New Page 2

From: Subject: New Page 2 Date: Tue, 26 May 2009 10:37:01 -0400 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="Windows-1252" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Location: http://www.sbu.edu/SBUCustom/InsideBonas/IB_May21/page2_May21.htm X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2900.5579 New Page 2 __________________________________________________= ____________________

_____________________________________________________= _________________

May 21, 2009=20

Iroquois=20 nations to gather at university=20
Blitzer,=20 Butler, Kelly honored at 149th Commencement=20
A=20 crowning achievement: Bolivar artist returns Mary's halo after = 50=20 years
Tanksi,=20 O'Halloran chosen at 2009 Ideal Bonaventure Students =

____________________

Iroquois= =20 nations to gather at university

Members = of all=20 six nations of the Iroquois Confederacy will gather for three days = at St.=20 Bonaventure University this week to =93raise awareness of the true = strength=20 and power of Native spirituality,=94 said Lehman =93Dar=94 Dowdy, = conference=20 organizer.

The first = Iroquoian=20 Spiritual Conference begins Thursday, with Friday and Saturday = events open=20 to the public. As many as 200 members of the six Iroquois nations = =97=20 Cayuga, Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Seneca and Tuscarora =97 are = expected to=20 attend, said Stephen Gordon, speaker coordinator for the = event.

=93We even = have a=20 couple of Oneidas coming from as far as Green Bay, Wis.,=94 Gordon = said.

The = conference,=20 Gordon said, hopes to address a problem not specific to Indian = nations =97=20 the erosion of spirituality.

=93The = basic intent is=20 to help people foster an awareness of their spirituality, and to = show how=20 bolstering spirituality can enhance a person=92s own = well-being,=94 Gordon=20 said. =93I think that=92s a lesson not just for us, but for the = general=20 public.=94

In a = powerful letter=20 to Iroquois members promoting the conference, Dowdy, chief = executive=20 officer of the Faithkeepers School in Steamburg, stressed his = desire =93to=20 find a way to help our people, to give them the spiritual strength = to=20 better themselves, their families and their = communities.=94

Said Dowdy: = =93I do not=20 recommend a return to the =91old ways=92; history will not allow = us to go=20 backwards. I=92m recommending a going forward with our language, = culture and=20 traditions firmly preserved and rooted in our = communities.=94

Dowdy said = it=92s=20 critical that the Iroquois =93come together again as a community, = as an=20 extended family of caregivers=94 to help reverse the trends of = cultural=20 persecution, prejudice, relocation, substance abuse, and health = disorders=20 that have plagued the nations.

The public = portion of=20 the conference begins Thursday morning, with speakers from several = nations=20 taking the Quick Center for the Arts theater stage from 9 a.m. = until noon.=20 A speaker panel with a question-and-answer period will be held = from 1-4=20 p.m. Social dancing will take place in Butler Memorial Gym from = 7-10=20 p.m.

Saturday = features a=20 conference recap and open discussions from 9-11 a.m. in the Quick=20 Center.

The final = event of=20 the conference is an Iroquois blessing of St. Bonaventure and its=20 president, Sr. Margaret Carney, O.S.F., at 11 a.m. on Saturday at = the=20 Quick Center. The blessing was supposed to be given at Sr. = Margaret=92s=20 inauguration in 2004, but an illness prevented it from=20 happening.

There in no = charge to=20 attend the lectures, panel discussion or social dancing. Lunches = and=20 dinners are reserved for the conference members.

Click=20 here to return to the top of the page

____________________

Blitzer,=20 Butler, Kelly honored at 149th = Commencement

Wolf Blitzer might = sound like=20 a prototypical football name, but the Buffalo native told St. = Bonaventure=20 University graduates Sunday that he was ultimately better served = to chose=20 journalism as a trade.

As a = freshman at the=20 University at Buffalo in 1966, the Kenmore West graduate tried out = for the=20 football team. In a scrimmage with Syracuse, an imposing running = back for=20 the Orangemen pointed his finger at Blitzer =97 =93a linebacker, = of course,=20 what other position could I play with that name,=94 he said =97 = and made a=20 slashing motion across his throat.

Blitzer = gulped,=20 then =93made a life-or-death decision=94 to avoid a legitimate = tackle attempt.=20 The back sped past him for a touchdown. The running back was = three-time=20 All-American Floyd Little, who went on to star with the Denver = Broncos=20 from 1967-1975.

=93The = lesson is,=20 if at first you don=92t succeed, try something else,=94 Blitzer = said, drawing=20 a laugh from the 351 undergraduate and 259 graduate students = taking part=20 in the 149th Commencement, which closed the sesquicentennial = celebration=20 of the university.

Blitzer = said he=20 understood the likely angst graduates must feel, especially in = this=20 troubled economy. He stressed the need to remain upbeat and = positive=20 =93because it=92s contagious,=94 and told students to search for = professions=20 they truly love.

=93I = only hope and=20 pray that you end up with a job you love, that you are passionate = about,=94=20 Blitzer said. =93I really look forward going to work at CNN every = day=20 because I know I=92ll be a little smarter by the time I go to bed. = That=92s=20 the great thing about journalism =97 you=92re always learning=20 something.=94

Blitzer = encouraged graduates to accept that they will make mistakes along = the way,=20 =93but you can=92t overly dwell on them. Don=92t compound them. = You just have to=20 accept them and move on.=94

Blitzer = said he=20 still marvels occasionally that a young boy from Buffalo could = grow up to=20 have the opportunity to report on such history-altering events, = like the=20 election of Barack Obama on Nov. 4, 2008.

=93It = dawned on me=20 later that evening when I was walking back to my hotel in New = York, after=20 I reported his election at 11 p.m. when the West Coast polls = closed, that=20 CNN was on in cities all around the world, and I had probably just = told a=20 billion people that Barack Obama had just been elected = president,=94 Blitzer=20 said.

Also = during the=20 ceremony, Blitzer received an honorary doctorate of humane = letters, along=20 with John B. =93Jack=94 Butler, SBU class of 1951 and an all-pro = defensive=20 back for the Steelers in the 1950s; and Marcia Marcus Kelly, a = niece of=20 renowned Olean poet Robert Lax.

Butler = was named=20 to the 1950s All-NFL team, and only Hall of Famers Dick =93Night = Train=94 Lane=20 and Emlen Tunnell had more interceptions when he retired in 1959. = Butler=20 never played high school football, and only tried out for St.=20 Bonaventure=92s team at the urging of Fr. Silas Rooney, a campus = friar and=20 the school=92s athletic director.

Undrafted out of=20 college, Butler was recommended by Fr. Silas to his brother, Art, = the=20 founder of the Steelers. Butler finished his career with four = consecutive=20 trips to the Pro Bowl from 1956-1959, but a devastating knee = injury ended=20 his career. He was named to the Steelers=92 75th Anniversary team = in=20 2007.

Marcus = Kelly has=20 worked with others on local environmental issues, including: = researching=20 the dangers of spraying pesticides for mosquito control and lawn = care; the=20 dangers of locating a landfill or industry over the local water = supply;=20 and understanding the impact of wind energy.

Marcus = Kelly also=20 has been dedicated to preserving the legacy of Lax and Thomas = Merton, the=20 revered 20th century spiritual writer whom Lax roomed with at = Columbia=20 University in the 1930s. Merton, who spent summers with Lax in = Olean,=20 taught English at St. Bonaventure in 1940-41.

Marcus = Kelly and=20 her husband, Jack, who live in New York City but maintain their = family=20 home in Olean, are writers of their own note. Over the years they = have=20 written about hundreds of monasteries and retreats, including Mt.=20 Irenaeus, the Franciscan sanctuary in West Clarksville. The series = is=20 called =93Sanctuaries: A Guide to Lodgings in Monasteries, Abbeys = and=20 Retreats of the United States.=94

Senior = Ellen=20 Grimes of Clinton, N.Y., also addressed her classmates. She echoed = Blitzer=92s sentiments. {Read a copy of Grimes's Undergraduate = Student=20 Speech}

=93We = need to make=20 an obligation to ourselves to make sure that we always love what = we do and=20 that we do it with love,=94 Grimes said. =93Everything else will = without a=20 doubt fall into place.=94

Sunday=92s = Commencement=20 ceremony was the final event of the University=92s 15-month = celebration of=20 its sesquicentennial. Graduates wore special bronze medallions in = honor of=20 St. Bonaventure=92s 150th anniversary.

Click=20 here to return to the top of the page

____________________

A crowning = achievement: Bolivar=20 artist returns Mary's halo after 50 years

Another = piece of St.=20 Bonaventure University=92s 150-year history fell into place=20 Friday.

Fifty years = after he was=20 asked to refurbish it, Bolivar artist Dick Monroe returned to Sr. = Margaret=20 Carney, O.S.F., S.T.D., St. Bonaventure=92s president, the 12-star = halo that=20 once crowned the statue of the Blessed Mother, located next to the = Magnano=20 Centre=92s Hickey Dining Hall.

Amidst his = hundreds of=20 photos and art supplies, Mr. Monroe discovered the tarnished metal = halo=20 from the statue that a friar had asked him to restore =97 in 1959. = Mr.=20 Monroe was refurbishing the Stations of the Cross and portraits of = saints=20 in the former Devereux Chapel while working at St. Bonaventure 50 = years=20 ago.

The=20 halo will eventually be replaced, but not until additional repairs = are=20 made to the 122-year-old statue, university officials=20 said.

That=20 the halo was returned in May is significant; it=92s the same month = as the=20 traditional May crowning, in which an image or likeness of the = Blessed=20 Mother is crowned to signify her as the Queen of Heaven and the = Mother of=20 God.

In=20 1960 Mr. Monroe began work at Olean American Tile, where he worked = as=20 architectural designer until his retirement in 1986. Restoration = of the=20 halo became an afterthought, and the crown became hidden in his=20 studio.

Mr. Monroe said = he was=20 =93mortified, to say the least=94 when he realized he still had = the halo, and=20 even considered sneaking onto campus to replace it. He=92s = relieved that the=20 halo has been returned to St. Bonaventure and grateful that = university=20 officials were so appreciative of his discovery.

Sr. Margaret = invited Mr.=20 Monroe to stay Friday evening for a dinner hosted by University=20 Ministries.

=93We=92re just = so grateful=20 that he found it,=94 Sr. Margaret said. =93It was really a joy to = spend some=20 time with him, and to rediscover another treasured piece of our=20 past.=94

Three years ago, = the giant=20 cornerstone for an 1891 addition to the original monastery was = unearthed=20 under about 18 inches of soil at the feet of the statue of the = Blessed=20 Mother. The stone was discovered near the west entrance to Hickey = Dining=20 Hall during renovations to that building.

Also three years = ago, a=20 yellowed and worn piece of St. Bonaventure=92s history was = discovered in the=20 basement of a Buffalo home. The relic was a note from John = Devereux=20 (founder Nicholas Devereux=92s son) to an Elmira man, inviting him = to attend=20 the laying of the cornerstone of St. Bonaventure=92s first = building on Aug.=20 20, 1856.

The university = concludes=20 its 15-month sesquicentennial celebration with Sunday=92s 149th = Commencement=20 Exercises at 10:30 a.m. CNN=92s Wolf Blitzer is the keynote = speaker.=20

Click=20 here to return to the top of the page

____________________

Tanski, O'Halloran = chosen as 2009=20 Ideal Bonaventure Students

St. = Bonaventure=20 University seniors Emily Tanski and Joseph O=92Halloran were = recognized as=20 Ideal Bonaventure Students on Saturday, May 16, at the = university=92s Honors=20 Ceremony, and again Sunday during St. Bonaventure=92s 149th = Commencement=20 Exercises.

The Ideal = Bonaventure=20 Students, who are selected by a committee that receives = nominations from=20 the university community, are recognized as exemplifying the = spirit of St.=20 Bonaventure and the ideals of St. Francis through community = service and=20 academic excellence.

The = honorable=20 mentions were biology major Katelyn E. Murray of Harrisburg, Pa., = and=20 Jeffrey W. Butler of Newport, N.Y., who will complete a five-year = BA/MBA=20 in accounting next year.

Tanski, daughter = of=20 Elizabeth and Walter Tanski of Akron, N.Y., was a sociology major = and=20 biology, Spanish and women=92s studies minor. A dean=92s list = student, she was=20 a member of Pi Gamma Mu, the international honor society for = social=20 sciences, and Phi Eta Sigma, an honor society for college and = university=20 freshmen. She has also presented research and a poster at = professional=20 academic conferences.

Tanski has been involved in numerous = campus=20 activities. A member of the Student Government Association, she = served as=20 secretary of management and headed the Constitutional Committee = charged=20 with revising the SGA Constitution. She also served on the Fr. Joe = Doino=20 Honors and Awards Committee, the Commencement Speaker Committee = and the=20 Focus Marketing Group Committee.

She has also = been involved=20 in the music and dance programs at St. Bonaventure. She was a = member of=20 the SBU Concert Band and the Percussion Ensemble, and was vice = president=20 of the SBU Step Team.

=93Emily = has been a=20 worthy ambassador for the university in several off-campus = programs,=94 said=20 Dr. Chris Stanley, who nominated her for the Ideal Bonaventure=20 Award.

She = participated in a=20 summer study-abroad program in Salamanca, Spain, in 2005; traveled = with a=20 university group to Vera Cruz, Panama, where she worked at a=20 government-run leprosy clinic in 2007; and joined the Franciscan = Heritage=20 Pilgrimage to Assisi, Italy, in 2008.

Since 2005, = Tanski=20 has volunteered at a local adult day care facility, three nursing = homes=20 and Olean General Hospital, which led to medical internships at = Olean=20 General and Cuba Memorial Hospital. She has also spent time = shadowing a=20 number of local medical professionals and participated in a = clinical=20 medicine program at Olean General.

Tanski has been = accepted=20 into the Physician Assistant master=92s program at DeSales=20 University.

O=92Halloran, of East=20 Islip, N.Y., is the son of Teresa O=92Halloran and Howard=20 O=92Britis.

As he = pursued a major=20 in journalism and mass communication and a minor in theater, = O=92Halloran=20 was active in campus media and SBU Theater. He was on the staff of = the=20 student radio station, 88.3 WSBU FM, The Buzz, and the student = newspaper,=20 The Bona Venture. Active for three years in the St. Bonaventure = theater=20 program, O=92Halloran appeared in several campus productions, = including=20 =93Reckless,=94 =93Scary But True,=94 =93Dead Man Walking,=94 = =93The Revenge of the=20 Space Pandas,=94 and this spring=92s =93The Seagull.=94

O=92Halloran has=20 demonstrated his ability to lead his peers through his involvement = in the=20 Medical Emergencies Response Team (M.E.R.T.) and Student=20 Ambassadors.

=93Joe = exemplifies=20 Franciscan values and truly portrays the characteristics of an = Ideal=20 Bonaventure Man,=94 said Mary Kohl, director of Health Services, = who=20 nominated him.

For the = past two=20 years he has been the chief of M.E.R.T., a volunteer organization = staffed=20 by certified students and advised by Health Services. He is also = involved=20 with Emergency Medical Services with the Allegany Volunteer Fire=20 Department and Exchange Ambulance of the Islips on Long = Island.

Active in = the=20 spiritual life of the university, O=92Halloran is a member of = Students for=20 the Mountain and frequently participates in Mass on campus as a = Lector,=20 Eucharistic Minister or an attendant. He often was called on to = serve as=20 the student speaker for many university ceremonies and services, = such as=20 those held on Veterans Day and 9/11, and he was chosen to narrate = the=20 university=92s history video celebrating its = sesquicentennial.

O=92Halloran is=20 pursuing an internship with The Long Island Press as a features = reporter=20 for the paper=92s online edition while looking into voice = work.

Click=20 here to return to the top of the page

_____________________