Coming Home
Sender
Michael Larrivee '74
Posted On
2014-08-25
Year
2014
Memoir
As I drove into the parking lot of the Glen Oak Golf Course for the first of our 2014 St. Joe’s Alumni weekend events, I felt the same mix of nervousness and anticipation I had on my first day of school at St. Joe’s 40 years earlier. I traveled a long way to get there. It had been a long time since I talked to most of the guys. And a lot has happened in all of our lives over 40 years. What would this day be like?
Just like they did 40 years ago, the St. Joe’s community welcomed me with open arms. There is a definite “brotherhood” among St. Joe’s Alumni forged during the shared experiences of our time at the school. I realized (again) that the friendships I formed while at St. Joe’s are among the most valuable relationships of my life. They stand the test of distance and time.
I was not only able to renew many old friendships, but establish new friendships with classmates I was not close to back in the 1970’s. It seemed as though the passage of time, and the inevitable ups and downs of life, have mellowed us all. We have a lot less hair, and a few more inches. But these guys never looked better to me.
I was reminded what a uniquely talented group of classmates I was fortunate enough to learn with, and learn from. The career and family accomplishments of many of my Class of 1974 mates are both humbling and inspiring. And the spiritual growth of so many of my colleagues is a heart-warming revelation as well. I am motivated even more now to follow in their paths.
But the Alumni weekend also reminds me that our Class of 1974 is no more or less important than any other class that St. Joe’s has helped grow over the years. None of us individually are bigger than the important on-going mission of the school. The gleaming walls and halls of St. Joe’s, and the tremendously focused leadership at the school, remind us all of the enormous value of a diverse, college preparatory, Catholic-framed education.
I left our Alumni weekend a better person for the experience. I was reminded how blessed I was to have had the opportunity at a St. Joe’s high school education. I realize how lucky I was to have been a part of a great group of talented classmates. And I am more confident than ever before in the educational mission of St. Joseph’s Collegiate Institute.
Just like they did 40 years ago, the St. Joe’s community welcomed me with open arms. There is a definite “brotherhood” among St. Joe’s Alumni forged during the shared experiences of our time at the school. I realized (again) that the friendships I formed while at St. Joe’s are among the most valuable relationships of my life. They stand the test of distance and time.
I was not only able to renew many old friendships, but establish new friendships with classmates I was not close to back in the 1970’s. It seemed as though the passage of time, and the inevitable ups and downs of life, have mellowed us all. We have a lot less hair, and a few more inches. But these guys never looked better to me.
I was reminded what a uniquely talented group of classmates I was fortunate enough to learn with, and learn from. The career and family accomplishments of many of my Class of 1974 mates are both humbling and inspiring. And the spiritual growth of so many of my colleagues is a heart-warming revelation as well. I am motivated even more now to follow in their paths.
But the Alumni weekend also reminds me that our Class of 1974 is no more or less important than any other class that St. Joe’s has helped grow over the years. None of us individually are bigger than the important on-going mission of the school. The gleaming walls and halls of St. Joe’s, and the tremendously focused leadership at the school, remind us all of the enormous value of a diverse, college preparatory, Catholic-framed education.
I left our Alumni weekend a better person for the experience. I was reminded how blessed I was to have had the opportunity at a St. Joe’s high school education. I realize how lucky I was to have been a part of a great group of talented classmates. And I am more confident than ever before in the educational mission of St. Joseph’s Collegiate Institute.