2012 Winter Issue - Iona Preparatory School

Service News
Basketball Program Teams Up with SAIL
During the Christmas season, Iona Prep's basketball
program hosted a Christmas party at Iona Prep for the
children from SAIL at Ferncliff Manor. Located on Saw Mill
River Road in Yonkers. SAIL (The School for Adaptive &
Integrative Learning) is an organization dedicated to
meeting the needs of people with developmental disabilities,
their families, and the community utilizing research-based,
adaptive and integrative strategies. Thanks to Head Coach
Vic Quirolo and all the basketball coaches and teams,
enough money was raised to purchase gifts for the kids from
SAIL. There was a visit from Santa who distributed gifts to
all the guests. Iona Prep basketball players and campus
ministers were on-hand to work the event and they gave the
children from Ferncliff a night to remember. The event was
coordinated by Anthony Casella ’97, director of campus
ministry, and the campus ministers. Special thanks to current
parents Patti MacGillivray and Maureen Verre.
Blood Drive - In December, Iona Prep hosted its
annual blood drive. The blood drive was facilitated by the
New York Blood Center, under the supervision of Iona
Prep’s health office and School Nurse, Marianne Brady.
Dozens of seniors, faculty and staff members generously
gave the gift of life which will be distributed to hospitals
throughout the New York regions.
Polar Plunge - On December 3rd, over a dozen Iona
Prep students and several faculty members participated in
the Polar Plunge at Rye Playland. Two alumni - Ed Riley
’76 and J.D. Piro ’76 - also took the plunge. The Polar Plunge
is a unique opportunity to support Special Olympics New
York by jumping or running into the freezing waters of the
Long Island Sound. The Iona Prep students who took part
in the Polar Plunge helped raise over $13,000 for the
athletes of Special Olympics New York. Iona Prep’s Polar
Plunge chapter is moderated by faculty member Pat Gray.
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Thanksgiving Food Drive - Iona Prep held its
annual Thanksgiving prayer service before break to mark
the completion of this year’s food drive. For two weeks, the
Iona Prep community collected non-perishable food items
for the less fortunate. Over a dozen turkeys and produce
were also donated by Mark D’Urso ’80. Following the
prayer service, several students and faculty members loaded
and delivered over 200 bags of food to two parishes in
Manhattan: St. Charles Borromeo on West 141st Street and
St. Mark’s on West 138th Street. Special thanks to Br. R.W.
Harris ’62 and the Edmund Rice Society for sponsoring the
food drive.
Hungerfest - Iona Prep hosted its third annual
Hungerfest in November. Approximately 25 Iona Prep
students and several faculty volunteers fasted for 24 hours
overnight to promote hunger awareness. During the fast,
students participated in leadership-building activities, heard
from guest speakers Dale Williams from the Midnight Run
and Carole Troum from HOPE Community Services. They
prepared food that was donated to several local soup
kitchens and gathered clothes and toiletries for Midnight
Run. The group also spent the night sleeping in cardboard
boxes outside the Paul Verni Fine Arts Center to truly
experience what it’s like to be hungry and homeless. On
Saturday morning, the group woke early to deliver
hundreds of bags of food to several soup kitchens in the area
including HOPE in New Rochelle, Sharing Community in
Yonkers, and Holy Rosary Soup Kitchen in Port Chester.
This year’s Hungerfest was particularly special because
Iona Prep partnered with Cablevision and Power to Learn
to take part in MSG Varsity’s Charity Champions contest.
Charity Champions promote volunteerism and help raise
money for a school-selected charity. This year, Iona Prep selected
HOPE as its charity. Carole Troum from HOPE accepted
a $1,000 check on behalf of the organization on
Friday night during Hungerfest.
The participants ended the 24-hour fast with Mass in Iona
Prep's Our Lady of Perpetual Help Chapel. Dinner was
provided by Iona Prep's Fathers' Council. Hungerfest was
organized and coordinated by faculty member Dana Pisani
and Iona Prep's Student Faculty Council (SFC). Faculty
members Darin Gillenwater ’86 and John Raimondo are
moderators of the SFC.