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Sixty-eight Students Inducted into the National Honor Society

Sixty-eight Students Inducted into the National Honor Society

On Thursday, October 24, Head of School Brendan Sullivan, Assistant Head of School Mike Nerbonne, and National Honor Society moderator Sean Albertson inducted 68 St. Sebastian's students into the Sr. Evelyn C. Barrett, O.P. Chapter of the National Honor Society.

Mr. Nerbonne welcomed everyone in attendance and shared the following words:

“But Jesus called them to him and said, ‘You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you; but whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." -Matthew 20: 25-28

This well-known passage from the Gospel of St. Matthew provides a fitting context for today’s Ceremony where we celebrate most appropriately, among other attributes, our students’ commitment not to be served but to serve, and to give their lives to and for others.

I came across a story recently which I think illustrates the meaning and importance of our gathering today, and it’s a true story which happened a number of years ago but only came to light recently when the woman featured in the story decided to publish it on her parish website in the Midwest.

So, here’s her true story:

Having recently married her religiously devout and observant husband, this Christian woman considered herself to be a believer but was skeptical about official churches and their ceremonies. But she promised herself that she would keep an open mind and when her new husband asked her to attend church services with him as a favor, she somewhat reluctantly agreed to go.

Having arrived at the church, the woman and her husband found a pew in the front where she could see and take in all of the sights and sounds of the services, About half way through the service, the woman noticed a homeless man sitting in one of the pews at the back of the church, not really worshipping or participating at all, but there most likely just trying to keep warm on a cold winter day.

At this point, she saw the head usher approach the homeless man, tap him on the shoulder and motion for him to follow the usher out of the church.

The woman was incensed. As she later wrote, she stewed in the pew. She asked herself, what kind of church was this, where people appeared to be praying and worshipping, but would not allow a homeless man, who was just trying to keep warm, to find some brief respite in their church. It seemed to confirm all of her suspicions about official religion and her preconceived notions about the hypocrisy of many, in her opinion, who call themselves Christian.

A few minutes later, the homeless man reappeared and sat down again in the same pew at the back of the church. But now he was carrying a sandwich in his hand and had few more all wrapped up in his coat pocket to be consumed later on. He also had a new winter hat on his head and a new scarf around his neck.  

The account of this episode which appeared in the parish bulletin, and was told from the woman’s perspective, noted the profound impact which this had on her and her then decades-long participation in the life and ministry of her parish.

But I would like to focus this morning on the actions of the usher who, rather than escorting the homeless man out of the church, provided him with food and warm clothing. I believe that his actions relate directly to the pillars of the National Honor Society which we celebrate today: scholarship, leadership, service and character. 

The usher’s commitment to scholarship was revealed in his understanding of the passage from Matthew’s Gospel which I mentioned a few minutes ago: “whoever would be great among you, must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve.”

The usher’s leadership was evident in his willingness to help another person even in the face of those who might second guess him or disagree with his actions or question his approach to the situation. 

His love of service was most evident in his selfless desire to alleviate the suffering of another. His commitment to helping the homeless man grew out of his deep faith and his understanding that service lies at the very heart of the Christian message.

His character perhaps needs no explanation. We might not always be able to define character, but we know it when we see it. The usher innately knew the right thing to do, and he did it; he wasn’t looking for any recognition for himself nor was he interested in making any kind of statement other than love and generous service.

Our hope and prayer for all of you, our students, is that you will embrace the same scholarship, leadership, character and service which was displayed by that anonymous usher on a cold winter morning in a small church somewhere in the heart of our country.

The National Honor Society aims to create an enthusiasm for scholarship, stimulate a desire to render service, promote leadership, and develop character. Students with a minimum 85 percent grade average, who complete an essay application and have the support of their teachers and advisor, are eligible to apply for this honor.

Those inducted today include:

Class of 2025

Karson M. Bilezerian, Kevin M. Bresnahan, Travis M. Engel, Steven T. Hettrich, Joseph W. Maxwell, Colby W. Nash, Matthias J. Ogrinc, Ryan Pat, John P. Stenberg

Class of 2026

Carson E. Arevian, Samuel J. Barbosa, Sawyer R. Bean, Brian R. Burke, Davis W. Cassler, Sean P. Collins, Alistair P. Cooper, John L. Cronin, Sebastian F. Culleton, Tyler D. Curry, Finn N. Daley, Carter A. Dedier, Charlie M. Delay, Michael M. DeMatteo, Andrew J. Donovan, Nolan L. Dunphy, Luca J. Faggiano, Alan M. Felix, Gavin L. Feyler, Theodore C. Frisoli, Brett A. Gallo, John T. Grimes, David J. Hahm, Cesar A. Hernandez, Jared E. Hughes, Seth D. Janchar, Gavin M. Joyce, Peter T. Keefe, Jack T. Kelleher, George K. Kelly IV, Adam J. King, Joseph D. Koh, Samuel Z. Li, Oliver R. Manning, Joseph P. Martin, Tiernan P. Massenburg, Brendan J. Matthews, Carter J. Mays, Brendan M. McHugh, Quinn A. Mulvey, John D. Munro, Finneas C. Noonan, Donal J. O'Connor, Benjamin O. Osunsanya, Antonio Petruzziello, Andrew W. Plotner, Evangelos S. Poulos, Michael A. Rohatgi, Dominic S. Scioli, Cameron N. Steele, Reagan M. Straub, John C. Sullivan, Richard H. Sutphin III, Brendan J. Treseler, Jeffrey Q. Welham, Colin L. Williams, Caden A. Young, Andrew Zhang, Ian Zhou