Meet the members of the CM family whose generosity ensures that the next generation of Knights inherits the same transformative opportunities that shaped their own lives.
John Mullin ’79
John Mullin ’79 describes his life’s successes as the way a house is built. His time at Catholic Memorial was the laying of solid foundations; college builds the rest of the house, “…and your job,” he says, “pays for the whole thing.”
As one of four siblings raised by his grandmother in Quincy, Mullin understood early on that if he was going to succeed, he needed to find himself in a place that would challenge him and instill the qualities necessary to succeed. It helped that his older cousin, Jerry Connors, who was good friends with then-CM faculty member Dan Burke, saw something in John that prompted him to ask the question. “You want to go to college after high school, right? Well, it won’t happen with you going to Quincy High.”
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Throwing himself into hockey and his studies, Mullin embraced the opportunities offered. CM became the arena where he would find out what he was made of. “Brother Sheridan had an awesome way of teaching religion, and I could relate to him because he was from New York City and I’d go there to visit my dad,” recalls Mullin. “And I’m also going to put it out there, Coach Hanson. He went out of his way to drive me home after many practices and had a knack for picking guys who wanted it, had drive and determination, and a refusal to fail.” Homework was done while dragging his hockey bag on the two buses he took to get home. While attending UMass-Lowell, Mullin maintained this mindset, remaining on campus and not returning to his dorm until his engineering assignments for the day were done.
Don Shruhan ’73
Some people credit their life’s success to being in the right place at the right time. For Don Shruhan ’73, it was more the case of the right school at the right time. Coming to CM from the Boston public school system, Shruhan believes it reflects how the school taught kids who were in the middle of the pack, as he was.
“If it wasn’t for that extra help, and recognizing that that’s all I needed, I could have been one of those kids that I used to run wild with back in those days. Those were the guys I ended up catching when I was in law enforcement,” he laughs. Today, Shruhan is the Director of Global IP Investigations for Apple, having spent his career in the government and private sector chasing money launderers and major fraudsters around the globe. Think of him as Dick Tracy with a fat passport.
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Shruhan comes from the school of thought that teaches humility, helping others, and never forgetting where you came from. “My father lost his job when the factory he worked in closed. As a way of giving back, my parents looked after the newborns of unwed mothers. At 12, I was changing diapers of these infants and learned from my parents that no matter your circumstances, you find a way to give back.”
These days, Shruhan does what his parents instilled in him. As the first person in his family to go to college and make it to the top of companies like Pfizer and Apple, it’s fair to say that he’s a success. Giving back to CM is a priority. To compete with larger, longer-established schools, it’s the alumni who can make the difference. “If you can invest in an endowment fund, you can benefit yourself as a taxpayer while making sure the place you believe in receives the kind of donation that says, ‘thanks.’”
Bill Wessell ’63
“I had no plan on attending Catholic Memorial until my father got involved. And my father was, to put it lightly, “tough.” So, he put me in his old wagon and took me down to the school. Took me into the gym and introduced me to Ronnie Perry.
I had a wonderful time. I was involved in just about every activity you could think of. I played basketball and baseball, and we won championships in both. My class was around 258 boys, and we were all good friends through those four years. It was a phenomenal experience.
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When I look back at when I entered CM, the tuition was $285 a year. And my folks didn’t have any money. What I had to do was caddy at two country clubs and wait tables at a restaurant in Norwood. And when I came home, my mother would have her hand out to put the money I earned into the coffee pot so it could go toward next year’s tuition.
During my CM years, we had some pretty tough kids who entered the school. And these kids came from very tough families out in Roxbury, Hyde Park, and places like that. And you know, the brothers straightened them out. And so, when I fast-forward, my feeling is that I’d like to give back with a sense of supporting some young boy who is underprivileged, and can’t afford to go to CM, but has the academic and athletic capability of getting in. And that kid can graduate and go on to have a better life. That’s why I’m doing what I’m doing.”
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