BC Alumni Newsletter

December 2020

May the light of the Christmas Star bring you peace and joy this
Christmas and may we all feel the warmth of God’s presence
as we welcome a New Year with light and hope.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year

Alumni Spotlight
Tom Weirich
(‘78)
This last month, I had the opportunity to travel to
Mexico and did an expedition to Chichen Itza, one
of the few publicly accessible Mayan archaeologi-
cal sites located in the Yucatan Peninsula. Having
made it onsite, I beelined (breathlessly in my
mask) for "El Caracol," the famous pre-Columbian
Observatory built by the Mayan. Aligned with the
motions of Venus, the Mayans used the Observa-
tory to monitor the changing positions of Venus
and plan appropriate times for raids and battles.
Upon fseeing the structure emerge from the jungle
firsthand, I thought back to my time in 10th grade, camp in Antarctica. All the lessons learned
specifically a Global Studies class being taught by and passion instilled by Mrs. Kissel Burlew,
Nancy Kissel Burlew. Sitting there, staring at the Mrs. Gonyea, Ms. DeCrosta, Ms. Conklin,
textbook in front of me, smelling –the then– Ms. Mr. Wengenroth, Mrs. Heron Labanowsky,
Kissel's freshly made coffee, I saw a picture of the Mrs. Bayno, Coach Brady, Mrs. Ross, Mr.
Observatory and famous pyramid "El Castillo." I Debold, and so many more continue to
listened to how Ms. Kissel spoke about the ad-
bring meaning to my life and a smile to my
vances in math, science, and astronomy made by
face. For that, I'm eternally grateful.
this civilization that vanished years before the Thanks for letting me share this moment
Spanish Conquistadors made it to Mexican with you all.
shores. In many ways, this foundation in history
and archeology spurred my interest in the global
world and gave me the longing to get out of the
classroom and see it firsthand. One could phrase
this specific moment we all encounter as "a call-
ing" that we are taught our Catholicism gives us
when we ask ourselves what impact we can make
in the world around us. The foundation Burke gave
me challenged me to push harder for those
dreams and find a career that enabled me to do
so. This foundation and the passion exhibited by
my teachers like Ms. Kissel-Burlew have resulted
in my work in the renewable energy sector now for
over 18 years. Having visited all seven continents,
I have touched everything from the Taj Mahal in
India to the Great Wall of China, and the Cape of
Good Hope in South Africa to Union Glacier Base
 BC Alumni Making a
Difference
Gianna Tondo ( ‘19 )
While reflecting on my time at Burke Catholic, it feels
like it was years and years ago; meanwhile, it was in
June of 2019 that I graduated! My four years at Burke
Catholic built the foundation of who I am today. Some of
my greatest memories that I still reflect on today are of
Burke Catholic—ranging from my first day of freshman
year to the day of graduation. Although I graduated a
year and a half ago, the lessons I learned at Burke still
help me with today's decisions.

When I graduated from Burke back in 2019, my original

plan was to attend Quinnipiac University, earning a
Bachelor of Science in Biology and Pre-Medical designa-
tion and then attending medical school. The lessons I
learned at BC helped me realize it was not what I want-
ed anymore. Right after the fall semester, I applied to the
School of Nursing, and a few days later, I formally
switched my major to nursing. When I switched, I had no
idea that I would be joining the Class of 2022. At the
time, my advisor had a plan for me to accelerate—which
would not have occurred without the rigorous academics and AP classes I took at
Burke Catholic.

This brings me to where I am now—I am currently a junior at Quinnipiac University in

the School of Nursing, with a minor in Biology. Having only three semesters left of col-
lege is insane to me—especially during the COVID-19 pandemic and the fact that I on-
ly graduated from Burke Catholic a year and a half ago. I work at the hospital twice a
week on varying rotations (such as medical-surgical and pediatrics) while attending my
lectures and labs, either in-person or via Zoom. I continue to work for the Sunrise As-
sociation, which I have worked for since 2018.

The lessons I learned at Burke Catholic integrity, faith, pride, and humility have stayed
with me since graduation. I apply these lessons in my daily life, whether in my nursing
practice or the daily challenges that life throws at us. The motto, "Non vox sed votum,"
"Not words, but deeds," is still present in my life today and is a constant reminder that
it is our deeds that define us. The lessons that I have learned at Burke Catholic will
continuously be in my life, no matter where I end up.
Voice of Eagles Past
Jeffry Thoelen 2000
I graduated from Burke in 2000, along with my twin sister Jaimee
(Thoelen) Furman and my wife Lauren (LeMon). All three of us
have so many wonderful memories from our time there, and the
friendships we built over those four short years continue even to-
day. I think what makes Burke so special and unique is that it is a
small school where everyone knows each other and supports you
along the way. High school is not easy for anyone, and it has only
gotten more challenging in the last 20 years with the advent of
social media and our focus on being digitally connected 24 hours a
day. At Burke, everyone has the same mission, goals, and drive to
be successful. As a Catholic school, Burke may not have all the
money and resources that a public school does, but what we do
have is a very dedicated group of young men and women who
want to attend. They have likely had to make significant personal
sacrifices to pursue their Catholic studies. The teachers and staff
at Burke are second to none. Every day, they engage you, and
they help you focus on developing those essential skills and abili-
ties that will allow you to be successful in not only your academic
career but your future employment and life in general. As a high
school student, it is almost impossible to comprehend the impact
that your education will have upon your future success. You are so
busy focused on making new friends, getting your work done, and
participating in sports, that the whole experience kind of passes
you by, and before you know it, you are a senior attending your
Baccalaureate. As alumni with a few years under our belts in the
real world, we start to understand better just how valuable our
preparation in high school was for guiding us down the correct
path. The teachers and staff at Burke understand this, which is
why they tirelessly devote themselves each day to getting students
prepared. I know that Mrs. Clark, Mr. Debold, Mrs. Ross, Mrs.
Kelly, and Mr. Rivas have been putting in this work for a long time
since they taught me and are still there 20 years later! Burke pre-
pared me so well for my college studies that even I surprised my-
self when I graduated with a 3.998 GPA as the highest-ranked
member of my senior class. I attended a small Catholic College,
Mount Saint Mary's in Emmitsburg, Maryland, where I was an Ac-
counting major. I don't think I did anything special to obtain those
results, I just did my work the way that my teachers at Burke had
taught me, and it paid off exponentially. My sister Jaimee can at-
test to the value of her Burke education because she attended
Mount Saint Mary's along with me and had very similar academic
success as a Biology major, graduating in the top 3% of our class.
Unfortunately for her, I frequently remind her of my final rank ver-
sus hers! After college, I had aspirations to get into the field
of law enforcement. I was initially focused on applying to the
FBI, and that was one of the primary reasons why I pursued
a degree in Accounting. Unfortunately, the FBI also has a
minimum age requirement of 23 years old, so after graduat-
ing college at 21, I knew I had to do something else to get
into the field of law enforcement. Therefore, I took local civil
service examinations for the position of a police officer with
Orange County, the City of Middletown, the City of New-
burgh, and several other locations within the Hudson Valley
Region. I was subsequently called by the City of Middletown
Police Department and hired in August of 2005. In my 15
year career, I have spent time as a police officer, a K-9 of-
ficer with a patrol and explosive detection K-9, a patrol ser-
geant, and a patrol lieutenant. I currently serve as the Bu-
reau Commander of Operations, where I am responsible for
overseeing the department's patrol division consisting of
approximately 60 patrol officers and supervisors. I work for a
great city with a wonderful community of people who support
us every day. A police officer's job is often not easy, but I
would challenge anyone to find a more rewarding career. We
have significant work to do in this country to improve rela-
tions between our communities and our police officers. Un-
fortunately, we cannot do it without a few more great men
and women who are willing to put in some hard work and
dedication. A diverse educational experience can be very
beneficial as you work to address the varied problems of
people in your community. As a police officer, you have to
wear many hats: doctor, lawyer, counselor, teacher, and
auto mechanic. The list goes on and on. The police depart-
ment in your community can only be as good as the people
who are willing to serve it. Law enforcement is an outstand-
ing profession with a proud history. I can assure you, Burke
prepares you exceptionally well for this endeavor.
Christmas Memories...
“Oh, Christmas isn’t just a day, it’s a frame of mind.” -
Kris Kringle, ‘Miracle On 34th Street’
 MENTORSHIP AND
JOB OPPORTUNITIES
Ellen Roesch (BC Class of ‘78) CEO
of Ellen Roesch Your College Coach.
Let Ellen simplify the college process for
you. She offers full service college se-
lection and application coaching. Ellen
is experienced and knowledgeable in
selection criteria, application success &
how to write a great essay. You will get
personal one-on-one attention from be-
ginning to end. Priced to fit all budgets
and needs. Learn more at yourcol-
legecoach.org .
You can reach Ellen at taxlaw-
yer20@gmail.com.
Jeanine Grillo (BC Class of ‘12) is a
graduate of St. Thomas Aquinas
(2016) and works as a Senior Associ-
ate for Innovation & Enterprise So-
lutions at KPMG. She has been
working with students through
KPMG’s University and Internship pro-
gram and also offers her services in-
dependently. Jeanine is ready to help
young professionals navigate the job
market and coach them early on in
their careers.
Contact info:jgrillo@kpmg.com
Milestones
Jack Dwyer ‘14–
Started at Thinktown Ed-
ucation as Senior Educa-
tional Consultant on the
Arts & Writing Desk. Jack
graduated from Hamilton
College in 2018
Madelyn St Amand
‘20–Analyst for The Uni-
versity of Chicago’s prem-
ier investment club; The
Blue Chip Investment Club.
Madelyn is an Econ major
at the University of Chicago

Alumni in the Building

Allison Smith ‘12

Burke welcomed Allison to the Guidance Depart-

ment this December. Allison shared a bit about
herself for the newsletter;
I am a 2012 Burke graduate. I earned both my
Bachelor’s Degree in Counseling & Human Ser-
vices and Master’s in School Counseling from
the University of Scranton. A few years ago, I
chose to do my internship at a Catholic High
School, because of the environment and commu-
nity being so similar to that of BC. So now, it is
great to be back at Burke working in the guid-
ance department. As a student here, the guidance depart-
ment did so much for me, and now I have the opportunity to
do the same.
We are lucky to have her!
 Back Next Year...
One of our favorite events is our BC Alumni Basketball game held every December
26th. Although we couldn't be together this year we look forward to next year
and this timeless BC tradition...
 Save the Date
Join us for some great virtual events in January!

January 15th—Netflix Party Movie Night

January 30th—Virtual Cocktail Party & Art Auction
Look for details in upcoming Newsletters & emails.
We are looking forward to having some virtual fun with our BC family!

… And save the date for our Gala & First Alumni BBQ details below
BC Alumni Newsletter
December 2020

ReVitalize, ReEngage, ReConnect

Office of Alumni and Advancement

Thank You! Thank You ! Thank You!

To all who have responded to the Add a Zero Campaign

we are so very grateful!
Your continued support is what powers BCHS.

We are asking one more thing of you this year... Visit us at the site below to
see if your company participates in the Corporate Matching Program.
It is a simple way to Double the Impact of your gift to BC this year.

https://doublethedonation.com/BCHS
 If you would like to be in-
cluded in the next news-
letter or have a Milestone
or story you would like to
share, contact Karen Dwyer:
kdwyer@burkecatholic.org

Contact Information
John S. Burke Catholic High School
Office of Admissions, Alumni and Advancement
80 Fletcher St, Goshen, NY 10924
(845) 294-5481

burkecatholic.com
facebook.com/burkecatholichighschool
facebook.com/BCadmissionsandadvancement
twitter.com/burkecatholichs
instagram.com/burkecatholichs