Congratulations, grads!
Cardinal Spellman High School holds 59th commencement
BRONX TIMES R 36 EPORTER, JULY 2-8, 2021 BTR
BY BRONX TIMES
On Saturday, June 12, Cardinal
Spellman High School held its 59th commencement
in an outdoor ceremony on
the school’s athletic field.
An invocation by Rev. John Kraljic
was followed by the National Anthem,
sung by senior Anna Ferron. Daniel
O’Keefe, president of the school, congratulated
the Class of 2021 and urged them to
embrace the culture and values learned
at Cardinal Spellman to make the world a
better place. The 285 graduates join more
than 22,800 other Spellman alumni since
the first graduation in 1963.
O’Keefe also announced the names
of a number of teachers celebrating
anniversary years in 2021: Jane Morris
and Trudy Keane (45 years), Denise
Lombardo and Linda Mazzo (40), Tom
Cabrera and Stephen Roesner (35) and
Julio Ayabaca, Jeannette Dolan and
Anna Villa (20.) Also recognized for
anniversary years from the 2019-2020
school year were John DiPalermo (45
years) and George Spence (20 years.)
In addition, Rita Piliero and Lynn Tomecek
are retiring from the Science
Department after many years of teaching.
During the ceremony, O’Keefe announced
that Jeri Faulkner, Spellman
Class of 1975 and longtime dean of students,
has been appointed the new principal
of Spellman.
Emmanuel Chirico, Class of 1975,
addressed the graduates and provided
them with advice to achieve future
success. Chirico currently serves
as chief executive of the Phillips Van
Heusen Group. Student speakers were
Valedictorian Darryna Guy-Williams,
the top ranked student in the Class of
2021 who will be attending Northeastern
University in the fall, and Salutatorian
Kamilah Abubakar. The Cardinal
Spellman Trophy and Memorial
Scholarship given to the two students
who best embody the spirit of Francis
Cardinal Spellman was awarded
to Evan Ke, who will be attending the
Rochester Institute of Technology, and
Skylar Bailey, who will be attending
the University of Southern California.
Clamont Mack and NiaGrace Steele
received the Spellman Spirit Award,
while the Spellman Alumni Award
went to Darryna Guy-Williams and
Joseph Giraldi. The Seton-DeLaSalle
Award named in honor of Saint Elizabeth
Ann Seton, founder of the Sisters
of Charity, and Saint John Baptist de
La Salle, founder of the Brothers of the
Christian Schools, was presented to
Aolani Lopez and Ricardo Lizano.
Cardinal Spellman’s Class of 2021’s top 10 in academic ranking: From left, Darryna
Guy-Williams, Kamilah Abubakar, Milany Bruno, Aolani Lopez, Melissa
Hewitt, Chibugo Okeke, Shayna Nguyen, Joseph Giraldi, Skylar Bailey and
James Demetrius with Mr. O’Keefe and Mr. Chirico.
COMMUNITY BOARD 10 SHREDDING EVENT
Community Board 10 and Riverbay Corporation will
host a free shredding event on Saturday, July 10, from
9:30 a.m. to noon, at the Section 5 Greenway near 120
Erskine Place in Co-op City. CB 10 residents can shred
up to three 13-gallon bags of paper only documents
(no binders, clips, etc.).
No pre-registration is necessary.
For more information contact CB 10 at (718) 892-1161
or bx10@cb.nyc.gov.
Daniel O’Keefe, far left, and Emmanuel Chirico, far right, with the winners of
the Spellman Trophyand Memorial Scholarship, Evan Ke and Skylar Bailey.
Photos courtesy John Farrell
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