By Jackson Santy ’13
THE ROUNDUP

On the evening of April 11, parents, faculty and students gathered in the Blackbox Theater to honor a special group of seniors.

Every year 32 seniors, 16 in the fall and 16 in the spring, are bestowed the honorable title of being a Brophy “distinguished student.”

“This year, we have a great group of guys,” said Principal Mr. Bob Ryan. “It’s a group of seniors that Brophy is very proud of.”

According to the Brophy website, “These students demonstrate outstanding effort in school, achieve a solid record of participation in co-curricular activities and establish a record of service not only to the Brophy community, but the greater community, as well.”

Mr. Ryan said the group is chosen by a committee who met throughout the year and solicited feedback from faculty members.

The 16 students selected this semester are: Taylor Clausen ’11, Dalton Reed ’11, Nick Dimas ’11, Michael Saba ’11, Brendan Fries ’11, Casey Skowron ’11, Sai Tummala ’11, Briggs Hoyt ’11, Dan Valenzuela ’11, Zach Jesberger ’11, Eric Villanueva ’11, Matt O’Connor ’11, Cody Ward ’11, Alex Ozkan ’11, Gary Williams ’11, and Rodrigo Furtado ’11.

“Receiving this award, makes it feel like all my hard work has paid off,” Furtado said.

Furtado, who is an exchange student from Brazil, said that his parents living in Brazil were able to view the ceremony via Skype.

The other students were honored to receive the recognition as well.

“I was definitely not expecting the award, but I have worked hard during my time at Brophy and I am grateful that they saw it fit to recognize me,” Williams said.

“It’s nice to know students, teachers and others see merits and distinctive qualities in yourself that sometimes you forget you possess,” Dimas said.

“At the banquet, I could see the tears pouring down my mom’s face uncontrollably,” he said.

“I feel more of a man for others because I can stay the person I am and try to bring happiness to the people around me as I have been doing,” Dimas said.

The ceremony proceeded with individual presentations of the 16 students accompanied with citations written by selected faculty members.

“This award is not an affirmation of who they’ve become, but who they are becoming. It’s our way of saying ‘Hey, you’re on the right path’,” Mr. Ryan said.

Editor’s Note: In the interest of full disclosure, Eric Villanueva is The Roundup co- Editor in Chief, but did not take part in the production of this article.