Reflecting on a Year of 7th Grade Chapel Speeches

Our 7th graders wrapped up their first year of Chapel Speeches with Mr. Nerbonne offering a recap of each student’s speech to highlight the impact that they made on one another as they “dared to share”. Thank you to Mr. Nerbonne for leading our 7th Grade Chapels each Wednesday and spotlighting each student’s personal speech. We want to give a special thank you to Mr. Harrington, as well, for leading our 7th Grade Chapel Speaking program, guiding our 7th graders through their first Chapel Speeches, and empowering them to have a successful start to their Chapel Speaking careers here at St. Sebastian's.
 

Below is a recap of each 7th grade Chapel Speech in the order they were delivered: 

John Joyce: a family vacation to Aruba where some kiteboarding adventures provided a great opportunity for reflection on the nature of community, brotherhood, and relationships.

Nolan Boyle: his summer camp experiences which have made him the person he is today because of the Camp’s focus on cooperation, mutual trust and strengthening of personal faith.

Antonio Martinez: his growing awareness of how lucky he is to have great such parents evidenced by their patient care for him and his gratitude for their love, hard work and devotion.

Abner Machuca Diaz: his volunteer trip to Honduras, the best learning experience ever, his awareness that less fortunate does not mean less, and how the trip impacted and changed him.

Carter Rich: a baseball tournament in Cooperstown and how the experience made him a better player, strengthened friendships, grew his confidence, and brought his team together.

Sam Ward: the family dock in Osterville built by his grandfather in the past, all of his family’s enjoyment of it in the present and his hope and expectation that it will continue to serve his extended family in the future.

Nolan Wishart: his specific memories of people and places as he was growing up on the St. Sebastian’s campus and his gratitude for how it all feels like home to him now as he has become a student here.

Cormac Anderson: the challenges he faced with so many moves in his life and how he has found opportunities to make new friends, grow in his resilience and become closer to his family.

Tristen Alexander: his appreciation for lessons from his family which have helped him to focus on being persistent and grateful for all of their many virtues such as hard work and generosity.

TJ Allen: the many lessons which he learned from a basketball trip on his own and how it helped him to face and overcome anxiety, get out of his comfort zone, and make some new friends.

Thomas Ashe: a tribute to the strongest person he knows, his mom, and how her grace, courage, strength, positive attitude, and faith in face of her serious illness has influenced him and his entire family.

JJ Bachiochi: a family trip to the tallest mountain in New Hampshire and the ways in which the trip taught him to take good care of himself and persevere through hardships while having a lot of fun along the way.

Ro Dabas: everyday, seemingly small events, such as car rides to and from school, which reveal his parents’ love, support, and devotion and his gratitude for blessings which all might not have.

Ryan Connolly: his once-a-year July 4^th trip to his mom’s hometown in Colorado visiting his grandparents and cousins and his appreciation for opportunities to grow, learn, develop, take risks, and become his best self.

Rian Chudzinski: the important role of athletics in bringing us together as a community along with the lessons taught through athletics about responding to adversity in the most positive ways.

Gregory Derenzo: family summers in Mashpee and the opportunity to spend precious time with his grandparents, time relaxing with friends and his gratitude for the people and the place.

Jack Dorsey: an encomium to his brother Drew who introduced him to St. Sebastian’s as he saw the School through his eyes before arriving here himself and discovering that it’s even better than Drew promised.

Matteo Fainelli: a tribute to both of his parents who have modeled for him the best habits and virtues which have been reinforced by St. Sebastian’s for which he expressed gratitude and appreciation.

Will Finnegan: his incredibly positive experience in the summertime at Sebago Leadership Camp where in addition to the myriad activities he learned about healthy competition, hard work, effort, and perseverance.

John Esserian: a heartfelt tribute to his grandparents whose wisdom, creativity, positive attitude, and intellectual curiosity have encouraged him to pursue his own dreams and to establish the highest goals for himself.

Connor Fleming: adventures with his fun and adventurous dad, including a not very seaworthy boat, and a Chevy Silverado, but through it all the value and importance of cherished time with his father.

Diego Fuentes: a visit to his mom’s place of birth in Mexico to spend time with extended family for his grandmother’s birthday and his aunt’s wedding all of which reinforced close family connections despite some geographical distance.

Jackson Fulginite: a trip in the sweltering heat of July with his club baseball team for a tournament in Charleston, South Carolina which gave his team a great opportunity to strengthen their bonds of friendship.

Jimmy Harney: his trip to Nashville, Tennessee for a hockey tournament where he provided all of the sights and sounds and shared his hope that the memories and friendships forged there might last forever.

Taylor Holmes: Ithaca, New York, which will always be home for him because of his connection to family there, growing up and learning to love hockey there, and how St. Sebastian’s now feels like a second home.

Derek Hassey: his two German shepherds, Apollo and Dante, how they had to adjust to each other, but over time, they have become best friends and an integral part of the love in Derek’s family.

John Lynch: a soccer tournament on a national stage in Denver, Colorado, and how intense competition was blended with relaxing social time and the importance of personal friendships in making a team stronger and more competitive.

Ryan Krummell: an incredibly fun ski trip with all of the details of the lodge, the mountain and the food while also celebrating the powerful impact and importance of time spent with family.

Andrew MacDougall: focus on 1 beautiful day out of 14 on an annual extended family trip to Martha’s Vineyard, including a jump from the Jaws Bridge and all of the excitement and joy in nurturing family relationships.

Aiden Mack: a bus ride in honor of his grandfather’s birthday to all of the places around Boston where the family has lived and his appreciation for modest beginnings, hard work, and his own motivation which comes from embracing these struggles.

Matthew McCarthy: a 4-day family vacation to Breton Woods replete with a steam train, go-carts and rock climbing and his opportunity to reflect on bonding with family and creating memories which will last a lifetime.

Anthony Marcucci: his trip to Italy for his uncle Joe’s (St. Sebastian’s class of 2000) ordination to the priesthood filled with all of the magnificence of the location and time spent with his very large extended family on this momentous occasion.

Jimmy McNulty: a weeklong basketball trip to Maryland where a coach named Isaiah came to his aid by building his confidence, believing in him, and teaching him about matters both big and small.

Jack McRoskey: Let Go of Your Mind Camp where he learned, developed, and strengthened new skills, engaged in problem solving through teamwork and cooperation, and where he hopes to inspire as he has been inspired as a CIT this summer.

Milo Mistry: his family’s annual Cape Cod summer trip to Wellfleet and Eastham where his dog Stella loves the beach and he enjoys swimming, biking, great food, board games and even a drive-in theater but most of all his appreciation for time spent with his family.

Dylan O’Neill: his first-time skiing at Mt. Wachusett, falling a few times but making great progress in just one day, realizing that things get easier with practice, along with some important life lessons about not quitting, getting back up, and trying again.

Danny Porter: a hockey tournament in New Hampshire, where he and his mom found the aptly named Red Arrow Diner, where Junior and Diane who hold court, but a total stranger named Dan who has the most memorable and lasting impact by generously paying for their breakfast.

Luke Puglia: a panegyric to Mr. Tom Brady, who was considered a back-up quarterback at best, was constantly underestimated, but who exceeded expectations and inspired Luke never to give up, to believe in himself with the confidence that hard work will always pay off.

Tommy Saulnier: an invitational hockey tournament in Edmonton, with all of the preparation and nervous anticipation one would expect, but his anxiety and disappointment over losing meant little compared to having good friends and loyal teammates.

Luke Murphy: a Shakespeare quotation about apparent weakness in contrast to genuine strength and a thoughtful reflection on his sister’s fearlessness in dealing with a kidney tumor and the power of her example for him and his whole family.

Declan Schwarz: the high-octane action of Formula One racing and his favorite driver, Daniel Ricardo, whose win at the Monaco Grand Prix provided a lesson in perseverance and an ability to overcome despite the odds.

Wright Shinzawa: his frustration over studying vast amounts of material for tests and quizzes and his discovery of a better way of doing things: breaking the information up into smaller, more manageable sizes, which works in so many areas of life and which he desired to share.

Ben Stuart: a family trip to a camp in Northern Maine where the opportunity to unplug and get away from civilization for a while leads to many opportunities to bond with his siblings and parents through fun and relaxing activities which reinforce their connections to one another.

Ryan Sullivan: a trip he loves, traveling to Palm City, Florida to visit with his fun loving and very active grandparents who are funny, kind, and selfless, and the best teachers and cooks he knows, with a reminder that we all need to stop and enjoy the little things in life.

Sam Weston: a family skiing trip to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, filled with all of the details of the landscape and the weather, and then skiing down what felt like a vertical roller coaster, where Sam challenged himself and overcame his fears because of those supporting him.

Max Weber: his personal hero, his incredibly hard-working great-grandfather whose diligence and perseverance built a multi-generational, successful electrical business and who still inspires Max and many others to work harder and to take good care of family and friends.

Jay Liu: a return trip to China which caused all sorts of challenges, especially academic and social, but his family, teachers and classmates helped him to grow in confidence, for which he is so grateful that he intends to pass on this experience of brotherhood and community.

Natu Yesehak: trips to visit his extended family, especially his many cousins, and his joy in being with them for everyday activities which led to his promise never to forget all of the happy times they have spent together over the years.

Jack Usechek: gratitude for both of his parents, his dad’s hard work to make the best life for his family, helping and guiding him, and his mom’s devotion, always cheering him on, and his promise that he will always be there for them, as they have been for him.