ST SEBASTIAN’S

moving from point A to point B in any conditions day or night—
that’s our mission.
“Right now I’m still working on my initial qualifications. I’ve
done all of the basic training. I know how to take-off, land, and
fly, but now our training is shifting much more toward a tactical
emphasis…flying low, flying fast, and being able to get into and out
of landing zones. Also flying at night and flying with external loads
attached to the helicopter.”
Mateo speaks fondly of his time at St. Sebastian’s when he was a
prominent member of the drama program under Mark Rogers. He
performed in shows with close friends and classmates Chris Curran
’05, Mike Tierney ’05, and Andrew Schneider ’05.
“All of my friends and I were involved at one point or another
in the drama program with Mr. Rogers, so spending long hours
getting ready for the play definitely brought us closer together,”
Mateo commented. “There’s definitely a very strong family feel to St.
Sebastian’s and the relationships
you build with your friends. I
had a small core of friends, and
they became my brothers.”
Like many St. Sebastian’s
alums, Mateo is ultimately
thankful for the long hours he
spent at the School perfecting his
academics and extracurricular
activities. Mateo and his friends
were also resourceful enough
to commandeer their own
classroom during their time at
the School.
“There’s a tiny room attached to the McCulloch Room—Room
202. Andy, Chris, Mike, and I took that over and that’s where we
would spend almost all of our free time… We never really saw
anyone in there, so we rolled in, took it over, and kind of kept out
of the way. Having that little place to ourselves definitely brought us
closer.”
Mateo’s brothers, Wes ’03 and Greg ’08, both graduated from St.
Sebastian’s, and Ken speaks fondly of their shared experience at the
School.
“I went to St. Seb’s because of my older brother. It was such a
great fit for him and we were pretty similar so it was a pretty easy
decision for me and my family to make. Showing up with a brother,
it made it a little easier than showing up out of the blue with nobody
there,” Mateo noted.
“When my little brother showed up, it put me in a responsible
position for the first time because I knew I was supposed to be a
role model for him. It definitely enhanced the family feel of St.
Sebastian’s, having my brothers there.”
Although they were brothers and were similar in many ways, the
Mateo boys were also quite different. St. Sebastian’s enabled them to
carve out unique niches for themselves. And today, with the three
boys living in different areas throughout the country, School events
My older brother was kind of
the brainy one, I was more into
the drama/arts side, and my little
brother focused more on sports.
St. Sebastian’s brought us closer
together.
provide a great way for them to spend time together while staying
active with their classmates at the School they all love.
“My older brother was kind of the brainy one, I was more into
the drama/arts side, and my little brother focused more on sports,”
he stated. “St. Sebastian’s brought us closer together.
“By the time my younger brother was ready to graduate, I was
in Maryland and Wes was in California. I managed to make it back
from the Naval Academy and Wes was back from Stanford. Our
family was getting more spread out at that point, so it was special for
us to have a place where we could all get together.”
Something Greater than Yourself
More than anything else Ed Davis ’65 mentioned when I sat down
with him recently, he would like you to know that, despite the
great strides St. Sebastian’s has taken in recent years, the School
has always been a place for excellence.
“I want to make one thing
very clear: This school has always
been a great School,” Davis
stated. “It’s like a family. There
are brothers, sure, but there have
certainly been sisters too—on the
faculty, in the Guild of St. Irene.
This School is an incredible
place—and we’re achieving new
heights—but it always has been
great. There’s not a single class
where you can’t find several
great guys—accomplished and
successful—having the spirit of St. Sebastian’s, understanding that
there’s something so much greater than any one of us.”
Davis, the founder of Ed Davis and Co. and now the Director
of Alumni Relations at St. Sebastian’s, has a relationship with the
School that spans more than fifty years. Not only was he graduated
back when the School stood on Nonantum Hill in Newton, but he
met his wife and several lifelong friends during his fifty years as a
member of the St. Sebastian’s family.
“For the past three years I’ve been given the opportunity to speak
to the seniors before graduation,” said Davis, “and one thing I tell
them is to look at the kids next to them, because those are the kids
who will be their best friends ten, twenty, fifty years from now.”
Davis speaks from experience. A native of Sherborn and the son
of a high school coach in the Wellesley School System, he came to
Nonantum Hill in 1961. At that time he began lifelong relationships
with his fellow students, including his carpool mates from his first
year at St. Sebastian’s, Mike Lajoie ’65 and Rick Cranshaw ‘65.
“Rick Cranshaw, Mike Lajoie, and I formed this carpool where
our parents would bring us in to Nonantum Hill,” Davis recalled.
“Mike was a smart guy, and I always respected smart people, even as
a kid. He and I hit it off pretty quickly. The second day I knew him I
had a really runny nose walking up the stairs behind him. I asked if
I could borrow his handkerchief. I used it, gave it back to him, and
we’ve been friends ever since.”
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