Alumni Association

Forever True

September, 2023

Dates to Remember

Teutonia Mannerchor Alumni Luncheon

The next alumni luncheon will take place on Tuesday, September 26, 2023. You can call Jim Eberz (412) 445-4446 or Don Gruber (412) 874-2906. The cost of the luncheon is $15 which is payable at the door. Soft drinks and beer cost extra.

The August luncheon drew a crowd of around 50 alums and guests. Once again Jim Eberz ('64) with help from his wife, Sarah, and Don Gruber ('71) made everything run smoothly.

The class of 67 was the largest at the luncheon, and they lent their voices to the singing of the alma mater at the end of lunch.

Two first time attendees were welcomed by classmates. On the left is Duane Randa ('70) and his wife, and on the right is Dennis Osterrieder ('67).

Alumni Spotlight

The Hall of Fame - Class of 2023

The Hall of Fame Committee is proud to announce the Hall of Fame Class of 2023

Jeff Bergman (class of 1972)

Dr. Harry Brady (class of 1953)

Vince Delie (class of 1982)

General William Mall (class of 1950)

Teresa Preskar (class of 1976)

The future newsletters will have more information on the inductees. The Hall of Fame dinner and induction will be held at North on Saturday October 21st.

Alumni Spotlight

It's Alumni Story Time

During the summer months we like to share alumni memories of places and people that made North Catholic so dear to our hearts. The picture above is that of George Oesterling. Whenever he wore that tie and he only wore one day a year, it would echo up and down the halls, "It's Sam Sebastian Day." Upper classmen looked for ways to get out of class to go to his room to hear the story one (or two) more times.

Here are some memories of Mr O stories:

"As a colleague of mine, as well as a close personal friend, I have many fond memories of George O. George was in a band during his college days and played the organ. When he started teaching he would invited faculty members and their dates to his house. He loved to play games and this often led to music games during these parties. He would sit at the organ and play "name that tune." This would lead to Mr O's trivia game in the 90's. He would distribute a sheet with various trivia to students and faculty alike, and we would all try to answer as many questions as we could. And last but not least, I heard the Sam Sebastian story long before it was ever retold to students." ... Walt Quinn '65

"Mr. O, he was a character. The ties, the cigarette hanging out as he hurried to some where to smoke. The chalk all over his body and blackboard. Soccer team coach. The stories he would tell, but most of all he was a terrific teacher who cared about his students. ... Jerry Sestric ('80)



"Aside from the great Sam Sebastian legend, Mr O was an excellent chemistry teacher who had away of making the course very understandable and practical"... James Mazzotta ('81)

"My favorite memories of chemistry with Mr O include him nibbling chalk when he had an upset stomach, Sam Sebastian Day, and discovering Iron Butterfly and In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida." ... John Rovnan ('92)

Thanks to all of you who sent us memories this summer. We will do it again next summer. In the mean time we are looking for alumni willing to share their memories of their days at North as a featured alum. So...

Interested in being a featured alum in the coming months? Just let us know by clicking here.

Flashback Photo

Last Month's Flashback

The picture is from the 1974 yearbook. That's John Adams. He is a significant member of the class of 1974 because he received the first diploma from the now co-ed North Catholic High School.

As usual grads from the class of 74 quickly identified John. Classmate Carl Apel said, "That’s John Adam’s, the first person to graduate from NC after it turned coed

He was also a goalie for the hockey team and he and his family were kind enough to take me to my first Penguins hockey game. Seats were right on the glass, game was against the Boston Bruins." Mary Zeis also identified her classmate, "The photo is John Adams, who was the first boy to receive a diploma from North Catholic as a coed institution." Mark Gloff and Doug Swierczynski also easily identifed him and his significance in the school's history. Joe Koch ('73) also identified John.



This Month's Flashback

This flashback photo is keeping in the same vein as the last few months and if you have been following along should be an easy guess for every North Catholic alum from 1943-2023. So send us what you know about this team photo.



Send your guesses to us here.

The display case just inside the entrance to the school houses memorabilia from the school's history. There is also North Catholic apparel available.

You can check out the NC gear in the spirit shop by clicking here.

Alumni Spotlight Photo

Here are two North Catholic generational photos.

First, The Smetanka family - Joe ('78), Aaron ('07) and his son are enjoying their day at Steeler training camp.

Then, The Quinn family - Walt ('65), Mike ('95) and his son enjoy a long standing family tradition, ice balls at Gus and Yiayia's.

Class of 1959

Dick Halleran and Mike Conroy stopped into North to meet the two students who were recently awarde the NC Class of 1959 Scholarship. Here they are with Mary Narvett.

Dick Halleran and Mike Conroy with Mary Taggart-Snyder. Read more in the scholarship section.

Class of 1964

Chuck Struhar helps his grandson get ready for some fishing.



Class of 1966

Bill Ries and his wife along with Tom Balestreire enjoy dining together on their Viking River Cruise

Here's Tom Balestreire and his wife Bernadette enjoying their vacation in Koblenz, Germany. 

Hank Marziale and Jim Beran pose with Dom Dixon ‘27 who was awarded the Class of 1966 Scholarship.

Class of 1969

That's Jim Kastner. He says, "the kid from Spring Hill finally made it to Berlin."

Class of 1971

Franz Wesner is looking for the class of 71 reunion.

Class of 1972

Recently Dan Klimko and his family attended the Pirate game. He's seen with his wife, son Sam ('14) and son Ben ('12) who is with his fiance.

Class of 1974

Doug Swierzynski sent us two photos with his grandkids.The first is with his youngest granddaughter taking in a Pirate game. The second is with the oldest at the Pittsburgh Zoo.

Class of 1975

Medio Monti, Mark Shepard, and Bill Otterbein enjoy their long time friendship while taking in a Pirate game.

Class of 1979

Anyone want to take a wild guess as to where Rich Mueller is headed?

Class of 1983

Look who Amy Larkin Palmer and her husband ran into on a recent outing for breakfast.

Class of 1985

Congratulations to Mark Milsop who was awarded the "Manifesting the Kingdom" by Bishop Zubik. The award is presented to those men and women who demonstrate the presence of Jesus in their lives and have participated in an exceptional service to the Church.

Class of 1991

Leslie Del-Cimmuto and her husband are ready for a little Guns N Roses.

Class of 1992

It's a selfie from Susan Tate Hiser and her family.

Class of 1993

Sandy Kozlowski and her sons are at the beach, Sandy's happy place.

John Nicotra and his family attended a family wedding. That's John and his wife with son John ('20), daughter Emma ('24), and son Eddie ('21).

Class of 1994

Enjoying a beach vacation, Tana Trimbur pauses for a selfie with her daughter.

Class of 1995

That's Doctor Erin Riggle Yancey working with young girls at St Monica Namatala Secondary School on her latest trip to Kenya. Erin taught the girls to used the laptop, and they assisted her in conducting basic health screenings..

It's the wonderful world of chocolate for Anne Sweeney McGrath and her family.

Brian Sepac and his family are on a vacation stop in DC.

Alyson Getty Cole has dinner with two of her favorite people.

Julie Lenzner enjoys her birthday dinner.

Class of 1996

April Lutz Nicoteroand her husband enjoy a dinner at the LeMont.

Todd Torquato and his family are resting after a mountain hike.

Jamie Leonardo Ranieri and her husband are in Hawaii to celebrate his birthday.

Class of 2001

Shannon Zeis Wishart and her family are in the Bahamas for a family vacation.

Christine Schwab-Hines and Laura Breskovich Lagana are on their way to the smash hit movie of the summer. (not Oppenheimer)

Ronnie Dunn is one proud papa.

Bob Jessop and his boys are ready to head off to a new school year.

Class of 2002

Fran Lamb Urmann and her family wrap up their summer vacation with this photo.

Bonnie Wissner and Tara Pagone Boyer had a fun time at the Improv on a girls night out.

Class of 2004

Kelly McCaughan shows her excitement at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Her one woman show sold out all of its performances. She was nominated for Best Newcomer.

It's a fun day at the History Center for Matt Zeis and his nieces

Katie Sweeney Dugas and her husband celebrate an anniversary.

It's back to school time as Maggie Kutschbach Bailey sends her daughter off on her first day.

Brooke Dumont is all smiles as she sits with the men in her life.

Class of 2005

That's Rachel Fredreick Zimmer and her husband as they are all set for a performance at Stage AE,\.

Erik Hood and his wife pause by the water during a hike.

Class of 2007

Cara Onyshko and her buddy were taking in the activities at Picklesburgh.

Class of 2008

Congratulations to Vince Lamperski on being named a principal at the law firm of Post & Schell P.C.

Dustin Lalle and his family finish up their beach vacation with this photo.

Class of 2009

Nikki Surmacy Colicchio and her husband attended the Gavin DeGraw concert after this picture.

Class of 2010

Congratulations to Tyler Feith who was named manager of the tax group for S.R. Snodgrass.



Tyler Feith and his fiance are all smiles as they announce their engagement.

Emily Murtha is the fun aunt at the ball game with her nephew.

Cool picture of Ryan Exler and his family on their beach vacation.

It's house warming party time as Reed McLaughlin and his wife, Miranda Jirsa-McLaughlin ('13) are proud homeowners .

She's off to Orlando - Nicole Szulborski-Cusimano that is.

Class of 2011

It's babies, babies, babies! Madison Knapp, Alexis MacGregor, and MacKenzie Knapp bring their little ones to the park.

Stacey Green and her man are sharing the sunset at the Outer Banks.

Claire Lamperski and her family enjoy the end of the summer at the beach.

Class of 2012

Megan Prybyl and her special someone are all dressed up for an event at the Kennedy Center in DC.

Class of 2014

Anthony Donatelli and Mason Guckert renew their high school friendship at the wedding of a mutual friend

Annette Faith Cashdollar gets her classroom ready as she prepares for the first day of school.

Class of 2020

Kara Yoest graduated from Kent State with a degree in Fashion Merchandising.

Class of 2022

At nursing school, Sophia Bailey gets ready for her first day of clinicals.

Class of 2023

Sara McConnell is a member of the trombone section of the Syracuse Marching Band. That's her in full uniform. Sara is majoring in illustration

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If you know an alum who doesn't get the newsletter and would like to receive it, send us their email address and we will add them to the distribution list.

Thanks to Shannon Zeis Wishert ('01), Doug Swierczynski ('74), MacKenzie Knapp Noftz ('13), Richard Michels ('62), Medio Monti ('75), George Bauer ('49), Bob Gierl ('66), Carmen DiGiacomo ('59), Frank Wesner ('71), Bob Colbert ('65), Ray Oliver ('64), Rita Zettlemeyer McConnell ('90), DeDe Raukauf Yoest ('81), Jim Kastner ('69), and Jim Eberz ('64) for sending information and pictures to us.

If you have news/photos you want to share with classmates, send them to alumni news.

ALL reunion updates will ALSO be available on the school's website, northcatholic.org or by clicking here!

NC Class of 1958

The Class of 1958 reunion is right around the corner. The 65th reunion is the weekend of September 8, 9, and 10, 2023. There will be a dinner on Friday evening Sept. 8, a stag gathering in the evening on Sept. 9, followed by Mass and brunch on Sunday, Sept. 10. 

NC Class of 1966

The Class of ’66 has its own ‘Reunion Book!’ To view the Reunion Book: 

           Go to YouTube on any browser

           Put “North Catholic Reunion Book” on Search bar.

Slides are shown on a 7 second interval automatically or you can scan forward using the scanning bar on the lower left, 

Bob Gierl says the 60th class reunion will be October 15, 2025!

NC Class of 1973

Plans are in the works for a 50^th Reunion to be held on October 14, 2023, at North Catholic. Check your mail as the formal RSVP went out at the end of July.

Here's a rundown of events for the reunion - Mass is at 4:00 PM, a school tour will be given at 5:00, reunion activities and dinner begin at 6:00. The dinner will be catered by Rico's Catering.

Bill Murtha is the contact for any questions you may have and can be reached at 412-327-4567 or by email

 here. You can also check out the NCHS Class of 1973 Facebook account.

NC Class of 1983



The 40th class reunion will be held on Saturday, November 4, 2023, at North Catholic High School at 6PM. More details to follow. Any questions, please call Bob Parey at 724-601-6742.

NC Class of 1990

Martin Miller and Leah Vaughan Quigley are still hoping to organize a class reunion. Keep an eye out for some news

NC Class of 1993

The Class of 1993 is planning a 30 year reunion in November. Stay tuned for more details.

NC Class of 1997

The class of 1997 will celebrate their 25th reunion this year. Let us know about reunion plans so we can spread the word.

NC Class of 1998

Plans are in the works for a 25th reunion this fall. Stay tuned for more details.

NC Class of 2003

The 20-year reunion will be held at Roland's Seafood Grill (in the Strip) on Saturday, October 7th. The cost will be around $25 per person. Check out the class of 2003 Facebook page. Beth Rittle will be providing more details as the time gets closer.

NC Class of 2013

There may be plans in the works for a 10 year reunion. We will share details when we hear more

Military Legacy Scholarship

North Catholic has a Military Legacy Scholarship in honor of all alumni who have served in our nation’s military forces. The goal is to provide a $1,000.00 scholarship annually. To date, over $30,000 has been raised to fund this annual scholarship. The scholarship is awarded annually to the student provided certain benchmarks are met. Every 4 years (or sooner) it is awarded to an incoming 9^th grade student. Molly Burke ('24) is the recipient of the scholarship.

If you wish, you may make a contribution in someone's honor/memory. Donations can be made by sending checks payable to North Catholic, write "North Catholic Military Scholarship" in the memo, and mail to: 

North Catholic High School

1617 Route 228

Cranberry Township, PA 16066

ATTN: Development Office

A kiosk with the names of all alumni who have served in the military stands in the main hallway of the school. Thank you for your service.

The John Latulippe Memorial Scholarship

The John Latuilippe Memorial Scholarship has been awarded to Gabriel Grindstaff - NC class of 2024. Thank you to all who have donated. 

Class of 1959 Scholarship

The NCHS Class of 1959 Scholarship Fund has awarded $5,200 Scholarships for the 2023-24 School Year to Mary Narvett and Mary Taggart-Snyder.

The Fund has awarded scholarships totaling $103,600 to twelve recipients since the inception of the Fund. Contributions to the Fund can be made at any time and should be sent to the North Catholic Foundation, North Catholic High School, ATTN: Class of 1959 Scholarship Fund, 1617 Route 228, Cranberry Township, PA 16066.

If you would like more information about the Fund, please contact Joe Blitzko(joeyblitz@aol.com), Dick Halleran (rhalleran@verizon.net), or Mike Conroy (conroy1603@gmail.com).

Class of 1965 Legacy Scholarship

The Legacy Scholarship was set up as part of our 50th class reunion by Dan Wolovich and Wayne Young and has been under the direction of Bob Colbert and Walt Quinn for the past few years.

The scholarship has helped students with the ever increasing cost of Catholic education. When we were at North, almost all of the tuition was paid by our parishes (remember having to face your pastor as he reviewed your report card?) Now the cost of tuition has fallen completely on the parents.

In order to help parents provide the great education that we received all those years ago, we need more of our classmates to step up and help keep our legacy scholarship fund growing. No contribution is too small. Thanks to classmates, DAN WOLOVICH, BILL GUBANIC and JOE MCKELVEY for their recent contributions. Dan, Bill and Joe continue to make contributions periodically through out the year. Other classmates have continued to make small monthly contributions by setting up a monthly credit card donation (read $10 to $25). The great thing about that is it's painless and adds to the scholarship fund which continues to grow. As of the beginning of April there is $45,000 in our endowment.

We are happy to announce that this year's Legacy Scholarships for this school year have been awarded to sophomore MADISON SERETTI. Madison is an honors student with a GPA of 3.9 and is the daughter of NC alum, Leslie Filip ('89) The second recipient is sophomore DONNIE SCHUBERT, a graduate of Blessed Trinity Academy. Donnie is a basketball player and carries a 3.9 GPA.  

Consider making a donation to the fund today!

You can send your check to the school with a notation that it's for the '65 scholarship fund; or If you would like to contribute a small monthly amount via your credit card, contact Amber Nicotra Morrison to set it up.



If you have questions about our efforts, feel free to contact Bob Colbert (bobcolbert@comcast.net) or Walt Quinn (quinn.walter@comcast.net)

Special Shoutout

John Mikulan is also donating 20% of the royalties from his book, The Bark of the Day to the fund.

Class of 1966 Scholarship

The Class of ’66, is proud to announce the selection of their second scholarship recipient, Dom Dixon ('27). Dom and and Andrew Scears ('26) were selected by the committee, under the leadership of Tom Balestreire. The committee is well on its way to funding its goal of $100,000 for the Class of ’66 Scholarship Fund. The Fund will be administered by the Class in conjunction with the school. We, Tom Maier, Jim Beran, Hank Marziale, Paul Ladish, and Bob Gierl have contacted many, but if you or someone you know is wishing to be included, contact Tommy, 404.358.4864, text or call.

NC Class of 1953 Scholarship

Thank you to all who have donated to the North Catholic Class of 1953 Scholarship Fund.  More than $29,000 has been raised.  The ad-hoc committee is pleased to announce that incoming freshman Gianna Fuller has been awarded the scholarship starting in the 2023-2024 school year. 

The Fund was proposed by Reg Urschler in the Spring of 2021, and an ad hoc committee was established, comprised of Reg, Charley Goetz, Bob Muth, and Vince Brogan.

The ad hoc committee urges all classmates to make new or continuing contributions to the Fund. Checks should be made payable to the “NC Class of 1953 Scholarship Fund”and sent to the attention of: Amber Morrison, North Catholic High School, 1617 Route 228, Cranberry Township, Pa 16066.

How fortunate we were to have had the benefit of the education afforded us. What a wonderful opportunity this provides to all of us and the remaining families to "invest" in a "guaranteed return on that investment" by providing a similar opportunity to current students' futures.

The Career Development Department has been active this summer with providing opportunities for students. Students have been able to gain support and feel better prepared for the upcoming college application process. They've been invited to come into school and get a head start on their common application and college essays.



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Seniors were out painting their spots to personalize their parking space for their final year of high school.

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Fall sports teams gathered together to celebrate the Feast Day of the Assumption. It was special way to begin the fall sports season, grow in unity, and direct the focus for the year ahead.

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The school hosted orientation for the newly enrolled students.With over 200 new students to start the year, North Catholic continues to grow.

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Even though there were a few raindrops, the second annual Food Truck Night was a success as families gathered together to celebrate the start of the new school year.

Kellie Makar (History teacher), welcomed a baby boy. Beckham Joseph, in August.

Trojan Sports

Football

The Trojans opened the season with a 49-42 win over Serra Catholic. Senior Jack Fennell scored 3 touchdowns while rushing for 171 yards. He also returned an interception 39 yards for a touchdown in the final quarter. Rylee Kumer converted all 7 of her extra points. The second game of the season ended in overtime as Shadyside quarterback Devin Harris completed a 10 yard scoring pass to give Shadyside a 34-28 victory. Jack Fennell rushed for 102 yards in a losing effort. Their next game is at Aliquippa.

North Catholic students, Alex Brown, Ryan Berry, Callie Mardis, and Caroline Adams put together a season preview that you can view here.

Coach Rizzo started a new tradition where before each home game a portion of the senior class will honor a member of the school family as part of the team. The seniors will present the staff member with a uniform to thank them for being an impactful person in their lives. The first uniform jersey was awarded to Mr Darin Lyles, a history teacher.

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Fall Sports

Fall sports are underway and while we have a few results; we will bring you updates in the coming editions

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Girls Soccer

Section play began with the third ranked girls taking on the top ranked girls from Avonworth. After leading 2-0 at the half, the girls fell by a score of 3-2 in overtime. The Trojanettes second game saw them matched up against Ambridge. Goalkeeper Rylee Kumer got her first shutout of the season as Simone Sharpless scored 4 goals in a 7-0 victory.

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Cross Country

At the Marty Uher Invitational both the girls and boys teams had good days.Gracie Plastino's 2nd place finish and Grace Lazzara's 5th place finish helped the girlssecure 1st place in the ClassA/AA race. Meanwhile Giacomo Lepore and Tyler Carroll paced the boys in their 3rd place finish.

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Crew

Congratulations To Senior Keira Krebs for achieving The Midwest Scholastic Rowing Association Academic Honor roll for 2023. Keira is one of 79 students representing 28 Midwest schools that earned this achievement. The criterion for this achievement is as follows: 

• A minimum GPA of 3.5 (calculated on 4.0 scale from the 1st semester 9th grade thru their 1st semester 11th grade)
• A minimum single test composite score of 1200 (Sat out of 1600) or ACTof 27.
• Must be an active rower or coxwain that competed in 9th, 10th, or 11th grade year:
• Rowed in A finals MSRA Championship ( Sunday finals) or in the SRAA, Youth or World Jr. Championships.

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You can follow the teams and enjoy the sports podcasts by visiting the website northcatholicathletics.org

Planned Giving

Planned giving is a wonderful way to prepare for the day we depart this life and enter into God's kingdom. By planning ahead, you can provide opportunities to young men and women by supporting North Catholic. Planned giving allows us to help continue the work of Christ and pass on our traditions and Catholic Marianist values. Gifts can be specified in one's will as either a dollar amount of a stated percentage of one's estate. A growing number of alumni have taken this step and discovered a great sense of joy and satisfaction that they are helping families. If you are interested in finding out more, please click here or contact Amber Nicotra Morrison in the Development Office at amorrison@northcatholic.org.

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.  

Luke 12:34

SEND YOUR TAX DOLLARS TO NORTH CATHOLIC INSTEAD OF HARRISBURG!

Taxpayers can opt to have 90% of their tax liability given to North Catholic High School or the private school of their choice through the EITC (Educational Improvement Tax Credit) Program. Funds directed to North Catholic from this program directly support scholarships for students. 

The Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) and the Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit (OSTC) are two programs that can make it possible for many students to receive a Catholic education.

Interested in more information? Contact NC President Joe Wilson ('91) at jwilson@northcatholic.org or by calling (412) 321-4823.

Watch this short video to learn more how easy it really is!

Click here to watch the short video!

Many thanks to our generous EITC contributors:

COZZA ENTERPRISES

ECKLES CONSTRUCTION

FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF PA

FRANK'S PIZZERIA

GRANT STREET GROUP

HAND & SHOULDER CENTER

HUNTINGTON BANK

THE LYNCH LAW GROUP, LLC

MAHER DUESSEL

NEXTIER BANK

POINT SPRING & DRIVESHAFT CO.