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Virtual Alumni Homecoming Chapel Talk


Yesterday, the Saint David's community was honored to welcome Sean Hagerty '98, S.J., as speaker for our first ever virtual Alumni Homecoming and Chapel Talk. 

Following September 11, 2001, Sean served his country as a soldier in Iraq, then worked in the corporate world until he "listened to the whisper" that called him to serve his faith. He is now in the ninth year of his journey toward the priesthood as a Jesuit. Sean's talk, shared below, addressed the suffering and loss presented by the Covid-19 pandemic and asked us to consider how we will tackle the challenges posed by the outbreak. 

"How are we to be the 'good men' that our teachers at Saint David’s hoped we would become?" he asked. While Covid may be a devastating plague, Sean warned that the lack of civil discourse in our country is an even greater threat. "The ability to find consensus is vitally important to civil society," he said. "The question before us today is, how do we, as good men, respond?" He reminded all of us of our many blessings and the power we have, despite the pandemic, to lead for the common good:
"As we enter this holiday season, let us recall that we have been entrusted with much, and much is demanded of us."

 One loss Covid-19 brought to Saint David's this year was the inability to hold our beloved in-person fall homecoming events. Each year at this time, we all eagerly anticipate the Young Alumni Chapel and Dinner, Alumni-Faculty lunch and Odds vs. Evens soccer match. We look forward to resuming these traditions next year. However, this virtual Alumni Chapel was in a sense a blessing—a new way for us to continue a most cherished tradition by gathering alumni across the decades for a shared Thanksgiving Chapel. I can’t think of anything more resonant for our community, especially now.

I was particularly happy to see so many alumni from the Class of 2020 at the Chapel. These, our first-ever boys to celebrate a virtual graduation, navigated the challenging spring of their graduating year with impressive strength, maturity, and resilience. This Thanksgiving, we are grateful for the resilience of all in our remarkable Saint David’s community.

 

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