THOUGHTS FROM THE HEAD OF SCHOOL, JOSEPH VORBACH:
Any success that Bishop O'Connell has during a given school year relies on so many variables, including the gifts of time and talent offered by volunteers, very often parents and alumni, who sustain the PTO and our several booster clubs in order that we can have wonderful events like last week's Baccalaureate Breakfast for the Class of 2017, a trip to Gatlinburg, Tenn. for our music program, the year long operation of our new concession stand, and the logistical backbone that allows our crew team to be on the Occoquan River one weekend, in Philadelphia the next, and New Jersey this weekend. The support, offered with love for our students and the school, is amazing and its value incalculable. We are blessed.
There was a moment on Wednesday evening this week when I was reminded again of the blessing of volunteer support for our school. The Chair of our Board of Governors, Mr. John Brough, a graduate of the Class of 1982 and a current parent, received the Arlington Leadership Center of Excellence's Legacy Award for Ethics. As Chair of our Board, John leads a remarkable group of volunteers on our board and its supporting committees. These men and women give of their time, talent and treasure in extraordinarily generous ways and John's leadership by example sets a high bar. Whether it relates to strategic planning for the school's future, or solving an immediate challenge, the board's accessibility, expertise, and genuine interest in the continued success of our school's Catholic mission is ever present. Several members of the board and board committees joined me at the Leadership Center for Excellence event to salute John Brough as he received this well deserved honor.
As we celebrate our 60th Anniversary, we are reminded that volunteerism has been at the core of O'Connell's success from its very beginnings. The passing this week of Mr. Arthur Devlin, a board member during the late 1970s and early 1980s, the father of current board member Sheila Leverone, and the grandfather of three current O'Connell students, is a reminder of that tradition. May he rest in peace with God.