June 2023 E-Newsletter

2023 Day at the Bay Alumni Gathering: Tickets Are Now Available!

Tickets for the 30th annual Day at the Bay Alumni Gathering on Saturday, August 12 in North Wildwood, NJ are now available for purchase! All proceeds from this event will benefit the students of Roman Catholic High School and former students of John W. Hallahan High School via the Hallahan Legacy Scholarship Fund.

This event will feature live music, games (including cornhole), food and drink specials, and of course the signature drink, "Cahill Light," brewed at Wissahickon Brewing Co. The Brewing Co. is owned and operated by the Gill Family: Tim and Lisa and their sons, Roman alums Tim Jr. '04, Luke '09, and Pete '12, and their sister Megan.

To purchase tickets, please click here or on the image below. If you have any questions, please contact Chuck Taylor '12 at ctaylor@romancatholichs.com.

Baccalaureate Mass and Commencement Exercises Recap

On Friday, June 9, 171 bright and driven young men officially joined the Alumni Association as graduating members of the Class of 2023. The Baccalaureate Mass and Commencement Exercises took place on a sunny Friday afternoon at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Center City with family, friends, alumni, faculty, and staff in attendance.

The Class of 2023 earned over $26 million in scholarships and grants to pursue higher education, and over 96% of this year's graduating class is attending colleges and post-secondary institutions, and one proudly enlisted in the United States military.

Congratulations to the Class of 2023, and welcome to the Alumni Association!

Summer Supplement of The Empire is Now Available!

The summer supplement of The Empire, the official magazine for friends, family, and alumni of Catholic High, is now available! This Summer 2023 Supplement includes an article written to honor the legacy of Charles H. Fuller, Jr. '56 and the Pro Quorum Memoria section which recognizes two living and two deceased exceptional alumni. Thank you in particular to Ed Keenan '54 and Chris Gibbons '79 for their work on this summer supplement of The Empire.

You can read the digital version by clicking here or on the image below!

Day of Gratitude 2023: Recap

On Friday, June 16, Roman Catholic High School celebrated the annual Day of Gratitude, the day when we thank you and all our donors for your continued generous support of Catholic High. There is no Catholic, private prep, or independent school that can rely solely on tuition revenue alone, which is why your generous investments make such an important difference. From all of us here at Broad & Vine, especially our young men, thank you again for everything you do.

You can watch a special thank you message from Father Bongard by clicking here or on the image below!

Class Notes!

The next Annual Report 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 a few 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 April 13, 2023 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, 2023.

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 via email to classnotes@romancatholichs.com, or click here.

Thank you!

Support Roman Businesses!

Remember that there are dozens of small businesses in the Philadelphia region that are owned and operated by alumni, friends, and family of Catholic High. Next time you are looking for restaurants, professional services, home services, and retail options, consider supporting a fellow Roman business! See the full list by clicking here.

Save the date for the following Roman Reunion!

Class of 1973 - 50th Reunion

Saturday, October 14, 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.

EITC/OSTC: Redirect and Receive!

Both individual taxpayers and businesses in Pennsylvania can participate in the EITC/OSTC program to benefit deserving students at Roman Catholic High School. Redirect your PA state tax dollars to Roman to help fund financial aid, and receive a tax credit of 90% of the donation amount with a two-year commitment.

Process:

• Check out your PA-40, line 12, from your most recent tax return to see what your PA tax liability was last year. Assuming your income will not change drastically, that is a good starting point for the maximum level at which you could participate. If you file jointly with a spouse, then your entire PA liability is eligible, not just yours.
• Let us know how much you would like to contribute.
• We will connect you with one of our partner scholarship organizations such as BLOCS or the Foundation for Catholic Education depending on your contribution level.
• Once they approve you, they will assign you the special purpose entity to which you will belong. You will make your check out to that entity, and they will earmark the funds to Roman.
• In February, the scholarship organization will send you a K1 that you will use when filing your taxes and it will be used to provide either a refund or credit depending upon your tax situation.
• That's it! Your out-of-pocket cost will have 10x the impact as Roman receives 100% of your donation despite it costing you less than a tenth of the total amount.

Sample Donations:

To sign up, or if you have any questions, please contact:

 Rick Zambino, Director of Development & Alumni Relations, at (215) 627-5487 ext. 203 or via email rzambino@romancatholichs.com

John Prendergast '08, Executive Director of Mission Advancement, at (215) 627-5487 ext. 204 or via email jprendergast@romancatholichs.com

Please consider making a gift to the Roman Fund today to support our students! You can give online by clicking the "Give Now" button below, 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.

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