Malvern has made me into the man I am today, and for that I am forever grateful.
Dear Malvern,
For those of you who do not know me, I am the senior that is always yelling at you for walking on the grass, but my name is actually Jimmy Faunce. I am a lifer at Malvern, which means I have been a Friar since 6th grade, and cannot believe that my time as a student has come to an end. I am the man I am today because of Malvern – no doubt in my mind.
Malvern gave me so much that I feel that there is no way in the world that I can repay it, but I would like to take this time to acknowledge the things at Malvern that have helped shape me into the man I am today.
Obviously I need to start with the faculty. The relationship that we have with our teachers is something that you will not find anywhere else. The personal relationship that I have with multiple faculty members is unparalleled and was one of the main reasons I was so excited to go to school everyday. The way they talk to us students as equals and take an interest in our lives inside and outside of the classroom shows how much they want us to succeed in life. They serve as role models in their day-to-day action, and their character, faith, dedication, and work ethic are visible in all that they do.
My faith has changed and grown tremendously. Malvern encourages each student to develop a relationship with God through prayer, chapel services, and daily communion. However, I think my faith grew the most here when I would stop and look at the many examples of individuals living a faith filled life on campus. The list of examples could go on forever, but for me personally the man that really showed me what it man to be a man of faith, was Mr. DiDomenico. I think that seeing a younger man with such a strong relationship with God helped me realize what kind of man of faith I want to strive to be in life.
The final two pieces, I feel, go hand in hand – MECO and the Brotherhood. I am not going to expand on MECO anymore than mentioning it, but I will say that this event brought me closer to my Malvern Brothers and made me keenly aware of the importance of these men in my life. The second piece is The Brotherhood. Freshman year as I signed the Brotherhood book, I am not sure that I fully understood what was meant by this “Brotherhood.” During my sophomore and junior year I thought for sure that I had figured it out. I thought that a Brotherhood was having something in common where we are all united as one – One Malvern. However, it wasn’t until my senior year that I realized that the Brotherhood is not just a common element or even a friendship. The Malvern Brotherhood is the visible respect and, more so, the love that we have for one another. Knowing that this love will never go away is an amazing feeling.
I will miss Malvern more than I could even imagined in sixth grade or even the beginning of senior year. And of all of Malvern, I will miss my brothers most. May the Lord watch over all of you brothers and keep you safe.
St. Augustine. Pray for us.
