Spring 2010 News for the Trinity High School Family
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The SPRING 2010 LeaderNEWS FOR THE TRINITY HIGH SCHOOL FAMILY WWW.TRINITYROCKS.COM My Trinity is . My experience at Trinity may be very unique compared to yours, but I would venture to guess that the nuts and bolts of our experiences share one thing in common. The commonality might be described as Trinity being a special place where God’s Friendship came alive to us in a real and evident way through the love, care and grace of the Trinity Family. The greatest gift of that experience is that, when we let it, the gift continues to grow and build our faith and our opportunities to share that love, care and grace with others. I was raised in the United Methodist Church and transferred from public schools (the first in my family) to Trinity in the middle of my junior year. Since I graduated from Trinity in 1974, both my brothers, all of my cousins and all of our sons also had the opportunity to grow in the Gospel experience we call Trinity. I experienced Trinity’s love, care and grace as a participant on the first-ever Christian Awakening Senior retreat in 1974. In my college years, I was able to grow and learn what it meant to care for a Trinity brother by working on senior retreats as a student leader under the tutelage of Father Ron Domhoff H’98 and Father Dave Zettel ’58. Caring for my Trinity brothers took a different role in the late 1980s and early ’90s as I served Trinity on the School Board and worked closely with the caring staff and teachers to create the first-ever master plan for the en- larged campus. I truly began to understand the impact of Gospel ideals through Trinity’s loving, caring and grace- filled teachers. During the mid-1990s, I was favored with the opportunity to grow in my faith as a member of the Foundation Board under the selfless leadership of Charles Leis H’01 and many others. In the late ’90s, I was called to the Catholic Church’s Rite of Christian Initiation and a full-time position at Trinity in Campus Ministry. There aren’t words sufficient to describe the Gospel values I learned at Trinity working alongside those same teachers who had planted seeds in me in the ’70s. Over the last decade, I have enjoyed the amazing experience of watching my own sons receive the same love, care and grace through their Trinity teachers, staff and coaches that I experienced. I often imagine a time in the future when my grandchildren might also enjoy God’s Friendship in the unique and real fashion that we have. Will their experience have the power of my own? I certainly recognize the importance of my gift of time and ministry to the growth of my faith in Jesus Christ. I am also acutely aware that my financial gift to the Trinity Annual Fund makes for the same opportunity to grow in the care, grace and love of God’s Friendship for my grandchildren and so many others. It’s not only a dream, but a reality. Trinity Forever! Mike Jones ’74 Help us give young men the opportunity to experience Trinity. Please invest in a young man’s future by making Trinity a charitable priority in your life. 2010 Trinity Annual Fund Advancing the Mission of Trinity High School by making tuition more affordable Go to www.trinityrocks.com and click on “Donate Now” to make a secure onlinecelebration 2009 sponsors ad contribution. PRESIDENT’S NOTEBOOK President’s Notebook BY DR. ROBERT (ROB) J. MULLEN ’77 I AM ASKED at least once a week, “How is the school students from all grade levels. year going?” Even though we will graduate the second-largest Sometimes the question is just an easy conversa- senior class in the school’s history, 98.8 percent of the tion starter by someone I happen to see. More often seniors will have voluntarily attended our tradition- than not, though, the questioner has some affiliation rich three-day retreat program. This program, begun in with Trinity and really wants to know how things are 1974, has been attended by well over half of all Trinity going. alumni. When answering the question, I like to share some- By the end of the school year we will have conduct- thing tangible. I figure that even if the question is just ed five school-wide worship and prayer experiences. A sixth all-school program, planned for Ash Wednesday, filler, like the common “How are you?”, I am going to 1 use the opportunity to tell our great story. had to be altered due to wintry weather. I wish you As with every school year, there have been excit- could experience the reverence and respect shown by ing successes, some surprises, the tried and true, and our students during these prayer moments. It is very moments of sadness. When you have more than 1,500 encouraging. people on a single campus and the majority are teenag- Combined with our underclassmen Masses and re- ers, the mix of good and bad, intense and sublime, is treat programs, team and activity Masses, the Mother- going to be frequent and expected. Son Mass, the Grandparents Mass, Junior Mass and So, here is a snapshot of how the year is going. Baccalaureate Mass, it is safe The most important activities conducted each day to say our students know us are teaching and learning. I am happy to report that as a religious community. I get our academic success is continuing. If you have been a real kick out of the students paying attention the past five years, we have been tout- who call their peers to attention ing an ever-improving set of results. The Class of 2010 each lunch period so grace may will be the fifth to graduate with taking the ACT as a be said to the entire lunchroom requirement. Despite graduating some of our largest gathering. They also hear our classes ever, and requiring each senior to take the ACT, announcement each Friday re- our scores have set new benchmarks each year. This minding them to go to church was true for the Class of 2009 and looks to continue on Sunday. with our soon-to-be alumni. Our athletic teams, those I am also confident that when we report the num- governed by the KHSAA and ber of college scholarship offers garnered by our seniors those ruled by other organiza- we will tally an impressive number, if not a new record. tions, are having a great year. Students making the honor roll have increased this District, regional, state and year. Academic teams like Quick Recall and Speech and national titles have been cap- Debate are succeeding in local and regional competi- tured. Some teams finished as tions. All of this is done while still enrolling students state runners-up. Many stu- with the broadest possible range of abilities. dents have been selected for This approach is a hallmark of Trinity. Our inclu- postseason honors. Special trib- siveness is recognized nationally and reflects the best of ute should be given to the wres- what all Catholic schools should be. tling team. They won a second Our students have been exceptionally generous this straight team state title while school year. Our annual efforts to support Dare to Care, having four individual champi- the Red Cross and various Christmas giving programs ons. Richard Brown ’91, an in- have maintained a long tradition of generosity. Our dividual state champion himself, is two-for-two as head students, teachers and staff members donated money wrestling coach. and gifts totaling more than $30,000 to these programs. The basketball team set a new state standard by After the earthquake tragedy in Haiti students, teachers winning the three most prestigious in-season holiday and staff members stepped up again with open hands tournaments. They also set a school record for consec- and donated nearly $10,000 for disaster relief. This utive wins along the way. At the time of this writing, the Spring Break a group of student volunteers, accompa- spring sports are getting underway. nied by teachers, will do service work in southern Loui- Most impressively, we are still in the running for siana. This is a repeat visit for Trinity volunteers to ar- a second consecutive honor that brings us great pride. eas still recovering from Hurricane Katrina. Thousands of hours of community service are being performed by CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE PRESIDENT’S NOTEBOOK President’s Notebook CONTINUED The KHSAA has recently begun honoring schools that experience a moment that moves beyond the expected go an entire school year without a player or coach being angst of the teenage years and we are confronted with ejected from a contest for unsportsmanlike conduct. death. This covers all three levels of competition: freshman, In January, we suffered the loss of sophomore Vin- junior varsity and varsity. Only a handful of KHSAA cent Nold. Deaths of students are rare but stunning. In member schools received this honor last year, and Trin- Vincent’s case, his death was unexpected. ity was one such school. We are on pace to do so again We take many steps to help students, teachers and this school year. staff members when a death occurs. These measures Winning is prized at Trinity. Winning the right way and more were undertaken. We will continue to assist is what is most important. students affected by his death as the year unfolds. For 2 Through our House System and activity program those interested, with the family’s permission, we have students discover, engage, connect, grow and, well, reprinted the homily (see page 34) from the funeral have fun.