Ursuline Academy Alumnae Newsletter XVIII- May 2021
Ursuline Academy 75th Anniversary To mark the 75th anniversary of Ursuline Academy's founding in Boston in 1946, we are beginning a year-long series of events and special programs to celebrate. We extend our thanks to Fr. John Unni and the staff of St. Cecilia Parish in Boston for hosting Ursuline's Commemorative Mass on Saturday, April 17 to kick off our anniversary celebration. The location was beautiful and also fitting, since Ursuline traces its roots to Boston's Back Bay, where St. Cecilia's is located. In his homily, Fr. Unni paid homage to Saint Angela and the Ursuline Sisters for laying the groundwork for a network of schools dedicated to educating women of purpose and integrity, and emphasized the importance of faith-filled women leaders in the world. 75th Anniversary Speaker Series As part of our 75th anniversary series of special events, Ursuline will offer a unique opportunity to share informative and inspirational topics with its entire community to promote dialogue on important issues of the day. Our speaker series will be held approximately once a month in the spring of 2021 and will resume in the fall. This Thursday, May 20, 2021, 7:30 p.m. A History of Ursuline Academy From Brescia to Dedham: A Virtual Panel Discussion
Sr. Elisa Ryan, OSU, Sr. Angela Krippendorf '59, OSU, and author Nancy Schultz will join us on Zoom for an interactive discussion on how the settings that formed Ursuline Academy's heritage -- the town of Brescia in Italy, the Ursuline Convent in Charlestown, Arlington Street in Boston, and Lowder Street in Dedham -- all contributed to the rich history of the Ursulines, culminating in the Ursuline Academy of today. Click here to register.
More Virtual Events in our Anniversary Speaker Series
Upcoming Events Taylor Made Virtual Concert on May 22 The Taylor Made Concert is back! After taking a year off due to the pandemic, the annual a capella concert hosted by the Bearitones returns this year in a virtual format. Joined by groups from surrounding high schools, the Bearitones honor the memory of Taylor Manning '17 with a night of music and camaraderie. While the performers will be live, the audience will be virtual. Registration is free, but voluntary donations will benefit the Class of '17 Scholarship, in memory of Taylor Manning, a beloved classmate. Register at: boostmyschool.com/taylormade Virtual Speed Networking Event on During the event, you will have the opportunity to connect with other alumnae across the country and expand your professional network. In addition, the program will include an address from Danielle St. Germain-Gordon (UA '87), Chief Development Officer and Interim Chief Marketing Officer at San Francisco Ballet. You can RSVP to this networking event by registering here. If you have any questions, please reach out to Rosie Henry '10 at rosielahenry@gmail.com. Sponsor, Donate, or Place an Ad Fore the Girls on June 28 Our event date is getting closer, and our golfing slots are sold out! But it's not too late to support Ursuline's 75th Anniversary tournament. We have sponsorship levels to fit every budget, ads in our program book, and spots available to attend the banquet at the end of the day. Click here to see all sponsorship and ad book options and benefits. Click here for information about donating. Click here to purchase banquet tickets. Email golf@ursulineacademy.net with questions. A Chance for Young Alumnae to Golf for Free Thanks to a generous alumnae donor, we've got two pairs of tickets to golf and attend the banquet for Ursuline alumnae who have graduated in the past 10 years (Classes of 2010 - 2020). Email us by Tuesday, June 1, and we'll put your name in the hat ($500 value) to join us at the Fore the Girls Tournament on June 28 at Blue Hill Country Club in Canton. Email golf@ursulineacademy.net to enter.
Alumnae News Katie Burke '99 Addresses the Class of 2021 at Senior Parent Brunch The class of 2021 and their parents were honored on May 2 at Ursuline's Senior Parent Brunch. Although held in a modified format, it was wonderful to see this cherished tradition happen in person. Many thanks to Katie Burke '99, Chief People Officer at HubSpot, for her inspiring remarks to the seniors, including "when faced with a choice of whether to be cool or be kind, always choose to be kind" and "always show up for others when they need it - that's what UA is all about."
Erin Olsen '17 Earns Valedictorian Congratulations to Erin Olsen '17, who delivered the valedictory address at the Saint Joseph's College of Maine Commencement on May 8, 2021. Erin earned a Bachelor of Science in elementary education with a dual concentration in math and special education. Erin chose to go into education because she loves working with children and wants to help make a difference in her students' lives. She chose a dual concentration so she would be better equipped to work with a variety of learning styles. Watch Erin's remarks on the college's commencement website (beginning at 11:55 on the "pre-recorded speeches" video).
UA Alums on Campus to Coach The Athletic Department has been thrilled to welcome back many of our Ursuline alumnae to join the coaching ranks this year. Fall Sports: Katherine Lynch '15 - Soccer Alicia Forte '06 - Soccer Katie McNally '10 - Cross Country Julia Goyette '14 - Volleyball
Winter Sports: Morgan O'Donnell '15 - Basketball Lilly Higgins '16 - Skiing Nora Kate O'Brien '10 - Ice Hockey Spring Sports: Elizabeth Paolini '00 - Softball Siobhan O'Sullivan '20 - Track and Field Pictured left to right: Morgan O'Donnell '15, Lilly Higgins '16, and Siobhan O'Sullivan '20
Ursuline Alumnae Engage (UAE) Thank you to our alumnae who joined us this spring to participate in a new program called Ursuline Alumnae Engage (UAE). This engagement and service opportunity for alumnae professionals provides positive, meaningful, and constructive feedback to current students as they develop their interview skills. The alums participated in mock interviews with members of the Class of 2022 earlier this month.
All In for Ursuline Ursuline's Day of Giving Thank you! The outpouring of support for Ursuline Academy on our day of giving is truly humbling. We had set a goal of 319 donations and optimistically set a dollar goal of $175,000. Over 475 donations later, we were able to exceed that goal by a wide margin and raise more than $205,000 for the students of Ursuline. This single day of giving helped to raise about one third of our goal for the Fund for Ursuline. This money is crucial for the smooth and successful operation of the school. As one donor said, "Ursuline is making a difference in the future generation of women leaders. Thank you for all that you have done during this pandemic to keep the students, the teachers and the staff safe." By Jayne McGuire '21. Almost everyone at Ursuline knows Bermina Chery '21—her vibrant presence lights up every room she enters—but what many people do not know about Bermina is that she is very involved with the Mayor's Youth Council of Boston, a group of high school students that come from every neighborhood in the city. All members are responsible for representing their peers, community members, and youth across Boston as they address critical social and political issues that the city faces. Read more. By Allee O'Neil '21. Last summer, Spanish teacher Elizabeth Mahoney took her Spanish education one step further. When quarantine intercepted her trip to Spain, she was left with three free summer months and the question, "What skill would I like to have if I have another summer like this?" One 40 hour training course later, she became a certified medical interpreter. Ms. Mahoney is always looking for new ways to feed her passion for Spanish language and culture. Read more.
Tree-Plenish: Juniors lead service project to benefit the environment by Tegan Greene '22, Communications Intern
Ursuline's motto Serviam, meaning "I will serve," is central to student life. Juniors Cassandra Cowell, Marissa Petrucci, and Helen Way exemplified Ursuline students' drive to live out this motto in their recent partnership with the Tree-Plenish organization. The event was a huge success, with 50 trees being planted on one day, and an additional 50 being donated to Needham's Arbor Day where residents can receive trees to plant in their own backyards. Marissa felt her time leading this event was an amazing experience because of how she was able to connect with other students through service. "The Ursuline Community is such an amazing place, and I am so glad that I was able to participate in, and organize an event that was actively working to better our community as a whole." Read more here.
Celtic in the House! Things were bustling at Ursuline one day in February, as a television commercial featuring Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics was filmed in our own Reynolds Center! We're thrilled that our facility was selected as the location for this shoot, and will share more details once we are given clearance to do so. (During the shoot, some scenes were filmed using a stand-in for Tatum, as in the photo right.)
Class Notes
Oh, Baby, Baby! Congrats to Meghan Altman Stoll '97 and her husband Tim, who welcomed twins Waverly Brooke and Keating Grey on April 4, 2021. Friends For Life Last month, we noted that Karen Finnegan '84 posted a photo of a recent gathering of Ursuline friends: "Great catching up with some of the lovely ladies of 1984."
If you and your UA pals are back to socializing after the quarantine of the past year, please send us a photo at alumnae@ursulineacademy.net.
Stay tuned for news about Reunion 2021.
In Memoriam We pray for our recently deceased alumnae. May they rest in peace and may we continue to always honor them in the future by remembering them.
Pamela J. Gessner '69 - March 4, 2021 Paula Doherty Lehan '56 - April 10, 2021 Marjorie Marie Ward '50 - April 17, 2021
Please keep the families of the deceased in your prayers. Check our next issue of Serviam Magazine to see a full list of family members of our alumnae who have recently passed. We remind our alumnae that Campus Ministry's Daily Prayer can be a great start to the day not just for students, but for anyone seeking to deepen their faith life. An archive of Daily Prayer emails can be found here. When you reach the page, click the yellow bell icon to subscribe to the daily prayer by email.
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