The GuardianVol. 50 Issue 4 Saint Joseph Regional High School, Montvale, NJ Friday, October 26, 2012

Gala to Conclude 50th Jubilee CelebrationsSt. Joe’s concludes its 50th anniversary celebrations Saturday (10/27) with a Gala dinner at the Pearl River Hilton. The evening will mark the end of events, which began with a school picnic in September of 2011 and included an athletic evening (October 2011) in which the top-50 moments in SJR sports history were recognized, an Alumni Father-Son Mass (January 2012) and a Golden Jubilee Mass (March 2012).

Tomorrow evening’s dinner will make a special presentation to the founders of the Alumni scholarship Michael Andersen ’66 and Don-ald Rankin ’66. It will also give the SJR community an opportunity to celebrate and reflect on the school’s first half-century.

Many remembrances include the humorous: “Who could ever forget (or want to) the live turkey brought to school by a student who was convinced it would improve his grade in history,” recounts Mr. Frank DeVito, or Brother Reidy’s daily faculty room “weather fore-casts for the entire continental U.S.”

Mr. Donnelly fondly recalls, “winning a debating competition as a sophomore. The issue was ‘compulsory national service’ and we had gotten absolutely drubbed in our first debate experience. Brother William, the moderator of the Debate Club, rather glibly promised the five of us on the team a steak dinner if we won the next debate. And, to all of our complete surprise, we did! We still have the tro-phy somewhere to prove it.”

Mrs. Madonna, who has been at SJR for 43 years, said, “Each succeeding Brother that came along had that same wonderful way about them. They were different than anyone I’ve ever met. They were wonderful.”

Some memories include the wistful: Mr. DeVito misses “The days of a library with books” and long-time English teacher Dick Shust’s reminders to frustrated colleagues that each student is “‘a child of God,’” yet relishes “Mrs. Madonna’s very presence in the building.”

Most memories focus on the legacy of students and teachers. Coaching John Fogarty ’81 in track is one of Mr. DeVito’s fondest memo-ries because John returned to teach at St. Joe’s and coach Frank’s son Nick ‘97, SJR’s current cross-country and track coach, who in turn coached John’s son Sean ’12.

Mr. Donnelly remembers “the relationships that grew over the years with the Xaverian Brothers, especially Brother Peter Russell [SJR’s 4th prin-cipal], Brother William Cushing [5th principal] and Brother Tom Reidy [the longest-serving Brother at SJR]. Each of them was a very, very different person but each shared in common a passionate concern for this place called SJR and a genuine interest in and compassion for the students who attended this school.

They were tremendous mentors to me, both as a student and a teacher … I know that I am not alone in these feelings; certainly the funerals of Brother Peter in 1995 and Brother Tom in 2009 saw the widespread and undeniable impact that these men had on SJR, and their farewells at the school were profoundly affecting.”

Mr. DiStaulo vs. Aliens, Page 4Mr. Donnelly, Mrs. Madonna and Mr. DeVito, have been a part of the

SJR community for a combined 120 years.

2 The Guardian, Friday, October 26, 2012

The Guardian StaffEditor: Dan Gettler

Managing Editor: Elliot FerrisLayout Editors: Shane O’Brien, Nick Caramico, John Henry Da Silva

Photo Editor: Peter HolzknechtInternet Manager: Daniel Scalera

Staff: Kirk Brouwer, Devin Buonanno, Brian Buonauro, Chris Cheeseman, Vincent DePinto, Chris Farrell, Louis Napolitano, Christopher O’Byrne,

Brandon O’Connor, Jeffrey Richardson, Christopher Walker, Alex WalshModerator: Mr. Mackie

- During its first year (1962-63) the class of 1966 took all of its classes at Our Lady of Mercy School in Park Ridge?- In the 1960s, the Xaverian Brothers had an above-ground pool and maintained an ice rink (see picture below) in the winter on the practice football field?- In the late 60s through the mid 70s, SJR had a thriving Naval ROTC program that conducted drills in full uni-form in the parking lot?- That there used to be a swim club and riding stables at 50 Chestnut Ridge Road, where the office building is today?- That SJR hosted concerts by Rod Stewart, Leslie West & Mountain and Harry Chapin in the late 60s and early 70s when these artists were just beginning their careers?- In 1973, the Brother’s Residence caught fire and nearly burned to the ground, causing school to be closed for nearly a week?- That in the 1980s, SJR had an annual car raffle that, at its height, resulted in the sale of $76,000 worth of one-dollar raffle tickets for a Pontiac Trans Am that in 1987 was won by Martin Gallagher ’80, the father of cur-rent senior Ryan Gallagher ‘13- Brother Louis Calmel, chair of the social studies department in the 1980s, gave a keynote address to the 1988 National Catholic Education Association Convention in New York City?- SJR got its very first computers in 1985 (thirty Commodore 64 computers) as the result of winning a radio con-test sponsored by WAPP (103.9)?- Two Xaverian Brothers who formerly staffed SJR now teach in Africa: Brother William at a seminary in Nairo-bi, Kenya, and Brother Louis, at a high school in Lodwar, in the Kenyan desert?- The Record named the 1969 SJR track team “Team of the Century” in 2000?- The first SJR team to ever win a state championship was the 1972 tennis team, coached by Brother Peter Russell, who went on to become SJR’s fourth principal?

50th Anniversary Fun FactsDid you know that...

Old-time SJR Hockey

The Guardian, Friday, October 26, 2012 3

Every year, one or two lucky students are granted a full scholarship to Saint Joe’s. They are chosen based on their proven academic record, a strong pattern of extracurricular activities, and also financial need. The scholarship is called the Saint Joseph Alumni Scholarship, and it would definitely not be possible with-out the continued generosity of Saint Joe’s alumni Donald Rankin and Mike Anderson. Donald and Mike were members of Saint Joe’s first graduating class, and both went on to successful business careers, but they never forgot their time at Saint Joes and what they had learned from it. Don and Mike felt the lessons they learned at Saint Joe’s helped them in their careers. When asked about his career, Donald said, “There are stories of business leaders who cut too many corners in the news every day. I do believe that the education I received at Saint Joe’s very much helped me in running the best company that I could. I am very proud of it.” Likewise, when Mike was asked about his career, he also referred back to his time at Saint Joe’s. “We learned a sense of fairness and integrity which has served us well throughout life and developed a sound economic base to move forward.” It was 1999, and by pure coincidence, Don and Mike had both just retired from successful business careers. They got to-gether one night and the conversation turned to their time at SJR and how they could give back to the school that they felt had given so much to them. “We each had sound academic credentials but we could not have had the opportunity to afford to attend St. Joe’s in 1999,” said Mike. “Therefore we decided to start the Alumni Scholarship to enable more young men to enjoy the benefits of a St. Joe’s education.”

FeatureRankin and Anderson ‘66 - Alumni Spotlight

The Week Ahead - 10/27-11/9October 27- Cross Country Meet of Champions at Darlington 11:00 a.m.- DePaul vs. St Joes Football Game (home) 1:00 p.m- 50th Anniversary Gala at the Pearl River Hilton 6:30 p.m.October 28- Train Show 10:00-4:00 p.m.November 1 - All Saints Day Mass for Deceased Alumni 10:00 a.m.- Eastern Christian Invitational at Goffle Brook 3:30 p.m.November 2- St. Joes at Ramapo Football Game (away) 7:00 p.m - END OF THE FIRST MARKING PERIOD

November 3- Craft Show 10:00-4:00 p.m.November 4- Cross Country State Group Championship at Holm-del 9:00 a.m., Craft Show 10:00-4:00 p.m.November 7- Open House 7:00-9:00 p.m.November 9- Co-Op Testing NO SCHOOL

By Christopher Walker ‘15 They wanted to give other kids in their situation the same oppor-tunities they enjoyed at Saint Joe’s, and they felt that the Alumni Scholarship would do just that. Saint Joe’s has had many great alumni since it first opened in 1962, and Donald Rankin and Mike Anderson are no exception. They took all the lessons they learned from Saint Joe’s and were able to use them effectively in their business careers. Their Alumni Scholarship gives the gift of a Catholic education to those who may not have otherwise had the chance to get one. Don and Mike should serve as examples for every current and future SJR students. They truly show what it means to be a Green Knight.

Donald Rankin, 2012

Donald Rankin, 1966

4 The Guardian, Friday, October 26, 2012

Halloween SpecialMr. DiStaulo Speaks the Truth about Aliens

In this week”s interview, we decided to talk with Mr. DiStaulo about his obsession with aliens.

What is the story behind your obsession with aliens?For the record, I never saw an alien, or flying saucer. I saw a UFO. It is an unidentified object. I don’t know what I saw exactly, but it wasn’t human. I was 17 and I was drivinghome, and as I came to a stoplight I saw something far away, in the sky. It was visible, but hard to see. Then these bright lights from the UFO made a perfect circle, and started spinning. Then it went really fast and zigzagged away.

Were you abducted?No, I was never abducted, unless it happened in my sleep; then I don’t know, but to my knowledge, I wasn’t.

Are you scared of being abducted?Yes, because I don’t want to be in their intergalactic zoo or experi-mented on.

What happens if they come back to Earth?I will be extremely scared and probably run. I have no interest in being around them.

Why do you believe in aliens?I believe in aliens because of astronomy. For every grain of sand on the planet, there are millions of stars in the universe. If you try to travel from one end to another at the speed of light, it would take 14 billion years. We can’t be the only ones in this giant uni-verse.

Do you have any friends or know anyone that is an alien?I’m not friends with any aliens and I don’t know any aliens.

Did you already believe in aliens before your experience?No. I was actually traumatized as a kid, because E.T scared me. He just freaked me out.

Do you think movies about aliens and what happens in them are true?Humans in movies always experiment on aliens, but aliens never experiment on humans. I don’t really know if they would experi-ment on us, but I know something that can travelfrom one end of the galaxy to the other sure would not let them-selves be cut open.

What would you do if you ever saw an alien?If I ever see one I would run as fast as I could. There is no way it’s coming near me.

If aliens arrived on Earth and asked for peace, what would be your reaction?I don’t know if I could trust them. I think about it like this: if they are smart enough to travel through space, they probably think of us as insignificant. Do you think about all the ants under your feet when you are walking about? No, but people like to study ants. Aliens might not care about us, but they might want to study us.

What do you think about the people who are abducted?For around 99% of people who have been “abducted”, they’re all fake, but for that remaining 1%, it might be true.

By Nick Caramico ‘15

What would you say to people who don’t believe in aliens?Well if they were a nice person, then I would say that you have to learn a little more about astronomy.

Do you think aliens built the Pyramids in Egypt?No. The Egyptians made the Pyramids. It’s an insult to them. They had millions of slaves and thousands of years. They made blocks and put them together to make a triangle. It isn’t that hard.

What do you think about crop circles?Those are fake. They show how to make them online. It’s just the farmer trying to getattention. Why would they waste their time on making shapes in cornfields?

What do you think about people who say their animals were abducted?Some other animal probably killed it or a car hit it, or it was shot or something like that.

Above: Mr. DiStaulo showing off his alien poster. Left: A self portrait.

The Guardian, Friday, October 26, 2012 5

Feature Interview with Mr. Fallon

What qualities of St. Joseph Regional caused you to seek a job here over the other schools and what made you aspire to be a teacher?I enjoy working with teenagers and I like sharing my knowledge and experience with them. I’ve worked with the Youth Ministry program at my parish, Church of the Presentation in Upper Saddle River, for the last twelve years. I’ve had the good fortune to work as a Catechist, Program Manager, Retreat Leader and Mission Trip leader. There is a great satisfaction I get when I am teaching something; whether in the classroom or at Youth Ministry and I see the “light” go on in a teenager’s head which signifies that they got it, that they understand. I hope to see that happen a lot here at St. Joe’s

What is your favorite subject to teach? Why?My favorite subject to teach would probably be History. I’ve always liked history and fortunately I’ve always had a good memory for it as well. In addition I’ve had the opportunity to travel extensively across the globe and witness history in the places I have traveled. This also added to my enjoyment of the subject. I believe it was George Santayana who was paraphrased as saying “Those who ignore history are bound (or doomed) to repeat it.” I believe it is an important lesson and hope it is one I will have the opportunity to share with the students of St.Joe’s.

How has your SJR teaching experience treated you so far?Well, I’ve just finished my 9th day in the classroom and so far so good. I’m still getting acquainted with the sys-tems, the schedules and trying to match approximately 145 names and faces. I’m also responsible for running the book store, it’s a fun challenge. Tell your fellow students to stop by and say hello!

What do you enjoy doing in your personal life?One of my favorite activities is playing rugby. It’s a sport I have had the good fortune to play for the last 30 years and hope to continue playing for many more. As a result I have met and made true friends around the globe. It has given me many opportunities. I still play in about five or six matches a year primarily for charity. It gives me great joy today to be able to help others by playing such a great sport. In addition to Rugby I enjoy basketball, beach volleyball, going to the beach and travel.

Do you plan to start any clubs or extra-curricular activities for students to join?I think I will need to get settled in first and get comfortable with my schedule and all of my teaching responsi-bilities. Once I have accomplished that I would possibly like to start a rugby club if it could fit into the school’s plans.

By Kirk Brouwer ‘16

6 The Guardian, Friday, October 26, 2012

Sports

By Alex Walsh ‘16Power-weight lifting is a competition sport. It comprises three lifts: the bench press, the squat, and the deadlift. Each lift has rules and regulations for what constitutes a valid lift. Lifters, men and women, compete in weight divisions and records are kept for each division. Beating your personal best with each lift is the main objective for a power lifter.

Power lifting competitions are held all over the world. You can join a club or team at any age. High schools and colleges throughout the country have power-lifting programs as part of their extracurricular activities. It is one of the competitions at the Summer Olympic Games. Power lifting requires strength, endurance, and physical and mental toughness.

Seniors Troy Kay, Joel Campo and Christian Rive-ra were tremendously successful in last March’s New Jersey Power Lifting competition. Kay was recognized as the meet’s outstanding lifter with a bench of 375, a squat of 455 and a deadlift of 585; Campo won 1st in the 275-weight class with lifts of 280, 430 and 520; and Rivera placed 3rd in his weight class with lifts of 260, 405, and 525.

Glenn Stila, a St. Joe’s freshman, has built on that suc-cess. He competes in the 220-pound weight class, lives in West Haverstraw and works out at the gym six days a week, two hours per night. His father was a profession-al power lifter in the 1980s and was Mr. New Jersey in 1983.

Glenn’s career as a power lifter has been incredible: He has never lost. I asked him several questions about his hobby.

Q: What made you start power lifting?A: I watched my dad and other pro power lifters.

Q: How long have you been a power lifter?A: I’ve been lifting for a year or so.

Glenn Stila ’16, Weight Lifter, World-Record Holder

Q: What is the most you have ever deadlifted?A: I lifted 451 pounds in a meet and 500 pounds [work-ing out] in the gym.

Q: When is your next competition?A: It’s November 17 – 19 in Las Vegas. I’m competing in the world championships for 14-year olds.

Q: Do you have any world records?A: Yes, the 14-year-old world record was 405 pounds; I lifted 451.

Q: Do you plan on joining the weight lifting team at SJR?A: Yes, definitely.

In addition to power lifting, Glenn also enjoys playing baseball: he hopes to play on the freshman baseball team. Before we finished the interview, the last question I asked him was if he considers himself the best in the world. He replied, “I don’t think like that; I work on improving each day in the gym.”

Stila deadlifting

The Guardian, Friday, October 26, 2012 7

SportsSJR Comeback Falls Short Against PC

By Vincent DePinto ‘13 Saint Joe’s put themselves in a big hole on Saturday, heading into halftime down by 21 points. But, as ex-pected, the Green Knights did not go down without a fight.

“We played one play at a time. We just did what we do best and kept on playing,” quarterback coach Joseph Purcella said. “There wasn’t a lot of offensive adjust-ments. The playmakers started making plays. We were getting key rushes by Sherman and great passes by Aukamp.” The Green Knights came out of the gates strong in the second half, scoring 21 unanswered points to tie the game at 35 with six minutes left in the fourth quarter.

Quai Jefferson had two 5-yard touchdown runs in the third quarter, the second following a 40-yard comple-tion from Spencer Aukamp to Matt Buckman. The ty-ing score came on a 15-yard touchdown run by Junior Sherman Alston. Unfortunately, it was not enough to come home with a win. The Saint Joe’s defense was incapable of stopping Jabrill Peppers and the Paladins offense from charging down the field. They ate up most of the clock before Matt Golabek kicked the game winning 28 yard field goal, giving Paramus Catholic the 38-35 lead.

Alston then fumbled the ensuing kickoff, and PC ran it back for a touchdown, making the final score 44-35. The SJR offense had a good day against the Paladin defense, as Spencer Aukamp threw for 212 yards, in-cluding 119 in the second half. Alston also contributed in place of an injured Jeff Farina, carrying the ball 19 times for 147 yards. Jabrill Peppers was a huge headache for the Saint Jo-seph defense, as he racked up four touchdowns and 35 points in the first half for the Paladins.

“He’s a great player.” said defensive coach John Lanari. “He was the best player on the field that day”

The defense was able to adjust at halftime, only allow-ing three points in the second half.

“In the first half, they had us in a formation where it was basically always a one on one.” said Coach Lanari. “In the second half, we changed our coverages around so we would have more than one guy on the quarter-back all the time.”

In the end, two Saint Joseph miscues cost the Green Knights in this one. At the end of the half, Aukamp fumbled the snap inside Paladin territory, which took away a huge chance to put points on the board. At the end of the game, SJR decided to sit on their two time-outs instead of stopping the clock to give more time for their offense to answer. This proved costly as Paramus Catholic kicked the game-winning field goal with only 7 seconds left in the game.

Saint Joe’s will look to rebound against the 3-4 DePaul Spartans. The game will take place tomorrow at 1:00 at Robert J. Dinallo Stadium in Montvale, N.J.

Alston evades tacklers to tie game with 15-yard touchdown run.

8 The Guardian, Friday, October 26, 2012

Sports

By Pat Doherty ‘15Facing one of North Jersey’s toughest schedules, the SJR varsity soccer team has continued to improve with each game and is playing its best soccer of the season as the state tournament approaches.

The Green Knights recently battled two of Passaic County’s best teams, Wayne Valley and DePaul, and conference rival Paramus Catholic. Sophomore Kenny Monfort and Junior Lensdarly Dieu Juste found the back of the net to help SJR earn a hard fought double-overtime tie with Wayne Val-ley, while sophomore Brian McCann’s goal got the Green Knights on the scoreboard in a tough 2-1 defeat to DePaul, one of the state’s top-ranked teams.

On Saturday, October 19th, Kenny Monfort’s goal helped secure another tie - this time against Paramus Catholic.

Dean Gaber, AJ Fontana, and Dan Rios, the three senior captains, have led the Green Knights soccer team, and are looking forward to the games in the near future. Starting stopper Gaber had this to say: “The team has been playing some solid soccer these past few games, and we believe we have a chance to make a run in the state tournament.”

Head coach Alex Luna has been pleased with the team’s progress: “The play of [goalkeeper] Kyle Seickel has been key to our improved play. Our kids trust Kyle in goal, and that gives them the confidence to take more chances offen-sively.”

Luna also had praise for playmakers Dieu Juste and Mon-fort: “Lenny [Dieu Juste] has played at a higher level. Every time he touches the ball he creates opportunities for the offense. Kenny [Monfort] is very dangerous and always a threat to put the ball in the back of the net.”

Defensively, Luna is pleased with the play of Pat Doherty, Ben Kaplan and A.J. Fontana: “They’ve been stalwarts and leaders of our defense.”

Today, SJR hosts Demarest High School at 4:15 p.m. This is the final home game of the season, and all twelve senior players will be honored at our annual “Senior Day” cere-mony. All SJR students are invited to attend the game and help acknowledge this special group of Green Knights. The ceremony will take place prior to the game, at 3:45pm.

On Monday, October 29th, the Green Knights will play in the 1st round of the State Tournament, and will face either Don Bosco or DePaul once the state pairings are made final.

Kenny Monfort looks to attack at Don Bosco

SJR Soccer Hitting its Stride as State Tourney Begins

Pat Doherty wins a header against Don Bosco