Fall 2012 - Cardinal Spellman High School

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Cardinal Spellman graduate, Cpl. John Marquardt, returned home safely from a 12-month tour of duty on the front lines in Afghanistan, in March. Once he was home, he wasted little time in returning to Spellman to discuss his experiences with the class of 2012. He had been home for only a few weeks before giving a witness talk as part of the religion curriculum. Marquardt wasn’t a model student when he graduated in 2001. He will be the first one to admit it. He isn’t proud of his high school GPA or academic prowess. “When I walked out of here, I don’t even think I had a 2.0,” Marquardt said. “Most of the time I was here, all I cared about was football. I started for four years and it was my life.” Marquardt’s first two years at Spellman were especially difficult in the classroom. Deacon Joe Nickley and former Athletic Director and football coach Pete Ambrose became role models and helped Marquardt realize it wasn’t too late to mature and grow into a better person. “I remember Deacon Joe taking me aside after my sophomore year and telling me I needed to straighten myself out,” Marquardt said. “I’ve known Deacon Joe my entire life, because of my 12 Cardinal Spellman • tradition happening on the hill friendship with his son, JT, but he taught me how to become a mentor during my time in peer ministry. People having faith in me gave me faith in myself. Ambrose would have me read articles in Sports Illustrated and then write a paper on them, so he could prove I had the capability to do my homework. He would give me weekly assignments as a way of engaging my love of sports and getting me to do something academically. I will always remember that.” Marquardt credits the atmosphere at Spellman with teaching him camaraderie. “You know how they talk about the Spellman family?” he asked. “Everyone knows someone from Spellman. I always appreciated the closeness here. No matter what, no matter how many years separate alumni, you’ll always have that connection. The teachers always went that extra mile and I feel like you don’t get that at a public school.” After Spellman, Marquardt attended Dean College on a football scholarship before transferring to Massasoit. He then set his sights on becoming a police officer. He worked as a correctional officer in Boston and then a campus police officer at Lasell College, before deciding to join the military. The day before he left for basic training, he was hired by the Abington Police Department. “Being a cop is the only thing I’ve ever wanted to do in life. I wanted to be a soldier and I wanted to be a cop,” Marquardt said. “Now I had the opportunity to do both.” Marquardt returned from his military training and worked as a police officer in Abington before transferring to the Hingham Police Department. He was able to work in Hingham for seven months before his unit was called to serve in Afghanistan. In March of 2011, he was deployed with the Army National Guard. During his time in Afghanistan, Marquardt experienced a lot of things that can be difficult to explain to someone who hasn’t experienced war. He earned a Purple Heart, after he was wounded by debris from a roadside bomb and an Army Commendation Medal for Valor for his role in a battle in the Afghan mountains. He also received a battlefield promotion to Corporal for his actions in combat. He prayed every single day he was deployed. God was a major factor in getting Marquardt home safely and he explained that to the students of Cardinal Spellman during his witness talk. “PUSH; Pray Until Something Happens,” Marquardt said. It’s how I live my life every day. I wore a bracelet that said it. Prayer is everywhere and stuff did happen. I remember asking Deacon Joe what to do when something does happen and he said, ‘just keep praying.’ You can lose your way sometimes, but it all comes back to that. It all comes down to PUSH.” Since returning from Afghanistan, Marquardt has resumed his duty as a Hingham Police Officer. He also has plans to wed his fiancée, Cara, in October. When he left Spellman, he never thought he would be called a role model, and he still doesn’t consider himself to be a great example, but the students of Cardinal Spellman High School might have a difficult time finding a better one than John Marquardt. Spellman Grad Comes Home
Spellman junior, Evan Stimpson wears a bright pink bracelet on his left wrist. He says he wears it because pink is his favorite color and it was his best friend’s favorite color, but there is more to it than that. The bracelet also has the words “Always Remember” along with the initials “NW” inscribed on it. Evan plays soccer and baseball at Cardinal Spellman. He is a motivated athlete and loves the competition of sports. Each time he puts his jersey on, he looks at the bracelet on his wrist and he is reminded of an inspiration that goes beyond his love for the game. Last summer, Evan Stimpson lost his best friend, Nick Watson, in a tragic car accident that claimed Nick’s life and forever altered the way Evan would live his. Nick and Evan grew up in Avon. They met playing Little League Baseball; Evan was 7-years-old and Nick was 8-years-old. Despite being a year apart in school, they were instantly bonded. They were both gifted athletes and they played on the same team for the next six years. Evan’s house was Nick’s second home and vice versa. They were best friends and Evan describes their relationship as a brotherhood. Nick stayed at Avon happening on the hill Middle-High School when Evan transferred to Cardinal Spellman, before his freshman year. It was then, their journey together took a difficult turn; Nick was told the back pain he’d been having was a form of cancer. Nick’s diagnosis brought them even closer. During his freshman year, Evan and his mother spent countless hours and days at the hospital with Nick. Nick came to Evan’s games when he didn’t have treatment, and they often ate dinner together. They were told the cancer was in remission, but it returned after a month, forcing Nick to begin the grueling treatment all over again. Evan’s grades suffered, but it was difficult to blame him with ev- Each time he puts his jersey on, he looks at the bracelet on his wrist and he is reminded of an inspiration that goes beyond his love for the game. erything he had going on. While he was trying to balance school, sports and keeping his friend’s spirits up; Evan’s father was in Afghanistan, serving his country as a member of the U.S. Army National Guard. Evan’s freshman year at Spellman was a difficult one, but his sophomore year may have proved impossible if he didn’t have the support of the Spellman community. About a month before the 2011-2012 school year, while Evan’s father was home from Afghanistan, for two weeks, Nick Always Remember was killed in an automobile accident. “It is the worst night of my life,” Evan said. “Nick passed away and then, the next morning, we had to drive my dad to the airport so he could go back to Afghanistan. Losing my best friend is the hardest thing I have ever had to deal with. I still haven’t accepted the fact that he’s gone.” Evans’s sophomore soccer season began eleven days after Nick passed away and he had the difficult task of trying to focus on sports and school without his best friend’s support. “If I wasn’t attending school at Spellman; I don’t know what I would have done,” Evan said. “This school helped me in more ways than I can think of. Once the school year started, I felt like I had so much support from everyone.” Evan didn’t consider himself to be very religious before he came to Spellman, but he credits his relationship with God as a major factor in helping cope with his feelings. “There are two Bible verses I hold close to me; Psalm 23:4 ‘Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.’ And Philippians 4:13 ‘I can do everything through him who gives me strength.’ I write them on my wrist bands at baseball to always remind myself God and Nick are with me.” The 2012-2013 school year brings a lot of hope with it. Evan’s father is now home from Afghanistan. Evan wants to build on the strong academic performance he finished his sophomore year with; he just missed honor roll by one C+. In addition to playing soccer and baseball, he also joined the Spellman Choir. Evan plans to continue wearing his bright pink bracelet even though he does not need a reminder to “Always Remember” his best friend, Nick Watson. “I just live every day by trying to accomplish something I know Nick can’t,” Evan said. “I don’t take anything for granted.” tradition • Cardinal Spellman 13
Page 1 and 2: Spellman Alumni Magazine / Fall 201
Page 3 and 4: Cardinal Spellman Grand March Grand
Page 5 and 6: Dear Spellman Community: In the spo
Page 7 and 8: tion to taking honors classes and l
Page 9 and 10: Q/A with “Mr. Spellman” Tom Leo
Page 11 and 12: hands with frame photo - ®Shutters
Page 13: Cardinal Spellman High School offic
Page 17 and 18: For the first time in Cardinal Spel
Page 19 and 20: hockey players photo - ®Shuttersto
Page 21 and 22: Mission Statement Cardinal Spellman
Page 23 and 24: Facilities & Technology To develop
Page 25 and 26: The Cardinal Spellman High School L
Page 27 and 28: 1962 50th Reunion Karen Routh Kelle
Page 29 and 30: 1981 Dan Ring daniel.ring.us@gmail.
Page 31 and 32: 2000 Keara Kelley kearakelley@yahoo
Page 33 and 34: Diane Eastman Wyatt ‘62 • siste
Page 35 and 36: thinking about having a reunion thi

Fall 2012 - Cardinal Spellman High School

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