On Friday, July 23rd, Reunion Weekend 2021 kicked off at Whispering Woods Golf Club with 18 groups of Prep & Villa Alumni hitting the links during the day. That night, over 700 Alumni and guests gathered on Dollinger Field at the Hagerty Family Events Center to celebrate the first-ever combined Reunion Weekend! Prep & Villa Alumni made the most of the beautiful evening enjoying picnic food, beverages, and field games on Dollinger Field. Alumni from the Class of 1950 to the Class of 2016 returned home to Prep & Villa and reminisced and recounted memories they created during their high school years. Classes ending in “1” and “6” were accompanied by classes ending in “0” and “5” for this year’s Reunion Weekend due to the latter’s weekend being cancelled by Covid-19 last year.
Alumni enjoyed looking over the wide variety of memorabilia set up in the Café `64 concourse at the Events Center including old school uniforms, yearbooks, renderings of the under-construction Salata Technology and Innovation Center, and a slide show featuring students and events at the schools over the years. Outside, Dollinger Field transformed from an athletic field to a picnic grounds with a food tent, “beer garden” located at each end of the field, DJ Ben Jefferys `12, who played music from the 60’s to the 2000’s, and field games located on the field. Alumni enjoyed a lovely picnic provided by Calamari’s.
On Saturday, Alumni had the opportunity to head back home to roam the halls and recall their days as students by taking a tour. The classes also held individual activities on Saturday including golf outings at several courses, classmate hosted picnics, dinner with live music at the Bay House Restaurant, a cruise on the Victorian Princess, and a gathering at the Plymouth to name a few. Many who attended these events commented that it was a great way to reconnect with their Prep and Villa classmates from years past, and they were very glad they attended.
On Sunday July 25th, Mass and Brunch were held at the Hagerty Family Events Center to round out Reunion events. Fr. Mike DeMartinis, Villa Chaplain, Fr. Jason Feigh, Prep Campus Minister, and Fr. Jim Sanner ’51 concelebrated a lovely mass. They were joined at the altar by Deacon Ronald Onslow ’81. Music was provided by Cathedral Prep Music Director Will Steadman and Villa Maria Academy Music Director Andrew Alesso. Alumni readers Dan Brabender ’70, John Knauer ’71 and Cheryl Dylewski Brzezinski ’66 contributed beautifully to the Mass. After Mass, alums and their families enjoyed a breakfast in our Cafeteria catered by Calamari’s.
