May 19, 2001 will forever be a bittersweet day in the hearts of La Salle alumni, for on that day that our Alma Mater held its final commencement ceremony. It was a day filled with the joy of reconnecting with old friends, but also a day of great sadness as our once-great school with all its tradition and lore closed its doors forever.

I had really wanted to commemorate this occasion the right way. I hired a limo since I knew I would be raising a glass or two in honor of the Alma Mater. Plus I thought it would get me points for style. I made my entrance but to my surprise I was upstaged by my classmate Denis McGee and his mint ’68 Caprice Classic. Sweet.

(Photo: Cardona)

(Photo: GG)

Carl Pivarsky ‘74

(Photo: GG)

Steve Cardona ‘74

The day began with breakfast in the Mess Hall. (Thank you Alumni Association for setting that up.) It was a great treat to eat one more meal in the old room, although it was so much different than I remembered it. It brought back memories of freshman year, when we sat at the tables with the upperclassmen and were required to stack all the greasy, dirty plates to be picked up. Our class, the class of ’74, was the last class to have this pleasure since the schools went to Cafeteria-style service the following year.

I surprised myself with how vividly I could still picture the faces at that long-ago table: Joe Holden, Jim Painton, Vinny Romanowski, Ernie Pugliese, and of course myself. (I had the pleasure of running into Jim at the reunion this past March. A big shout-out to you down in Steeltown, bro!) Sometimes I have trouble reconciling the young faces I remember with the middle-aged men they have grown up to be; particularly when it comes to myself. My wife Terri says that my sudden interest in the Alumni Association has to do with my getting older and wanting to hold on to a piece of my youth. Much to my annoyance, she’s probably right.

(Photo: GG)

Krystyn Swenson ’01, with her Esprit De Corps medal

(Photo: GG)

Charlie O’Shea ’76 meets the press

I had gone to some lengths to contact as many classmates as I could to attend this day. Some said they were coming but were no-shows (you culprits know who you are). Disappointed but undeterred, we soldiered on with our own small but undaunted crew. Steve Cardona drove his cab down from Boston. Carl Pivarsky flew in from Seattle. Denis McGee and Joe Nicelli are longtime fixtures at all the alumni functions, so they made it of course. Peter Zurla, my roommate Senior year in Molloy Hall, was also on hand. He hadn’t shown his face at an alumni function since we graduated, but came at my urging. I heard Nick Joseph was there too, although we missed him. (BIG shout-out to you too, “Cola Nut!”) The rest of you guys… well, you were missed!

(Photo: GG)

Catching up with the old Sarge!

(Photo: GG)

John Pisa-Relli is thinking he might still be able to get a gig with X-Squad!

The big topic amongst us and a recurring theme throughout the day was the disintegration of the school structures. We spent much of the day touring the campus and inspecting the decay. My heart sinks even as I think about it. There were whole structures ruined and abandoned. It’s easy to point fingers and dole out blame but if the money’s not there, then the money’s not there. Let’s hope that St. John’s will invest some money in the campus infrastructure, although I can’t imagine they would care about the place as much. Time will tell.

PART II