Bill Burke on The Road

On November 13 and 14, Bill Burke made his final annual visits to New York, Philadelphia, and Washington D.C. as Headmaster.  In each location, Bill, Rich Arms, Director of Advancement, and Mike Melley, Director of Alumni & Development, gathered with dozens of alumni looking to enjoy each other’s company and connect with the St. Sebastian’s spirit.

In Washington DC, the trip overlapped with the Class of 2025’s junior class trip.  Alumni gathered for a reception where they saw a video retrospective of Headmaster Burke’s time at St. Sebastian’s.  Bill was proud to present a monogrammed jacket to one of St. Sebastian’s most stalwart and loyal alumni, Gerry Giblin ’51.  A constant presence at the Washington DC reception, Gerry anchored the group that spanned the decades right up to the six Class of 2023 alumni who attend college in our nation’s capital.  Following the reception, the alumni joined the junior class who were enjoying an ice cream reception down the hall.  Georgetown University freshman, Charlie Hoffman ’23, addressed the Class of 2025 and spoke to them about the 18 month journey he had been on since his own junior class trip.  Charlie emphasized the importance of holding the Order of the Day close to your heart.  “Love God, Work hard, and Take Good Care of One Another” has served him well in the early days of his college career and he encouraged the juniors to use it as a guide for success.  Bill McCarthy ’15, a digital investigation journalist at Agence France-Presse covering mis- and dis-information in the media, shared his path from St. Sebastian’s to Duke to journalism.  His own junior class trip was his first inspiration for his career trajectory, having been drawn to the dynamic Beltway culture.  Brandon Peck ’07, Senior VP at Flywheel Government Solutions, described his career as a lobbyist in Washington DC and numerous state capitals and encouraged the juniors to think about DC as a destination for their studies and careers.

Heading up the coast, Burke and Arms met with a small group of Philadelphia area alumni for lunch at the White Dog Café.  Continuing north on the Amtrak to NYC, we are very thankful to former Trustee, Mark O’Friel ’79, who once again hosted a reception for a great crowd of the extended St. Sebastian’s family at the Harvard Club.  Following the retrospective video, Headmaster Burke addressed the assembled group, thanking Ryan Fitzpatrick ’92 for his service to St. Sebastian’s on the Alumni Board and acknowledging Lawrence O’Donnell ’70 for taking time out of his busy schedule to attend.  Headmaster Burke reminded everyone that no matter how far our alumni travel, St. Sebastian’s will always love and need them.

If you are a New York, Philadelphia, or Washington DC alumnus and did not receive an invite to the reception, we must not have your current address.  Please update your alumni profile to be included on future invite lists.

As always, we love to hear what our alumni are up to around the country.  Let us know by submitting a Class Note and we will share it in the next magazine.