2017 race results
Good afternoon, we finally will finally have our final donation in by the end of the week!
1) Thank you for helping to raise $6,250 for the Students at Chicago Jesuit Academy! 100% of your donations went to the school. That is 1/2 the cost to send a third-grader to school for the year.
2) Please find a few pictures here: https://www.dwyerthon.com/new-gallery/
3) For the first time since we started the race in 2004, I'd like to award post-race awards in light of the 5 Jesuit Grad-At-Grad values. As with the footrace, there are many deserving winners so these are a bit arbitrary (or not). So I put your award with your companion over at CJA.
Open to Growth: Cameron, Max H.
Intellectually Competent: Esuseni, Jason
Religious: Jahquez, Carol
Loving, de ser carinoso: Bryan, Jeff
Doing Justice in the Service of Others: Makhi, Katie (as a stand-in for donors who did not make the race in person)
4) For further details on the accomplishments of the CJA students, please see the below forwarded email from CJA and click on the link. I would also like to quote my friend Tom's words when he said:
"I am horrified to say that I have lost track of the number of shootings in the blocks around our campus this year. In the evenings, I say goodnight to our students who walk home through these very same blocks. I marvel at their strength and doubt that I would have continued to climb had I been in their shoes.
Each year, nearly a quarter of our incoming students enter CJA still learning to read at 8, 9 or 10 years old. For many of these students, the destination -- entrance to a college prep high school, affordable access to post-secondary education and eventually meaningful employment and community leadership -- can seem unattainable.
Simultaneously, it gives me great hope to see Deon, our other alumni and so many others in our school community throwing "the rope" back to our students coming behind them. We're so proud that 98% of our alumni have graduated from high school and that over 90% continue to persist in post-secondary education, work full-time or serve in the military. We're proudest of our young men who continue to climb even when the edges may fray or the climb may seem impossible."
5) That's why we support this school and welcome them to our jesuit alumni family!
That's it!
Enter Tom from CJA from the June 2017 newsletter from Chicago Jesuit Academy
Dear Friends of CJA,
A few short weeks ago, alumni from our first graduating class at Chicago Jesuit Academy crossed the stage at schools such as Knox, Occidental and Southern Illinois to receive their college diplomas. One of these young men, Deon, shared the following words of gratitude with our community:
You played a huge role in providing the resources I needed to excel through CJA, high school, and college. I just grabbed the rope and pulled myself up. I will never forget what you have done for me and where I've come from. You set an example for my fellow alumni and me on how to pay it forward. I am determined to become successful in my career so that I can throw the rope to other young men and women who are in need. Thank you so much for believing in me. Thank you so much for being a blessing in my life.
As I have read and re-read Deon's words, I have come to see them as representative of our goal as educators at CJA; that is, to provide the resources and opportunities that talented young men need to help them find success and then use their gifts to serve others.
However eloquent they may be, Deon's words do not speak to the many obstacles that our students and alumni face on their path. The "rope" that he describes is an apt metaphor, but it assumes a straight path to the summit. Oftentimes for our students and alumni, the rope's edges fray or the climb seems impossible.
I am horrified to say that I have lost track of the number of shootings in the blocks around our campus this year. In the evenings, I say goodnight to our students who walk home through these very same blocks. I marvel at their strength and doubt that I would have continued to climb had I been in their shoes.
Each year, nearly a quarter of our incoming students enter CJA still learning to read at 8, 9 or 10 years old. For many of these students, the destination -- entrance to a college prep high school, affordable access to post-secondary education and eventually meaningful employment and community leadership -- can seem unattainable.
Simultaneously, it gives me great hope to see Deon, our other alumni and so many others in our school community throwing "the rope" back to our students coming behind them. We're so proud that 98% of our alumni have graduated from high school and that over 90% continue to persist in post-secondary education, work full-time or serve in the military. We're proudest of our young men who continue to climb even when the edges may fray or the climb may seem impossible.
As our twelfth school year comes to a close, I would simply like to thank you for the critical role that you play in the lives of our young men. Without you, none of this would be possible.
Thank you for believing in the tremendous promise of our students and alumni.
In gratitude,
Tom Van Grinsven
Director of Operations & Communications
Class of 2017 Graduation
On Saturday, June 3rd, our school community celebrated our 9th graduating class -- the young men in the Class of 2017. This was the largest class in our history.
As these talented young men celebrated their graduation from CJA, they displayed their growth as "gentlemen for others" by expressing their gratitude for our faculty and staff, for their families and for our benefactors. They also heard an inspiring message from our commencement speaker, Rep. Christian Mitchell, who represents the 26th district as a member of the Illinois House of Representatives.
I invite you to read about our Grad-at-Grad awardees. These young men epitomize what it means to be Open to Growth, Intellectually Competent, Religious, Loving and Committed to Doing Justice in the Service of Others.