Alumni E-Newsletter - December 2022

Giving Tuesday Results

On November 29, the Roman Catholic High School community came together on this global day of philanthropy and raised $28,311 from 152 donors in support of our students. Because of this success, #iGiveCatholic awarded Roman an additional $1,500 as a prize for being the high school with the most participation among unique donors on Giving Tuesday through their platform. Thank you again to all of our generous supporters for making this possible!

Meet John Prendergast '08: Roman's New Executive Director of Mission Advancement

In October, we welcomed John Prendergast '08 back to Broad & Vine as the new Executive Director of Mission Advancement. In this role, John serves as Roman's Chief Development Officer and oversees the daily operations of the Mission Advancement Office. We are thrilled to have John back at Roman, and look forward to his many accomplishments and future success. Please read the following welcome note from John:

It is with much humility and enthusiasm that I return to Roman to serve our alma mater in this capacity. After graduating from Roman in 2008, I remained connected to Catholic High as part of the Alumni Association Board of Trustees, and I served on the coaching staff of our Mock Trial program for 13 years. I am beyond excited to continue my relationship with Roman through my new position in the Mission Advancement Office. 

I grew up in the Pine Valley section of Northeast Philadelphia as part of St. Albert the Great parish before choosing to attend Roman. I vividly recall taking the Fox Chase train into Center City with my father in the spring of 2004. This would be my commute every day if I were to attend Roman, and so I had to be at ease with that and confident enough to navigate the city. I am so glad I stepped outside of my comfort zone and made the leap. Yes, it certainly helped traveling every day with so many friends and classmates, but it was a routine that built character. Roman obviously has a storied tradition of dedicated faculty, academic excellence, successful athletics, and a community of brothers second to none, but initially it was the appeal of daily adventure that attracted me to Broad & Vine. As I settled in during my years as a student, it was the community that committed me to the mission, and it is the community that has continued to call me back in various capacities ever since. Roman has given me far more than I could ever return, and for that, I shall be forever in its debt.

Upon graduating from La Salle University in 2012, I worked in sales and marketing for the Philadelphia Phillies and then at Drexel University as part of an events team in their communication and marketing division before finally landing back at my college alma mater in their Advancement Office where I most recently served as Director of Development. When I chose to study Political Science and History at La Salle, I can promise you it was not with the intention of becoming a fundraiser. Nonprofit fundraising is not a line of work one will often find in childhood yearbooks under "career aspirations." But, as Aristotle once said, "Where the needs of the world and your talents cross, there lies your vocation." I could not be more blessed to have found such rewarding work that allows me to advance the mission of a place as special to me as Roman on a daily basis. While working at La Salle I would often say how awesome it was that I had the ability to have an impact at my alma mater through my professional work. Now I get to say I have had that same opportunity at both of my alma maters! Outside of my career, I spend as much time with my family and friends as possible – they have helped me grow so much along the way. I married the love of my life, my wife Stephanie, this past June and we live in Roxborough. I am an avid Philadelphia sports fan (despite the heartache), and I especially enjoy movies, golfing, and I will never pass up an opportunity to travel to a new place or city. In fact, I just visited Vermont for the first time this past weekend to ski at Stowe with some family and friends!

In closing, it is my firm belief that no institution has become great on the basis of tuition revenue alone, and that includes private prep schools, independent schools, etc. These institutions become great, and they stay great, through philanthropic support. The Roman Catholic High School community is a passionate one consisting of students, alumni, faculty, staff, Board Members, parents, families, and friends. Your time, talent, and certainly your treasure will not only help continue our mission but also advance Roman into a new era of excellence. I am eager for the journey, and I look forward to getting to know so many of you and connecting in the weeks and months ahead. Please do not be a stranger and feel free to send me a note at jprendergast@romancatholichs.com to say hello. Go Cahillites!

John A. Prendergast '08

Executive Director of Mission Advancement

Class Notes!

The next edition of The Empire is currently in production, and we're looking for alumni to submit life updates to include in the Class Notes section.  If you recently got married, engaged, had children, completed a degree, received a promotion, etc., we would love to hear from you!

These updates do not need to be long.  Here are examples of how a Class Note can look using our founder's name, Thomas Cahill, as a placeholder:

Recent Graduate: Thomas Cahill recently graduated from St. Joseph's University with a bachelor's degree in finance.  He accepted a position as a business manager for the Pennsylvania Convention Center.

Marriage: Thomas Cahill married Sophia Cahill on August 12, 2022, at St. Timothy's Parish.

Child: Thomas Cahill and his wife Sophia welcomed their first son, Thomas Cahill Jr., into the world on May 2, 2022.

Promotion or new job: Thomas Cahill was recently promoted to the position of Director of Communications at the Philadelphia Eagles.

Feel free to send updates to classnotes@romancatholichs.com, or click here.

Thank you!

Save the date for the following Roman Reunion!

Class of 1973 - 50th Reunion

Saturday, October 14th, 2023

Venetian Club

8030 Germantown Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19118

For more reunion details and registration, click here and keep up with Roman's social media.

Support Roman while shopping on Amazon!

When you do your holiday shopping with Amazon this season, use smile.amazon.com and Amazon Smile Foundation will give 0.5% of eligible purchases back to Roman when you choose "Roman Catholic High School for Boys."

To date, AmazonSmile has given over $449 million to charitable organizations worldwide through this program. Thank you for thinking of Roman!

Please consider making a gift to the Roman Fund today to support our students! You can give online or Venmo your gift to @RomanCatholicHS. Thank you for your generosity!

 Legacy Giving:

There are several additional ways to support Roman:

Bequest: Leave money to support Roman and its students in your will with the flexibility to update your will if life circumstances change.

Beneficiary designation: Provides increased flexibility over a will by using life insurance policies, IRAs, and retirement plans.  By making Roman the beneficiary of your IRA, you protect your heirs from one of the most heavily taxed portions of your estate as neither you nor your heirs will be liable for income taxes once the assets are distributed to Roman.

Stocks or appreciated assets: Donate securities to Roman which allows you to both preserve cash flow and eliminate capital gains tax on the transfer.

Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) from IRA: Are you age 70.5 or older? Give up to $100,000 per year from your IRA to Roman without paying income taxes on the distribution. This allows you to use the gift to satisfy all or part of your required minimum distribution (RMD) for the year.

To learn more or if you have questions, contact John Prendergast '08, Executive Director of Mission Advancement, at jprendergast@romancatholichs.com or 215-627-5487 ext. 204.

STAY CONNECTED WITH RCHS ON SOCIAL MEDIA