The Ram Page

September 15, 2023

Bi-Weekly Newsletter for Garces Families, Students, Alumni & Friends

Sophomore Retreat

Sept. 19-20

Club Day

Sept. 21

Homecoming Week

Oct. 2-6

Homecoming Game vs Frontier

Oct. 6

Homecoming Dance

Oct. 7

Holy Smoke Fall BBQ

Oct. 12

Follow us on our social media sites to stay up to date on the latest updates from Garces Memorial

Blessings Garces Families and Future Ram Families, 

I am beyond excited and honored to be in my new position as Director of Admissions. I have already met some amazing new families and students who made the decision to come to Garces. My goal is to ensure our future Rams and their families have a clear understanding of the value of a Garces education.  

Before the beginning of the school year, I had the opportunity to meet a wonderful young man who came in to take the Freshman Placement Test. This young man has no other siblings attending or who attended Garces. He would be the first from his family

to attend. I asked him why Garces? His response

was “because this is where I belong.”  

Isn’t that what it's all about? We strive to have our students and their families feel that sense of belonging. To be a part of a supportive community that celebrates their accomplishments and lifts each other up when times are challenging. To help them navigate through their high school years and come out on the other side as well-rounded, confident and ready to move into the next chapter of their young lives. That is what makes Garces Memorial unique. Making sure our students succeed when moving on to college and careers. Not just academically, but as good Christ-like individuals who know the importance of balance in their lives. 

As we begin to welcome more students to our campus for our 2024-25 school year, starting next month, we will be hosting our Shadow Days for next year’s freshmen class and any student currently in

high school interested in transferring. If you or someone you know has a student who would like to shadow a current Garces student, click here to complete the inquiry form and select the Shadow Day that works best for you and your student. On Tuesday, Nov. 14 we will host our Ram for a Day. This is the day when we invite current eighth-grade students from across our community to join us for a fun and informative events on campus led by our current students, faculty and staff. Click here to register an 8th grader for Ram for a Day.

Our best ambassadors are you, our current families, alumni and families of graduates. If you know of other families considering Garces, send them my way. Let's give them the chance to belong to the incredible community we call Garces Memorial High School. 

Tonya Abbott 

Director of Admissions 

tabbott@garces.org

This week in Garces Athletics

Cross County

Last Saturday, the cross country teams competed at the Morro Bay Invitational. On the girls side, Michelle Antongiovanni led the Rams in a time 18 minutes, 49.2 seconds, which was the second-fastest time for a freshman. The girls are now ranked No. 5 in Division V in the Central Section. Next up for the Rams is the Del Oro Rising Suns Invitational on Sept. 20 at Hart Park.

Football

The Rams put together the best effort of the season in a resounding 31-12 win over visiting Thousand Oaks last Saturday at Sam Tobias Field. It was the first win of the season for the Rams (1-3) after two consecutive losses by one possession. Gunter Golla threw for 193 yards, including a 76-yard touchdown pass to Michael Smith on the opening drive as the Rams led 24-0 at halftime. Smith and Austyn Hernandez both had interceptions against the Lancers. The Rams are on the road this Saturday against Porterville-Monache at Strathmore High School with JV at 4 p.m. and varsity at 6:30 p.m.

If you plan to attend Saturday's game, please be sure to bring lawn chairs, there is limited bleacher space for visiting fans at Strathmore.

The Rams next game will be the league opener at Liberty on Thursday, Sept. 28.

Girls Golf

The Rams finished in second place behind Liberty in the River League meet on Monday at North Kern Golf Course. Ashlee Kresha led the Rams with a 5-over-77 as Malia Giumarra shot 81. Both team shot 473, but the Patriots were awarded first place points via tie-breaker rules. Garces and Liberty are now tied for first place in league standing after two league tournaments.

Girls Tennis

The Rams overcame a tight 5-4 loss to Liberty on Tuesday with a resounding 9-0 victory in the first home match of the season over Frontier on Thursday. Led by seniors Kelsey Abraham, Jocie Sala, Gemma Eddy, Jade Jamieson and Maddie Tobias and along with junior Julia Maristany in singles play, the Rams (5-2, 1-1 River League) defeated the Titans in less than two hours.

Volleyball

The Rams are riding a 16-game win streak heading into Tuesday's league opener at Liberty. After the Rams (16-1) won the Highland Tournament last Saturday, all three levels defeated Porterville at home on Tuesday. The varsity team swept the Panthers in three sets as Emma Machado led the Rams with 10 kills. Gabby Martin had six aces and Jessica Hernandez added four aces. Kat Wulff-Smith had 31 digs and Reegan Launer had 23 assists.

Water Polo

Last weekend both varsity water polo programs were in competition as the girls went 2-2 at the St. Francis Invitational in Mountain View. The Rams defeated Santa Maria-Righetti and San Jose-Leigh. The boys were at the Santa Barbara Invitational, going 3-1 with wins over Irvine-Crean Lutheran, Santa Barbara and Arroyo Grande. The boys are at the St. Francis Invitational this weekend and the girls will be in Roseville next weekend (Sept. 22-23) at the Sierra Shootout.

Be sure to follow Garces Athletics on social media @GarcesAthletics for updated information and scores.

HOLY SMOKE GARCES FALL BBQ

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 12TH

GET YOUR TICKETS!

The student BBQ Ticket Sales Contest begins on Monday, September 18, and runs for two weeks. For every ticket sold, students will have their choice of a "free dress pass" or $5 Student Store Ram Bucks. The top three student ticket sellers will also win bids to Sadies and/or Formal. Students will receive all the information in their homerooms on Monday and the top homerooms will also win lunch.

BBQ tickets include an open bar and a NY steak dinner. There will also be dancing to a live band, Valley Fever. Tickets are $75 for one, $125 for two and each additional ticket is $60. You can also sponsor a Garces teacher BBQ ticket for $40.

WHY NEW TICKET PRICES?

For the last few years, BBQ tickets have been $50 a person, and drink tickets were sold separately. We decided to combine the cost into one ticket price - eliminating the need to wait in line to purchase drink tickets. The cost is relatively the same as it has been in the past because now your BBQ ticket includes your drinks and, hopefully, a lot less time waiting in lines.

HERE'S HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT THE STUDENT TICKET CONTEST

1. Go to the Garces website and purchase tickets. There is a space for you to list your student's name so he or she will receive credit. We will mail you your tickets.
2. Fill out the form from your student and send it back with a check payable to Garces. We will mail you your tickets.
3. Click on the link, fill out the form, and drop it off at the office. You can pick up your tickets at the same time. Link: Student Contest Form
4. If you are a sponsor, your student will be credited for the number of tickets associated with your sponsorship level.
5. Ticket sales credit can be split between siblings.

VIP SECTION

If you are interested in having access to the VIP section, we still have sponsorships available. The VIP area offers you "runners" who will go and get your dinner and drinks so you will not have to wait in line.

For more information about purchasing tickets or being a sponsor, you can visit our website at garces.org or email Lou Ann Durrett at ldurrett@garces.org or Jenny Asaro at jasaro@garces.org.

Since our last newsletter, the following have generously agreed to sponsor the Garces Holy Smoke Fall BBQ. Thank you so much to everyone helping us underwrite a great night on our campus to support our mission. Sponsorships are still available, and our sponsors will enjoy the VIP section!

• Clerou Tire
• Bernadette Root
• PCL Industrial Services
• Bruce Beretta & Melissa Fortune
• Dignity Health
• Ordiz-Melby Architects, Inc.
• George & Cindy Meek
• Dewar's Candy & Ice Cream Shop
• Chris & Kristin Hagan
• Trevor & Annalia Townsend

2023 Hall of Honor

Thursday, November 16th

Luigi's Warehouse

Save the date for the 2023 Hall of Honor. This year's inductees are:

• Damon Culbertson
• Steve Lewis '64
• Rich Romo '70
• Jeremy Tobias '84

The Alumni Award recipient is the Mike & Laura Etcheverry Family.

The Garces Alumni Board is hard at work to make it a memorable evening. Members of the Alumni Board are Chairman Gregg Gunner '66; Cindy (Duncan) Lynch '68, Mary (Loken) Cornett '68, Tom Swertfager '69, Jim Sakowski '70, Melissa Fortune '72, Carolyn Antongiovanni '72, Mike Georgino '75, George Clerou '76, Katie (Anspach) Whittington '77, Bernadette (Eyherabide) Root '78, Raji Sanghera '87, Maria (Bernal) Toretta '88, Courtney (Kirschenmann) Tobias '92, Lexi (Antongiovanni) Clerou '06, and John Moore III '07.