HOPE IN THE ASHES
Those were certainly dark days at Sacred Heart Jesuit Center. I dreaded looking at my phone in the morning because there was always another trip to the hospital or another passing. We had friends and family calling to check on Jesuits to see if they were sick or hospitalized. It was not an easy time for anyone, especially the men. Thank you for writing such a lovely piece.
–Siobhán Lawlor, Vice President for Advancement & Provincial Assistant, Jesuits West
I join the chorus of gratitude to you for putting into words such an experience of finding hope and consolation in the midst of great sorrow. In a time where we’re inundated with stories of rage and anger, I’m sure many others will find in this piece a reminder of our shared humanity and call to accompany one another.
–Fr. Jack Treacy, SJ ’77, MAT ’90
Writer Tracy Seipel beautifully captured the amalgamation of heartache and hopefulness that’s settled over the pandemic at Sacred Heart, a microcosm of the world reeling from so much loss. We were particularly struck by the timing of the Jesuits receiving their second vaccine dose on Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent: a period of reflection and repentance in preparation to renew one’s commitment to God.
WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS
I read and loved every word of the story about this bizarre championship season for the women’s soccer team. I was working at Santa Clara in 2001 when the first women’s NCAA championship win happened. They came home to campus on a day when there were no classes in session so most students were gone. I wanted to give them the homecoming they deserved, so we sent out emails and a hardy contingent of faculty and staff, along with their young heroine-worshipping children came out to the top of Mission Drive. The Athletic Department lugged over a banner and a very loud sound system, and “We Are the Champions“ was burned into my brain for at least 45 minutes before the bus pulled up! Go Broncos!
–Susan C. Shea, Author; former Director of Communications and Marketing, Santa Clara University
We, too, were on the edges of our seats reading the tick-tock of Harold Gutmann’s riveting chronology of SCU’s extraordinary 2020 championship team—and we knew how it would end!
INFORMED BY STRUGGLE
Professor Meir Statman was one of my favorite professors in the Leavey School MBA program for a number of reasons. First and foremost, I’d score Meir as top notch in the Nobel Laureate Physicist Richard Feynman “Wesson Oil” academic honesty department. (For the curious, Professor Feynman used an old Wesson advertisement that wasn’t absolutely truthful as an example to be avoided). What I mean is that Professor Feynman believed that academic honesty required practitioners to mention the whole truth of a topic, not just supporting arguments and evidence…something Meir did as he taught us about investments and investing.
–William Witter MBA ’92
We admit we had to Google the Wesson Oil debacle you mention. Apparently the ad claimed the cooking oil would not soak through food, while in reality no oil soaks through food if it’s cold enough. A shady case of not telling the whole truth, indeed!
QUESTION/BRONCO NEWS
While it is true that all things seek more randomness, or chaos, as Valedictorian Sabine Pigg ’20 notes in her comments about entropy in theFall 2021 issue, it is also true that all things seek to exist at their lowest, and most stable, energy states. Yet another mystery and struggle of Creation as we believe to know it and try to live it.
–Marc Tunzi ’80
JULIE SULLIVAN PRESIDENTIAL ANNOUNCEMENT
Congratulations from a Santa Clara 1968 master’s degree candidate, Pupil Personnel Services-certified counselor living in Northern New Mexico. I served in education as a teacher for elementary, middle, and high school, was a director of instruction, and taught a college course. Now reaching my 88th birthday, I can do no more than congratulate you!
–Ramon Estrada M.A. ’69
CORRECTIONS
In “The Gift of Experience” (inside back cover, SCM Fall 2021), philanthropist Jack Lewis was incorrectly identified as having served on the Board of Regents. Lewis dedicated more than 30 years of service to Santa Clara University on the Board of Trustees, a storied tenure capped with a $5 million gift to the Miller Center for Social Entrepreneurship’s fellowship program.