Inside Rockhurst: Community, Faith, and the Engine of Giving

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Welcome to Rock Talk, the official podcast of Rockhurst High School in Kansas City, Missouri, where we explore the voices, values, and vibrant life of our Jesuit college prep community.
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Hosted by the admissions and marketing team, each episode features conversations with students, faculty, alumni, and special guests as we share stories of academic excellence, faith formation, brotherhood, and service.
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Whether you're a prospective family, a proud alumnus, or simply curious about what makes Rockhurst unique, this is your inside look at Life at the Rock.
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And I am your host.
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We're back.
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We're ready to go.
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I got Beth with me.
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And uh we got some special guests.
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Beth, would you like to uh introduce our guests, please?
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Yeah, thanks, Steve.
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Today we have with us kicking off our new series, Moira Healy, Director of Engagement, and Martin Rosfitch, Jr., Director of Community Engagement.
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You're going to talk to us a little bit about not just our rich legacy of many generations that have supported Rockhurst, but also kind of the future of Rock Earth, and that lies in our current student population, our parent population, and clearly our future alumni.
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So this next four episodes is going to be about the community and legacy of Rockhurst and how we keep this beautiful machine going top to bottom.
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There's a lot of behind the scenes stuff that takes place here to uh keep making this place great, keep it evolving, keep it uh in a position to serve our young men and and live out the mission.
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So which one of you wants to start?
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I can start.
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Yeah, sure.
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Love it.
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Uh so Beth and Steve, thank you so much for having us on.
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It's an honor to be on Rock Talk.
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I've really enjoyed listening to the great episodes and the guests that you have had on and and really have given a deeper look for everybody that is interested in rockers, that is involved with Rockers in this great place, to show and showcase the people and the folks here that really make it a truly amazing place to be.
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And so I really appreciate you inviting the philanthropy and engagement team and uh being a part of this.
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We're really looking forward to it.
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So my name is Martin Rodosevic Jr.
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I graduated from Rockhurst in 2016.
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Okay.
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I am the oldest of three Radosovich men that have graduated from here.
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McGuire is a member of the class of 2017, and then Maddox graduated in 2023.
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And my dad, Martin Radosovich Sr., is a member of the math faculty here.
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So he came aboard Rockhurst and joined the teaching community my senior year.
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So my final year here, I got to spend with him.
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None of us, uh Radosvich men had him for math class, though.
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So that's kind of an interesting tidbit.
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And so this place really is a special uh it holds a special spot in all of our hearts here.
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And for me to, I assumed the director of community engagement position in July.
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And it's been a blessing to be back at Rockhurst and to serve in this role.
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I had been away from Rockhurst in the Kansas City area after completing college and and beginning my professional life.
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And when I had the opportunity to come back, it just meant the world to me.
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And so a little bit of what I do, I work closely with our athletic teams and co-curricular groups and connect them with our parent community and also engaging our young men that participate on those athletic teams and co-curriculars as well as the coaches and moderators and create mission-based events and activities for them.
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So planning team masses, uh, team days of reflection, doing service projects with the group as a whole and inviting families to be a part of that.
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That's cool.
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To really live out the mission of Rockers and looking at what can each team based on the culture and identity of that program and that coach and that group, how can we carry that out to all the Rockers community community, but also the Kansas City community as a whole?
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And how can we get our message out to and our impact out to others and really live out our mission here at Rockers?
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And so I do that.
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And then I also help facilitate the Hawklet Leadership Fund, which we'll get more into as we talk today.
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And um that was just created for our benefactors to support athletic teams, co-curriculars of their choosing what they're passionate about to support the Rockurst student experience here.
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So cool.
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Um I'll kick it over to Mora for her to tell a little bit about her role.
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Thanks, Martin.
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We're happy to have Martin on our team to uh spread the wealth a little bit.
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I'm Mora Healy.
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I am starting my 13th year at Rockhurst.
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I am the director of engagement, which is kind of a nebulous title.
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I work with the parents on the Parents Club, all the Parents Club activities.
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So I get to plan a lot of events in cooperation with our parents: the mother-son Mass and Brunch, the father-son bags tournament, the mother-son dinner dance, and I'm also involved in the fundraising aspect of the philanthropy and engagement team with coordinating the Spectacular Auction, which is Rocker's largest fundraiser.
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The date this year is April 18th.
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Okay.
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Save that date.
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I am the mother of five children and the grandmother of 10 children.
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Oh wow.
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My youngest son graduated in 2014.
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I'm gonna tell a little story on the Rodosevich family.
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Lori started volunteering when Mark Martin was a freshman, and Maddox was enough younger that Mrs.
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Rodosevich was a parents' club president twice for me.
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So the Rodoseovich family is very involved in Rockhurst, and we appreciate all that they do.
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Awesome.
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And I'd like to thank Maura for her mentorship and helping me become reacclimated with Rockhurst and showing me the behind the scenes info here and different things that as a student you really don't see on a day-to-day basis.
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And I think that what she does as a part of the PE team and it speaks volumes, and the auction is an unbelievable success every year.
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And she organizes so many different events, as she alluded to, with having parents be involved with their son's experience here.
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And Mora is a huge, she makes a huge impact on the Rockers experience.
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And I'm very thankful that she's taken me under her wing and helping me get a get back into the Rockers experience.
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Very good student.
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I love it.
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And and so, Martin, I want to piggyback a little bit because you and I started at the same time.
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And you know, I've had the luxury of talking on several of these episodes about how grateful I am to be back and just involved in the community on the other side of the fence.
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And this is exciting for us to talk about because you guys do a lot of work.
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You you when I was and and Mora, I think it was homecoming.
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I saw the home the whole week, I was like, this is unbelievable, event after event and coordinating this and getting these people here and all of this.
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And you know, I guess I want that to lead into this question because you guys are constantly engaging our community in different aspects, and we are a community that lives off of people's willingness to give and support us in various ways, whether we're talking about their time, their treasures, or their talents.
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What is so important, other than obviously us functioning as a as a as a school, but why do you think that is so important for that to be you know taking place?
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And we have to go and you know, I dare say, you know, drive the ship.
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But like how do what's so important about that in this community, or what's so special about this community that's willing to do that?
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Since coming back to Rockhurst and being in this role and not working at the school, I think what really stands out to me about the people that work here and that make these events and everything happen is how much they're passionate about making the experience for the young boys here a success and really motivating to continue to push the needle on a daily basis and elevate the rockers' experience.
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And that's something that really has stood out to me is the group that we work with and the different parts of the school always coming together and striving towards the same mission and goals of forming young young boys into men for others and into future leaders of this world.
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And I think that's really the core of what we do.
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And there's gonna be long days, and uh, there's gonna be the with alumni reunion weekend something going on every single day, and you're you're grinding it out.
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But what really I think made it a special experience on the working side of things is we it we got to celebrate our alumni and welcome so many graduates of Rocker Sci school back to this place and back home.
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And I think that that continues to be the motivation for all of us is we dig deep and continue to work hard and and push the needle to elevate the experience here and have have it continue to grow.
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And that's something I think that working here and being in this side has really been special and meaningful to me.
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Cool.
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For me, uh so many parents come from the parochial schools, and those parochial schools are classes of 50, 60 students, and then they come to Rockhurst and the class is 200 students or more.
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And I want the parents to feel like it's their community as well.
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We do a great job of getting the children, the students involved in things, and I want the parents to be involved so they feel a part of the community.
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And I the moms that work at the front desk, they beam with pride when their boys come up to say hello to them.
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Or the moms are downstairs passing out donuts on the first freshman day of service, and their students, their boys are coming up and saying hi, mom.
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And that it just brings them into the community.
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And my goal is to bring every parent into the community at whatever level they want to be involved.
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That's cool.
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I think that's really cool.
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And so thinking back to legacy, I really think about my grandma and my dad's mom when my dad and my uncle were attending Rockers in the late 60s, early 70s, and the kind of lasting legacy of the Parents Club.
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So back then they were doing things like Sailorama.
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I think there was like some kind of Folly show that they did.
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But these these moms and dads that were very committed to doing things to support the school back then.
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And then I think back to when my brothers were here and my mom was involved heavily and so involved that when my brothers graduated, she kind of missed her rockers' moms.
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And so they uh formed a little group called the Rockettes, which I know is is experiencing a revival.
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I'm excited about that.
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Yeah.
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Just as an opportunity for those moms that have built relationships, you know, during their time here and when their boys are here to get together and and do something and give back to the community, which I think is great.
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So this idea that you guys have been here, you know, 12 years and you know, a couple months, but this train has been moving for a very long time and is really, really reliant on that community and that sense of community.
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So thank you guys for that.
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Just, I know you're very new, but if you can think back, like what is one of your favorite stories you've had so far in your current role?
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Maybe it's an experience you had with a family.
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I know you mentioned a little bit just seeing mom's pride when they see their sons throughout the school day.
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But what's it maybe one giving story, one volunteer story that you really have enjoyed so far and um in your time here?
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Yeah, so one of my favorite stories actually happened just last week.
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So our golf team they ran a fundraiser and a golf tournament for a local nonprofit called Pete's Garden out at Oakwood Country Club last week.
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And one of the student leaders, a senior Connor Vickers, was really the one that took charge of this event and did a terrific job in organizing it, sending out invitations and inviting people to participate in it, whether they were a golfer, whether they supported it in the Pete's Garden Initiative and contributed that way, or even helping with the pre-the- the sh the event before the tournament began and the post-event as well, and giving out prizes and things like that.
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And to me, that's exactly what successful community engagement looks like is the when you think of time, talent, and treasure, those those boys they gave up their Thursday afternoon to go run that event after school and be a part of that.
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And using their talents, they're all on the golf team.
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They were able to integrate their experience as a member of the golf team into a charitable way and really make that happen.
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And um, they the the team raised over$17,000 for Pete's Garden and really made a huge impact on that organization and um did a wonderful job.
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And you know, that's what we want to see is and have our coaches and moderators and our teams and co-curriculars consider is how can we make an impact on the community while using our talents and what we do well and creatively think of ways that we can we can do that.
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And I the golf the golf team did that beautifully, and we're so proud of Connor and the hard work and effort he did to organize that and to make that event a success.
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And we're really excited to see that continue for years to come.
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One of my favorite stories is similar to Martin's, but during COVID, the students had a difficult time getting their service requirement completed.
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And so the moms came up with the idea of doing a student parent service project.
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And we've done that for a number of years.
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We started it in COVID and it's continued.
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We've done it at Habitat for Humanity, we've done it with Giving the Basics, and this year for sophomores and juniors in February, the the parents and students will get together to build bicycles for CASA.
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And so I'm really excited about that opportunity.
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And the parent that is leading it now, Katie Cowan, has worked really hard to do to create an opportunity that would be interesting and engaging for both the students and the parents, and still help the community in a meaningful way.
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So they're going to be building bicycles, and then CASA will deliver those bicycles to the the children that are part of CASA.
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So that's one thing.
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The other that I want to mention is what Beth brought up about the relationships that parents form when they are together at Rockhurst and working for Rockhurst, volunteering for Rockhurst.
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The f the sports teams, that's a natural way to build your relationships.
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But when you're volunteering and you're working together for a common purpose, I have volunteers that are Rockettes, so they're alumni moms, and they come back and their student has graduated four, five, six years ago, and they still come back every year and help with the auction.
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They help with parents' club activities, they bring other people to come and play bingo for the ladies' bingo night.
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So they still feel that connection to Rockhurst and they still feel part of the community.
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And that's really the goal.
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Excuse me.
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And I'm curious, with your roles being so heavily geared or centered around giving, right?
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You're you're dealing with folks that want to give again their time, their talent, their treasure.
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How or what impact do you see that have on our young men?
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And and and hopefully I asked that question well enough, uh, although it's pretty pump, but like we're talking about a long historic legacy of young men seeing a community give and give and give and want to be involved.
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How do you think that impacts our boys?
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I think that the boys see their what their parents are doing, and the boys demonstrate uh what they've learned from their parents through mission week, through the community food drive that we do at Thanksgiving, through uh the days of service.
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They're it's ingrained in them and they know it.
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And so it's not a big deal to them to want to reach out, just like with what Connor did for Pete's Garden.
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It's in their hearts.
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Yeah.
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And and they see that from their parents and they they want to continue that mission.
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And it's part of the Jesuit mission.
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Martin was talking about mission-driven work.
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It it's part of who they are, and it just becomes a part of the whole.
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To go along with that, I think that as a young boy that comes here thinking about my time at Rockhurst, you grow so attached to this place and you develop a love for the school and for the brothers that you walk the halls with here.
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And I think that it adds another layer to this experience when you have your family involved in volunteering, or you know, if they're they're around at your events, and that's really what makes it special.
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And there's so many wonderful ways that and so many stories that uh that we can think of.
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But I think that that's really it, it continues to I think that's what makes it a special experience is if your family is involved, then they become attached.
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And I think that really is shown best through the Roquettes because the those parents have had sons go through this place and have have departed here, but they still have that special place in their heart for rockers that they continue to give their time and and treasure and can and want to see this place succeed for future hawklets.
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And so I think that the parent involvement, my mom being so involved volunteering and dedicating her time here is really, I think, what made my experience even better because yeah, when she was at the front desk, it was always if I was having a tough day, uh, you know, and I had a tough test or assignment, I could always go there and you know, she would just she would say hello and we would check in.
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So I think for those moments to help get through Rockhst and you know, have the that affinity for the school, I think really comes out with the the parents and their involvement here.
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And shout out to the moms.
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Absolutely.
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I tell you this, and and this is coming from a mama's boy.
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I don't care how tough they try to act, when mom is up at the front, we get to see boys all the time go up there, and and mom is still mom.
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So from from a mama's boy to all the moms out there, we appreciate you and what you guys do for our community because none of us would be here without you.
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Yeah, no doubt.
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And there was also another aspect of Rockers that I wasn't even aware about that impacts our faculty and staff.
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So there is a group of parents that is in charge of organizing the candy jar in the faculty and staff studio.
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And yes, and yeah, Steve, do you know about this candy jar?
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Well, I know that I didn't know parents were responsible for that.
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Oh, yes, that's one of one of my committees.
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So my dad's my dad talks about this candy jar all the time, and I didn't even realize that it was parents that were the ones that were getting the candy and making sure it got to the studio and organizing all of that until Laura at the Parents Club meeting said that that was one of the biggest ways that parents could get involved and make sure that the faculty and staff feel appreciated for all their hard work and forming our young men.
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Absolutely.
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I also want to mention that the fundraising that the philanthropy and engagement team does supports financial aid, tuition assistance for our students.
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And that is so important to all of our students so that any student who wants to come to Rockhurst can come whether they can afford it or not.
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You know, the hundred percent of tuition assistance, let me say that again, hundred percent of demonstrated need is uh available to a family.
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Absolutely, and that is so, so important.
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And that's funny, that's a perfect segue because I was gonna chime in with kind of my favorite memory tied to this.
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And what drew me to rockers in the first place seven years ago when I came here is that I was working at Holy Cross in Historic Northeast, which is one of our Hurtado scholar schools.
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And Mart uh sorry, Marvin Grillio and Father Sheehan, I spent a lot of time with in my time at Holy Cross talking about our boys, you know, making sure everybody was on the same page to help them be successful both at Holy Cross and at Rockhurst.
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And when the job opened in admissions, Father Sheehan was actually the first person to tell me about it, say, you need to come over here.
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But I will say that Hurtado Scholars is one of the reasons that I considered coming here.
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And it's because it's such an important program because it's more than just a scholarship fund, right?
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That's a huge part of it, like you said, and we're uh making rockers accessible and affordable.
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But more importantly, it's academic support and preparation that certain students in our community need.
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And it provides that for them and it provides a sense of community.
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So these boys are together for three years before they even get to rockers.
00:23:27.570 --> 00:23:30.450
Their parents get to know each other, it builds a community.
00:23:30.770 --> 00:23:37.410
And one of those young men, Angel Becerra from the class of 24, I got to see from sixth grade.
00:23:37.570 --> 00:23:37.810
Yeah.
00:23:38.290 --> 00:23:44.210
Yep, sixth grade on, kind of grow and form into the young man, very impressive young man that he is.
00:23:44.450 --> 00:23:56.610
And kind of the the crowning moment for for him was receiving the Jack Kent Cook scholarship to Georgetown, where he currently is a sophomore, which is a huge opportunity.
00:23:56.930 --> 00:24:10.930
And none of that would have been possible if it wasn't for the support and the donors we have here at Rockhurst to give him that academic preparation to succeed here and the the financial aid to make it possible for his family.
00:24:11.090 --> 00:24:13.410
So I know they are very thankful for that.
00:24:13.490 --> 00:24:15.090
I know Angel's very thankful for that.
00:24:15.170 --> 00:24:23.570
I'm very thankful for that because I got to kind of see a kid that I knew had great potential to achieve something, get the opportunity to achieve it.
00:24:23.730 --> 00:24:25.009
So you're absolutely right.
00:24:25.090 --> 00:24:34.370
The the work that our P ⁇ E department does is essential in the support of our community, not just alums, but parents, friends of the school.
00:24:34.450 --> 00:24:36.050
It's it's so essential to what we do.
00:24:36.290 --> 00:24:41.250
The Hurtado Scholars program is a hidden gem of Rockhurst.
00:24:41.410 --> 00:24:51.330
And we work really hard to spread the word about the Hurtado Scholars within the community and outside of the Rockers community, but the greater Kansas City community.
00:24:51.570 --> 00:25:05.490
One of my favorite memories from this school year, this calendar year was the graduation ceremony for the eighth grade Hurtado scholars that occurred last May.
00:25:05.890 --> 00:25:12.130
Those parents are so proud of their eighth graders who have been accepted to Rockhurst.
00:25:12.210 --> 00:25:15.650
They've completed grade school, and now they're coming to Rockhurst.
00:25:15.730 --> 00:25:23.650
And the joy and pride that is at that ceremony and mass is palpable.
00:25:23.970 --> 00:25:30.370
It's a wonderful testimony to all the people that work with the Hurtado Scholars.
00:25:30.690 --> 00:25:41.650
The impact of that, I mean, I've seen just over the last seven years in admissions, going from the majority of the boys having to take summer school to nearly none of them having to take summer school.
00:25:41.810 --> 00:25:45.490
And if nothing else comes out of that, that's a pretty amazing leap.
00:25:45.650 --> 00:26:01.970
And yes, Anthony Ray does a great job, Vanessa, Vanessa Wegman, who are running that program, Marvin Grillio and Father Sheehan, who started the program, uh the principals that we work with at our feeder schools, everybody really, the community all comes together to support these young men, and it's great.
00:26:02.050 --> 00:26:03.730
You're absolutely right ahead and Jim.
00:26:04.130 --> 00:26:16.770
And I want to just to under the same umbrella of all of the stuff we're saying, you know, I want to take the time to just highlight what I don't want someone to skip over.
00:26:16.850 --> 00:26:30.050
Is that's how much people care about this experience at Rockhurst is we have donors that will commit to making sure that this is affordable.
00:26:30.450 --> 00:26:43.570
That, hey, if if there's a young man that wants to come here, you know, the hundred percent have demonstrated or exhibited need, you know, financially, we'll make sure we can get a get him in here.
00:26:43.810 --> 00:26:57.250
And if you're listening to this, I I want to break the myth that you know, this is for certain type of people, you you you gotta be super wealthy to go here, all of that stuff.
00:26:57.330 --> 00:26:58.130
It's not true.
00:26:58.530 --> 00:27:00.690
It's absolutely not true.
00:27:01.009 --> 00:27:11.490
And you know, the reason part of this podcast when me and Beth were talking about starting a podcast was to be able to tell the truth about what Rockhurst is, and that's the truth.
00:27:11.810 --> 00:27:25.970
People care so much about what this does for young men, they have committed funds to make sure that anyone who wants to come here will be able to come here, and I think that's just really powerful, and I don't want people to skip over that because we know that, right?
00:27:26.210 --> 00:27:27.890
We come here every day, you know.
00:27:28.050 --> 00:27:37.490
We we know what we do here, but being able to make sure that folks out there understand hey, this is this is for everybody, and that means a lot to me.
00:27:37.730 --> 00:27:41.330
So definitely appreciate all the work that goes into this.
00:27:41.490 --> 00:27:53.650
Let me ask this question because we gotta you got a couple more questions, but is there something that you guys would like to see, you know, impacted by community giving?
00:27:53.730 --> 00:28:04.050
Like, is there an area that when you're working and you're going to do what you do on a daily basis that you're like, man, I wish we could or I'm looking forward to being able to move the needle in this area.
00:28:07.250 --> 00:28:11.330
I think that's gonna come to light in our strategic planning.
00:28:11.650 --> 00:28:11.890
Okay.
00:28:12.210 --> 00:28:17.810
There is so much, you know, we hadn't had a strategic plan in a really long time.
00:28:18.050 --> 00:28:25.810
And David Laughlin and the Board of Trustees have worked really hard and for a number of years on this strategic plan.
00:28:26.210 --> 00:28:31.490
And there is so much coming that I don't want to burst his balloon.
00:28:31.730 --> 00:28:32.770
I like that.
00:28:35.330 --> 00:28:37.890
So appreciate you giving the good lead in.
00:28:37.970 --> 00:28:40.210
So listen in for more details there.
00:28:40.530 --> 00:28:42.370
Yeah, that that'll be very exciting.
00:28:42.610 --> 00:28:46.930
For me, I think I'll answer it's in starting my this new role.
00:28:47.250 --> 00:28:53.009
And the position that I'm in was created through the strategic planning uh process.
00:28:53.170 --> 00:29:07.650
And so I think that one of my goals is to start putting what we've been preparing into action, and we want to have consistency with the boys' experiences here.
00:29:07.810 --> 00:29:19.090
Okay, a lot of our teams do a phenomenal job of hosting events, creating programming outside of competition, and do a really good job of the community engagement aspect.
00:29:19.330 --> 00:29:26.690
And why I was brought here and what this role is, the philosophy behind it is to help support our coaches and moderators.
00:29:26.850 --> 00:29:37.090
Since they have a lot on their plate, whether it's in the classroom teaching their courses, and they might be moderators of three, four, five different clubs coaching as well.
00:29:37.410 --> 00:29:50.690
I'm here to support them and help take some of that pressure off and creating the events and outside of competition and practice and games and and events and making that happen.
00:29:50.850 --> 00:30:08.530
So what I am excited about is to begin putting this into practice and creating these masses and service opportunities and um parent engagement social events so we can create that community engagement aspect and bring that to life here in the future.
00:30:08.770 --> 00:30:09.410
Cool.
00:30:10.050 --> 00:30:22.130
I know coming up, our listeners who are mostly alums, parents, students of this great community, they have a great opportunity to give back with Giving Tuesday on November 11th.
00:30:22.290 --> 00:30:27.490
And that's that was really designed to help boost our annual fund called the Erie Fund.
00:30:27.570 --> 00:30:33.490
But Really to try and get engagement all on one day, which I think is a great thing.
00:30:33.570 --> 00:30:37.410
And I know I was excited to take part in some of the promo videos.
00:30:37.570 --> 00:30:43.490
Although we realize, Steve, that I'm way better on the microphone than I am in front of the camera.
00:30:43.890 --> 00:30:48.210
Thank God Robbie Hayden from PE can cut things together in a nice way.
00:30:48.370 --> 00:30:54.290
But, you know, it was a great opportunity for me to share my thanks to our donors, which I truly feel.
00:30:54.450 --> 00:30:57.970
But if you're looking for a way to support Rockers, that's a great opportunity.
00:30:58.210 --> 00:31:09.330
I know it's really there's a huge push to increase our alumni giving across the board, but also look at bigger community and wider community as an opportunity to give.
00:31:09.490 --> 00:31:12.530
You brought up the auction, Moira, which I'm really happy you did.
00:31:12.610 --> 00:31:15.410
Um so saving the date for that is April 18th.
00:31:15.490 --> 00:31:16.290
Is it April 18th?
00:31:16.530 --> 00:31:17.250
April 18th.
00:31:17.330 --> 00:31:18.610
So mark that on your calendar.
00:31:18.770 --> 00:31:25.570
But what other opportunities are coming up for giving of either their time or their talent or their treasure?
00:31:25.890 --> 00:31:30.690
So this week is the conclusion of Hispanic Heritage Month.
00:31:30.850 --> 00:31:36.290
And we at Rocker celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with student activities.
00:31:36.530 --> 00:31:43.970
Last week there was a Hispanic trivia contest where the students participated and could win prizes.
00:31:44.130 --> 00:31:46.290
There was also a dress down day.
00:31:46.450 --> 00:31:56.610
We do all of this, and there's a raffle that this week is the last week to buy raffle tickets for Sporting KC Autograph Jersey or a Chris Jones Autograph Football.
00:31:56.930 --> 00:32:01.170
And we do this in conjunction with the Hispanic Development Fund.
00:32:01.410 --> 00:32:18.770
And the Hispanic Development Fund matches all the money that we raise dollar for dollar, and it comes back to our seniors who apply for college scholarships, seniors of Hispanic Heritage, and they receive scholarships to college.
00:32:18.930 --> 00:32:21.890
So that's one thing that's happening right now.
00:32:22.450 --> 00:32:26.770
We also have the father-son bags tournament on Saturday.
00:32:26.930 --> 00:32:34.530
So we'll have 200 of our fathers and sons playing cornhole for prizes and pride.
00:32:35.170 --> 00:32:39.730
Then next week is the ladies' bingo, Mamma Mia bingo.
00:32:39.970 --> 00:32:41.009
That sounds like a lot of fun.
00:32:41.170 --> 00:32:41.970
A lot of fun.
00:32:42.210 --> 00:32:44.770
So there are lots of opportunities.
00:32:44.850 --> 00:32:54.290
And then we roll right into the first week of November where we have the alumni, alumni for all, which is Rock Connect for the first hour.
00:32:54.450 --> 00:33:01.890
And we run it goes right into the Father Percelli spaghetti dinner, which is a longtime alumni tradition.
00:33:02.370 --> 00:33:06.050
And then the Rock Giving Day is November 11th.
00:33:06.290 --> 00:33:15.009
And that opens the season of giving that will go right through the National Giving Tuesday, which I believe this year is December 2nd.
00:33:15.250 --> 00:33:17.490
So there's lots of opportunities.
00:33:17.730 --> 00:33:30.050
All of those events require a lot of volunteer participation to set them up, to work them, to help clean them up, tear them down, as well as participation just to have fun.
00:33:30.290 --> 00:33:33.810
So where can parents find information on volunteering?
00:33:34.290 --> 00:33:42.210
On our website, under Parents and Students, there is a list of parent volunteer opportunities and it's all-encompassing.
00:33:42.450 --> 00:34:04.610
Another thing that Martin and I are working on is a web page on our website that is open to parents, always there, always easy to access with everything that both of us are working on at the time with the co-curriculars and athletic events as well as the other parent activities.
00:34:04.850 --> 00:34:05.490
That's great.
00:34:05.890 --> 00:34:09.489
That I'm sure will be very helpful and make a lot of parents happy.
00:34:09.730 --> 00:34:17.889
Because I know one of the things I've heard from parents is, well, I can't be there during the day, but there's so many opportunities on the night, at night, on the weekends.
00:34:18.130 --> 00:34:23.969
So I always try and drive them your way because everybody wants to be involved and have the opportunity.
00:34:24.130 --> 00:34:26.929
But sometimes it's just about knowing how to get involved.
00:34:27.009 --> 00:34:28.289
So thank you for sharing that.
00:34:28.849 --> 00:34:29.090
Absolutely.
00:34:29.409 --> 00:34:30.210
Kind of close things out.
00:34:30.289 --> 00:34:32.369
We've been asking this of all of our guests.
00:34:32.610 --> 00:34:39.329
And you as an alumni mom and you as an alum of the school are both very qualified people, I think, to answer it.
00:34:39.409 --> 00:34:44.609
But if you could tell a prospective family the number one reason they should send their son to Rockers, what would it be?
00:34:45.569 --> 00:34:54.849
I would tell them that through the Rockers experience, that their son will have a place they can call home for the rest of their life.
00:34:55.170 --> 00:35:00.049
And there's one thing that really stood out to me at my graduation.
00:35:00.529 --> 00:35:11.250
It's when Father Baum addressed the class and said, Gentlemen, you will always have a home at 9301 State Line Road from this point moving forward.
00:35:11.489 --> 00:35:15.569
And I think that that is exemplified in so many different ways.
00:35:15.809 --> 00:35:25.409
And for this place, it is just the legacy and the continuance of this for over a hundred years of Rockhurst.
00:35:25.489 --> 00:35:28.529
It has just done so much good for this world.
00:35:28.769 --> 00:35:39.409
And to be a part of this is an honor and and it's a blessing every day to now return in this role and to be on the philanthropy and engagement team in this role.
00:35:39.650 --> 00:35:50.289
And the to be reconnected with classmates, alumni from all generations in so many different experiences is a lifelong impact.
00:35:50.449 --> 00:36:04.529
And so that's really what sets the Rockers experience apart is you have a place that you're going to make lifelong friends, lifelong brothers, and somewhere that you can always go back to and people are going to support you and care for you no matter what.
00:36:04.849 --> 00:36:05.409
That's great.
00:36:05.569 --> 00:36:05.809
Yeah.
00:36:05.889 --> 00:36:13.969
And for me, beyond the uh top-notch education and the the faith formation and the formation of the whole person.
00:36:14.609 --> 00:36:25.489
When my son Robbie was a freshman, we were in the Rose Theater and listening to Dean Alvey and Father Baum and Greg Harkness.
00:36:25.809 --> 00:36:35.089
And then Judy Scanlon got up and said to us as parents, but also to the boys, look to your left, look to your right.
00:36:35.809 --> 00:36:41.889
These students, these boys sitting next to you, they are going to be the best man at your wedding.
00:36:42.210 --> 00:36:45.569
They are going to be the uh godparent to your child.
00:36:46.210 --> 00:36:47.489
And that is so true.
00:36:47.650 --> 00:37:04.369
So it's about the relationships that was demonstrated a couple weeks ago at the alumni reunion weekend where people came back because a friend that they hadn't seen in years was being inducted into the Hall of Fame.
00:37:04.609 --> 00:37:07.730
And they walked into the room and it was a big bear hug.
00:37:07.809 --> 00:37:14.129
These guys hadn't seen each other in 20 years, but they connected right back to where they were.
00:37:14.289 --> 00:37:25.170
It's about the relationships, it's the friends that you've made, the the your classmates, and how how that's gonna impact you the rest of your life.
00:37:25.329 --> 00:37:32.369
You don't know when, you don't know where, but the relationships because you went to Rockhurst are going to benefit you.
00:37:33.089 --> 00:37:33.650
Absolutely.
00:37:33.969 --> 00:37:34.210
Yeah.
00:37:34.449 --> 00:37:36.129
No, I I've got nothing.
00:37:36.289 --> 00:37:38.529
That's a great way to close the episode.
00:37:38.769 --> 00:37:39.009
Yeah.
00:37:39.329 --> 00:37:39.969
Uh for sure.
00:37:40.210 --> 00:37:54.529
And it ties in perfectly because, Steve, next week we're gonna be inviting some of our alums to come back and kind of talk a little bit more about why they choose to stay engaged with the school and and to give back to the school, both financially and with their volunteering.
00:37:55.170 --> 00:38:01.089
And we'll have also on that episode uh Meredith Suarez, our director of alumni relations, is going to join us.
00:38:01.170 --> 00:38:05.409
So it'll be a great episode to kind of see what keeps people coming back.
00:38:05.489 --> 00:38:07.009
I think we got a great preview today.
00:38:07.089 --> 00:38:11.730
So thank you guys so much for taking time to meet with us and look forward to seeing everybody next week.
00:38:12.049 --> 00:38:12.769
Thanks for having us.
00:38:13.089 --> 00:38:14.210
Thank you guys.