Photo Blog

On a cold and blustery Sunday, when most students were inside studying and keeping warm, it was hard to miss Allison Rancourt ’17 of West Stewartstown, N.H.; Mark Lies ’17 from Greenwood Village, Colo.; and Diana Hurtado ’17 from Tucson, Ariz., standing outside the Hogan Campus Center in their fancy black dresses and duds. The trio was waiting for their ride to Boston, where they and other members of the Holy Cross Chamber Singers had been invited to perform at a private party. The group contains about 20 members and is directed by David Harris. Photo by Suzanne Morrissey

In October, Nativity School of Worcester hosted a black tie gala at Worcester’s Mechanics Hall (bathed in Crusader purple, which is also the signature hue of Nativity) to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the school’s opening (and to benefit the school’s ongoing programs to educate young men from Worcester’s most at-risk neighborhoods in the Jesuit tradition). The celebration sold out with 450 attendees who enjoyed cocktails, dinner, dancing, and, of course, a 10th  birthday cake.  “We were all thrilled that so many people came to help celebrate a school that was just a dream ten years ago,” says Patrick T. Maloney ’02, the school’s director of advancement. Maloney is just one of many Holy Cross alumni and student volunteers who work at Nativity, which has a strong relationship with the College.

Sean Dillon ’04, the principal of Nativity School of Worcester, cuts the cake with Matthew Brunell, Crista (Carrick) Mahoney ’02 and one of Nativity’s young students, Naethan, looking on.

Two men from the Holy Cross family who laid the foundation for the Nativity School 10 years ago, and continue to champion it today: Charles “Chick” Weiss, director of grants, foundation and corporate giving for Holy Cross and Nativity Worcester board member and former president of the College, Rev. Michael C. McFarland, S.J.

Spoiler alert: This young man, an 8th grader at Nativity, will be the subject of a “day in the life” feature in the Winter 2014 issue of Holy Cross Magazine, hitting mailboxes in mid-December.

Photography by Rob Carlin

Speaking to a large crowd of students, Holy Cross employees and visitors from the Worcester and Boston communities, Mary McAleese, former president of Ireland, presented a lecture titled “Shared Responsibility: Re-imagining the Future of Governance in the Church” in the Hogan Campus Center Ballroom on Tuesday, Oct. 29 at 7:30 p.m. The event was sponsored by the Rev. Michael C. McFarland, S.J. Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture and was followed by a book signing.

McAleese, the first Northern Irish native to be elected president, took office in 1997, a role which she would hold for two terms through 2011. She successfully brokered the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, a three-part agreement that addressed institutional changes in the government structure of Northern Ireland, the relationship between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, and the relationship of the Republic of Ireland with the United Kingdom.  During her lecture to the Holy Cross crowd, McAleese drew comparisons between finding ways to broker change and dialog with the paramilitary in Ireland and how the Catholic church should proceed in a direction of change.

“If there is a rightness in what you are saying, you can effect change,” she said. “I really want our good priests to be energized by a church that listens up and not talks down. But how do we get a listening up church?” she asked.

McAleese, who is currently pursuing a licentiate in canon law at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, signed copies of her latest book, “Quo Vadis? Collegiality in the Code of Canon Law.”

J.D. “Dave” Power III ’53, Founder of J.D. Power and Associates, the well-known global marketing information firm that surveys customer satisfaction, product quality and buyer behavior, returned to campus for “An Evening with J.D. ‘Dave’ Power III ’53” on Oct. 1 in Rehm Library. Power was interviewed by Aaron Nicodemus, editor of the Worcester Telegram & Gazette’s “Business Matters” section, about the new book “POWER: How J.D. Power III Became the Auto Industry’s Adviser, Confessor, and Eyewitness to History,” (Fenwick Publishing, September 2013).

After a special dinner and the lecture, Power signed copies of the book, which will be featured in the upcoming Winter 2014 issue of Holy Cross Magazine. 

This year’s Homecoming festivities included “Back to the Hill,” a dinner celebrating the Black Student Union’s 45th Anniversary along with the 40th anniversary of women attending the College. Above Peter Mitchell ’78 shares a hug and a laugh with psychology professor emeritus Ogretta V. McNeil and Rev. Philip Boroughs, S.J., President of the College.

Above BSU co-chairs Payton Shubrick ’15 (left) and Vicmarys Brito ’15 welcomed the BSU alumni to a special dinner in Hogan. Founded in 1968, following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., the BSU is committed to educating the Holy Cross community about the importance of heritage, the affirmation of identity and the legacy of achievement. Emphasizing the academic, cultural, social, and political development of its members, BSU aims to provide a support system for African American students and all members of the Holy Cross community by creating an environment that promotes leadership, embraces identity and encourages diversity.

Above Classmates Robert DeShay ’70 and Art Martin ’70

Alumni, parents and students mixed and mingled at the 2013 Homecoming events, including tailgating on Fitton Baseball Field before the HC v Harvard game.

Photograph by Joao Vickttor De Carvalho ’15

The campus community gathered on the Hart Lawn Saturday afternoon for the annual (and much-loved) Mass of the Holy Spirit, during which faculty, staff and parents are invited to bless the incoming first-year students as they begin their journey at Holy Cross.

Faculty and Jesuits lined up behind student altar servers carrying the crucifix and colorful, streaming banners. They processed down from the Hart Center lobby to the Hart Lawn, where the outdoor service takes place.

Rev. Philip L. Boroughs, S.J., President of the College, led the procession and welcomed families to the Mass.

Gorgeous blue skies, anyone?

Fathers Harman, Hayes, Boroughs, Lynch and Savard (from left), at the altar in front of the colorful cross that reminds some of a homemade quilt. This scene will be repeated at the Baccalaureate Mass four years from now, when the Class of 2017 graduates and offers a blessing to their parents as they leave campus to enter “the real world.”

There was a lot of purple in the audience, and…

…a lot of hugs as parents wished their students well and said good bye.

A brilliant rainbow appeared after a quick-moving storm passed through Worcester (this shot is taken from the Hogan parking lot, looking up the hill toward the Hart Center).

Tom Cecil, professor of mathematics and a member of the Class of 1968, shared two photos taken by Tom Andruskevich ’68 and this weekend’s reunion. At the 11 a.m. Class of 1968 Mass on Saturday in Mary Chapel (below), Holy Cross President Rev. Philip Boroughs, S.J., was joined by concelebrants Rev. John Endres, S.J., ’68 (left) and Rev. John Michalowski, S.J., ’68 (right).

Cecil (left) and his classmates Linnie Regan, Mike Ball and Rich Regan provided the music for the Mass. “We had a great reunion,” Cecil notes.

The Class of 2013 music majors gathered for a group shot in the Hart Center ice rink, where graduates prepped before processing into the gym for the Commencement ceremony. First, a friendly pose…

Then, a sillier stance…