It was a blast celebrating my 10 year reunion from Delbarton with almost 40 of my classmates. I loved seeing so many guys (brothers) back for this occasion and having the chance to catch up with everyone. The Homecoming festivities included the alumni soccer game, the varsity football game vs. Randolph that we won, food, cocktails and opportunity to see former teachers and coaches. Our class had a bit of a heavy heart on this day as one of our classmates unexpectedly passed away August and we started our day holding a remembrance ceremony in his memory. A few classmates, the school's Headmaster and previous Abbot of the Monastery all provided beautiful remarks and shared funny stories about Paul. Since our freshman year, our class has been through a lot of adversity and so I was not surprised in the least that we all rallied together this weekend to remember one of our own. In fact, it just made me so proud and further realize how special Delbarton is.
Immediately after Homecoming, I found myself very reflective about the significance of that day, my classmates and how much Delbarton means to me. It was so great to be back on campus, a place that I truly loved to be at, especially on Delbarton's 75th anniversary. For a class that had only 100 graduates, we are a very accomplished group and there was obvious growth and maturity since graduation. On this day, I saw our class was made up of doctors, Wall Street bankers, teachers and coaches at Delbarton, entrepreneurs, Navy SEALs, members of the Marine Corps, Federal government employees, NCAA athletic coaches, philanthropists, authors and most importantly, husbands and fathers. While each of us is our own individual piece of this class, collectively we are special. Every one of us is busy in our own lives and probably only see a handful of our classmates on a regular basis, it didn't feel weird or uncomfortable to see someone that you haven't seen for a number of years and give them a big hug.
The highlight of the weekend was undoubtedly my induction into the Delbarton Alumni Hall of Honor on Friday night. This honor is bestowed upon alumni who have distinguished themselves through service to the school or who have brought credit to Delbarton through distinguished achievements in their respective fields. To say that I was extremely honored, excited and emotional about my induction into the Hall would be a huge understatement. For someone who loves Delbarton as much as I do, it is impossible for me to truly characterize all of my feelings that night. I am so appreciative to the Alumni Association for making me the youngest person inducted into the Hall and for my classmates that attended induction ceremony that night to support me. In my acceptance speech, I focused on how much my classmates and I loved Delbarton and said, "if my life had its own Hall of Fame that Delbarton would be in it."
GO GREEN WAVE!!