Alumni of the Year
Established 24 years ago, the Distinguished Alumni of the Year Award has recognized outstanding alumni, and their commitment to the goals and objectives of Bishop McGuinness. It highlights the importance of what it means to be a person for others through their actions not only in the Irish community, but also in their community and church.
You may nominate as many outstanding alumni as you wish. We just ask that the nominees have served the school, their church and/or community well during their postgraduate time. The 2024 Distinguished Alumni Award will be presented in May during graduation. If you have any questions about nominations, please email Michele Goldsworthy Aguilera '80, alumni coordinator.
Mr. John Bane '62 has been selected as the 2023 Distinguished Alumni Award recipients. He was recognized during the graduation ceremony on May 16, 2023.
"I graduated in 1962 from this phenomenal institution, and it has been the cornerstone of my life. So many good things happened because of the teachers we had here at McGuinness. I wasn’t in the top 50% of my class. But it was people like me that allowed the top 50% to get some recognition."
"I want to tell the graduating students how very proud we are of you! I want you to follow your dreams, and I know you have heard that but I mean it. Do something you love to do. If in college in two or three years from now you find out you don’t want to be a psychiatrist and you want to be a painter? Be the best painter. Be the best you can be! That is what you are here on earth for is to use your talents to be the best you can be. My final and most important message for you is keep God in your daily life, he is there for you."
- John Bane, Acceptance Speech
Award Recipients
1999 Fr. William M. Eichhoff ’56
1999 Larry Shaw ’55
2000 Linda Cavanaugh Clark ’69
2001 Greg Burns ’65
2002 Dr. Louis V. Lepak, Jr. ’61
2002 Dr. William H. Bernauer ’65
2003 William R. Cathey ’76
2004 Judy McCarthy Love ’55
2005 Michael J. Milligan ’73
2006 Jerry Kelley ’70
2007 Tom Ward ’65
2008 Rear Admiral Greg Slavonic ’67, U.S. Navy
2009 Dr. J. Peter Kierl ’72
2010 James A. Connelly, Jr. ’73
2010 Jack O’Meara ’66
2011 Lil Ross ’56
2012 Fr. Joseph Uhen ’76
2013 David Riesenberg ’75
2014 Carol Scanlon Lester ’74
2015 Richard Tuohy ’69
2016 Chris Engel ’78
2017 Greg Love ’80
2018 Amy Feighny ’86
2019 Ryan Maxwell ’98
2020 Bentley Edmonds ’81
2020 Lisa Ruffin Edmonds ’82
2021 Dr. David Chansolme ’89
2022 Peter McConnell '94
2023 John Bane '62