ourselves, others and God. Because without faith, what is there then? Where do we go from there?
A friend once told me, “Everything happens for a reason. Everything that happens, God wants to happen.” Now, it might sound cliché or even a little basic, but once I actually started believing this in my day to day, I found myself enjoying the small things and having faith in God’s plan. To be honest, I was not in the best mood Sunday afternoon, but I saw the little things of God’s plan unfolding in front of me, causing me to reflect on the bigger picture. There were kids playing football together on one block; the next block, neighbors were talking in their driveway. As I continued to drive, I was witnessing all of these amazing things in front of me.
When we are scared or feeling lost, we lose sight of these amazing parts of God’s plan. Especially this year, one thing I have learned is to appreciate the small things and to have faith that everything will be okay. When Gabriel visited Mary, she was definitely scared and confused. However, without having any information, she trusted God’s plan and embraced the opportunity in front of her. At times things might get overwhelming or even a little uncomfortable, but we have to keep going and have faith in what God has in store for us.
So, on this Thursday morning, I encourage all of you to take today and the rest of this week to reflect and call attention to the small things unfolding in front of you. Take time to appreciate those things, no matter how big or small. It might be laughing in the hallway with a friend or acing that reading pop quiz you totally guessed on. Appreciate it all, because it all is God’s plan unfolding right in front of our eyes. When things get difficult, remember the four simple words, “Do not be afraid.” God has amazing things in store for us all, but not everything will be easy. Have an open mind, have trust and, most importantly, have faith.
What was it like to be among the first young women at Fenwick?
By Terese McCarthy Best ’96 (commencement address)
Good morning, Father Davis, Mr. Quaid, Administrators, Board Members, Faculty, Parents, Friends, Honored Guests, and Classmates.
Friar Teresa McCarthy in 1996.
Four years ago, we walked through the doors behind us and sat in these seats. We came in alone, or in groups, but all of us were nervous [about] high school: the best years of our lives, or so we were told — our glory days.
But, even in the beginning, as we sat in the auditorium and perhaps even before that, we were different from any other freshmen class in Fenwick history. Before we even met, we already had an identity, a bond that would forever hold us together in the minds of others. In the minds of alumni, parents, administrators, teachers, and upperclassmen, we became significant the moment that we were admitted. All eyes were on us. Would we succeed? Would we fail? Or, despite the publicity, would we slip by, virtually unnoticed, into Fenwick history, never distinguishing ourselves beyond the title of the first coed class?
After a few months, the newspaper men and cameras disappeared, and we settled into Fenwick. We went through the motions in the beginning, nervous freshmen, obnoxious sophomores, over-worked juniors. More than once, I heard people, especially in our class and the class of 1995, speculate whether we would be capable of capturing the spirit every senior class before us had demonstrated. Would we finally come together, as a class, to forge our own identity?
Ask anyone who has been in the building during the last nine months, whether the class of 1996 has incredible school spirit and a strong sense of class identity, and they will answer yes. We have broken records, athletically and academically. The balance between academic and athletic success that we have demonstrated as a class will serve as a standard for the underclassmen to strive to meet.
The football team advanced to the state semi-finals, winning 12 consecutive games, the most in Fenwick history. Boys’ basketball, baseball, football, and hockey each came in first in the Catholic League. Girls’ basketball and softball came in first in the East Suburban Catholic Conference. Boys and girls’ basketball and girls’ soccer were IHSA regional champions, and hockey won the Kennedy Cup. The girls’ and boys’ water polo teams both came in third in the state. There can be no doubt in anyone’s mind that we were an amazingly talented and devoted group of athletes. Our trophies, plaques, medals, and records speak for themselves.
However, in the tradition of Fenwick, we were never satisfied to succeed merely on the field. The colleges we are attending, the scholarships awarded, clearly demonstrate our academic success. However, there’s more to it than that. Involvement outside the classroom has been amazing, too. Our speech and debate team was first in the Catholic League, with individuals placing as high as second in the state and advancing to the nationals. The JETS Team was first in the district, second in the regional, and the only Catholic school to advance to the state finals for the fourth year in a row. The math team won the Archdiocese math contest, finished first in the regionals in state math, first in the district in Illinois Math League, and was the highest scoring private school in the state at the state finals.
And so, we will not be remembered merely as the first coed class, but as a class that reached a new level of pride and excellence while continuing the Fenwick tradition. We have shown the underclassmen what we spent three years observing. We have shown them what it means to truly be a Fenwick Friar.
However, none of these records would mean anything to any of us without the bond we share. Many things have helped to create this bond: classes, sports — watching or participating — but, perhaps most importantly, the Kairos retreat program. Whatever it was, we share something that I can’t find words to describe. It’s when people say “hi” to each other in the halls, when they stop just to find out how it’s going or if you won your most recent game. It’s saying good luck, or congratulations, or offering a hug and a shoulder to cry on when something goes wrong. It is supporting each other, challenging each other, comforting each other.
Touchstone poet Nick Scouffas ’96.
I was reading Touchstone, our literary magazine, and I was struck by a poem that our classmate Nick Scouffas wrote called “I Am.” The first line is “I am alone.” It is the last stanza, however, that hit me:
I understand that the paths will not always be paved I say let us pave the paths I dream our unity, though alone, will carry us to uncharted roads I try to read a map but no matter which way I have it, it is always upside down I hope we follow these roads and find treasures that only we can appreciate. I am no longer alone.
We may have come in alone, and it may have taken us a while to discover who we are, individually and collectively. But, when we walk out that door today, for the last time, we walk out together. No matter which way our paths in life may take us, we leave Fenwick as Friars. We will walk out of the door today with a bond, as a class, that will last. We are no longer alone.
About the Author
Terese McCarthy Best is the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Risk Officer of Caspian Capital, LP, a New York-based investment advisor. Prior to this role, she was the Director of Research and a research analyst at Caspian. Terese also serves as Vice Chairman of the boards of Marquette National Corporation and Marquette Bank. Terese graduated magna cum laude from Princeton University and lives in Manhattan with her husband and two daughters.
The number and size of Catholic grade schools and high schools increased greatly in the 1950s. After 1960, the educational preparation of teachers, new issues for church life amid movements like ecumenism, racial justice in American society, and a general advancement in the quality of Catholic schools led to new considerations of the area of “religion,” of “theology,” in secondary education.
The Dominican shield of Fenwick High School.
At Fenwick High School, conducted by the Dominican Friars in Oak Park, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, two movements emerged to expand and vitalize theological education in high school. One had to do with educational materials like textbooks; the other had to do with new approaches to religious education, with ideas for and beyond the classroom.
New Theology and New Textbooks
The developments in secondary education began with similar movements in Catholic colleges and universities. The simple and sparse catechetical format of the texts for required courses in religion in Catholic colleges and universities was more and more criticized in the 1950s. The shallow level of content often did not rise above basic catechetical propositions about Christianity to which was added some Aristotelian philosophy in ethics and theodicy. Some have gone so far as to say that prior to 1960 there was no theology being taught in most Catholic institutions of higher education in America other than seminaries. Certainly few courses touched on, for instance, the content of the New Testament or the theology of the sacraments and liturgy.
In those years teachers began to meet to discuss how teaching theology in college was more than teaching scholastic philosophy or catechesis. In 1954, they founded the Society of Catholic College Teachers of Sacred Doctrine (this became in 1965 the College Theology Society).1 At the first national meeting of the SCCTSD in 1954 (there had been regional meetings) three of the founders offered their approaches. Gerard Sloyan of Catholic University of America spoke on “From Christ in the Gospels to Christ in the Church;” Thomas Donlan, O.P., of St. Rose Priory, Dubuque, Iowa, presented “An Approach from the Dominican School of Thought;” John Fernan, S.J., of Le Moyne College, Syracuse, New York, described a “historical, Scriptural approach.” These pioneers of the college theology movement had three different views of theological education: Sloyan’s was biblical; Donlan’s was neo-Thomist; Fernan’s was historical and biblical. All three were working on producing textbooks.
ND’s Father Hesburgh
Theodore Hesburgh, C.S.C., in 1945 returned to the University of Notre Dame to begin his time of teaching theology there before he became president of that institution. He had written his doctoral dissertation at The Catholic University of America on the theology of lay people and the sacraments.2 Teaching undergraduate theology soon led to his conceiving of and editing textbooks, a series called “University Religion Series. Texts in Theology for the Layman.”3
Thomas Donlan, O.P., a native of Oak Park, Illinois, taught at Fenwick High School from 1946 to 1952. He went from there to teach at the Dominican seminaries in Dubuque, Iowa. While there he directed original publications in college and high school theological education. First he supervised a volume of essays exploring how sacred doctrine of a largely Thomist bent could and should be the framework for courses outside the seminary. Essays treated the arts, sociology, and the natural sciences, philosophy, and religion: This was an attempt to draw theology out of the isolation of clerical circles into a wider cultural world.4
Fenwick’s Fr. Donlan, O.P. hailed from Oak Park.
Donlan and other Dominicans, some teaching at the first graduate program in theology to accept religious or laity at St. Mary’s College, South Bend, Indiana, decided to produce a series of textbooks for college. First books began to appear in 1952.5 They did offer a theology deeper than a catechism, but curiously it did not hold a particularly Thomistic order and principles and retained the order of apologetic manuals from 1860 to 1960. A second series of texts appearing in 1959 was a greatly improved enterprise. They held sections of Aquinas’ Summa theologiae, and included material from Scripture and practical moral theology.6
WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH: Female youth football player and Fenwick alumna drew on real-life inspiration to write a best-selling children’s book.
By Laura Enriquez ’08
I learned this lesson at the young age of 11, when I became the first female to play football for St. Mary’s of Riverside. Initially, I wanted to play because I love the sport … and really, who wouldn’t want to take out their pent-up aggression in a channeled way? But what I didn’t understand was, as the first female in the league, playing football became something much bigger.
The first sign of obstacles appeared during sign-ups when the head coach pointed in the direction of the cheerleading table. What he didn’t realize, and what Fenwick would learn during my freshman year, is I would be the worst cheerleader. Just ask anyone present at my poms try-out, when I kicked up too high and fell backwards. Needless to say, I didn’t make it to day two.
Ms. Enriquez as a Riverside youth football trailblazer 20 years ago.
I soon learned the pressure of being “the first” at something. While there were many who supported me, there were also others who had more traditional views. These naysayers became vocal in their opposition. There was even an instance when a father approached my mom on the train and criticized her for allowing me to play.
As a female in a male-dominated sport, there were other challenges. Naturally, boys and girls are built differently, but this difference was exacerbated during my experience. For example, it was difficult to find and create appropriate protective equipment. The biggest introspective challenge I faced was how I began to perceive my body. I wanted to be a running back, so I could feel the ball and know the glory of scoring a touchdown. But, I became a lineman who are generally known as the “bigger guys” and equivalent to playing right field in T-ball, or so I thought. And then there were challenges that every athlete faces: balancing friends and sports, getting homework done, and caring for your physical being.
While playing, I worked harder than I’d ever worked before. There were many times I thought about giving up, but I knew I could not. When you are the only female surrounded by males, there’s added pressure to not just do well, but be the best. I accepted this as a challenge and spent the season proving my worth so that my experience could open up doors for other females in the future.
Two-way “iron woman”
During our 2001 season, I played both offensive and defensive line, as well as contributed to special teams. As a captain of the team, I helped lead the Demons to the Chicago Catholic League Championship. And because of my relentlessness and hard work, I ended the season with the most tackles in the league. But the most rewarding accomplishment was what I learned about myself.
When it was time to choose a high school, my mom knew Fenwick was for me. She chose mine and my siblings’ schools based on our personalities, and we’ve attended almost every Catholic school from St. Ignatius to Trinity. Naturally, she thought Fenwick would be a good fit for my competitive nature — and, let’s be honest, all Friars are competitive!
On the first day, we sat in the auditorium and Borsch gave his “look to the left, look to the right” spiel. Seeing as I was sitting next to two very intelligent people, I became worried about what to expect. And in the next four years, I would find that Fenwick had its adversities as well.
The academic rigor was something new for me. Prior to Fenwick, school came easy. It wasn’t until Denise Megall’s Spanish class did I realize how hard I was going to have to work to earn good grades. Also, … most of my classmates were perfectly petite — a mold I didn’t fit. At times, I felt lost and didn’t know how or where I “fit in.”
Thankfully, Fenwick’s educators are heavily invested in their students, which allowed me to create strong relationships with my teachers. In fact, the thing I admire most about Fenwick is its ability to develop not just well-educated, but well-rounded humans.
As a Friar student-athlete, Laura was a member of Fenwick’s softball and debate teams (2007-08 yearbook photo).
Fenwick taught me how to interact with people. In Andy Arellano’s speech class, I learned irreplaceable communication skills, like the importance of “hitting the corners” and when to use the KISS method. If you haven’t taken this class yet, my advice is: don’t make tiramisu for your “how to” speech when your Italian classmate is performing the same speech and has samples.
As a Lincoln-Douglas and Public Forum debater, John Paulett and Mary Beth Logas taught me the artistic way to weaponize words. And as a senior, Paulett facilitated my desire to build a larger community outreach program when he helped me found the New Orleans Humanitarian Trip. I am honored to learn that it is still ongoing.
I attribute my passion for literature to Kim Darkes (Kotty), whom I had the pleasure of being one of her first students. She often took time to lend me books and engage in literary conversation outside of class. I even once asked her to grab coffee so we could chat more about literature. In hindsight, I see why my sisters thought (well, think) that was so weird. By the way, I’m still waiting for that cup of “Joe.”
And so, while there were many times I wanted a more familiar path, Fenwick showed me how hard work coupled with support can produce the unthinkable. The passions I developed became the foundation for the journey I embarked on as an adult.
I returned to Fenwick after graduating from Sacred Heart University because Peter Groom was kind enough to allow me to student-teach under Kate Whitman while attending graduate school. I felt compelled to give back to Fenwick (in any way I could) and, thanks to Mike Marresee, I became the head JV softball coach along with Peter Gallo.
Writing a book
Demons, published in December 2020, is fiction inspired by the author’s reality.
In the recent zeitgeist, there has been more encouragement and female involvement in male-dominated sports. I knew my story needed to be told to a larger audience because young women deserve to “see themselves” in every walk of life. After spending several years in the classroom, trying to instill the same values in my students as my teachers instilled in me, I decided to leave teaching to pursue authorship, a big risk. Luckily, Therese Hawkins and Debbie Tracy (Nazareth Academy Principal and President) are fierce supporters and advocates, and gave me their blessings to do so.
Writing a novel itself is not an easy feat. There’s brainstorming, writing, editing, rewriting … we all know the writing process we tried so hard to short cut in high school. There were many times I wanted to give up. Each time these thoughts crossed my mind, I reflected on why I was doing this to begin with. Inevitably, the thought of quitting was the antithesis of not just my message, but also the values that have been ingrained in me. And so, it is through passion and grit that my novel, Demons, was published in December 2020. It soon became a best-seller on Amazon and has been featured by several sports organizations, including AAU Sports.
Overall, it’s important to examine what skills we have and how we can use them to uplift others, no matter how difficult the journey may be. Afterall, great leaders want more great leaders, and because that’s what Fenwick does: produces go-getters who strive to make the world better.
About the Author
Fenwick alumna Laura Enriquez taughtEnglish and was an assistant girls’ softball coach at Nazareth Academy (La Grange Park, IL) from 2017-20.Since publishing her first novel this past December, she has been working on related marketing and speaking engagements. Demons is the No. 1 new release for Children’s Football Books on Amazon and is featured by AAU Sports, SGIS and The Landmark.
Some 140 of our “Status 1B Educators” rolled up their sleeves this past weekend.
SchoolNurse Donna Pape administers the shot to Senior Class Counselor and baseball coach Mr. Pat Jacobsen, who was one of some 140 Fenwick faculty and staff members to get vaccinated on Saturday.
Fenwick teachers, coaches, staff and administrators received their first COVID-19 vaccinations at a Saturday event for Oak Park private schools. “We had a great turn out with approximately 265 Oak Park private school educators and staff,” reports School Nurse Kathleen Monty, RN. “Of that, approximately 140 were Fenwick faculty/staff. The Village of Oak Park and the Oak Park Board of Health were pleased with the turnout ….” Later this month, the faculty/staff will return for shot two.
Ms. Monty adds that she and fellow School Nurse Donna Pape, RN, appreciate everyone’s patience and understanding. “The Fenwick faculty and staff have put up with all our constantly changing rules and have shown up every day since August for our students. We are proud to be part of the Fenwick family!”
Fenwick President Fr. Richard Peddicord, O.P. notes: “Please join me thanking our nurses, Donna Pape and Kitty Monty, for all their great work this year and their heroic efforts to get all of us vaccinated on Saturday. It was truly inspiring to see them in action! The Fenwick community owes them so much. Thanks, too, to Bryan Boehm [Digital Learning Specialist] and Jimmy Sperandio [Class of ’85 and Community Resource Officer] for their good work on Saturday on our behalf.”
The school’s Math Competition Club is moderated by alumnus Roger Finnell from the Class of ’59, who has been teaching in the building this academic year.
Fenwick High School defeated 12 other Chicago-area, Catholic high schools earlier this month to win the Archdiocese of Chicago’s Math Contest. The competition has been held annually since 1967 — four years after Roger Finnell began teaching math at Fenwick in the fall of 1963. Mr. Finnell (pictured above, in his classroom, where he still uses chalk!) grew up in Cicero and Forest View, IL, attending grade school at Queen of Heaven, then St. Leonard’s in Berwyn. He has been in charge of running the archdiocese’s contest for the past 52 years.
“Fenwick has been fortunate to win first place 15 of the last 22 years with some extremely talented and dedicated math competitors,” reports Finnell, who is the Friars’ proud math club moderator and longtime chair of Fenwick’s Mathematics Department. To win this year’s Archdiocesan championship, his team tallied the highest score among both divisions of Catholic schools, which include (in alphabetical order): De La Salle Institute, DePaul Prep, Marist, Marian Catholic (Chicago Heights), Marmion Academy (Aurora), Montini (Lombard), Mount Carmel, St. Francis (Wheaton), St. Ignatius, St. Rita of Cascia, St. Viator (Arlington Heights) and Woodlands Academy of the Sacred Heart (Lake Forest). Like much of this school year, the 2021 math contest was conducted “virtually” online.
Mr. Finnell in 1968 (yearbook image).
Alongside many Archdiocesan high schools, Fenwick has successfully operated a hybrid education model since last August. Approximately half of its 1,100 students are in the building on Mondays and Wednesdays, and the other half comes in on Tuesdays and Thursdays. (Note: Some families have opted for fully remote, eLearning.) However, COVID-19 adjustments have not deterred Finnell, a 1959 alumnus of Fenwick who has been teaching at his alma mater for 58 years. The former Friar student returned to Oak Park shortly after graduating from Loyola University (Chicago), where he also completed his master’s degree in mathematics. Amazingly, five decades later, he can be seen in the building this school year. “The past year has been challenging to say the least!” Finnell admits. “Like others [teachers], I have had to adjust teaching to a camera while still engaging the in-person learners,” he explains, “but I miss the one-to-oneness in class during normal times.
“I have tried to do all the usual math competition activity [this year],” Finnell continues. “Three math leagues [17 contests total] have been online — with fewer participants than usual. Our junior-high math contest was online and drew twice as many contestants as usual! For state math contest practices, all early ones were conducted online. Now, for three team events, we have asked students to attend in-person practices, which have gone fairly normally. I miss going to a local college for state math regionals, and the team misses going to Champaign for the state finals. This year, the state contest is totally virtual, one day only, with less events than usual. But our team is still looking forward to it.
By Will Potter, Chicago Tribune staff reporter (originally published on June 18, 2002)
Rev. R. Malachy Dooley, 82, was at nearly every wedding, funeral, baptism and party involving alumni of Fenwick High School. His giving spirit – from remembering the anniversaries of couples he married to taking friends on tours of Ireland – made him a cornerstone of the Fenwick community.
“Everyone thinks of him as their best friend,” said Bill Stein, a former student [Class of ’53, now deceased] and longtime friend. “And he thought of everyone as his best friend. Asking for nothing and giving everything, that was him.”
The late Professor Peter Bagnolo, a former student, painted this watercolor, which hangs in Fenwick’s 4th-floor (priory) Dooley Conference Room.
Father Dooley, a Dominican friar for 60 years and a teacher and fundraiser for Fenwick High School in Oak Park, died Saturday, June 15, of cancer in his home in the Dominican Priory of River Forest.
Father Dooley was born in Minneapolis. He started at Fenwick in 1950 as a theology teacher. When administrators asked him in the early 1950s to head fundraising projects for the school, he threw himself into the new task.
In the 1950s Father Dooley raised more than $1million for Fenwick’s first capital campaign that resulted in construction of the west wing, including an auditorium and classrooms. In the 1980s he raised more than $3 million for science laboratories and an endowment fund, and in the 1990s he raised $10 million for an athletics field house and pool.
Although quite a successful raiser of funds, the bespectacled Fr. Dooley did not like asking for money.
From 1963 to 1973, Father Dooley was assigned to St. Pius V parish in the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago, St. Anthony Parish in New Orleans and Bishop Lynch High School in Dallas. He then returned to his work at Fenwick.
Father Dooley did not like asking for money and, in fact, he rarely did, said Leo Latz [Fenwick Class of ’76], a former assistant and longtime friend. He didn’t have to.
“People give to things they feel connected to,” Latz said. “Dooley got legions of people to be connected or reconnected to the school. He had a gift of creating community and connecting people to their alma mater and reminding them of why they should be grateful. He has been the common denominator in Fenwick’s success in the last 50 years.”
He was awarded the [inaugural) Lumen Tranquillum, or Quiet Light, award by the school in November.
AFenwick Preaching Team Member shares his Ash Wednesday faith reflection.
By Will Chioda ’21
FriarPreaching Team Member Will Chioda is a Fenwick senior who resides in Hinsdale, IL.
I would like to start off Mass with a small but encouraging note: The last time we had an all-school Mass was almost exactly a year ago today, on Ash Wednesday. This feels like a step in the right direction towards getting closer to normalcy.
If anyone listening has had the immense pleasure of getting to know me, you might know that I am not a person who forgives easily. I tend to hold a harsh and lengthy grudge against a person. Most of the time, this defense mechanism against getting hurt again prevents me from deepening relationships and trusting others. The irony in this is that I am far from a perfect person. I have wronged, hurt and offended many, including a number of our fellow classmates listening right now. However, Jesus calls believers to be forgiving, which is something that I plan on focusing on during this Lenten season.
In my research and reflection on the topic of forgiveness, I noted a subtle connection between the dictionary definition of forgiveness, and a personal favorite prayer of mine, the Peace Prayer. While the dictionary says that forgiveness is the willingness to pardon, St. Francis’s prayer reminds us that it is in pardoning that we are pardoned. In other words, the motivation to forgive others is that, in return, our own wrong-doings are forgiven. In my case, there is no way I can fully love others if, in fear of being hurt again, I focus my attention only on what another person has done wrong. My strongest, most loving and supportive relationships are those in which differences and misdeeds are mutually acknowledged and forgiven.
With the arrival of the Lenten Season comes a call from God. As students of faith, we are presented with the opportunity to foster personal growth and to create positive change. Lent is a reminder to repent, turn to the gospel and seek forgiveness for our sins.
