Author Archives: Shepherds

Mentors, Students and Families Attend Mentor Appreciation Night at NDWH

| January 29, 2018

January, National Mentor Appreciation Month, is coming to a close. Mentors, students and family members along with NDWH staff, gathered on January 24th in the Maureen and George J. Collins ’58 Auditorium at Notre Dame High School to celebrate the role of mentors in students’ lives. Phoebe Greenfield, mother of NDWH Senior Reuben Clarke, addressed the crowd and talked about the importance of her own Catholic education in her native Liberia and the value she places on Reuben’s education at Notre Dame. A heartfelt thanks to all of our students and mentors and those that came to support them. Thanks also to photographer Gabrielle Bridgewood Watson who volunteered to take photos. Visit us on Facebook @shepherdsmentors to see additional pictures from the evening.

Shepherds Has Been Changing Students’ Lives for 20 Years

| January 25, 2018

January is National Mentoring Month – a month dedicated to promoting youth mentorship in the United States. This year, Bridgeport-based Shepherds marks its 20th year of providing tuition support and adult mentors to underserved, at-risk high school students in the greater Bridgeport and New Haven areas.

Connecticut is a state known for excellent schools however high school graduation rates in many of our inner city schools is as low as 55%. Students often lack the academic preparation necessary to succeed in high school and beyond. Without support and attention, many students struggle to graduate.

Since 1998, non-profit Shepherds has provided tuition support and mentors to more than 219 young men & women entering college-preparatory high schools in the greater Bridgeport and New Haven areas. Shepherds’ graduation rate is 100%; most students move on to 2 and 4-year college programs. Today, 37 young men and 24 young women are working towards their high school diplomas at Kolbe Cathedral High School in Bridgeport and Notre Dame High School in West Haven.

Mentors make a monthly commitment of time and energy to an individual student and receive professional training and extensive staff support throughout their four-years of mentoring. Sponsors make a financial commitment and receive the reward of knowing they are making a sound investment in the life of an inner-city young person.

Shepherds needs mentors for twenty students entering high school in fall, 2018. If you want to change a young person’s life please contact Dan McAuliffe, Shepherds’ Executive Director, by April 15th at dmcauliffe@shepherdsmentors.org . For more information on the great work Shepherds does, visit www.shepherdsmentors.org.

Shepherds Celebrates 20 Years of Changing Lives

| January 17, 2018

In 1998, Shepherds started with 7 freshmen at Kolbe Cathedral High School. Over 250 alumni later, we are celebrating 20 years of Changing Lives…One Student at a Time. Mark your calendar for our 20th anniversary dinner on Thursday, October 11, 2018 at the Inn at Longshore in Westport.

Elias leads Notre Dame to win over Hamden in 67th Green Bowl

| November 25, 2017

HAMDEN — Senior quarterback Chris Elias led three first-half scoring drives then watched the Notre Dame-West Haven defense make two key second-half interceptions in the Green Knights’ 21-14 win over the Green Dragons in the 67th Green Bowl on Thanksgiving at Hamden High School.
The Green Knights (3-7) jumped out to a 14-0 lead after two of their first three possessions.
First, Elias capped off a 70-yard drive, scoring on a 1-yard quarterback sneak on fourth down to give Notre Dame a 7-0 lead with 8:45 left in the first quarter.
After a fumble on its next possession, Notre Dame’s third drive appeared to be stalled as well. Punting on fourth down, Hamden went for the block, but was called for a roughing the punter penalty, giving Notre Dame a first down.
The Green Knights’ offense used the reprieve to add to its lead when Elias lofted a neatly-thrown 15-yard touchdown pass to Nick Petruzzelli for a 14-0 lead with 6:45 left in the first half.
Elias’ third touchdown of the game came in an unconventional manner as first-year head coach Joe DeCaprio reached into his bag of trick plays.
Elias took the shotgun snap and handed to Isaiah Kane, who flipped the ball to Petruzzelli, who then lofted a perfectly-thrown pass to Elias who had snuck out of the backfield. Elias then outran a few Hamden defenders for a 35-yard touchdown and the Green Knights led 21-0 with just more than four minutes left in the first half.
“I give Hamden a lot of credit,” said Notre Dame head coach Joe DeCaprio. “We scored on three of our first four drives but we needed a couple key interceptions late in the game to hold them off.”
Elias, who completed 12 of his 16 passes for 207 yards in his final game for Notre Dame, was hoping that play would be called.
“I was pretty pumped, but nervous at the same time,” he said. “We’ve been practicing that play for two years now and I am glad it paid off. I was nervous I would drop it but it worked out.”
Hamden, which finished 1-9, did not go away quietly though. From that point forward, not only did the Hamden defense keep Notre Dame off the scoreboard, but they also engineered several nice drives, two of which ended in Sahim Hasan to John Mayes touchdown passes.
The first of which came with 40 seconds left in the first half from 39 yards out cutting the Hamden deficit to 21-7 at intermission. That duo connected again from 28 yards out with 6:13 left in the third quarter and suddenly Hamden trailed 21-14.
Hamden had a few chances to tie the game with drives reaching as far as the Notre Dame 30-yard line but the Green Knight defense rose to the occasion each time.
On the final play of the third quarter, Hasan (8-14 for 137 yards) tried to find Jayquan Bromell, but Notre Dame defensive back Andrew Kendrick ran stride for stride with Bromell and intercepted the pass in the end zone.
Kendrick sealed the win for the Green Knights with his second interception of the game with 1:40 left. Hasan, rolling to his left, threw the pass to the far sideline. The ball was tipped by Notre Dame’s Jared Gallbronner, but Kendrick was able to corral the ball and get both feet inbounds, ending any hopes of a Hamden come-from-behind win.
“It came down to they made a few more plays than we did,” Hamden coach Tom Dyer said. “Sahim made two great touchdown passes for us, but in the end, we had some key penalties that hurt us throughout the game, too.”
Notre Dame’s defense also came up with a huge fourth down stop from the two-yard line on Hamden’s first possession of the game.
“We switched defenses for this game and it worked out great,” DeCaprio said. “They scored on a couple fade patterns but we did a nice job on the run and those two interceptions by Andrew (Kendrick) were huge.”
For the game, Notre Dame outgained Hamden 336-235 and held a 14-12 first down advantage. Hamden did run 52 plays to Notre Dame’s 43 and held a 12-minute time of possession edge.
With the win, Notre Dame has won 12 straight in this series and holds a 43-22-2 all-time advantage. It’s the second time in four years that Notre Dame has won by a touchdown. The Green Knights won 35-28 in 2014. Hamden’s last series win was a 15-10 triumph in 2005.

Kolbe ’18 Point Guard, Trinity Bravo to Play for Bryant University

| November 22, 2017

Trinity Bravo is an exceptional student, role model and athlete. The point guard just accepted a scholarship to play Division 1 basketball for the next four years at Bryant University in Smithfield, Rhode Island. No one is prouder than Trinity’s parents but her Shepherds mentor, Carolyn Vermont, is also thrilled. Trinity’s new status as a Bulldog will bring her back to the area at points during the season as Bryant plays Sacred Heart and Central Connecticut. Everyone at Shepherds wishes Trinity and her family the best of luck and know that the lessons instilled by her parents, her mentor and her teammates and teachers at Kolbe, will guarantee success during this next chapter.

Greg Dillon, NDWH ’74 Inducted at 2017 Knights of Honor Dinner

| November 10, 2017

Gregory B. Dillon, a proud graduate and loyal alumnus of Notre Dame, has had a successful career in law enforcement and business. Through his support for Notre Dame and dedication to the Shepherds Inc. mentoring program at ND, Greg has made a significant difference in the lives of many young Notre Dame Men.

A 1974 graduate of Notre Dame, Greg was an exemplary student while at ND. He was a member of the National Honor Society, the school newspaper, the Christian Student Mission Club, the Pep Club, and the intramural program.

Greg began a long and distinguished career in law enforcement after graduating magna cum laude from the University of New Haven in 1978 with a BS in Criminal Justice, Law Enforcement Administration. After college Greg was a Special Deputy Sheriff in New Haven and then spent seven years as a patrol officer in Branford which he credits for the foundation of his training in law enforcement. In 1985, Greg joined the FBI as a special agent. While at the FBI, his assignments included positions on the Violent Crime Squad, SWAT team, and the Criminal Reactive Squad. In 1990, Greg accepted a position as an inspector with the office of the CT Chief State’s attorney and was promoted to Supervisory Inspector in 1994. Throughout his almost twenty-year career with the Division of Criminal, he worked on the Gang and Continuing Criminal Activities Bureau, the Firearms Trafficking Task Force, the Connecticut Fugitive Task Force, and the Economic Crime Unit.

After retiring from law enforcement, Greg began a highly successful second career in business. His first venture was as owner of two CrossFit gyms—the first in Cheshire, CT and one currently in Morristown, NJ. He enjoys helping CrossFit enthusiasts reach their fitness goals through a regimen of high-intensity interval training. In 2016 Greg’s entrepreneurial spirit guided him to his latest business partnership as co-founder of Quandary, an Escape Room Experience in Wallingford, CT.

Greg’s involvement and long affiliation with the Shepherds Inc., mentoring program at Notre Dame has had a great impact on the lives of many young Notre Dame Men. Shepherds provides support for underserved students in the New Haven area and pairs them with mentors to guide them through their high school years. Throughout the fifteen-year partnership between ND and Shepherds, Greg has mentored eight students in the program. Currently, he mentors a young man in the junior class, serves as a mentor coach, and is a member of the Shepherds Interview panel.

Certainly Greg’s extensive experience in Law Enforcement was one factor in his decision to become involved with Shepherds, Inc. “There weren’t many bright spots in the (inner city) community for young men. I thought someone has to do something actively to turn this around. Someone has to fill this vacuum.”
Greg lives in North Haven with his wife Vilma.

Welcome Notre Dame High School Class of 2021!

| September 11, 2017

Notre Dame HS in West Haven welcomed 5 incoming Shepherds freshmen to the Class of 2021and will hold a Back to School Night on Wednesday, September 13 from 6-8:00PM. We wish all of our students and mentors as well as their families and the staff at NDWH a happy and healthy school year!

Welcome Kolbe Cathedral Class of 2021!

| September 11, 2017

This year Kolbe Cathedral High School welcomed 11 incoming Shepherds freshmen to the Class of 2021. Kick Off Night for mentors, students and families is Thursday, September 28 from 6-8:00PM. Wishing all a successful, healthy and happy new school year!

Shepherds Celebrates Kolbe Cathedral HS Class of 2017

| June 1, 2017

This year, fifteen Shepherds students enrolled at Kolbe Cathedral HS in Bridgeport, received their diplomas. Executive Director, Dan McAuliffe, several Board Members, students, family, mentors and faculty celebrated the accomplishments of the 9 young women and 8 young men at their annual graduation brunch at Brooklawn Country Club in Fairfield. This year’s graduates include:

  • Iyanna Cobb who will attend Central CT State University to study Clinical Sociology.
  • Kay’la Cook who will attend Housatonic Community College to study Business.
  • Christine Davis who will study Nursing at Mt. St. Vincent’s College in NYC.
  • Hassanah Dixon who will attend Southern CT State University to study Physical Therapy.
  • Kirk Fils who will study Computer Science at Gateway Community College.
  • Steve Guaman who will study History at UCONN Stamford.
  • Jastin Machado who will also attend UCONN Stamford to study Biomedical Engineering.
  • Sabrina Miranda who plans to attend Southern CT State University this fall.
  • Danielle Ashley Pearson who will pursue Radiology at Gateway Community College.
  • Abimelett Rodriguez who will attend Norwalk Community College and focus on Business.
  • Ronald Rodriguez who will study Science at Fairfield University.
  • Sheina Rosa who will pursue a degree in Accounting at Barry University in FLA.
  • Kerry Thomas who will study Psychology at Central CT State University.
  • Jonathan Vasquez who will attend Embry Riddle University in FLA to study Aeronautics.
  • Keyira Whittingham who plans to study Biology, and ultimately Medicine, at The University of New Haven.