Portraits Magazine - Fall:Winter 2026

A GIFT FOR THE AGES

The largest philanthropic gift in Saint Anselm’s history began with one alumnus’ love for the humanities, and passion for the Great Books

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A GIFT FOR THE AGES

The largest philanthropic gift in Saint Anselm’s history began with one alumnus’ love for the humanities, and passion for the Great Books.

By Gary Bouchard, Ph.D.

20 OPENING DOORS TO THE FUTURE OF NURSING

Celebrating Grappone Hall and the Jean School of Nursing and Health Sciences. By Paul J. Pronovost ’91, P ’25

30 OPERATION ARCTIC CARE

For Capt. Brent Hallenbeck ’01 and Maj. (P) Dan O’Brien, MPA-C ’94, a medical mission to Kotzebue, Alaska, resulted in memories to last a lifetime.

By Annie Sherman ’99 34

CLASSICAL CONNECTIONS

How an ancient artifact made modern friends through the Alva de Mars Megan Chapel Art Center.

By Laurie D. Morrissey 38

A UNIQUE COLLABORATION ON AN EXTRAORDINARY POPE

In their new book, four faculty members help explore the politics and theology of Pope Francis through an interdisciplinary lens.

By Kate Grip Denon

DEPARTMENTS

On the cover:

The biggest story this year, and perhaps in the college’s history, began with a love for the Great Books. Seven of the titles on the cover include books which were beloved by Gregory J. Grappone ’04, and part of the Great Books curriculum when he was a student at Saint Anselm. Read why A Calendar of Wisdom is central to the book stack on page 14.

Illustration by Olivia Malloy

Inside cover:

Leaves changing color, backpacks, and walks to class came together to create the perfect fall vibe on campus.

Photo by Kim Casey

This page:

For these two alumni, the commitment to service stretches back to their time on the Hilltop.

Photo by Sid Ceaser

Visit the website at www.anselm.edu/portraits-magazine

Portraits is published two times a year for the alumni, college community, and friends of Saint Anselm College. The magazine is produced by the Office of College Communications and Marketing (603-641-7240) and published by Saint Anselm College, 100 Saint Anselm Drive, Manchester, N.H. 03102-1310. Opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and (except for editorials) do not necessarily reflect the position of the college or the editors.

Portraits

THE MAGAZINE OF SAINT ANSELM COLLEGE

Volume 28 Number 1 Fall/Winter 2026

EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Paul J. Pronovost ’91

EDITOR

Kate Grip Denon

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Annee Newton Giard

DESIGNER

Melanie deForest-Malloy

COPY EDITOR

Barbara Coles

CONTRIBUTORS:

Dr. Gary Bouchard

Anna Brennan-Curry

Kori E. Chamberlin

D. Craig MacCormack ’95

Laurie D. Morrissey

Maya Pontes ’26

Annie Sherman ’99

MAGAZINE ADVISORY BOARD:

Dr. Gary Bouchard

Faculty Representative

Keith P. Chevalier

College Archivist, Head of Special Collections

Joseph Emmons ’04

Assistant Vice President of Alumni Relations and Engagement

James F. Flanagan

Senior Vice President and Chief Advancement Officer

Fr. Augustine G. Kelly, O.S.B. ’83

Monastery Representative

Bridget (Martin) Lazzara ’11

Alumni At-Large Representative

Dr. Tauna Sisco

Faculty Representative

Evelin Bodfish Bourne Cranberry Bogs on the Cape Watercolor on Paper

Courtesy New England Gallery

Email your letter to: magazine@anselm.edu or post to: Editor, Portraits | Saint Anselm College 100 Saint Anselm Drive | Manchester, NH 03102-1310

ALUMNI EVENTS

MARCH 10-11

Days of Giving

MARCH 29

30th Annual Easter Egg Hunt

JUNE 6–8

Reunion Weekend

JUNE 22

34th Annual Scholarship Golf Tournament

SEPTEMBER 28

Alumni Council Fall Golf Tournament

alumni.anselm.edu

COLLEGE EVENTS

Alva de Mars Megan Chapel Art Center

FEBRUARY 12-MAY 8

The Chapel Art Center will host Still Waters, Deep Reflections: The Art of Evelin Bodfish Bourne (shown left), with a selection of gentle and colorful watercolors, reflecting both her extraordinary simplicity and the artistic sensibilities of her era. Bodfish Bourne (1892-1954) was a painter in Provincetown, Mass., whose accomplishments and contributions to the New England art world were especially notable and refreshing. The exhibition will open with a reception on Thursday, February 12, and continue through May 8.

For more information, visit: anselm.edu/arts/chapel-art-center

Dana Center for the Performing Arts

SEPTEMBER 20

Le Vent Du Nord

MARCH 6

Teada, the 25th Anniversary Tour

MARCH 27

Celebration of Light Tour

APRIL 10-12; 16-18

Abbey Players: Something Rotten!

APRIL 24

Guitar Night with Hiroya Tsukamoto

MAY 1

Mutts Gone Nuts

MAY 23, 24

National Tap Dance Day Festival

www.anselm.edu/ dana-center-humanities

Dear Friends,

When I arrived on the Hilltop in the spring of 2019, there was an air of excitement for what was ahead. Today, in my final semester as president of Saint Anselm College, I am tempted to look back at the road traveled, but there remains much to do. So, my moment for reflection will wait.

At the same time, the issue of Portraits you hold in your hands offers a great look at our recent accomplishments, celebrations, and support that are driving a tremendous momentum for the college, including the opening of the gorgeous Jean School of Nursing and Health Sciences and the groundbreaking for the Van Hoof Athletic Complex, which will be home to our track & field, cross country, and soccer teams, thanks to the generosity of lead donor Jim Van Hoof and his family. Jim is a trustee, an alum of our men’s soccer program, and a 1987 graduate.

While every journey at Saint Anselm is different, there are threads that connect them all: The cover features an illustration of many great books, the heart of our shared experience and the essence of the transformative liberal arts education we provide. We have cultivated generations of students through a transformative education that integrates intellectual rigor, moral inquiry, and spiritual reflection.

The cover illustration includes works of particular importance to Gregory J. Grappone, a 2004 Great Books graduate who was taken from this world too soon at age 35. His love of the college became a love shared by his parents, Robert and Beverly Grappone.

In A Gift for the Ages, Dr. Gary Bouchard tells us how the relationship between the Grappones and the college grew over the years, leading to the largest philanthropic commitment in the history of Saint Anselm.

Without question, we have something special happening here

at a time when many colleges and universities are facing existential questions. We remain true to our founding vision to be a missioncentric institution delivering a firstrate liberal arts education with innovative educational programs and an exceptional student experience.

We have achieved a momentum that has strengthened our community in countless ways. Yet we know to ensure our continued growth and success, we must move swiftly and confidently into the next phase as articulated by Ascent to the Hilltop: Vision 2030. In a few short months, I look forward to passing the baton as the college takes these important steps into the future.

Sincerely,

Joseph A. Favazza, Ph.D. President

Saint Anselm College Celebrates Groundbreaking For Van Hoof Athletic Complex

Members of the Saint Anselm College community gathered to break ground on the Van Hoof Athletic Complex earlier this fall.

The facility will include an eightlane track, a synthetic turf soccer field, sophisticated LED lighting, spectator seating, and a multipurpose building with locker rooms. Design and planning for the facility, which may be completed in phases, is underway. The Van Hoof Athletic Complex will be home to the Hawks men’s and women’s track & field program, and men’s and women’s soccer teams, as well as a wide array of other college programming.

“No student-athlete arrives at Saint Anselm without hundreds of hours of carpools, cleats, sideline cheering, and unyielding encouragement. This complex will be a tribute to all of the parents who provide that.”

—TRUSTEE JIM VAN HOOF ’85 AND TRACEY VAN HOOF ’87

The track & field programs participate in both the indoor and outdoor seasons within the Northeast 10 Conference. The Hawks soccer teams play NE10 seasons in the fall and exhibition games in the spring.

Trustee Jim Van Hoof ’85 and Tracey Van Hoof ’87 made the lead gift for the complex in honor of his parents, Carol and James Van Hoof.

“Tracey and I want it to stand as a testament to all the parents who make the enormous sacrifices necessary for athletes to compete at this level,” Jim Van Hoof said. “No student-athlete arrives at Saint Anselm without hundreds of hours of carpools, cleats, sideline cheering, and unyielding encouragement. This complex will be a tribute to all of the parents who provide that.”

Van Hoof also announced that a substantial portion of their commitment is being made as a challenge gift that when successfully matched will allow for the soccer field to be named for legendary men’s soccer coach Ed Cannon, “a man who positively impacted, not just me, but hundreds of athletes during his long coaching and leadership career at Saint Anselm. Someone whose coaching excellence,

dedication to young athletes, humility, and character embody the Benedictine values we all hold dear.”

Saint Anselm President Joseph A. Favazza, Ph.D., thanked the Van Hoof family for their generous lead commitment, and also thanked the athletes who have waited for this moment while the college worked its way through the regulatory process with the communities of Bedford, Goffstown, and Manchester.

“The athletes are here, and they are anxious and deserving of the beautiful complex we are creating,” President Favazza said. “The addition of track & field to our varsity sports programs has been talked about for years. It was a strategic decision by the college leadership and trustees that has yielded an extraordinary number of participants, quickly exceeding our recruitment and enrollment expectations.”

In addition to Coach Cannon, longtime cross country coaches Professor Paul Finn and Professor Emeriti Dennis Sweetland were in attendance at the groundbreaking.

Following an extensive search in 2022, Peter Early was selected as the first director of track & field and cross country at Saint Anselm College. An experienced coach at the NCAA Division II level, Early arrived at Saint Anselm

from Assumption University where he led the men’s and women’s cross country and track & field programs.

Brian Stankiewicz ’17, the longtime head coach of the men’s and women’s cross country programs, was named assistant coach for track & field when the program was launched in 2023.

Now in the program’s third season, Saint Anselm has 141 track & field athletes, with 32 percent cross-over with cross country.

“A special word of thanks to Peter Early, whose strategic vision and tireless recruiting have helped shape the success and growth of our soccer and track & field programs,” said Athletic Director Phil Rowe. “And I’d also like to recognize our outstanding coaches—Bruno Victal (men’s soccer) and Lee Moyce (women’s soccer)—who have built our soccer programs to represent the very best of Saint Anselm: teamwork, integrity, and excellence both on and off the field.”

The men’s soccer program has 35 members and the women’s program has 37.

The 18-month campaign goal for the Van Hoof Athletic Complex is $2.5M, with $1.5M raised to date. For more information, please contact Senior Vice President and Chief Advancement Officer Jim Flanagan at jflanagan@ anselm.edu.

Four New Trustees Join Saint Anselm College Board

Saint Anselm College announced the appointment of four new members to the board of trustees on Friday, October 10, 2025. Each new member brings a wealth of professional expertise, leadership experience, and personal connection to the college’s Catholic, Benedictine mission.

“These four trustees bring diverse professional backgrounds to this role,” said President Joseph A. Favazza, Ph.D. “Together, they embody the values and spirit of our beloved Saint Anselm. We look forward to their guidance as we move the college forward with Ascent to the Hilltop, our five-year strategic plan.”

Eleanor Wm. Dahar

Eleanor Wm. Dahar is an accomplished attorney at Dahar Law Firm in Manchester, N.H., where she practices with her two brothers at the firm founded by their late father.

A graduate of Wheaton College (magna cum laude, 1984) and Boston

College Law School (1987), she has built a distinguished career in personal injury, family, and bankruptcy law. A past president of the New Hampshire Bar Association and the first woman from the state appointed to the executive council of the National Conference of Bar Presidents, Dahar has been a leader in both legal and civic communities.

She has served on numerous nonprofit boards across healthcare, youth development, and the arts, and currently serves on the advisory board of the college’s Center for Ethics in Society.

Alison L. McCarthy ’98

Alison McCarthy ’98 is counsel at Troutman Pepper in Boston, where she represents clients in complex patent litigation and strategic intellectual property management.

Recognized among Boston Magazine’s Top Lawyers for Intellectual Property Rights, she has also served as an adjunct professor at New England Law.

McCarthy is married to Brendan E. McCarthy ’96, founding principal of

McCarthy Financial, LLC. The couple live in Wellesley, Mass., with their two children.

Deeply engaged in her community, McCarthy serves as a representative for the Wellesley Special Education Parent Advisory Council, supporting inclusive educational initiatives.

John P. Morey ’85

John P. Morey ’85 brings decades of executive leadership in global investing, banking, and wealth management. Most recently, he served as chief client officer at Fiduciary Trust Company, retiring in 2022. His distinguished career also includes senior roles at GMO, LLC, Putnam Investments, and BankBoston.

A 2024 graduate fellow of the University of Notre Dame’s Inspired Leadership Initiative (ILI), Morey continues to exemplify his commitment to service through extensive board involvement. He currently serves on the board of

advisors for the Keough-Naughton Institute for Irish Studies, University of Notre Dame, as well as the boards of Bethany Land Institute, Horizons for Homeless Children, and the Brockton Sports Foundation.

A dedicated Anselmian, he remains actively engaged with his alma mater and currently serves on the Alva de Mars Megan Chapel Art Center Advisory Board.

Br. Thomas Lacourse, O.S.B. ’15

Br. Thomas Lacourse, O.S.B. ’15, a monk of Saint Anselm Abbey, graduated from Saint Anselm College in 2015 with a degree in politics and later earned a Ph.D. in political science from Trinity College in Dublin.

After joining the monastery in 2021, he returned to serve the college community as assistant director for student support in the Academic Resource Center and as an adjunct professor in the first-year experience program, Conversatio

His appointment to the board reflects the Abbey’s continued and integral role in guiding the mission and spiritual life of the college.

MEGAN BREWER ’26 AWARDED GRAPPONE FELLOWSHIP

Megan Brewer ’26 has been named the 2025-2026 Grappone Fellow at the Gregory J. Grappone Humanities Institute, the third student to serve in the ambassadorial role that awards the recipient with full tuition and fees.

Brewer is an honors classical archaeology and history double major from Orono, Maine, who credits both the humanities and the larger discipline of the liberal arts for pushing her to broaden her horizons. She was chosen by a selection committee led by philosophy professor, Robert Anderson, Ph.D., who shared that choosing Brewer was a “delight.”

“Megan lives and breathes the humanities,” Anderson said. “She is inspired by the field in ways that many of us know firsthand.”

A dedicated learner, she values social and cultural history and believes the best way to grasp a subject is through hands-on experience—a principle that has led her to spend the past two summers at the Orvieto Archaeological Field School, excavating at the EtruscoRoman site, Coriglia, in Castel Viscardo, Italy.

Beyond academics, Brewer is a leader among her peers, working as a resident assistant, peer tutor at the Academic Resource Center, co-editor of the student journal Humanitas, and project assistant

with the Lavalliere Franco-American Collection in the Geisel Library archives.

Brewer is excited about immersing herself in her research. One of her projects will explore the role of the Catholic Church in the formation of New England Franco-American communities, and her second will focus on the depiction of race in ancient artwork.

Alongside her academic and extracurricular involvements, Brewer will be representing the Grappone Humanities Institute in memory of Gregory J. Grappone ’04, after whom the Institute and fellowship are named. To honor their son’s love for the humanities, the Grappone family established the fellowship to support students with the same passion.

“I’m very grateful to the Grappone family and Professor Bouchard,” Brewer said. “The humanities have always played a very important role in my life, and I’m looking forward to taking part in promoting their wider importance and the mission of the Institute.”

AVA PETROSINO ’26 NAMED FR. BERNARD HOLMES SCHOLAR

Ava Petrosino ’26, a nursing major with a Spanish for health sciences minor, has been selected as the Fr. Bernard Holmes, O.S.B., Scholar for the 20252026 academic year for her advocacy and leadership on campus.

“[Petrosino] embodies academic excellence and humility through her leadership and service,” said Jenne Powers, assistant dean for academic support services.

When Petrosino first arrived at Saint Anselm, she said she immediately felt at home. The tight-knit feel of the campus community excited her, and she was compelled by an unwavering enthusiasm for academia. She felt like she fit right in at the college, apart from one thing—her need for an accessible campus.

As a student with limited mobility, Petrosino has a different perspective from many of her peers. At times, she has felt like her wheelchair made her stand out and prevented her from full campus involvement. Petrosino collaborated with a fellow classmate to speak with Saint Anselm staff at a panel to raise awareness about accessibility challenges she was facing. Her suggestions acknowledged creative and equitable solutions and inspired change to make the campus more accessible for current and future students. In May 2025, she volunteered to share her story at a national

conference for nurse educators.

“When I introduce myself to my patients, I let them know that I will work with them instead of for them,” she said. “Having been the patient in similar situations, I know how lonely it is to feel powerless and unheard.” She aims to make the world a more accommodating place where everyone can thrive. “As a nurse, I never want my patients to feel they have no autonomy or voice in their own care,” she said. “I want to use my knowledge and skills to advocate on behalf of others.”

Academics aside, Petrosino’s dedication to the campus and local community speaks for itself. Since her sophomore year, she has worked in the Academic Resource Center (ARC), where she can be found empowering student success as a peer tutor. She serves as a leader for the Accessibility, Awareness, and Advocacy group (AAA) and as a head peer mentor for the Transitions Program. Through the Meelia Center, Petrosino participated in community engaged learning with Girls Inc. and The Arbors of Bedford, and volunteered at Foster and Adoptive Parents Night Out (FAPNO) and Hope for NH Recovery in Manchester. She also offers mentorship to students with and without disabilities through her involvement at the Diversity and Inclusion Innovation Fund (DIIF).

SENIORS NAMED 2025-2026 MELUCCI SCHOLARS

Anne LaBelle ’26 and John Beirne ’26 have been selected to receive the 20252026 Thomas A. Melucci Jr. Memorial Scholarship, an award that annually provides full tuition to two seniors who have demonstrated significant spiritual and personal growth throughout their time at Saint Anselm College.

LaBelle is a forensic science major with a minor in biology, and hopes to analyze biological evidence as a criminalist. On campus, LaBelle works as an undergraduate research assistant in the biology department and serves as both community coordinator and student support manager at the Meelia Center. Her active leadership at Foster and Adoptive Parents Night Out (FAPNO) and participation in Road for Hope highlight LaBelle’s desire to get involved in any way she can. In addition, LaBelle will be serving as a B.R.E.A.K. leader with Campus Ministry, and is a regular volunteer at the Manchester School District and Manchester Animal Shelter. Her favorite part of being Anselmian is the people she’s had the chance to learn from, work with, and grow alongside. “I’ve had the privilege of working with amazing leaders who have shown me what it truly means to serve others with compassion and dedication,” she said. “Through the generosity and vision of Mr. and Mrs. Melucci, I have been given not just financial support but also the inspiration and encouragement to pursue my dreams wholeheartedly.”

Beirne is a double major in American studies and legal studies. “I want to be

a part of the decision to protect people from being harmed,” he says. “I want to use my skills and my love of the law to help people.”

Beirne’s commitment to involvement outside of academics also is notable. As early as his freshman year, Beirne found his place as a dedicated student athlete on the men’s club rugby team. By collaborating with campus administration and several teammates, he helped to transform the once-small team into a tournament contender. In addition to rugby, Beirne leads Athletes Bible Study through Campus Ministry, has assisted in community engagement with the Meelia Center, and is a member of the Irish Society, Campus Activities Board (CAB), and Student Engagement and Leadership (SEAL). He said he has thoroughly enjoyed his time at Saint Anselm and considers attending to be one of the best decisions he has ever made.

“This scholarship means the world to me,” he said. “It has allowed me to focus on my academics and has been a huge help to my family … I am unbelievably grateful for the peace of mind it has given me.”

The Thomas A. Melucci Jr. Memorial Endowed Scholarship was established by Thomas and Gail Melucci as a memorial for their son, Thomas, who graduated from Saint Anselm in 1988. The Meluccis remain closely involved with the scholarship, serving on the committee that selects recipients each year. Thomas Melucci is a former trustee of the college, who sadly passed away in December.

NORAH SMITH ’26 AWARDED 2025 WHIPPLE SCHOLARSHIP FOR 18TH CENTURY STUDIES

Norah Smith ’26 has been named the 2025 recipient of the John S. Whipple Scholarship for 18th Century Studies, winning over the scholarship committee with her proposal titled “Female Intimacy in EighteenthCentury Literature–Friendship, Hatred, and Lesbianism.”

The competitive award is given to one student each year and comes with a research stipend.

After Smith’s proposal was chosen, Gary Bouchard, Ph.D., of the English and communication department, and executive director of the Gregory J. Grappone Humanities Institute, wrote, “This topic is certainly one worthy of research and writing.”

Smith is an English major with a minor in professional and creative writing. Her love for literature has led her to be a friendly face in the Geisel Library, where she holds a position as a student worker at the circulation desk. In her free time, she enjoys writing her own original works of poetry, some of which she presented

at the Mind over Major conference in April 2025.

“Female intimacy in literature has always fascinated me, and most of the time, women in novels are relatively flat, static or only acknowledged in reference to men,” said Smith. “I am excited to take a deep dive into a novel about a solely female utopia.”

Smith’s interest in this era of history mirrors that of the scholarship’s namesake, John S. Whipple. His son was a former postulant at the Saint Anselm Abbey, and he established the John S. Whipple Scholarship to honor his father, who possessed a deep passion for the study of the 18th century.

The scholarship is hosted in partnership with the Gregory J. Grappone Humanities Institute, a place that was determined to be a fitting home for the scholarship, as well as the office of college advancement and the office of financial aid.

Anselmians Help Preserve New Hampshire History

Last summer, James Thibault ’28, a politics major and N.H. state representative (R-Merrimack 25), played a key role in bringing home a long-lost portrait of Daniel Webster, the 19th-century statesman and Franklin, N.H., native.

According to Thibault, the portrait was donated to the Navy for the commissioning of a submarine, the U.S.S. Daniel Webster, back in the 1960s. After the submarine was decommissioned, it was converted into a training vessel, but the painting remained on board. Efforts made by the Franklin Historical Society through U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen’s office to have the portrait returned in 2011 were unsuccessful, as the Navy believed it to be lost. Earlier this year, however, Thibault was contacted by the Navy saying that it had been found, and Thibault worked with them to bring the portrait home.

The return of the portrait was celebrated at the New Hampshire State House, where Thibault sat down with Franklin Middle School students

to teach them about the history of the portrait and Webster’s career. The portrait was donated to the Franklin Historical Society where it will remain on permanent display.

“It was an immense honor to be able to bring this piece of history home, and I’m really glad we got to share it with the next generation of Granite Staters [to be] inspired by Webster’s legacy,” Thibault says.

With thanks to history professor, Hugh Dubrulle, Ph.D., the New Hampshire Historical Society in Concord, N.H., now houses an important collection of letters from Civil War private and New Hampshire-native, Charles M. Trask.

Trask (1836-1891), who received a degree from the University of Vermont in 1861, joined the 5th New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry during the Civil war in early 1862 as a private. He became a hospital steward for the regiment and was eventually promoted to 2nd assistant surgeon. He left the service in late 1864. The collection consists of 34 letters, 32 of which Trask wrote to various family members while serving in the 5th New Hampshire.

For Dubrulle, who won the letters at auction, the decision to donate them was an easy one. “I strongly believe that documents of this sort belong at an institution like the New Hampshire Historical Society where they can be properly cared for and remain available to the public for research purposes.”

BR. THOMAS LACOURSE,

O.S.B. ’15 PROFESSES SOLEMN VOWS

On July 11, 2025, Br. Thomas Kevin Lacourse, O.S.B. ’15 professed solemn vows as a monk of Saint Anselm Abbey. Abbot Isaac Murphy, O.S.B., clothed Br. Thomas with the monastic cuculla, a pleated monastic choir robe, and a symbol of solemn profession.

Standing before the altar and before his brothers in the monastery, Br. Thomas pronounced vows of stability, obedience, and conversatio morum, making a permanent commitment of himself to the Lord and to his monastic community. As a solemnly professed monk, Br. Thomas becomes a member of the monastery’s Chapter, as well as a member of the Saint Anselm College and Woodside Priory School corporations.

Br. Thomas is a native of Chester, N.H., and a 2015 graduate of Saint Anselm College. Following graduation, he completed a master’s degree in political philosophy at the University of Sheffield in Sheffield, England. In 2021, he completed a Ph.D. in political theory at Trinity College, Dublin.

Br. Thomas currently serves as the assistant director for academic support in the Academic Resource Center at Saint Anselm College.

BR. DISMAS MANUEL ENTERS THE NOVITIATE

On August 14, 2025, Noah Manuel was received into the novitiate and clothed in the monastic habit. Abbot Isaac Murphy, O.S.B., gave him his religious name, Br. Dismas. Br. Dismas’ patron is Saint Dismas, the “good thief” described in the Passion narratives Br. Dismas is a native of Newport, R.I. Fr. Bernard Disco, O.S.B., will serve as his Novice Master. Please pray for Br. Dismas as he begins this year of formation. Please continue to pray that our community will be blessed with new vocations.

NEW ATHLETICS LOGO UNVEILED

Saint Anselm College Athletics has unveiled a new visual identity that builds upon the proud history of the Hawks while reintroducing the image of a hawk for the first time in several years.

Developed in collaboration with Royal Rooster, the logo set retains the classic colors of navy, grey, and white, a palette that has long represented the Hilltop, ensuring continuity with the college’s visual tradition. The refreshed logo symbolizes the department’s strength, focus, determination, and ability to soar above the competition.

The new design also incorporates a subtle light blue accent in the hawk’s eye, a nod to the college’s color palette, which ties directly into the department’s new tagline, “Tradition with an eye to the future.” The addition of the light blue element serves as a symbolic bridge between past and future; a nod to the growth, renewal, and energy that define Saint Anselm’s evolving identity.

“This new set of logos captures who we are as a department and as a community. It honors the proud legacy of Saint Anselm Athletics while embracing innovation and progress,” said Interim Director of Athletics Phil Rowe. “The hawk sees all, strikes with a purpose, and leads with strength; just like us.”

The new logo will be gradually introduced across athletic uniforms, facilities, merchandise, and digital platforms throughout the 2025-26 academic year.

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1: The No. 8 nationally ranked Saint Anselm College field hockey team ended their season in the NCAA Championship First Round contest against Shippensburg University. The Hawks were crowned National Champions in 2024, which marked the first national championship in program and school history. 2: Sociology professor and program director for community and public health, Tauna Sisco, Ph.D., teaches her media and society class at the newly opened Grappone Hall. 3: Fall colors on the Hilltop always put on a brilliant show. 4: The Center for Ethics in Society held its 8th annual Housing We Need forum with keynote speaker Mike Kingsella, CEO of Up for Growth, a national coalition dedicated to advancing pro-housing policy solutions. 5: Sporty cupcakes helped mark the occasion at the groundbreaking for the Van Hoof Athletic Complex. 6: The Anselmian Abbey Players’ production of Dracula was a perfect fit for Halloween weekend. 7: Fr. Aloysius Sarasin, O.S.B. ’17 gives move-in day a double thumbs up. 8: U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) visited the New Hampshire Institute of Politics as part of the “Stand Up New Hampshire” town hall series of 2025. 9: For the first time, together, the Chapel Art Center presented an exciting group of Corita Kent serigraph prints this fall. The boldly colorful and poetic works represent the age of Pop Art, with many of the pieces (pictured, The Holy, 1961) having been generously donated by Dr. Gloria Ann Holmes, with support and facilitation from her sister, Dr. May Futrell. 10: Students experienced time travel this fall, thanks to Revolutionary War reenactor Connor O’Neill ’22. A social studies teacher at Pope Francis Preparatory School in Springfield, Mass., O’Neill was invited to campus by the history and Classics department in honor of America 250. 11: The newly relocated Bloomberg Lab, a state-of-the-art finance laboratory for the department of economics and business, makes a splash in its new home in Gadbois Hall.

A GIFT FOR THE AGES

The largest philanthropic gift in Saint Anselm’s history began with one alumnus’ love for the humanities, and passion for the Great Books.

By Gary Bouchard, Ph.D.

Illustrations by Olivia Malloy

THE ANNOUNCEMENT

It was lunchtime on the East Coast, morning coffee time on the West. There, and in the other time zones in between, more than a thousand Saint Anselm alumni and friends were looking into their cellphones or laptops, anxious to learn the historic news that was to be announced. Emails and texts had been circulating for days, filled with speculation and anticipation—everything from Division I athletics to a campus monorail system. I stood next to my students in front of the Sonnet Stage behind Alumni Hall amid a large crowd of Anselmians bracing a brisk early November wind.

Two very dear friends of the college were sitting in front of their screen in Naples, Fla. They knew very well what the president would announce. Finally, Dr. Favazza satisfied the curiosity and inspired the joy of everyone assembled in person and virtually. There would be no monorail. But Bob Grappone P ’04, H.D. ’21 and Beverly Grappone P ’04, H.D. ’21 had pledged an unprecedented $40 million to Saint Anselm College!

My phone was soon buzzing with

emails and texts from Saint Anselm alums near and far: “WOW! Tears of joy are streaming! TERRIFIC NEWS!”; “‘Thank you’ doesn’t begin to express what this will mean for Saint Anselm students!”; “I am seriously moved to tears by this announcement this afternoon.”; “This is simply remarkable. What an amazing gift and tribute!”; “Extraordinary gift from extraordinary people!”

Extraordinary, indeed! Worthy of the many joyful tears it provoked. To put the size of the gift in perspective, it is not only the largest philanthropic gift in Saint Anselm’s history, it’s the secondlargest gift ever made to a college or university in the history of New Hampshire, and more than three times larger than any single gift ever made to Saint Anselm’s peer institutions. And while the dollar amount may astonish, what really matters is how this gift will forever change a place loved by so many, how it will impact the lives of those of us who have served the college for decades, as well as people not yet born.

So, yes, WOW! But beyond the joyful exclamations, people have wondered, just how such a remarkable donation,

such unprecedented generosity, came to be. This being Saint Anselm, it is, of course, a love story—and one that begins with the love of books.

PROVIDENTIAL PATHS

Most New Hampshire residents are well acquainted with the locally renowned Grappone name and the successful fourth-generation family automobile dealerships that name represents. Many may also be aware that Bob and Bev’s son, Greg Grappone ’04, who would later work alongside his sister Amanda in the family business, came to Saint Anselm as a student after attending two other schools. An avid reader with unusual intellectual curiosity, Greg chose to major in the Great Books. He was intent on discovering the meaning of things—in authors like Homer, Virgil, Augustine, Shakespeare, Dostoyevsky— and in the world around him.

What most people don’t know is that, about five years after graduating, Greg paid a visit to Jim Flanagan, the college’s senior vice president and chief advancement officer. Jim, whose family

has owned six Grappone vehicles through the years, had seen Greg on his visits to the dealership to purchase cars and visit with Bob. But in his 38-year career in college advancement, he says, “meetings like this have not happened often. I was struck by how genuine Greg was when he told me, ‘One day, I’m going to do something significant for the humanities.’”

That “one day” would become part of an increasingly tenuous future for Greg when his lifelong pursuit of meaning was sadly interrupted by a rare form of cancer. Five years after that visit with Jim, he was living in Seattle, a husband and a father, receiving special medical treatments for a disease that would rob him of his life at just 35 years old. But not before one more great book. And a conversation that would endure long after he was gone. This time, it was Leo Tolstoy’s Calendar of Wisdom. Greg had purchased a copy of this volume in

which the great Russian author collected wisdom for each day of the year from religious and philosophical texts around the world. “I was visiting Greg,” Bob recalls, “and noticed the book on his coffee table. Paging through it, I suggested that the two of us read a page a day and then email our thoughts.”

When Bob invited his friend, renowned documentarian Ken Burns, to join in the daily father-son exchange, what Bev christened “the Tolstoy Trio” was born.

For Greg, this final reading pilgrimage lasted only a couple of months. “All too quickly,” Ken recalls, “Greg was gone. But Bob and I decided we would go on, a bereft father and friend sustaining the memory of Greg, and our own flawed souls with our early morning ritual. We’ve missed only one day since then as we struggle to come to terms with the mystery and mechanics of our all-tooshort passage here.” This “trio” of two

Bob and I decided we would go on, a bereft father and friend SUSTAINING THE MEMORY OF GREG, and our own flawed souls with our early morning ritual.” KEN BURNS

men would slowly grow to include many other early morning pilgrims, and Ken estimates that he has now logged more than 4,000 responses to Tolstoy’s daily wisdom, which, he says, “is ‘yikes!’”

Providentially, in that same spring of 2015 when the Trio was born, the chairs of the seven liberal arts departments at Saint Anselm convened for something of a reality check. A new curriculum had been implemented at the college, and as with colleges and universities across the nation, we were seeing a reduction in the number of liberal arts majors. The meeting was part commiseration, part brainstorming.

Could we somehow rise above the worrisome trend? How could the humanities at Saint Anselm not just survive, but thrive? Someone—it may have been me—suggested we might create a humanities institute.

With support from Academic Dean Mark Cronin, Ph.D., the conversation continued in the coming months. What might such an institute do? How could it serve all students? How could it continue to foster conversations and questions like the ones Greg Grappone and all Saint Anselm students had considered in their time at the college? Over the next two years, a proposal was eventually developed and approved that lifted us away from our initial bunker mentality— “us against STEM”—and instead transcended boundaries by proclaiming an ethos that would eventually become the institute’s trademarked slogan: Humanity: Everyone’s a Member.

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to us, Bob, faithful to his morning spiritual exercise with Tolstoy’s Calendar of Wisdom, had been contemplating how he might fulfill the vision Greg had shared with Jim of one day doing something special for the humanities. It was early autumn of 2017, and these seemingly separate paths were about to converge on, of all places, a golf course.

While we were developing our proposal, Jim had been deepening his friendship with Bob and Bev. It had something to do with Bob and Jim’s common love of golf, and much more to do with Greg, and the couple’s desire

to do something noble that would honor his memory. Jim had shared our proposal with Bob, and during a round of golf, he informed Jim that he and Bev had decided to commit a million dollars to found and develop the Gregory J. Grappone Humanities Institute at Saint Anselm. Looking back on the decision that would ultimately positively impact thousands of lives, including their own, Bob says, “You never know where a daily exercise that consists of noble thoughts will lead you.”

Over the next six years, Bob and Bev would join with many of us in creating an institute worthy of Greg’s dream, one that would honor his memory, enliven the humanities on campus, and inspire our students to better understand themselves and their place in the world. We persevered through the Covid pandemic, gained the support of a new president, and launched a $3 million capital campaign for which Bob and Bev joined with their friend Ken Burns in taking the lead. With a $500,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the support of hundreds of Saint Anselm alumni and friends, we successfully renovated the old boiler plant behind Alumni Hall, whose balcony had hosted the annual Shakespeare Sonnet Marathon for decades, into a beautiful new home for the humanities.

During those years, Bob would frequently respond to my email updates with the simple rhyming adage: “Inchby-inch, everything’s a cinch.” I came to regard this as a profession of our mutual faith in the project we had undertaken. Only later would I come to appreciate that inch-by-inch, much more than an institute was being created. With each Anselmian the Grappones came to know, friendships were formed, trust was deepened. Bob and Bev were steadily coming to appreciate and value, and ultimately fall in love with Greg’s alma mater, the special place where, as Bev shared with the crowd at the groundbreaking, “Greg had become a bigger person.”

FINDING A HOME

By 2023, the Grappone Humanities Institute was thriving in its new

the Grappones, above, the path to donating the largest philanthropic gift in the college’s history may have been lined with brick-andmortar campus additions, such as Grappone Hall, left. But the heart of the journey, traveled with the help of meaningful friends, including Ken Burns, below, has always been about an appreciation for the humanities, and a parent’s love.

A GIFT FOR THE AGES

architecturally award-winning space and Bev had joined the Saint Anselm College Board of Trustees. Bob had begun actively participating in my humanities seminars and attending the institute’s weekly Come Friday forums. He loved listening to the students reflect on challenging texts and express their own ideas as Greg had done two decades before. “You all confirmed my hunch about this place,” he told my humanities students in the wake of the announced gift this fall.

For her part, Bev’s lifelong admiration for nurses, and her personal vocation as one, prompted her interest in the college’s proposed new nursing school. “You could say Bob is interested in healing people’s souls,” Bev has observed, “and I’m interested in healing people’s bodies.” Of the couple’s deepening commitments, Dr. Favazza observes, “While Bob looks inward for truth, Bev looks outward, and is startingly clear-eyed about what she sees. She wants to make the community in which she lives healthier and better.”

In her role as a trustee, Dr. Favazza says, “Bev learned the complexities of running an institution of higher education at a very challenging time. Some people would have been discouraged by all of the weeds of budget, shared governance, and academic culture, but Bev embraced it and has been continually open to knowing more.” Determined to support the commitment Saint Anselm was making to healthcare education, the couple made a $5 million leadership commitment in 2023. Their gift would help fund the construction of Grappone Hall that would house the new nursing school named for Roger Jean ’70 and Francine Jean, Anselmian friends and fellow Naples residents the Grappones had come to know and admire.

Kathy Kayros, retired COO of the Grappone Automotive Group, and someone who had a special relationship with Greg, has been longtime close friends of Bob and Bev, and has enthusiastically joined them in supporting the institute and college. Witnessing their deepening love for and support of Saint Anselm, she says,

To say that THE GRAPPONES FOUND A HOME AT SAINT ANSELM would turn out to be more than a well-worn metaphor.

“Bob and Bev recognize the spiritual impact of the monks. The fact that this is a Benedictine institution gives them comfort that the current values at the college will always continue because the monks foster those values.”

To say that the Grappones found a home at Saint Anselm would turn out to be more than a well-worn metaphor. Back in the summer of 2023, while we were busily working to complete the Humanities Institute in time for a July dedication, Bob made an unusual request. He had a very large stone engraved with the Grappone family tree. It had moved with the family to its various residences over the years. Bob now wanted to have it transported and installed on the grounds of the institute. As we navigated the logistics of this request, I remember thinking that Saint Anselm was really becoming the Grappones’ home. The following summer, that sentiment took on a literalness that even Bob and Bev likely never anticipated, when, with Kathy’s encouragement, they moved into a nearby modest ranch house owned by the college, placing them within walking distance to the myriad of campus

activities, from athletic contests to theatre productions, lectures, and liturgies.

STEWARDING SACRED THINGS

So, yes, the largest benefactors to Saint Anselm in its 137-year history are also its happiest seasonal tenants. This amusing irony says much about who they are, about who Saint Anselm is, and about a particular Benedictine hallmark at the core of this relationship.

Good stewardship is, of course, a basic best practice of all philanthropy. But for Saint Anselm, and for Bob and Bev, its meaning has deeper roots than altruism. In Chapter 31 of his Rule, St. Benedict teaches that all the tools and goods of the monastery should be regarded and cared for as if they were consecrated vessels of the altar. Through the centuries, St. Benedict’s instruction has come to be understood as seeing and appreciating the sacredness in all things: the soil and plants, the shovel and rake with which they are cultivated, and, most importantly, the people at the working end of those tools.

Stewardship explains not just the unprecedented financial generosity of Bob and Bev Grappone, but also why these generous campus tenants could be found this past Earth Day on the paths in the woods behind the residence halls filling garbage bags with strewn bottles and cans and other debris. Or why Bev dedicated time this past summer to packing boxes in Gadbois Hall to help facilitate the daunting move of the nursing department to its new home that bears her name. It explains why they are conscientiously attentive to caring for the gardens around the Grappone Humanities Institute.

This stewardship that has led Bob and Bev to care for their Saint Anselm home is, they understand, reciprocal. Back in the summer of 2018, when they returned to Saint Anselm together for the first time since Greg’s passing, they came carrying something sacred in need of care: their love for and memory of their beloved son, and the vision he had of doing something special for the humanities at his alma mater “Only people who are capable of loving strongly can also suffer great

sorrow,” wrote Leo Tolstoy, “but this same necessity of loving serves to counteract their grief and heals them.”

The extraordinary commitment that Bob and Bev ultimately made to Saint Anselm this past fall, together with the significant resources they donated before that, may be seen as the flourishing branches and leaves from the seed they brought to Saint Anselm that day. A seed Saint Anselm has nourished in numerous acts of stewardship, many of which were performed by everyday Anselmians, unaware of the impact of the good works they have done.

AN ENDURING SPIRIT

During his years at Saint Anselm, Greg was a student in Professor Bindu Maliekal’s Shakespeare class. She recalls him seated at the end of the front row where she could barely see his “bemused smile” out of the corner of her eye. She came to admire his “apprehension of literature’s subtle truths and his love of learning for learning’s sake.” They would remain friends and correspondents until Greg’s

passing, sharing enthusiasm for books, films, and photography. She fondly recalls the last photograph Greg sent of his daughter, Briar, seated on his lap, sporting a bright pink tutu, “Father and daughter gazing at a sunset, glorious in its colors.” Citing Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18—“But thy eternal summer shall not fade, / Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st” Professor Maliekal says, “Greg’s gentle spirit lingers in the memories of those who knew him.”

Including, I would add, those who knew him only briefly. Like a rather well-known documentarian up in Walpole, N.H., whose short-lived shared reflections with Greg became the spiritual discipline with which— no matter where he is in this wide world—he begins every single day. The pilgrimage that began the day Greg walked into Jim Flanagan’s office goes on for all of us. For on that day, he pressed something into motion that none of the rest of us understood yet. And this past November, Greg didn’t need a smartphone to know what was happening. His day had come.

From left: Jim Flanagan P ’23, P ’25, senior vice president and chief advancement officer, President Joseph A. Favazza, Ph.D., Dean Diane M. Uzarski, D.N.P., M.P.H., R.N., Roger Jean ’70, H.D. ’06, Francine Jean, Beverly Grappone P ’04, H.D. ’21, Bob Grappone P ’04, H.D. ’21, Abbot Isaac Murphy O.S.B., Jeb Lavalle ’82, board of trustees vice chair, Jonathan Woodcock, director, physical plant.

OPENING DOORS TO THE

FUTURE of NURSING

Celebrating GRAPPONE HALL AND THE JEAN SCHOOL OF NURSING AND HEALTH SCIENCES.

With the snip of ceremonial scissors, a new chapter in the storied history of Saint Anselm’s healthcare education was underway.

The college officially opened the doors to Grappone Hall, the new home of the Jean School of Nursing and Health Sciences, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday, September 5, 2025. The 45,000-square-foot, $32 million facility represents the largest capital investment in Saint Anselm history and a significant step forward in addressing New Hampshire’s critical healthcare workforce shortage.

Roger Jean ’70, H.D. ’06 and Francine Jean made a transformational gift commitment of $10 million to name the school. Beverly Grappone P ’04, H.D. ’21 and Bob Grappone P ’04, H.D. ’21 made a leadership commitment of $5 million to name the state-of-the-art facility. There have been 12 gifts of $1 million or more.

In his remarks, Roger Jean remembered a conversation with the chief nursing officer of Massachusetts General Hospital who believed nurses with liberal arts backgrounds view their patients differently. “They don’t just see them as patients, but also as people as well,” he said.

“Fran and I are convinced that our nursing and health science students have this attribute because of their exposure to excellent professional training and a sound core liberal arts education,” he said. “This attribute reminds us that caring for the sick, promoting wellness, and advancing health is not only a profession, but a vocation. This school will prepare generations of students to go out into the world with skills in their hands, knowledge in their minds, and compassion in their hearts.”

BY PAUL J. PRONOVOST ’91,

P ’25

PHOTOS BY KIM CASEY AND LEAH LARICCIA

SHAPING THE Future

Grappone Hall features a seven-lab simulation center with high-fidelity virtual patients, a 150-seat multimedia auditorium, collaborative learning spaces for anatomy and physiology, and multipurpose community spaces. The simulation center includes specialized environments for labor and delivery, pediatrics, medical/surgical care, intensive care, home health, mental health, and a complete simulated nursing unit.

A registered nurse, Bev Grappone shared her story as a young person who felt the calling to be a nurse at the age of 4.

“To be trained as a nurse is one thing. To be prepared for that incredible work at a place that makes you ready to offer yourselves wholly to the care of others, well, that is something much, much more,” she said. “That is what has happened on this campus for decades, and that is what will be happening inside this building for decades to come. All of us working together to shape the heart of a nurse.”

Following an opening prayer by Fr. Francis McCarty, O.S.B. ’10, several speakers echoed their excitement for the new home of the college’s healthcare education. Jim Flanagan P ’23, P ’25, senior vice president and chief advancement officer, served as the master of ceremonies.

Dr. Diane Uzarski, the founding dean of the Jean School of Nursing and Health Sciences, summed up the mood of the day with one word: “Wow!”

“This new building sits right on the campus quad for a reason. It’s not a siloed compound where healthcare education happens, but a hub of interdisciplinary conversation and activity in which we all share,” she said. “Everyone at Saint Anselm, and many people beyond this campus, will share in the education and formation of compassionate healthcare professionals, people who will graduate from this

“To be trained as a nurse is one thing. To be prepared for that incredible work at a place that makes you ready to offer yourselves wholly to the care of others, well, that is something much, much more ... All of us working together to shape the

heart of a nurse.”

—BEVERLY GRAPPONE P ’04,

H.D. ’21

school and have positive impacts on the lives of countless people throughout New England, this country, and the world.”

History IN THE MAKING

Saint Anselm College first welcomed nurses to the campus more than 70 years ago, in 1952. The program began at the request of Margeret Amsbury, a nurse at what is now known as the Manchester Veterans Affairs Medical Center, and Ruth Bagley, a nurse leader at Elliot Hospital. The program was established by Rev. Bernard Holmes, O.S.B. and Bagley, who would become the first directress of nursing.

Today, the program is nationally recognized, with students consistently outpacing the national average of the NCLEX licensure exam; the Class of 2024 had a 99 percent pass rate while the national average is 88 percent. Health sciences and public health majors have been added in recent years, and majors in exercise science and

kinesiology are under consideration.

The two-year campaign for the Jean School of Nursing and Health Sciences is the largest project-based campaign in the history of Saint Anselm. Through its ambitious $40 million goal, the campaign is directing $32 million toward the construction of Grappone Hall and $8 million for scholarships and programs.

As of the ribbon cutting, the campaign had raised $37 million. Board of Trustees Vice Chair Jeb Lavalle ’82 pointed out that the original campaign goal was set at $30 million, but the board and college leadership committed to an additional $10 million to propel the Jean School and Grappone Hall well into the future.

Also in attendance were U.S. Sen. Jean Shaheen (NH-D) and U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas (NH-D). Both Shaheen and Pappas have been steadfast supporters of healthcare and higher education in New Hampshire. Together, they secured two federal grants totaling $4.7 million to benefit the Jean School at Grappone Hall.

The new 45,000-square-foot facility includes a state-of-the-art simulation center with seven learning environments, from intensive care to pediatrics to public health, as well as the Abbot Gerald Auditorium, above, which can host up to 200 people.

President Joseph A. Favazza, Ph.D., told the crowd of more than 500 that the ribbon-cutting represented the fulfillment of a shared and determined vision.

“Ponder the fact that this building, comprised of three stories, contains hundreds upon hundreds of stories, he said. “At this very moment, as I am speaking, somewhere out there in an intensive care unit, a labor and delivery room, on a cancer floor, or in a cardiac rehab center, someone is receiving exceptional and compassionate care at the hands of a Saint Anselm healthcare professional.”

The Campaign for the Jean School of Nursing and Health Sciences continues through June 30, 2026. Those interested in contributing may visit www.anselm. edu/jean-school-give.

HIDDEN Treasures

Archival photos come to light during historic move.

When work began on relocating the Jean School of Nursing from Gadbois Hall into their new home at Grappone Hall, the heavyduty task of preserving the college’s nursing archives fell to Keith Chevalier, college archivist and head of special collections.

“All of the records kept by the nursing program in Gadbois were not going to the new building. The scope of the project of boxing and moving almost 80 cubic feet of departmental records, publications, and other documents from Gadbois under a tight deadline was intense,” he says. Within the many file cabinets found in Gadbois was a cache of photographs documenting Saint Anselm College nurses, and the nursing program. “It’s great that nursing was so mindful in retaining their history,” he says.

These records have been relocated to the College Archives for long-term preservation and provide an important look at the impressive and strong foundation of the nursing program upon which the Jean School of Nursing has been built.

—Kate Grip Denon

Bottom: Saint Anselm College School of Nursing students receiving a lecture on X-rays.

Our Q&A with physics department chair, Nicole Gugliucci, Ph.D., had us looking up to the sky this issue. Gugliucci, who is shown here with physics major, Matthew Grieco ’26, has a passion for astronomy that is infectious. Learn more about Gugliucci on page 42, including how she works to make an oftenintimidating subject approachable and accessible for everyone.

OPERATION ARCTIC CARE

For Capt. Brent Hallenbeck ’01 and Maj. (P) Dan O’Brien, MPA-C ’94, a medical mission to Kotzebue, Alaska, resulted in memories to last a lifetime.

BY ANNIE SHERMAN ’99

It’s 15 degrees below zero and the snowdrifts are head high when the New Hampshire Army National Guard Medical Readiness Detachment lands in Kotzebue, Alaska. As Capt. Brent Hallenbeck ’01 steps from the plane, a fleet of snowmobiles and dogsleds waits to escort him and his team of 137 medical personnel to their temporary staging quarters at Kotzebue Middle High School nearby. Maj. (P) Dan O’Brien, MPA-C ’94 arrives a few days later.

This is not their ordinary medical mission, nor are these alumni accustomed to a frozen environment of this magnitude. Hallenbeck, the detachment’s operations officer and mission officer in charge (OIC), coordinated for 10 months to organize this combined team from the Air and Army National Guards, Marines, Navy, and U.S. Public Health Service to provide medical care for 12 remote indigenous communities located throughout a 36,000-square-mile region of northwest Alaska that is accessible only by plane and snowmobile. Trading April’s springtime in the Granite State for late winter in the Arctic, they are here for two weeks to treat the Last Frontier’s most isolated and vulnerable population.

“I have never done or seen anything like this,” Hallenbeck says, now back at his Manchester office where he’s nurse manager of Surgical Services at the Department of Veteran Affairs.

“Whether it’s the location or the mission … to be able to do a joint mission with all these other services, to be able to go somewhere this challenging, and to execute a mission in this complex nature was new for me.”

Hallenbeck explains that the Alaskan community applied to the Department of Defense’s Innovative Readiness Training Program, which partners military units that seek training opportunities with communities that have needs they are unable to meet on their own. In this repository of applicants, Hallenbeck says he saw potential for his New Hampshire detachment to train in arctic warfare preparedness and provide medical care to this remote Alaskan community that struggled to get doctors, dentists, and

FIELD NOTES

From top to bottom: Capt. Brent Hallenbeck '01 provides an overview of Operation Arctic Care to a panel of community leaders, local politicians, facility administrators, and senior ranking military officials during Distinguished Visitors Day; A dog sled team moves across the frozen Bering Sea in Kotzebue, Alaska; Northern lights seen above the clinic in Noorvik, Alaska Photos courtesy of Capt. Brent Hallenbeck ’01 and Maj. (P) Dan O’Brien, MPA-C ’94

veterinarians, beyond what they receive through the Department of Health and Human Service’s Indian Health Service.

This mission was a major physical and logistical challenge on myriad levels, but Hallenbeck’s modesty underscores the value of collaboration and planning. His medical detachment usually doesn’t deploy, he explains, but rather they focus on soldier readiness within New Hampshire to ensure that National Guard personnel are prepared for a mission. Transporting and preparing this team was an accomplishment, but also wrangling seven other disparate military and civilian units together, when they don’t normally collaborate, added a layer of cross-country complexity that Hallenbeck and O’Brien say they don’t often witness. And then, providing medical care in the middle of the Arctic was the cherry on top to create a significant test in deployment capability.

“Captain Hallenbeck was the man that made it happen, and I can’t stress enough how much complexity he had on his plate. This is what the American military does. This is why we’re the elite force in the world, because we focus on complexity, doing that with multiple partners, be they multinational

or multiservice, and doing it in any environment,” says O’Brien, deputy state surgeon-clinical with the N.H. National Guard in Concord, who led a care team to three of the 12 remote villages.

“And this exercise just highlights that. We’re in the Arctic Circle. We have Air Force, Navy, Army, Marines, Public Health Service, and we’re working with civilian authorities,” O’Brien says. “On one hand, we’re helping a local community, and on the other we’re training ourselves and multiple units to work together and to do complex things, so, when something goes down, we can react, no matter where it is. This mission just brings that all together in an extremely complex environment.”

And in recognition of these efforts, Hallenbeck was recently named Officer of the Year by the Office of the Secretary of Defense Innovative Readiness Training program.

REMOTE POSSIBILITIES

The 137 personnel consisted of medics, dentists, behavioral health therapists, pharmacists, gastroenterologists, and veterinarians that provided no-cost care

FIELD NOTES

for more than 800 patients and 270 animals, all at a market value estimated at more than $750,000. According to O’Brien, they provided 460 dental procedures and 52 colonoscopies, and processed more than 1,400 prescriptions for a community that has the highest prevalence of colon cancer in the nation. Meanwhile, they slept in sleeping bags on cots at a school, then divided into individual teams of providers that dispatched to each community based on its medical demands. They brought only the basic supplies they could carry on their backs, and relied almost exclusively on the limited equipment at health clinics in each village. Because there were no roads with cars, they traveled by snowmobile and dogsled on trails through the snow for up to 40 miles, consistently in temperatures that were below zero.

Hallenbeck adds that partners Alaska National Guard and local villagers were incredibly accommodating, provided daily transport and guidance, and even rerouted their plans from using Black Hawk helicopters or dogsledding over a frozen river to taking a safer inland snowmobile trail if the ice looked unstable or a snow squall was

Left to right: Members of the NH National Guard deboard a C-130 in Kotzebue, Alaska at the beginning of Operation Arctic Care; Northern Lights captured in the night sky above Kiana, Alaska; Maj. Dan O’Brien '94 (foreground) and a communications Marine with 4th Combat Logistics Regiment prepare for takeoff from Kotzebue in a UH-60 Blackhawk Helicopter en route to his first clinic site in Ambler, Alaska.

Photos courtesy of Capt. Brent Hallenbeck ’01 and Maj. (P) Dan O’Brien, MPA-C ’94

moving through.

O’Brien counters that, as grueling as it sounds, it didn’t feel as cold as it looked, the villagers were welcoming, and the impact they made was worth the effort. They even played a basketball game with the villagers, which lightened the winter mood and gathered communities together.

“We’d wake up and get out of the school before the kids got there, and go over to the clinics, even though we had someone stationed in the clinic at night as well—and we really got our trauma skills put to use there,” O’Brien says. He recalls one nighttime evacuation by snowbulance (a small truck with rubber, tank-like tracks) to meet an emergency flight for a transfer on the runway for a snowmobile crash patient. “So that was pretty intense,” he says. “I think the biggest takeaway from the mission was the amount of care we were able to provide to communities that don’t get to see a dentist or a doctor all that often.”

ANSELMIAN BEGINNINGS

Their training over the years was critical for the care they could provide in Alaska, and began as students at Saint Anselm College. Hallenbeck, a biology major, and O’Brien, a natural sciences major, vividly recall their time and their professors on the Hilltop influencing their current career trajectories. They’re seven years apart, so they didn’t meet on campus, but rather met at the Veterans Affairs office where O’Brien worked while recruiting Hallenbeck into his current role.

“The courses I took and the professors I had, it was a challenging, hard curriculum, and it was a difficult workload to balance. But I felt supported. I always had good instructors to lead the way. My desire to push myself and their willingness to foster that, put me on this path,” Hallenbeck says, citing professors Carolyn Weinreb, Jay Pitocchelli, John Feick, and Christopher Lee as strong influences. “On the other side, there’s so much service happening on campus, and I took part in that and continued to build my desire for service. I started in Boy Scouts and youth groups

O’Brien and Hallenbeck stand by Smyth Tower, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, which is part of the Manchester VA Medical Center.

I think the biggest takeaway from the mission was THE AMOUNT OF CARE WE WERE ABLE TO PROVIDE to communities that don’t get to see a dentist or a doctor all that often.”

—MAJ. (P) DAN O’BRIEN, MPA-C ’94

in church, and then continued that service through my time at Saint Anselm, joining the Peace Corps and then the military. It was a great environment to be in to foster both my service side as well as the academic side.”

O’Brien agrees that he learned so much about service at Saint Anselm from the monastic community, professor and pre-med advisor, Barbara Stahl, Ph.D., and student volunteer opportunities like Anselmian B.R.E.A.K. to Appalachia. “I started learning that a more rewarding way to live is by giving and taking care of others.”

Reflecting on that time as eager students and their impact as medical

professionals in Alaska fosters a deep sense of gratitude and appreciation in these two talented, hard-working alumni. Both Hallenbeck and O’Brien admit there were moments of struggle and hardship, but it led to moments of success and growth that neither would change, even if the Alaskan trail had been a paved road or the temperatures were above zero degrees.

“As we get closer and closer to being able to fully execute, we are always learning, always training, trying to move the needle forward,” O’Brien says. “As much as it was a real-world mission, we’re always training too, and trying to be better.”

How an ancient artifact made modern friends through the Alva de Mars Megan Chapel Art Center.

BY LAURIE D. MORRISSEY

PHOTOS BY KEVIN HARKINS

CLASSICAL CONNECTIONS

He’s only a little guy, and he hasn’t done much for the last 4,000 years. In fact, he hasn’t moved for almost half a century. But at Saint Anselm College, he’s pretty special. He has sparked connections between several sturdy pillars of the college’s identity: academics, faculty, students, and alumni—simply by existing, largely unnoticed, in the permanent collection of the Alva de Mars Megan Chapel Art Center.

The man of the hour is a turquoise-glazed statuette created by an Egyptian artisan to accompany a deceased citizen into the afterlife. If you lived in Egypt and had the means, you made sure you’d have a cushy afterlife by having several servants, or shabti, join you in your tomb. The richer and more important you were, the more servants you brought along.

“If anyone asked you to do work, you could just have the shabti do it instead,” says Classics professor Matthew Gonzales.

WHEN PAST MEETS PRESENT

The renewed attention on this small figure came about as a result of an exhibit conceived of by Fr. Iain MacLellan, O.S.B. ’78, director of the Chapel Art Center, wherein a student could reflect on one item of interest in the permanent collection. By involving students from various majors, he saw it as a way to highlight the collection’s dimensionality and potential partnerships with other campus resources.

In Students Select (spring semester 2025), 17 students from nine majors each selected a piece of artwork to focus on. Each student summed up his or her reflection in one paragraph, which was displayed beside the wall label for the chosen piece.

Hope Jensen ’25, a classical archaeology major, was one of the 17 students participating in Students Select, and was fascinated by a small funerary piece she came across while digitizing files for the Chapel Art Center. Jensen’s interest in ancient history had led her to apply to Saint Anselm College, where she also minored in English and theology. Her research capstone project concerned the iconographic language of women in funeral monuments in ancient Athens.

The senior was surprised by her discovery: “I thought, is this really ours? What do we know about it? It was incredible to me that we had something that had survived so long, only a door away from where I’d been working,” she says.

Jensen had seen funerary pieces in museums and online, but was moved by the experience of seeing and touching one. “Holding this object so many years after its creation felt like time folding in on itself,” she says. “It has stood the test of time and retained its turquoise color. Someone made it with the purpose

of helping someone in the afterlife. It’s material proof that someone cared for the deceased.”

Gonzales also was surprised. “I had no idea we had any ancient artifacts in the collection,” he says. “Working together, we agreed that it was a highquality shabti, although not as high workmanship as one for someone elite or noble. The inscription doesn’t name who it’s made for. It’s fairly generic: I am the shabti of the beloved deceased and I’m going to do whatever you ask me to.”

The exact date of the shabti’s creation is uncertain. Jensen’s analysis dates the statuette to the Ptolemaic Period, while her professor places the piece in the High New Kingdom. A difference of a few centuries doesn’t bother them.

“We agree to disagree,” says Gonzales. “But that’s one of the things we seek to

“I thought, IS THIS REALLY OURS? What do we know about it?”

—HOPE JENSEN ’25

instill in our students: an awareness of the limits of human certainty. You can know something with as much certainty as possible based on the evidence you have available, but others may look at the same body of evidence and come to a different conclusion. The principles upon which we base our valuations can be highly subjective.”

What happened with the Chapel Art Center’s shabti is kind of magical, he says. “This object that was made more than 4,000 years ago gets interred in a tomb, and by some twists of fate and circumstance ends up here in our hands. It connects us with human beings who lived in a very different time and culture—but who shared the same fears, the same motivations.”

A COLLABORATIVE EFFORT

Jensen’s project dovetailed perfectly with her career aspiration of working in a museum. It also exceeded Fr. Iain’s expectations. “We hadn’t shown the items before because of a lack of information,” he says. “Hope and Professor Gonzales took the concept to the far limits of what we hope a student will experience.”

While it’s not known where these ancient Egyptian artifacts traveled before arriving at a small college in New Hampshire, we know who brought them. They were donated nearly 20 years ago by alumnus Robert Lout, M.D. ’68. “Dr. Lout called and asked if we wanted to have them,” says Fr. Iain. “He wanted them taken care of, and I thought they would open a new vein for us.”

The exhibit that brought the shabti to light was organized by Fr. Celestine Hettrick, O.S.B., assistant curator for the Chapel Art Center. “When Hope selected the two funerary pieces, I was thrilled,” he says. “I was impressed that we had such ancient artifacts in the collection

and was excited to display them, but we had limited information—I didn’t realize that we might have students and faculty with the interest and skills necessary to research them.”

Once the student and her professor started researching the artifacts, Fr. Celestine’s role was primarily one of encouragement and gratitude for the work they were doing. “Hope worked hard to develop her skills and talents during her time at Saint Anselm,” Fr. Celestine says. “This [was] one step on her path as she continues with graduate studies in the classics and archeology at Brandeis University.”

Jensen finds classical studies relevant to today’s world, sometimes in surprising ways. Quoting George Orwell’s 1984, she says, “Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.” She cites recent discoveries about the durability of ancient Roman concrete. Understanding the manufacturing strategy that allowed the material to self-repair cracks could have modern implications for climateresilient infrastructure.

Fr. Celestine sees Jensen’s work with the shabti as an example of what the Chapel Art Center is all about. “It was a collaborative effort that brought the college’s art collection, students, and professors together and showcased the great value and benefits of liberal arts education—and we heard from students, professors and staff, friends, family, and the public that they found it insightful and inspiring,” he says.

The unknown creator of this turquoise ceramic (faience) statuette intended it to exist in the afterlife of the deceased. But this shabti also has an afterlife of its own. The Egyptian artisan could never have imagined the path the figure would take. Nor could a generous alumnus envision the role his donation would play in one student’s education and potential career.

A CLOSER LOOK AT SHABTI

Shabti or Ushabti (“Answerer”) figurines, first found in the Egyptian Middle Kingdom (2050-1650 B.C.), were anthropomorphic figurines interred with the deceased as part of their funerary goods for provisioning the deceased in the afterlife. The usual form of a shabti figurine is a male or female figurine, often made of ceramic or faience, in an Osiris-like, or mummy-like, arms-crossed pose. The figurines were often decorated with hieroglyphic spells that were believed to animate the figurines so they could serve as helpers to the deceased in the afterlife, “answering” the call for food, beverage, or labor made by the deceased or one of the other underworld powers.

—Matthew Gonzales, Ph.D.

A Unique Collaboration on an Extraordinary Pope

IN THEIR NEW BOOK, FOUR FACULTY MEMBERS HELP EXPLORE THE POLITICS AND THEOLOGY OF POPE FRANCIS THROUGH AN INTERDISCIPLINARY LENS.

BY KATE GRIP DENON

When Christine Gustafson, Ph.D., chair of the politics department, and Paul Manuel, Ph.D., former Saint Anselm politics department chair, gathered in 2014 at the infamous Tombs restaurant near Georgetown University, along with their colleague, Alynna J. Lyon, a political science professor at the University of New Hampshire, the plan was to catch up over a drink. The three, who were in town presenting on a book volume at Georgetown’s Berkley Center, soon found the conversation drifting toward recently elected Pope Francis. Before they knew it, their original plan had evolved, and now included laying the framework for what would become their next book, Pope Francis as a Global Actor: Where Politics and Theology Meet (Palgrave Macmillan, 2018).

“We just got to talking about Pope Francis and how interesting he was, and how excited people were by him, and we noticed how he seemed to scramble our categories,” says Gustafson. “He didn’t seem left or right, conservative or liberal, and how interesting that was, and how much of a voice he was on the world stage—he really captured our imagination.”

The book, which included contributions from theologians and political scientists from around the United States, as well as a preface written by Abbot Isaac Murphy, O.S.B. (who was then Br. Isaac Murphy, O.S.B.), went on to do very well.

Fast forward to 2022, when Gustafson, who was still very much interested in the work of Pope Francis, was shifting her focus from being academic dean at the college back to a full-time faculty member. “I really wanted to get back to the classroom, and I thought this would be a perfect time to reach out to Paul and Alynna, and get the band together,” she says. “So much had happened with Pope Francis, and I thought we had another book in us.”

Gustafson’s instincts were spot on, as their publisher had the same thought, and reached out about the possibility of a second volume, which became Pope Francis Reconsidered: The Politics and Theology of a 21st-Century Global Leader (Palgrave Macmillan, 2026).

This time, in addition to including several of the previous book’s contributors, Gustafson looked to the Hilltop. “This came about organically, and I looked to colleagues I knew had overlapping interests,” she says. She first thought of theology professor and director for the Center for Ethics in Society, Marc Rugani, Ph.D. “Marc and I were having coffee, and we both think a lot about Catholic social teaching, and when he asked me what I was working on and I told him, he was excited, and it just seemed natural for him to contribute,” she says.

Rugani’s interest in synodality (walking together in Christ) became the focus of his chapter. “When Christine mentioned she was working on the second volume of her book, it came at an interesting time,” says Rugani. “We were about 10 years into Pope Francis’ papacy, and we had been through a lot, we had experienced the pandemic. It was at this point that Pope Francis had been entering into this path of synodality, which, the idea behind it, is bringing all voices from around the world, from the farthest-flung margins to the center of the church’s conversation and its vision for what the church looks like.”

For Rugani, it was an incredible opportunity to dive deeper into this notion and explore Pope Francis as a leader. “I saw a real change in Pope Francis’ approach to leadership,” he says. “In the past, the pope was a hierarchical leader, from the top down, but Francis, in many ways, incarnates this humility, a self-emptying of himself of the power and privileges in order to join in and to bring a richer unity in the church’s diversity.”

Through his research, Rugani came across many who feel Pope Francis’ approach to leadership could serve as a model for communities, and even companies and corporations. “Instead of a business hierarchy, it’s the notion of working together, walking together, and stepping back and really listening, hearing voices from the margins, and bringing those voices at the edges to the center,” he says.

Unexpected Perspectives

Pope Francis surprised the world with his commitment to global topics such as climate change, and when Gustafson was catching up with associate professor of biology, Theresa Dabruzzi, Ph.D., over coffee, it dawned on her that this would be a wonderful addition to the book, and that Dabruzzi should be the one to write it.

“It just occurred to me when we were talking how great would it be to have a

Francis, in many ways, incarnates this humility, a self-emptying of himself of the power and privileges in order to join in and to bring a richer unity in the church’s diversity.”

—MARC RUGANI, PH.D.

climate scientist contribute to a chapter on Pope Francis’ environmental policy,” says Gustafson. “Theresa had never had the opportunity to think about that before, and she really stepped outside of her comfort zone, and boy, did she do a lot of great work.”

For Dabruzzi, a marine biologist who studies adaptations to the environment and animals that live in extreme habitats, it was a quick “yes,” followed by extensive research. “Everyone has a different research process, but for me, to start something new, I must do a lot of reconnaissance and really get into the topic and see what’s out there and what others have said about it: What is their objectivity? What is the actual hard, uninterpreted information?” she says.

Through her research, her chapter began to take shape. “Pope Francis’ consistent and persistent activism of the environment is where I ended up taking my chapter,” she says. “He’s not the only pope to address environmental affairs, but he’s done it more strongly than any other pope.”

In her chapter, Dabruzzi also wanted to highlight Pope Francis’ call to take care of our common home. “I read and listened to everything Pope Francis had written or said realizing that, although phrased differently throughout his communications, Francis encouraged us to create a ‘culture of care’ and continually stated that we all have a shared responsibility to our common home,” she says. “He has stated in no uncertain terms that we are in the middle of a climate crisis—and to me, this was the story.”

The story, or rather chapter, for Br. Thomas Lacourse, O.S.B. ’15, assistant director for academic support and a trustee of the college, turned out to be the travel of Pope Francis. The pope’s commitment to travel, and the type of travel, was in a sense groundbreaking, by who he was visiting and where.

Like Gustafson’s other Saint Anselm contributors, Br. Thomas’ involvement with the book came about naturally.

Finding himself at the same conference as Gustafson and her co-author Alynna Lyon, Br. Thomas heard their panel discussion on Pope Francis and was intrigued. “Pope Francis had just gone to Mongolia, which was kind of unusual as there’s about 1,500 Catholics in the country which is much less than the number of people who typically attend an audience with the pope,” he says. “And I told Christine and Alynna, you know, I have some thoughts on this.”

These thoughts soon turned into his chapter on the pope’s travel during his papacy. “I was so curious why this older man, who was 86 or 87 by this time, was flying across the world, which is not easy even for people in their prime, to see not that many people,” he says. “And that’s when this chapter grew into something much larger, in that this wasn’t an unusual trip for him, he’d been travelling to unusual places for his entire pontificate—this is a pope, approaching travel in a completely different way than we’ve seen his predecessors approach it.”

This approach to travel was very much in step with his entire papacy, according to Br. Thomas. “Pope Francis stays remarkably true and consistent to his word. The papacy had always been this grand thing, you know, this type of monarchy, of someone separated from their flock.” But as Br. Thomas shares in his chapter, this was not the case for Pope Francis. “Francis really says ‘no’ to this notion, I’m not going to be separated from my flock, I’m going to travel to the farthest reaches of the world, to the places where Catholics can’t easily come see me at the Vatican, and where popes have not been before, like East Timor, and underline that this institution that I lead is truly what it says it is: a universal church.”

Br. Thomas’ contribution was a full-circle moment for Gustafson. A former politics student of hers was now becoming a scholar in his own right. “He’s my student,” she says. “He really developed this topic, and has made a wonderful contribution.”

The Liberal Arts Approach

While the opportunity to explore the extraordinary papacy of Pope Francis may have been the primary focus for these contributors, the ability to come together, and collaborate through an interdisciplinary approach, was a highlight. “One of the things I really appreciated about this project, and this opportunity, was how collaborative and interdisciplinary it was,” says Br. Thomas. “Christine is a great champion of the liberal arts, and this is one of the college’s strengths, and I hope that’s something our students take forward— it’s okay to be interested in politics and theology and biology.”

Rugani agrees. “Being able to gather with the authors and, really, to give a good critical insight and help us reformulate or reframe or refine our thoughts was such a real gift,” he says.

This collaboration, combined with the ability to look at Pope Francis from all angles, was truly the secret ingredient in the book, according to Gustafson. “I think the real strength of this book is that it is interdisciplinary. When you have conversations with theologians, political scientists, and biologists outside of their disciplines, it really does highlight things in a different light, in a true liberal arts fashion.”

And for this, Gustafson credits Saint Anselm College. “I never would have branched out into thinking about religion and politics if I hadn’t worked here. Coming to Saint Anselm and learning about the mission here, and being invited into interdisciplinary projects has been one of the joys of working here,” she says.

Angle-right Pope Francis Reconsidered: The Politics and Theology of a 21st-Century Global Leader (Palgrave Macmillan, 2026) will be released this spring.

For more information, visit www.palgrave.com/gp

the college's observatory.

NICOLE GUGLIUCCI, PH.D. Physics

BY KATE GRIP DENON

“Turns

out what I like most about science is sharing it with other people. Teaching it, and sharing it with others. … It’s important to me that everyone can feel some connection to science and see that it is understandable, it is reachable, it is even doable.”

Your focus is astronomy—do you remember your first experience viewing the stars?

Someone bought me this tiny red Tasco Telescope, and we put it on the hood of the car, and we looked at the moon, I think I was 5, and it was so cool. I grew up in Staten Island, N.Y., where there isn’t that much sky viewing, and I just really loved it.

Was that when you knew you wanted to be an astronomer?

I always loved science, and always wanted to be a scientist, but I came back around to astronomy when I was in high school. I saw the movie Contact with Jodi Foster— the telescopes and those headphones—I thought that was so cool, and that was a turning point for me. The fact that I wound up in radio astronomy, and even

Nicole Gugliucci, Ph.D. Department Chair and Associate Professor, Physics

B.A.

Lycoming College

M.S. University of Virginia

Ph.D. University of Virginia

Photo by Sid Ceaser

worked at one of the observatories in the movie, that was cool.

What are you working on right now that you’re really excited by?

I’m working with a project called Radio JOVE, which brings together my radio astronomy background and my recent work in science education and citizen science. It’s a project developed by NASA that calls upon citizen scientists and amateur scientists to build a simple antenna out of copper wire that monitors solar (radio) bursts from the sun and Jupiter. We’re trying to harness more citizen scientists (anyone doing science, but not doing it professionally). From a research point of view, I’m also looking at how participation in the project affects how people feel about their own identity in relation to science— do you feel like you’re doing science, and do you feel effective?

Why is citizen science important? Turns out what I like most about science is sharing it with other people. Teaching it, and sharing it with others. Citizen science is a way for people to participate in a process that may seem foreign to a lot of people, and it can be very technical.

It’s important to me that everyone can feel some connection to science and see that it is understandable, it is reachable, it is even doable. For astronomy, it’s great because so many people are in love with the night sky, but they don’t go into a career in science—this allows them to participate and make an impact.

You were recently on a panel at DragonCon—an annual pop culture convention featuring science fiction. How does science fiction and your work overlap?

A lot of people come to science through science fiction—I went the other way. I was into science and then discovered science fiction—but many people share those interests. I’ve been part of DragonCon programming since 2011, and we’re making a concerted effort to make science as accessible as possible to show a wide range of people who do science. Science fiction, and science communication are entry points for people, it doesn’t have to be intimidating, you can have fun with it.

You describe yourself as an all-around geek. What makes you a geek?

I’ve always loved science, I like figuring things out, playing with computers, and I love Star Trek. But what being a geek means to me is having passion for some topic and sharing that topic with people. And that really resonates with me.

When not teaching, where can we find you?

Watching Star Trek on the couch with my spouse and our dogs. But it’s a tie between Deep Space Nine and Lower Decks

DONATION HELPS BRING COLLEGE’S PATRON SAINT TO LIFE

BY LAURIE D. MORRISSEY

“As a teacher and writer, [Saint Anselm] helped people develop their minds and their search for God, and he encouraged all people to be faithful, even the kings who exiled him.”

—Fr. John R. Fortin, O.S.B. ’71

Students pass an 8-foot-tall bronze statue of Saint Anselm of Canterbury every day as they walk to classes and dorms. But while every student knows something about him, not all know him well. Thanks to a generous gift from a graduate of the college, students now have an opportunity to delve deeply into the life and times of this medieval thinker and leader who was chosen as the college’s patron by the founding monks. The anonymous donor has funded a fellowship that allows one student each year to pursue research on some aspect of the saint’s life, times, and thought. The fellowship is named in honor of Fr. John R. Fortin, O.S.B. ’71, the founding director of the Institute for Saint Anselm Studies.

There is a wide range of topics for researchers to choose from. Anselm was a teacher, scholar, monk, abbot, archbishop, Christian philosopher, writer, and theologian—which is why a group of faculty members organized a conference on the saint in 2000, and why Fr. John subsequently proposed an academic research center focused on his life, teachings, and spirituality. A prime goal of the Institute, through research and conferences, is to bring Saint Anselm into living contact with the culture of the 21st century.

Having a fellowship named in his honor came as a complete surprise to Fr. John. A Benedictine monk at Saint Anselm Abbey since 1970, Fr. John has served the college in many capacities over nearly six decades. He has taught philosophy and enjoyed teaching in the Great Books Program, served in campus ministry and residential life, and served on the board of trustees and governing board. He was superintendent of Catholic schools for the Diocese of Manchester for three years, and a teacher and headmaster at Woodside Priory School in Portola Valley, Calif.

A Maine native, Fr. John was the first member of his family to attend Saint Anselm College. Following in his footsteps were siblings David Fortin ’79 and Mary Breen ’85, and five nephews and nieces: Benjamin Dearnley ’00, Abigail Varga ’03, Lydia Buchert ’13, Zachary Fortin ’16, and Michael Breen ’20

Acknowledging the impact Fr. John has had on students through his many contributions to the life of the college and the field of Saint Anselm Studies, the donor chose to honor his legacy by establishing the Fr. John R. Fortin, O.S.B. Institute for Saint Anselm Studies Research Fund.

One of the aspects of the saint that

fascinates Fr. John most is his pastoral concern for not only the monks at the Abbey of Bec, but people of all classes of society. “As a teacher and writer, he helped people develop their minds and their search for God, and he encouraged all people to be faithful, even the kings who exiled him,” he says.

Fr. John sees several benefits to the fellowship for students. The Saint Anselm Fellow can choose an aspect of Saint Anselm that interests them, and earn money that can be applied to tuition. The student may present his or her work at the Institute’s conference or see publication in The Saint Anselm Journal. While the research could make a contribution to the field of Saint Anselm studies, Fr. John views the academic and long-term benefits to the student as being of primary importance.

All members of the junior class are invited to apply for the fellowship. Applicants must meet a grade point requirement and have a recommendation from a faculty member in their academic department. For the donor of the fellowship funds, and for the fellowship’s namesake, a major milestone will be the selection of the first Saint Anselm Scholar in April 2026.

For more information on the Institute for Saint Anselm Studies, visit https:// www.anselm.edu/isas.

Fr. John R. Fortin, O.S.B. ’71 stands inside the O’Rourke Saint Anselm Collection room in Geisel Library.

Photo by Kevin Harkins

ANSELMIANS HONORED AT ALUMNI AWARDS BRUNCH

Saint Anselm College hosted its annual Alumni Awards Brunch on Sunday, November 2, 2025. Ten Anselmians from a variety of backgrounds, and whose time on the Hilltop spanned more than 56 years, were honored for their service to their communities, the college, and their country.

The 2025 Alumni Award winners include:

Joyce Latvis Arel ’60 Career Achievement Award

After graduation, Arel began a career that spanned more than 60 years, first as a hospital nurse and later rising to a place on the board of directors of St. Joseph Hospital in Nashua, N.H. She later returned to school for her Master of Education and spent 25 years as an educator. She served as president of both Nashua Board of Education and Board of Aldermen, the only person in Nashua’s history to hold both posts. She later served on the board of the New Hampshire Community College System where she secured legislation enabling community college credits to transfer to New Hampshire universities.

“At Saint Anselm College, many professors added depth, structure and understanding to not only the subject matter, but to the value and connectedness of learning to life,” said Arel.

Mary Jo (O’Dwyer) Majors, B.S.N. ’69, M.S.N., H.D. ’24, Capt., Nurse Corps, U.S.N.R. (Ret.)

John A. Houghton ’46 Alumni Council Award

Throughout her years on the Alumni Council, Majors brought passion, purpose, and profound care to everything she did. As longtime cochair of the Recognition Committee, the Alumni Awards was her favorite event of the year, and she worked tirelessly to honor the achievements of

her fellow alumni, ensuring that their stories of faith, service, and excellence were celebrated with the dignity and joy they deserved. For Majors, this work was more than an obligation—it was an expression of gratitude and love for the Saint Anselm family that shaped her life.

“Let us honor Mary Jo by continuing to serve—in small acts and in large ones—with the same steady, generous spirit she gave to her country, her college, and her community,” said Robert Elliot ’95 while accepting the posthumous award on her behalf.

Denis Lynch ’81

John F. Barry Spirit of Saint Anselm College Award

Since graduating, Lynch has continued to keep the college and its mission at the center of his life. A former Saint Anselm director of alumni relations, he has supported the college through the creation of the Mary Alice Lynch Nursing Scholarship Fund and the Ernie Thorne ’34 Scholarship Fund, while also connecting the college with other funding opportunities. His professional achievements in security, operations, and leadership—with organizations including the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS), the Department of Defense, and Hewlett-Packard—reflect his integrity, discipline, and excellence, while also extending the reach of the Saint Anselm alumni network across the nation and the world.

“I was blessed to be in the great class of 1981. Our class is like the Olympic flag: Many rings of friendships tightly linked together in unison,” said Lynch.

James P. McDonnell ’81

Joseph P. Collins ’34 Alumni Award of Merit

For his outstanding professional achievements, his dedication to the

betterment of society, and his lifelong example of Anselmian values in action, Saint Anselm College proudly presented the Joseph P. Collins ’34 Alumni Award of Merit to James McDonnell ’81.

McDonnell currently serves as the chief of police for the Los Angeles Police Department (L.A.P.D.) where he managed the response to the Palisades fires in early 2025 and is responsible for much of the preparation for the 2028 Summer Olympics.

Throughout a remarkable career, McDonnell has demonstrated professional excellence and visionary leadership within two of the nation’s premier law enforcement agencies— the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and the L.A.P.D. His dedication to justice, community safety, and ethical policing has earned him widespread respect among peers and the public alike.

McDonnell was unable to attend the ceremony, but will be presented with his award when he returns to campus this spring.

Kellie Sprague, M.D. ’86 Nursing and Health Sciences Award

Following her graduation from Saint Anselm College in 1986, Sprague earned her medical degree from the University of Vermont and has since built a distinguished career spanning more than three decades in the field of hematology and oncology.

Over the course of her career, Dr. Sprague has served as director of the Bone Marrow and Stem Cell Transplant Program and assistant professor of medicine at Tufts Medical Center, where she guided groundbreaking clinical research, co-authored peerreviewed studies, and mentored the next generation of physicians. In 2021, she joined MaineHealth Cancer Care as director of the Hematologic

Malignancies Program, where she continues to lead with vision, skill, and deep humanity.

“While all of these accomplishments have brought me great meaning and purpose, it is still my time with patients that brings me the greatest joy,” said Sprague. “I feel deeply blessed to do what I do every day.”

George Parodi, Ph.D., P ’97, ’02, ’06 and Maureen Parodi (Mount Saint Mary) ’70, P ’97, ’02, ’06 Parents Leadership and Service Award The Parodis worked hard to provide their three children—Anna (Parodi) Groenewal ’97, Julia (Parodi) Mitchell ’02, and Joseph Parodi-Brown ’06 with a Saint Anselm College education. Their belief that education is not merely preparation for life, but life itself, has guided generations of their family and inspired all who know them.

A respected member of the Saint Anselm faculty until his retirement in 2018, Professor George Parodi served the chemistry department and the college with distinction, integrity, and dedication to his students. Maureen Parodi, a Mount Saint Mary College alumna (class of 1970), shared in that calling—creating a home grounded in

curiosity, compassion, and faith.

“[Saint Anselm College] is a place where many families send multiple children and even grandchildren, like we did,” said Maureen. “There is a reason for this. It is a place that fosters the ideals and morals that parents like us try to instill in our kids.”

Michael O’Loughlin ’07

Catholic Leadership Award

“I think about Saint Anselm often, and there’s a lot of lessons I learned here as a student. Two come to mind as I think about my career as a journalist. One is the importance of being able to ask good questions … the other is listening to those answers,” shared O’Loughlin.

“Saint Anselm’s insights into the theology of faith seeking understanding have guided me since I was a student and continues to this day.”

Since graduating from Saint Anselm, O’Loughlin has worked to practice his Catholic faith and shed light on untold stories of faith, courage, and mercy. His book, Hidden Mercy: Catholics, AIDS, and Untold Stories of Compassion in the Face of Fear (Broadleaf Books, 2021) received professional acclaim but also a message from Pope Francis, praising his work for bearing witness to the

Church’s call to compassion and care for the suffering. He has served as the executive director of outreach and was recently named the executive director of the National Catholic Reporter

Kristine Adams ’16

Young Alumni Achievement Award

Less than a decade into her professional career, Adams has emerged as a trusted leader and policy innovator in the homeland security enterprise. As air cargo branch manager at the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), she leads a team responsible for shaping aviation security policy across the global air cargo supply chain. Her vision and leadership are instrumental in the current effort to consolidate nine separate cargo security programs into a single, unified U.S. National Cargo Security Program, streamlining regulatory burden while strengthening national security.

“This recognition means more to me than I can say,” said Adams. “It is a timely and deeply appreciated affirmation, not just of the counterterrorism and international coalition-building work I have been privileged to do on behalf of the American people, but of the belief that humble service, rooted in faith and community, still matters.”

Kenneth Binder

Walter J. Gallo ’58 Award

Kenneth Binder, who sadly passed away on December 13, 2025, enjoyed a 36-year professional career as a leader in the world of Catholic philanthropy. Serving as director of development at his alma mater, Providence College, he also served as vice president for institutional advancement at Rivier College, and then vice president for development for Catholic Charities at the Diocese of Boston.

Binder was an integral part of the advancement team at Saint Anselm, as a major gifts officer and assistant vice president of major gifts. He most recently served as special assistant to college advancement. In all these roles, he built and maintained relationships with Anselmians throughout New England and beyond, successfully cultivating gifts to support every area of the college and the lives of its students.

’62

George Callahan has published a book, Meet Mr. Callahan (Global Publishing Agency, 2024).

’74

Fr. Francis E. Sullivan has been granted senior priest status. He completed his theological studies prior to ordination at Pope St. John XXIII National Seminary in Weston, Mass., and Bernard Cardinal Law ordained him to the priesthood on June 25, 1988. His assignments since ordination have all been at archdiocesan parishes, and since January 2017, he was parochial vicar at Immaculate Conception Parish in Malden, Mass. During his retirement, Fr. Sullivan will be residing as senior priest in residence at Immaculate Conception, Malden.

’79

Francis Marinaro of Pittsfield, Mass., was recently honored by the St. Thomas More Society at their annual Red mass, which honors members of the legal community who have distinguished themselves by acts of public service and commitment to the law. Marinaro earned a master’s degree in education from Antioch University and served as register of probate in Berkshire Probate and Family Court from 19972021. He also worked for the Department of Children and Families as a supervisor from 1982-1996. He was a Ward 5

representative for Pittsfield City Council from 1991-1997.

’83

Joseph Pepe, M.D., recently published On All Sides of the Bed (Bungalow by the Bay Publishing, LLC, 2025), a candid, deeply personal memoir that examines resilience, ethical decisionmaking, and leadership in medicine. The book provides a thoughtful insider’s perspective on the dynamics of the healthcare environment.

’84

Lynne Horan of Mashpee, Mass., has joined the board of directors for Heroes in Transition, a nonprofit that provides support to veterans, service members, and military families. Horan was a critical care nurse at Boston Medical Center for more than 36 years, and is currently a triage nurse for Falmouth Cardiology in Falmouth, Mass.

’85

Joseph Sweeney has published his first novel, Jo and Riley Book One Sanctuary (independently published, 2025).

’91

Patricia Healy was recently recognized as the Western Massachusetts recipient of the General Colin L. Powell Service Award. The award is presented to high school counselors who best support young adults in making their

individual education and career choices in high school and upon graduation. Two Massachusetts counselors are chosen, one from the western half of the state, and the other from the eastern half. Healy is a career services counselor at Westfield High School in Westfield, Mass.

’92

John A. Vaccaro has been appointed to the board of directors as a new independent director for Community Financial System, Inc. Vaccaro currently serves on the board of governors of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and previously served on its regional district committee (2009-2012). He served on the Saint Anselm College Board of Trustees from 2013-2023.

Scott Valcourt, Ph.D., was promoted to teaching professor in the Khoury College of Computer Sciences of Northeastern University. He is a full-time faculty member at the Roux Institute, the Portland, Maine, campus of Northeastern University, where he teaches graduate courses. He and his wife, Michelle (Clark) Valcourt ’94, reside on their vegetable farm in Gray, Maine.

’94

Brendan O’Connor is the assistant coach for the New York Knicks, serving as the team’s defensive coordinator.

Prior to the Knicks, O’Connor was an assistant coach with the LA Clippers since 2013. He previously was an assistant coach with the Detroit Pistons.

’98

James Burns retired from the Washington Township Police Department in Gloucester County, N.J., in April after 25 years of service. In August, he accepted employment with the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston as a member of the Public Safety Department assigned to emergency management and operations support.

’99

Peter Cushing, Ed.D., has accepted the role of superintendent of Beverly Public Schools. He has been the assistant superintendent of enrichment and innovation for Medford Public Schools since 2019. Prior to this, he was a principal at Bartlett High School in Webster, Mass., from 2018-2019, assistant principal of Narragansett Middle School in Templeton, Mass., from 2011-2018 and vice principal of Narragansett Regional High School from 2008-2011. He also taught history at Lynn Classical and Arlington high schools. He received his master’s in educational administration and a doctorate in education from Boston College.

Natalie Jutras recently joined the advancement team at the New Hampton

TRUE BLUE: LEONARD G. COPPENRATH ’81

Leonard G. Coppenrath, ’81, hasn’t made it back to the Hilltop all that often since he graduated almost 45 years ago, but that doesn’t mean the things he learned at Saint Anselm College are far from his heart.

In fact, Coppenrath—a criminal justice major who has worked for the Massachusetts State Police since 1986—still has his copy of Formal Logic, a book he used during his humanities class with Fr. Anselm Regan as the program Portraits of Human Greatness launched with his graduating class.

“The Saint Anselm experience made me use my brain and develop common sense,” says Coppenrath, who is now a major with the Massachusetts State Police. “Saint Anselm was crucial in my growing up and maturing to a great degree.”

Coppenrath, a classmate and roommate of Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell ’81, was a walkon for the Hawks varsity soccer and hockey teams, and he also played club rugby and club hockey during his time at Saint A’s. The Marshfield, Mass., native and resident couldn’t be happier with the choice he made to attend the Benedictine institution.

“I needed to get away from home, but also wanted to be close enough that I could get back if I needed to,” he says. “I didn’t want a big, big school because I didn’t think I would do well in that atmosphere—Saint Anselm fit me well.”

Coppenrath knew he was destined for a career in law enforcement at a young age. Part of the decision to attend Saint Anselm was the reputation of the criminal justice program.

“I knew when I was 15 years old that I wanted to investigate homicides,” he says, pointing to the 1970s TV show Toma as the catalyst for his career in law enforcement. And he credits thenDean of Students Fr. Peter Guerin and longtime men’s soccer coach Ed Cannon as having the biggest influence on his life at Saint A’s. Cannon, who met Coppenrath during freshman orientation, was able to get him a pre-season tryout for the soccer team.

“It’s not just what I learned; it’s from whom I learned it and how,” he says. “Sports, particularly those with a lot of physical contact, have a way of humbling you,” he says. “Police work can do the same—quickly.”

When it comes to his work, he is quick to mention that his department is filled with extremely bright people who never cease to impress him. In fact, two of the top people running the state police are also fellow alumni: Deputy Superintendent Mark Cyr ’97 and Chief Administrative Officer Michele Small ’00 In addition, a recent reunion brought several Saint Anselm graduates together at headquarters for a photograph (shown above).

Coppenrath has spent most of his adult life dedicated to helping various charities, particularly Children’s Hospital and the Special Olympics, a baton he grabbed after his daughter Emily was born with Down syndrome in 1996. He participates in several events for the Special Olympics of Massachusetts, including being part of Emily’s Edgers—a team that rappelled 24 stories down the side of the Hyatt Regency in Boston, helping to raise more than $70,000 for Special Olympics Massachusetts.

And while Coppenrath’s days are busy with work and charitable commitments, he enjoys finding time for what’s most important: spending time with family, and being the father of Ethan, Sarah, and Emily, and grandfather of 7-year-old Hunter.

D. CRAIG MACCORMACK ’95

PHOTO COURTESY OF LEONARD G. COPPENRATH ’81

School in New Hampton, N.H., as their director of Alumni and Parent Relations.

Lillian Wahl-Tuco celebrated 19 years as a U.S. diplomat this year and returned to Washington, D.C., for her latest assignment as director of Public and Congressional Affairs in the Bureau of International Organizations, which covers the United Nations and multilateral affairs.

’01

Stephen Sierpina is the new principal of Marlborough High School in Marlborough, Mass. He received his bachelor’s degree in history from Saint Anselm, and his master’s degree from Fitchburg State University in Fitchburg, Mass.

’02

Lauren Hajjar, M.P.A., Ph.D., is an associate professor of public service in Suffolk University’s Sawyer Business School, where she examines how respect, shared purpose, and strong cross-

role relationships translate into better outcomes in complex systems. As cofounder of the Resilient Communities Innovation Lab and senior advisor at CNA’s Institute for Public Research, she partners with hospitals, public agencies, and community organizations to strengthen relational capacity needed to tackle complex social challenges. She lives in Newburyport, Mass., with her husband, Rick Hajjar ’02, and three daughters, Sarah Ann, Catherine, and Rose.

Andrew Zoppo has published Grip It: A Life Lived All-In (R. A. Zoppo, 2025), a short memoir on clarity and risk.

’04

’05

Ben Banner recently joined Impulse Space as an avionics manufacturing engineer in Redondo Beach, Calif., following several years in spacecraft hardware engineering at Northrop Grumman. He also completed an M.S. in space resources at the Colorado School of Mines.

Keith Beauregard has joined the Minnesota Twins as lead hitting coach. Prior to joining the Twins, he was the hitting coach for the Detroit Tigers for three years.

’06

Portraits 100 Saint Anselm Drive Manchester, N.H. 03102

EMAIL: magazine@anselm.edu

ONLINE: www.anselm.edu/ClassNote

Brianna (Blanchard) Rodgerson was inducted into the Maine Basketball Hall of Fame in 2025 for her record-breaking achievements on the court in high school at Presque Isle in Maine and as a Hawk at Saint Anselm. She followed her playing career with a brief stint giving back as a high school girls coach, leading the Presque Isle Wildcats to an undefeated regular season in 2005, and assistant coaching the Division 3 University of Southern Maine Huskies to the NCAA national final in 2006.

Bethany Cottrell has been named the inaugural executive director of Families Flourish Northeast (FFNE). Cottrell brings more than 15 years of nonprofit and public sector leadership across New Hampshire to the position, and previously served as the founding executive director of Brigid’s House of Hope, a long-term safe house for adult survivors of human trafficking.

’07

Michael J. O’Loughlin has been appointed as the executive editor for the National Catholic Register. O’Loughlin, an award-winning journalist, brings to the role more than 15 years of experience in religion journalism, as a reporter, editor, podcast host, and author. For the last nine years, he worked

at America Media, the Jesuit news and commentary organization, first as national correspondent for seven years and currently as the founding executive director of Outreach, the LGBTQ Catholic news site created by Jesuit Fr. James Martin. Prior to America Media, he was the national correspondent for Crux, when it was part of The Boston Globe. His writing has also appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, and Foreign Policy.

’08

Kara Bombard is the new sales and marketing manager for Visual Sound Productions, Inc. (VSP) in Springfield, Mass. Bombard joined VSP following an 11-year tenure at Performance Foodservice in Springfield, where she played a key role in leading local marketing initiatives, strengthening brand visibility, and driving business growth. She also served as chair of communications on the inaugural steering committee for Women of PFG, the first associate resource group launched across the national enterprise.

’09

David Kimbell recently completed one year as chief financial officer for the Diocese of PensacolaTallahassee in Pensacola, Fla. He and his wife Erin are expecting their seventh child in the spring of 2026.

LIKE MOTHER, LIKE DAUGHTER: CAROLINE

(SHEERAN) MCDERMOD ’99 AND AYLA MCDERMOD ’28

It’s been more than 30 years since Caroline (Sheeran) McDermod ’99 first arrived on the Hilltop, but with every return to campus, she remembers grass-stained uniforms, sweaty cleats, and the beginning of lifelong friendships. The soccer standout was drawn to Saint Anselm’s academic reputation and charm, and she knew it was a place where she could study history while shining on the field. “It was a special four years,” Caroline says.

The Plymouth, Mass., native began her rookie season with a bang, leading the squad in goals scored and to a groundbreaking victory at the 1995 Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC)—the women’s soccer program’s sole ECAC win. Her perseverance and skill earned her the 1995 NE-10 Rookie of the Year award, but this achievement wasn’t Caroline’s priority. “I was more focused on being part of a team,” she says. “That’s what sticks with you—you may not remember the scores of games.”

Athletic accolades aside, Caroline received the Melucci Scholarship her senior year, which inspired her to want to give back. After graduation she signed up for AmeriCorps as part of their Athletes in Service to America program, where all volunteers were former college athletes. During this time, she also earned a master’s degree in educational psychology from Northeastern University in Boston and served as assistant women’s soccer coach for the school. “It was a busy few years, but so much fun,” she says.

Caroline soon returned to Saint Anselm, specifically the Abbey Church, where she was married to her college sweetheart and former men’s soccer captain Matthew McDermod ’99 by Fr. Benet Phillips, O.S.B. ’87

For more than 20 years, Caroline has worked as a guidance counselor at Abington Middle School in Abington, Mass. After attending countless alumni events and cheering on women’s soccer with former teammates, Caroline never could have guessed her daughter would become NE-10 Rookie of the Year, just like her.

Ayla McDermod ’28, a member of the women’s lacrosse team, insists her journey to the Hilltop was her own. She had heard many stories of the college from her parents, but what attracted her to Saint Anselm was a desire to study nursing while playing lacrosse. “Lacrosse [is] my safe place,” Ayla says.

During Ayla’s rookie season at Saint Anselm, she not only earned playing time, but started the first game with a hat trick, and led the season in goals scored (just like her mom). Her speed and composure helped the team reach the NCAA Tournament. Soon enough, a new award debuted in the McDermod home: 2025 NE-10 Rookie of the Year. Like mother, like daughter.

For women’s lacrosse coach Meghan Smith ’12, seeing how Ayla represents herself, her team, and her school makes her feel lucky to be her coach. “She’s everyone’s biggest supporter.”

Both Caroline and Ayla attribute their athletic accomplishments to their teammates’ thoughtful encouragement. “I’m happy she’s happy, and that she found a family on the lacrosse field,” says Caroline. Caroline’s own encouragement of her daughter’s passions has made her Ayla’s biggest role model. “I’m so proud of my mom,” says Ayla. “She raised me to be the best version of myself. I wouldn’t be where I am without her.”

While Caroline and Ayla may have chosen different sports on the Hilltop, they arrived at the same conclusion: Being Anselmian changes you. “It’s not just four years; it really is forever,” Caroline says. “You [can] be part of this community at any chapter in your life.”

BY KORI E. CHAMBERLIN

PHOTO BY KEVIN HARKINS

’10

Stefanie Iannalfo, R.N., B.S.N., was recently awarded the prestigious Daisy Award for Extraordinary Nurses. The award honors nurses internationally in memory of J. Patrick Barnes. Iannalfo works in the oncology unit at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

’11

Nick Daddona is a group founder of Southcoast Insurance Group, which has opened a new branch location in Mattapoisett, Mass. This is the third location of the company, joining branches in Dartmouth, Mass., and New Bedford, Mass.

’12

Christopher Macedo was appointed as a probation officer to the Massachusetts Probation Service in June 2025.

Alexander D. Schultheis has joined the law firm of Cohn & Dussi, LLC in Boston as senior associate. Schultheis is a commercial attorney and litigator specializing in corporate law, financing, and real estate. He is a member of the Massachusetts Bar, Rhode Island Bar, two U.S. district courts—the District of

Massachusetts and the District of Rhode Island, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. He is also a member of the Association for Corporate Growth and the Turnaround Management Association. He received his J.D. from Suffolk University Law School in Boston.

’14

Caitlin Forbes has written a book, What Comes Next (Lake Union Publishing, 2025). She received her bachelor’s degree in English from Saint Anselm College, and her master’s degree in English literature from the University of Connecticut.

’16

Zachary Camenker is now teaching English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) for grades 5-8 in the Bedford, N.H., School District, where he also serves as a union representative and contract negotiator, club advisor, and member of numerous committees. He previously taught 7th grade English Language Arts in Bedford for eight years.

’18

Rick Lippard joined Duxbury Public Schools as a new school resource officer supporting Duxbury Middle

Andre Gaudet ’20, Joseph Cavanaugh ’22, and Jake Athanas ’23 recently graduated from the 91st RTT State Police Academy. They are all Massachusetts State Police officers.

and High School. He has been with the Duxbury Police Department since 2020.

’19

Kelsey Warner became a licensed attorney in New Hampshire and Massachusetts in 2025, and she also became engaged to Joseph Bobek ’18

’23

Jacob Antonitis has been promoted to senior staff accountant in the audit and assurance department at Gray, Gray & Gray, LLP in Canton, Mass.

Katelyn Arnold has been promoted to assistant

director of marketing in the College Communications and Marketing office at Saint Anselm College.

Sophia Menke is attending Syracuse University College of Law in Syracuse, N.Y.

’24

Faith Williamson has joined the Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging at Saint Anselm College as the new belonging and engagement coordinator. She received her bachelor’s degree in communication from Saint Anselm College, and her master’s in higher education from Merrimack College.

We’re Exploring the World with the Arches Travel Program

PLACES WE’VE BEEN

Literary Places and Sacred Spaces

Angle-right JUNE 2025

A tour with English Professor Meg Cronin through the many sites in Northern England and Yorkshire that have served as literary and spiritual inspiration.

Ethics on the Rhine: Germany and its Neighbors

Angle-right OCTOBER 2025

History Professor Phil Pajakowski and Philosophy Professor Max Latona led this cruise to explore the Rhine as an artery of trade and migration, a line of demarcation between Germany and its western neighbors, and a symbol of German culture and identity.

To learn more about upcoming trips, visit alumni.anselm.edu/arches-travel-program.

A NATURAL RESOURCE: KATHARINE CUSACK ’21

Katharine Cusack ’21 is sitting with a New Hampshire farmer at his dining room table. As cattle graze on fields outside, the conversation inside focuses on solar panels and energy efficiency. Energy is expensive and the farmer wants to cut costs. Cusack may have the answer.

In her role as technical assistant for Clean Energy NH, Cusack explains the farmer’s funding options, and that she can complete the 10-page U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Energy for America Program grant application for him free of charge. It’s a complicated and competitive process, she says, but if he earns the grant, he could afford solar panels, which would reduce his electricity bill.

“I do technical assistance work for small businesses and farms, to help them apply for federal grant funding for renewable energy projects like solar, small-scale wind, and geothermal, and energy-efficiency projects like refrigeration, lighting, and automated controls,” she says. “It’s more impactful being in person, getting to tour the facility, recommending efficiency improvements or where they should put the solar array.”

for Community Engagement. Since her grandmother took classes at the college, and her father ran the polling program at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics (NHIOP), Cusack gravitated toward politics too, and was a Kevin B. Harrington student ambassador at NHIOP.

Pursuing that passion, she recently worked on an important piece of legislation—the Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy and Resiliency (CPACER). It is the financing program that allows commercial property owners to finance upgrades for energy efficiency through a tax assessment. “That is the tie between what I did at the Center for Ethics in housing and zoning, and energy and resiliency, upgrading water for sanitation, resiliency for storms, solar array or efficiency projects,” she says.

Outside of work, Cusack remains passionate about the outdoors, from running and hiking to biking, skiing, and climbing, and much of her free time is spent outdoors. This dovetails with her volunteer work as a U.S. Forest Service backcountry steward. She adopted an .8-mile stretch of trail in the White Mountain National Forest where she trims branches, saws fallen limbs, and cleans out drainage ditches in the spring and fall.

Her interest in clean energy and sustainability began while growing up enjoying New Hampshire’s natural resources and flourished as a communications major with a politics minor at Saint Anselm. During her undergraduate studies on the Hilltop, Cusack was interested in the landscape in her home state and volunteered for campus groups that supported that ethos, including the Center for Ethics in Society and Access Academy’s Meelia Center

“I took environmental history with [Prof.] Beth Salerno and environmental politics with [Prof.] Peter Josephson. We had a textbook with different environmental case studies that made me so interested in environmental justice and advocacy work, and how grassroots mobilization can really have an impact on the environment,” she says. “I thought that class was the most fun and interesting, and it was probably one of my favorite classes because it made me want to do environmental work.”

It seems all her interests in the environment, communications, and politics are converging on this precise time and place, and she is grateful for the opportunity to make an impact.

“I love the support of my colleagues, and I love being a gobetween, with the operations team, the policy team, and … the technical assistance team,” she says. “But I would say my favorite thing is the farm tours, working with a farmer about their needs and where they can make improvements, and then seeing those improvements implemented.”

BY ANNIE SHERMAN ’99

PHOTO BY KIM CASEY

Thomas A. Melucci, H.D. ’98 of Lincoln, R.I., died Sunday, December 14, 2025, at Our Lady of Fatima Hospital, North Providence. He was the loving husband of Gail (Carlson) Melucci to whom he enjoyed 60 years of marriage.

Born in Fall River, Mass., a son of the late Anthony and (Gloria) Melucci, he was a graduate of Saint Raphael Academy, Pawtucket, and attended the University of Miami. He had resided in Lincoln for many years.

Mr. Melucci had a long and distinguished business career, as owner of the former Priority Finishing Co., and later as owner of Hope Valley Industries, Lincoln. He had a generous heart, and volunteered his time and effort in raising money for numerous organizations, including Meeting Street School, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Saint Anselm College, and Saint Mary’s Home for Children, and was a member of Ducks Unlimited. He was an avid golfer, and a member of Wannamoisett Country Club, Rumford, and Kirkbrae Country Club, Lincoln. He was an active member of the Anselmian community since 1988. He, along with his wife, Gail, established the Thomas A. Melucci Jr. Memorial Endowed Scholarship which, since 1989, has awarded full tuition scholarships to more than 70 students in their senior year at Saint Anselm College. In 1998 Mr. Melucci received an honorary doctor of laws, and the college dedicated the Thomas A. Melucci Jr. Memorial Field. In 2019, the Thomas A. Melucci Jr. ’88 Theater was dedicated in honor of his son, Thomas A. Melucci Jr. ’88, who

died in 1988, and whose diploma was awarded posthumously to his parents in 1988. Mr. Melucci served on the Saint Anselm College Board of Trustees from 2002 to 2018.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by two sons, Craig C. Melucci (Lori) and Todd E. Melucci, both of Lincoln; two sisters, Jacqueline Mayo of New Bedford, Mass., and Sheila Neilan of Florida; and two granddaughters, Christiana Melucci and Vanessa Krause. He was the father of the late Thomas A. Melucci Jr.

Eternal Life

Nicholas George Alexiou, Ph.D. ’50, Clearwater, Fla., June 21, 2025.

Harold Francis Murphy ’51, Manchester, N.H., August 28, 2025.

Gerald E. Vigneault ’52, Abbeville, S.C., September 17, 2025.

James Thomas Harris ’55, Madison, Conn., November 24, 2025.

Robert B. DuHaime, D.M.D. ’57, Peterborough, N.H., July 23, 2025.

Paul E. Murray ’58, Pont-Rouge, Québec, July 1, 2025.

Edward “Bucky” Arthur Raby ’59, Epsom, N.H., August 21, 2025.

William Harold Williams, Jr. ’59, Newington, Conn., July 12, 2025.

Felix “Phil” Sylvio Catudal ’61, Lake Wales, Fla., November 17, 2024.

Cecile Germaine (Dubois) Merchant ’61 (Mount Saint Mary), Bedford, N.H., June 3, 2025.

Paul Ernest Houde ’62, Nashua, N.H., September 2, 2025.

Robert J. Quinn ’62, Renton, Wash., February 28, 2025.

Robert E. Lemay ’63, Cornville, Ariz., February 11, 2024.

Myles F. Dorch ’64, The Bronx, N.Y., June 7, 2025.

Rev. Monsignor Donald J. Gilbert ’64, Bedford, N.H., July 7, 2025.

John “Jack” J. Hurley ’64, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., October 22, 2025.

James M. Kelly ’64, New London, Conn., July 12, 2025.

Claudette Marie (Ouellette) Powell ’64 (Mount Saint Mary), Sarasota, Fla., June 4, 2025.

Richard H. Marchand ’65, Fort Myers, Fla., April 22, 2025.

Warren Eugene Bouchard ’66, Derry, N.H., September 21, 2025.

Gilbert Santavanere, Jr. ’66, Wethersfield, Conn., October 18, 2025.

Howard Alvin Wheeler ’66, Goffstown, N.H., December 5, 2025.

Owen Paul Conway, Ph.D. ’67, Kennebunk, Maine, November 28, 2025.

Kevin Francis Mackey ’67, Walpole, Mass., November 11, 2025.

Jhoram Dilk ’68, Fulton, N.Y., June 27, 2025.

John J. Kiernan, Jr. ’68, West Hartford, Conn., August 2, 2025.

John “Spike” J. Probst ’68, Huntington, N.Y., July 9, 2025.

Jim H. James Kazeniac ’69, Westford, Mass., June 28, 2025.

Janet Berube Douglass ’72, Otisfield, Maine, November 2, 2025.

Marie B. Sullivan ’72, West Newbury, Mass., October 2, 2025.

Patrick William Donahoe ’73, Annandale, Va., July 9, 2025.

Robert Joseph Kelly ’73, Phoenix, Ariz., June 8, 2025.

Rev. David E. Svenson ’73, Nashua, N.H., May 28, 2025.

William Patrick Walsh ’73, New Bedford, Mass., October 20, 2025.

Richard Denis Folan ’74, Colorado Springs, Colo., June 17, 2025.

John W. O’Donoghue, Jr. ’76, Scituate, Mass., June 14, 2025.

Carl M. Seavey ’76, Jefferson, N.H., March 7, 2025.

Thomas P. Sheehan, Esq. ’76, Haverhill, Mass., August 28, 2025.

John Cummings ’77, Hudson, N.H., October 25, 2025.

Arthur J. Flanagan ’77, Red Bank, N.J., November 16, 2025.

Karen Jean Gregory ’77, Johns Island, S.C., April 25, 2025.

Mary (Quincy) Devine ’80, Portsmouth, N.H., August 20, 2025.

Steven Joseph Stafstrom ’80, Nebo, N.C., August 13, 2025.

Maureen Ann Guzik ’82, Alexandria, La., October 11, 2025.

Helen Mary McPhillips ’82, Danville, N.H., August 19, 2025.

Jody Elaine Devine ’84, Northampton, Mass., June 24, 2025.

Kathleen (Joyce) Makiver ’84, Newburyport, Mass., August 21, 2025.

Frederick “Freddy” J. Higgins ’85, Sagamore Beach, Mass., July 10, 2025.

Pauline Nault Thibault ’86, Manchester, N.H., July 3, 2025.

Jean Elizabeth (Jesser) Bruneau ’90, Salem, N.H., July 19, 2025.

Andrea Marie (Goni) Mills ’93, North Reading, Mass., June 27, 2025.

Mark Clement Foynes ’95, Plaistow, N.H., August 15, 2025.

Melissa Kim (Femino) Siik ’02, Merrimack, N.H., August 7, 2025.

Friends

Kenneth Binder, former employee, December 13, 2025.

Helen Buckley Gray, H.D. ’03, October 19, 2025.

Julie (Faucon) Gallo, December 1, 2025.

John Kangas, former employee, July 5, 2025.

Clarence John Murphy, Ph.D., June 7, 2025.

Susan E. (Lydon) Rainville, April 1, 2025.

Terry William Robinson, June 26, 2025.

Life Together

Emily Verrier ’12 and Dan McLaughlin ’12, January 18, 2025, Gloucester, Mass.

Greg Crovo ’14 and Christina Bailhot, October 25, 2025, Saint Anselm Abbey Church.

Matthew LeSaffre ’15 and Melanie Pereira, December 27, 2025, Saint Anselm Abbey Church.

Melissa Ouellet ’15 and Griffin Spencer, January 17, 2026, Saint Anselm Abbey Church.

Rose Mooney ’17 and Brad Rocheville ’17, October 4, 2025, Saint Anselm Abbey Church.

Olivia Griffin ’18 and Ethan Iaria ’19, July 26, 2025, Saint Anselm Abbey Church.

Samantha O’Neil ’18 and Kyle Harris ’18, August 23, 2025, Saint Anselm Abbey Church.

Emily Lowe ’19 and Brandon Casey, November 8, 2025, Saint Anselm Abbey Church.

Kerrin Norton ’19 and Nick Richard ’19, August 16, 2025, Dorchester, Mass.

Allison Stankiewicz ’19 and Dylan Richardson, October 18, 2025, Saint Anselm Abbey Church.

Cori Swanhart ’19 and Cullen Clougherty ’19, September 20, 2025, Saint Anselm Abbey Church.

Hannah Bushey ’20 and Sean Feenan ’19, August 9, 2025, Saint Anselm Abbey Church.

Colleen Reilly ’20 and Thomas Devaney ’20, August 9, 2025, Saint Anselm Abbey Church.

Elizabeth Ryan ’20 and Adam Pereira, October 17, 2025, Derry, N.H.

Caroline Zacharchuk ’21 and Brian Donahue ’19, October 11, 2025, Saint Anselm Abbey Church.

Margarett Chesna ’23 and Jackson Hyam ’24, October 11, 2025, Saint Anselm Abbey Church.

New Life

Timothy Bruneau ’06 and Mallory, a son, Emmett Paul, May 30, 2025.

Rebecca (Leach) Arey ’09 and Brandon Arey ’11, a daughter, Madden Dianne, October 14, 2025.

Meredith (Shepard) Barry ’09 and Michael Barry ’09, a daughter, Merritt Shea, November 6, 2025.

Rachel Flaherty ’12 and Joseph McNamara ’12, a daughter, Rowan Marie, September 19, 2025.

Stephanie (Kearsley) Dahlberg ’14 and Samuel Dahlberg ’14, a daughter, Luciella Marie, August 2025.

Leah (Zraunig) Roffo ’14 and Dino Roffo ’14, a son, Elio Marco, August 6, 2025.

Nicole (Rugan) Darcy ’16 and John, twins, a son, Kent Henry, and a daughter, Ripley Sue, April 17, 2025.

Kelsey Fair ’16 and Ben Giaimo, a daughter, Sofia Charlotte, October 21, 2025.

Elaina (Lavigne) Firman ’16 and Benjamin, a daughter, Clara Jacqueline, October 9, 2025.

Amara (Georges) Kupiec ’12 and John Kupiec ’11 celebrate the adoption of Rey Juliana, July 3, 2024; Jacob Andrew Fortune, August 6, 2025; and Brayden Michael Matthew, August 15, 2025. They join siblings Cassidy Greene and Lilliana MJ.

After winning its first Northeast 10 Conference Championship in 34 years, and the second in program history, the Saint Anselm College women’s soccer team received the No. 1 seed in the East Region of the NCAA Division II Women’s Soccer Championship. This marked the first time in program history the Hawks hosted the NCAA Division II women’s soccer tournament. While the team fell 2-1 to the No. 4-seeded Thomas Jefferson University at Grappone Stadium in the second round of the NCAA Division II Championship, they look forward to building on their historic season. “The success of the team this year was built on the culture that we created, a culture of relentlessness, accountability, and a desire to be better every single day, a family,” says Lee Moyce, head coach for women’s soccer. “The team got the winning feeling early in the season and rode that wave all the way to the last game of the season. The new standard is now set for the returners and incoming players to meet and raise again. The future is incredibly bright for these Hawks.”

Photos courtesy Saint Anselm Athletics

THE GOAL IS IN SIGHT

by Kim Casey

Help us make this campaign a success!

Founding the new Jean School of Nursing and Health Sciences was an unprecedented opportunity for Saint Anselm College to help ring in a new era of healthcare workforce development and leadership both in our communities and nationwide.

To accomplish this priority, the college launched a fundraising campaign two years ago with a goal of $40 million to construct Grappone Hall, and secure resources for scholarships and programs. At this point in the campaign’s final year, thanks to the generosity of so many individuals and organizations, we are close to meeting our goal.

The true measure of this campaign is its impact on our students—their growth, their preparation, and their future service. Enrollment in the Jean School continues to rise, and with it comes the excitement of students eager to learn, practice, and lead. Your support ensures they have the environment, mentorship, and opportunities to thrive as healthcare professionals. Please make a gift to support the future of healthcare education and empower the next generation of nurses and health professionals.

Every gift, regardless of dollar amount, is vitally important.

To find out more, and to give, please visit:

www.anselm.edu/jsnhs-campaign-give (603) 641-7214