Notre Dame High School notes
Grammar School Athletic Open House: Notre Dame High School invites any sixth-, seventh- or eighth-grade boys to attend the Athletic Open House from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday. This is an opportunity to meet Notre Dame's coaches, learn about the sports programs and participate in athletic challenges.
This event will be held in the gymnasium at the school at 7655 West Dempster St., Niles. For more information, call Judy Byrne at (847) 779-8650 or e-mail jbyrne@ndhsdons.org.
Math contest for seventh-and eighth-grade boys: The Math Contest will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday. No registration is necessary and each participant competes individually. For more information, call Paul Tokarz at (847) 779-8632 or e-mail ptokarz@ndhsdons.org.
Tryouts for Grade School Dons Basketball Feeder Teams: Tryouts will be held Sunday and Dec. 9 for the Young Dons Boys Basketball Feeder Program. All interested players should attend both dates. Three teams -- sixth, seventh and eighth -- will be selected. The tryout times are: eighth-graders from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.; seventh-graders from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m.; and sixth-graders from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Each team will play about 25 games and their season will run from approximately January through April. Each of the three teams will play other high school feeder teams. For more information or if you are unable to attend, call Vic Rose at (847) 253-7933 or e-mail rosevcs@aol.com.
Shadow Day Visits Available: Notre Dame High School welcomes any eighth-grade boys to visit and experience the spirit of the Notre Dame community. Through the Shadow Program, each visiting eighth-grader is assigned a present Notre Dame student -- usually a freshmen -- to guide them through a typical day at Notre Dame, which includes going to classes, participating in the events of the day and eating a free lunch.
Individual students wishing to shadow at Notre Dame should contact LaVerne Bontempo at (847) 779-8615 in the Enrollment Office to reserve a spot. Notre Dame also hosts groups of students from given schools. Grade school groups wishing to participate should have their teacher or principal call the Enrollment office and let them know the date they want to visit.
Students can download the Notre Dame Shadow Day Form by visiting www.ndhsdons.org/admissions. The Shadow Day form must be completed and brought to the visit.
Online alumni site: In an effort to reconnect alumni to the school and each other, Notre Dame High School recently unveiled donsalumni.org, a resource to help alumni find old classmates and friends and see what's happening at the school.
Notre Dame alumni may visit www.donsalumni.org or contact alumni director Paul Tokarz at (847) 779-8632 or ptokarz@ndhsdons.org.
Walkathon 2007 Fundraiser Sets Record: $60,322 was raised through Notre Dame High School's Walkathon 2007, the largest amount raised through this fundraiser.
"The students deserve all of the credit for the record-breaking amount that the Walkathon raised this year. The best part is that the money will fund their clubs and activities throughout the year. Notre Dame High School is proud to offer its students a wide variety of quality clubs and activities. Thanks to the leadership and hard work of our students, the money raised by this year's Walkathon will make these student organizations even better," said Tim Jarotkiewicz, a 1998 graduate of the school and the assistant principal for student life at Notre Dame.
Notre Dame Fall Sports Athletes and Teams Successful: Notre Dame High School's fall teams concluded their 2007 regular seasons with tremendous successes.
Head football coach Michael Hennessey was selected an East Suburban Catholic Coach of the Year (along with Tim Racki from Nazareth).
Tom Baran Jr. '08 came in seventh place at the sectional cross country meet at Niles West and qualified for the Illinois State High School Association's Cross Country finals. Tom Baran was also named the ESCC's Most Valuable Runner at the conclusion of the regular cross country season.
Brendan Murray '08 was named one of the ESCC's Defensive Football Player of the Year (along with Nick Clancy from Joliet Catholic and Ryan Williams from Carmel Catholic).
Rich Szukala '08 was named ESCC Defensive Lineman of the Year.
Nine Varsity football players were chosen to the ESCC All-Conference football team including:
Zach Abraham '08, Quarterback; Bo Cisek '08, Linebacker; P.J. Cummings '08, Defensive Back; Matt Franzen '08, Defensive Line; Matt Gallery '08, Offensive Line; Joe Gutierrez '09, Wide Receiver; Ryan Irwin '08, Wide Receiver; Brendan Murray '08, Defensive Back; and Rick Szukala '08,Defensive Back.
The Varsity Cross Country team placed third in the East Suburban Catholic Conference.
Tim Casey '08, (midfield) was named to the ESCC All-Conference soccer team.
Patriac Canavan '11, Anthony Salerno '10, and Phil Bogusz '08, made it to sectionals in golf.
Robby Martin '10 and Anthony Salerno '10 were named ESCC All-Conference for the Junior Varsity team.
Freshman Up All Night: The 2007 Freshman Up All Night Retreat was a great success. Midnight Mass was celebrated under the stars in the courtyard by Fr. Raymond Klees with Deacon Harold Burke-Sivers offering the homily.
This retreat is the final event of Freshman Orientation. Students spent the night playing dodgeball, basketball, video games, watching movies and generally hanging around with one another. On Sunday morning, family members joined the students for breakfast and a final farewell.