Welcome to Christendom's Alumni E-Zine. If you have information that you would like to share with your fellow alumni, send it to Tom McFadden at tmcfadden@christendom.edu.

The Grapevine Online will be uploaded, depending on the amount of information sent to the editor, every month. It will have a couple of sections (when information is available), namely, Class Notes (your basic information on alumni babies, weddings, jobs, etc.), Calendar of Events, and Links to various recent stories about Christendom College and/or the Alumni of Christendom.

March 2004 edition of The Grapevine Online

Class Notes / Calendar of Events / Links to Stories / Prior issues

Click here for the NEW Print Edition - for spouses at home to read

Class notes

Now here's a little update from Paul Krueger '90: "I have been living in the Vancouver area since 1995, and am presently working for a marketing firm as their IT guy and am trying to complete the final stages of a Master's of Arts in Communications program at Simon Fraser University and will hopefully have my thesis completed before the end of summer (all work no play makes johnny a dull boy!). My wife Wendy & I recently (Sept 10-03) welcomed our fourth child - Hailey Louise Krueger, to add to our clan that now includes her siblings Jane (8), Jared (5), and Brandon (3). We now have a small Catholic liberal arts college (Redeemer Pacific College) in the area that reminds me much of Christendom for its strong liberal arts traditions, faithfulness to the magestrerium and location in a semi rural area in an old farm house. Has anyone forgot the humble beginings of CC on the shores of the Shenandoah. If all works out and God wills it, perhaps I may find myself on the other side of the desk teaching there next fall. Anyone planning to come to Vancouver or Whistler (go 2010!), should feel free to call or visit."

The Belleville sisters, well two of them, gave birth to a couple of babies. Denise (Belleville) Woltering, married to the one and only Mo, gave birth to Bernadette on February 9th, while her sister, Michelle (Belleville) Kopeck deliver a healthy boy named Martin on February 3rd. This was Mo and Denise's first child, but the seventh for Chris and Michelle Kopeck.

Jacinta (Sauer) Black, '89 recently gave birth to Michaela Leigh Black, on November 10th, 2003, weighing in at 8 lbs, 7 ounces. She joins brothers Daniel, age 6, and David, age 2 1/2. Daniel is very proud of his little sister. David is also proud, but he shows his pride in rather aggressive ways, such as squeezing her head and jumping on her legs.

Chris Lane '03 is rather enjoying the graduate class he's taking on medieval sermons at the Dominican House of Studies. He is also interested in information from fellow alumni about good grad programs in theology (most likely historical or systematic) or religious studies. Please send any input to clane1775@yahoo.com.

Erin Steenson ('99) has broken into the community theatre scene in the Northern Virginia area. Last fall, she performed in Vienna Theatre Company's production of Our Town... a performance which earned her a nomination for WATCH (Washington Area Theatre Community Honors.) She'll be attending the awards ceremony this Sunday at the Birchmere in Alexandria. Also, she took on the role of Stage Manager for Steel Magnolias, a production of St. Mark's Players. It opens on Friday, March 5th, and runs for three weekends. Check out the details at http://www.stmarksplayers.org/, and come by and see the show!!

Reagan (Aronhime) McKenna, married to Tom McKenna, is expecting baby #5 in April.

Mike Schmitt(-y, -ino) '03 and Anne Fraser '04 are to be married on May 22. They made the paper in Brooklyn, Schmitty's home town.

Daniel McGuire '03 is living in the Plains of Virginia, more specifically, in a little place they like to call The Bachelor Pad. He is teaching at Holy Family Academy in Manassas. He recently took the LSAT and scored a remarkable 173. He is trying to get into law school for next year.

Dr. Sam Aronhime '93 has reportedly bought himself a Beemer. Yep. It's true. Aronhime, who works as a dentist for the Navy, has returned from his stint in Okinawa, Japan, to the Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD. Keep on Smiling!

Marc-Pierre Jansen '02, now known by many as the International Man of Leisure, recently gave a talk to the Juniors and Seniors of Christendom College on the joys of living the Life of Riley, doing whatever he wants, whenever he wants. He talked of the importance of having as much fun as possible, like skiing and hiking, traveling and sleeping. He encouraged them to "follow [their] dreams and don't ever let something like employment stand in [their] way." His talk was well received.

Joe Somers attended Christendom from 1978-1980; the last year at Triangle, and the first year at Front Royal. Having attended his 25th high school reunion last year, he's feeling a bit like an old man. Never mind how things feel when the alarm jolts him up in the morning.

His wife, Terry, has been busy this past year with Mothers of Pre Schoolers (MOPS) and the business of running a family. Daughter Shannon fished the early trout fishing opener last March with Dad and after getting a wet foot in 32 degree water, dried her feet in the car, put her mittens on her feet, and continued to fish. This earned her a spot with the guys in this year's weekend trout fishing opener in May. Son Robert, a star student at school, recently said he doesn't know why he is so good at school and so naughty at home. Joe is not sure either, but he's still trying to find out from his teacher. It might have something to with his sisters not knowing how to deal with the linebacker type. Daughter Margaret, very artistic and articulate, recently gave Joe the thumbs down and booos for a song he belched out. He's still recovering. Daughter Kathleen, very expressive and poor with articulation, often runs around church as soon as Mass ends, including around the altar. Joe is getting involved in parish life as a trustee and he enjoys the challenges. Please pray that he might fulfill these duties well. He's beginning to see rays of light with the installation of Archbishop Timothy Dolan last year, and look forward to his leadership.

The latest edition to the Jensen family's hall of fame is Mary Kate (Jensen) Smith's recent encounter with Gladiator Russell Crowe (top left). Of course, to recap, we have already seen Peter with Jennifer, Annemarie with Bill, and Claire with Kiefer. We think that this is it with the Jensen family sightings.....

Johnny Ciskanik, son of Maggie O'Reilly Ciskanik ('84) and John Ciskanik, VP for Development at CC, and Sean O'Reilly, son of Frank and Angelique Syverson O'Reilly (both class of '83), were members of the U15 Virginia Futsal Champion team and participated in the Regional Championships in Boston MA in February. Although they tied the score with 4 minutes to go, they were unable to clinch the score they needed to go to the semifinals. Their team, however, impressed the referee so much that he told the coach that in all the years he had been coaching or refereeing that he had never seen a more respectful and sportsmanlike team! That was a small consolation for the boys but a huge one for one particular reluctant "soccer mom"!

Michelle (nee McCoy) & Jim Hoeper are finding it hard to believe their "baby" (pictured on the left) turned one on Feb. 3rd. They keep very busy chasing Cecelia around as she not only walks, but runs! She is also getting ready to go to Christendom....she loves trying to say the alphabet and has made it to "H" so far! Other than that she is the typical "baby" - dirty diapers and all. Michelle's e-mail address has changed again...it is now: michellehoeper@yahoo.com

Dan Fier '03 and Colleen McMahon '03 got engaged on Feb.14 and are planning on an October wedding, although the exact date is not yet set.

Matt and Theresa Bush Pierce '99 had a baby girl on Feb. 3 - Lucy Blaise Pierce (#3)

Anne Turner '02 and Elizabeth Kish '03 want the CC alums to know they got an awesome pad in Leesburg, VA, including a huge deck for great party action! And Elizabeth is no longer unemployed! She recently was hired at the Graduate Management Admissions Council
in McLean, VA, as an Office Assistant.

Sr. Mary Paul (Melia) Murphy, OP. makes her vows with the Nashville Dominicans; is pictured with her parents (who hold a special record at Christendom College: they sent all 5 of their children to Christendom, all of whom graduated, and 4 of the five married graduates of CC, and of course, the other found an even higher vocation); and is pictured with her siblings and their families.

Karla Kuykendall '99 is going to Gatlinburg on March 13. Yippee for her. Kirk Kuykendall is still getting married in July.

Andrew (1998) and Clare (1993) Cole are now expecting their fourth child with a due date of July 20th. They are still in Florence, Kentucky. Andrew is participating in the Diocese of Covington's Diocesan Synod under Bishop Roger Foyes as an educational facilator. This is the first synod there for over forty years. He sees great hope in this diocese of the New Springtime of the Church and the Restoration as becoming evident. There are many good things happening from the parish level to the diocesan level. The spread of the Theology of the Body seems to have broken ground there with Christopher West's books, tapes and videos through the Knights of Malta bringing him into speak. The priests of the diocese will be introduced to this theology sometime in the near
future. Some of the seminarians already have been introduced to it as a part of the pilot program last Fall.

For those of you who do not know, Francois Flippen and Jennifer (O'Gorman) Flippen, were married on November 24th 2001. Since then they have had an addition to their clan. Sebastian William became individualized on September 11th 2002. He is about a year and a half now and incorrigible but still manages to be polite with a perky "dank doo" when he acquires some desired item. They are currently expecting another clan member due to appear around late August. Please keep them in your prayers. Francois works as an accountant for Petrine Construction. He lives and breathes construction . . . just not accounting. But, it pays the bills. Jennifer is a homemaker and loves it. Sebastian keeps her company and BUSY stopping him from stuffing toys in the VCR and important artifacts in the kitchen garbage. This picture was taken around Easter of last year when Sebastian was about 7 months old. It definitely shows his spirit and how fatherhood agrees with his ol' Da-Da.

Just to bring you up to date with John "Bad Boy" Boyden '87-'88. He's been in Rome for the past six and a half years studying at the Angelicum. He is finishing a licentiate in Canon law. He also works giving tours around Rome with a reputable company Scala Reale. To the left you will see a picture of John (on the left) with Rick Steves of Travelchanel fame. He asked John's boss (whom he knows well) for someone who could give a tour of St. Peter's Basilica from a theological perspective and John was selected. Rick and his wife Ann, needless to say, enjoyed it tremendously.

John is once again off to London. He apparently loves that place. He's made it once to Ireland--to Belfast for a friend's ordination-- was quite impressed with the wee country. He says he'll make it back this year to see more of it. Lovely folk there in Ireland where they've suffered so much for the Catholic Faith... almost as much as the English did!

March's Happy Happy Birthdays.....

Mr. John Issigonis 3/1 Mr. Timothy Coffey 3/1 Miss Maria Bissex 3/1 Miss Jeannine Pelletier 3/2 Mrs. Mary McCoy 3/2 Mr. Joseph Meza 3/2 Mr. Dennis Brehany 3/3 Mrs. Mary Biros 3/3 Mr. Kevin Gerrity 3/3 Miss Andrea Hale 3/3 Mr. Stephen Cabler 3/4 Mrs. Lisa Koch 3/4 Mrs. Lisa Clark 3/5 Sister Mary Christiana Barry 3/5 Mrs. Bevlin Lyons 3/5 Miss Heather Taylor 3/5 Mr. Jeffrey Carr 3/5 Mr. Brendan McGuire 3/5 Mr. Daniel McGuire 3/5 Miss Elizabeth Price 3/6 Fr. John Heisler 3/7 Mr. Thomas Luckey 3/8 Mrs. Megan Parker 3/8 Miss Mary Hundt 3/8 Mr. Michael Langley 3/9 Miss Sarah Parker 3/9 Mr. Francis Tanner 3/10 Mrs. Diane Tobias 3/11 Mrs. Mary Lou Loftus 3/11 Mr. Matthew Coffey 3/11 Mrs. Jennifer Ciskanik 3/12 Mrs. Bridget Kerlek 3/12 Mr. John Sower 3/12 Sister Mary Grace Curran 3/13 Mrs. Giovanna Hudson 3/13 Mr. Daniel Schneible 3/13 Mr. Thomas Wagner 3/13 Dr. Stephen Donahue 3/14 Mr. Patrick Zuberbueler 3/14 Miss Maria Stefanczyk 3/14 Rev. Matthew Zuberbueler 3/14 Mrs. Therese Devoid 3/14 Mrs. Lisa Chiesa 3/15 Mrs. Patrisha Dean 3/15 Mr. Douglas Turecek 3/15

Miss Elizabeth Kish 3/15 Rev. Francis Peffley 3/16 Ms. Catherine Lodato 3/16 Mrs. Lisa Dow 3/16 Miss Sarah Dateno 3/16 Sister Maria Corona 3/16 Mr. Brian Radzik 3/17 Mr. Robert Wiesner 3/18 Mrs. Suzanne Ellis 3/19 Mrs. Leslie Alexander 3/19 Mrs. Andrea Stewart 3/19 Mr. Brian Hudson 3/19 Miss Jennifer Murphy 3/19 Mr. Thomas McFadden 3/20 Mrs. Angelique O'Reilly 3/21 Miss Kerri Polce 3/21 Miss Caroline Pollock 3/21 Mrs. Janna Schaefer 3/22 Mr. John Andretta 3/22 Mr. Mark Rohlena 3/22 Mr. Michael Wallacavage 3/23 Mrs. Deirdre Pennefather 3/23 Mr. Gabriel Young 3/23 Mr. Colin Boteler 3/23 Mr. Michael O'Herron 3/23 Miss Eleanor Cummings 3/24 Miss Jean Pennefather 3/24 Mrs. Mary Kennedy 3/26 Mrs. Anne Scrivener 3/26 Rev. Tom Vander Woude 3/26 Mr. Daniel Vander Woude 3/26 Mr. Matthew Cronkhite 3/26 Mrs. Catherine Goodman 3/26 Mrs. Mairin Scheetz 3/27 Mr. Andrew Youngblood 3/27 Mrs. Katherine Callaghan 3/28 Mr. Christopher Lane 3/28 Mr. Peter Scheetz 3/29 Mrs. Michelle Francis 3/29 Miss Amy McNeill 3/29 Mr. Mark Provenzano 3/30 Mr. Adrien Aeschliman 3/30 Mr. Andrew Zaccardi 3/31 Mr. Michael Currie 3/31

Calendar of events

May 24, 2004: Golf Tournament at Bull Run Golf Club outside Manassas, VA.

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Press Releases and Campus News: http://www.christendom.edu/news/releases.shtml

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Christendom in Ireland

The Christendom College Study Abroad Program in Ireland Conducted by Dr. and Mrs. Timothy O’Donnell, and Dr. Patrick Keats. Tour Chaplain: Fr. John Heisler

July 26 - August 16, 2004

FEATURES
Two 3-credit courses: Irish History and Irish Literature
One week of study at Christendom College
15 days of travel in Ireland (including a trip to the Aran Islands)
Round-trip airfare from Washington, D.C.
All airport transfers, entrance fees and transportation (in D.C. and Ireland)
Full breakfast and dinner daily in Ireland
Full room and board while in the U.S. at Christendom College

PURPOSE
To provide participants with the opportunity to study and travel abroad, enabling them to experience first-hand how the Faith can form a culture. Travels include visits to early celtic forts, monastic sites, castles and highland regions highlighting Ireland’s contribution to Western Civilization.

COST
$3,474 Includes tuition, round trip airfare, hotel accommodations, transportation in Ireland, breakfast and dinner. A deposit of $300 is due by March 31, 2004.

For more information please contact: Miss Christina Lundberg at 800-877-5456, ext. 211
or clundberg@christendom.edu.