Stephanie receives Masters from Towson University

Stephanie received her Masters degree from the College of Liberal Arts at Towson University at a commencement ceremony last week.

Her undergraduate ceremony was canceled due to the Covid pandemic, so "it was rewarding for her to be able to attend this ceremony in person," says her mom, Cathy. 

"Her MS degree is in Professional Writing with a concentration on writing for the non-profit sector. With this degree, along with her work and internship experience, she should be well prepared to obtain a grant-writing position."

Stephanie with brother, Chris, and mom, Cathy, before the ceremony.

Christine and Jamie preparing to move back east

After three and a half years in Los Angeles, Christine and Jamie are packing up for a move back across the country.

They are in the process of buying a house in Schenectady, N.Y., and expect to close the purchase and move in during the last week of June.

Their decision to move was spurred by their wish to own a house (prohibitively expensive in L.A.) and their desire to be closer to family. They focused their search on New York State because it's the one Eastern state where Jamie's company, Skybound Entertainment, is set up to have employees. And they zeroed in on the Capital District for its affordable suburban neighborhoods and its easy highway access to many of their relatives. They will be about 3 hours from Christine's parents, 4 hours from Jamie's mother, and only about 45 minutes from Andy and Wren's home in Middleburgh, N.Y.

The couple are no strangers to Upstate New York: They met while students at Rochester Institute of Technology. And while the area gets more winter snow than Christine's native New Jersey, it's comparable to southern New Hampshire, where Jamie grew up.

Xander graduates high school, heads to university

Xander graduated from Courtland High School in Spotsylvania Courthouse, Va., on May 17. 

Entering to "Pomp and Circumstance"

Nearly 400 graduating seniors walked across the stage during the commencement ceremony on the high school's football field. 

Xander was among the Distinguished Honor Graduates wearing gold cords over their graduation gowns, signifying that they achieved a 4.00 or higher cumulative grade-point average.  

Xander's parents, Marie and Brian, and grandparents Dan and Julie; Anne Marie and Os; and Barbara and Steve were among the crowd of family and friends that jammed the bleachers on either side of the field.

After the ceremony, Marie and Brian hosted a lunch at their home, and later a dinner at a nearby restaurant, giving the grandparents ample opportunity for conversation - and for quizzing Xander on his plans.

Xander is joining the Class of 2029 at University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg. He'll commute to the campus, about a 15-minute drive, and initially plans to major in philosophy.

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Easter time touring with family in Ireland

In an amazing feat of logistics, Kathy, Robert, Kathy's three children and their spouses and children all met up in Ireland and toured much of the country this April, around Easter.

Kathy, Robert, Genevieve, John, Bea, Jack and Liam flew from New York to Dublin. Vivien, CJ, Charlie, Austin and Oliver came up from London. Patrick and Kelsey joined the group a little later.

At Cobh Heritage Centre

At EPIC Museum

The 14 toured the countryside together at times in a chartered minibus, and at other times in smaller groups. 

Among their stops were the Epic Irish Emigration Museum in Dublin and the Cobh Heritage Centre in County Cork.

Cobh was an embarkation point for many of Ireland's immigrants to America (as well as the last port of call for the Titanic). 

While in County Cork, the group also visited Blarney Castle, and some (but not all) kissed the famous stone.

In County Claire on the west coast, the group took in the sights of the Cliffs of Moher and visited O'Brien's Tower, built in 1835 atop the cliffs.

Those were just a few of the highlights of a wonderful trip and a great gathering of the clan!

Family festivities this spring in Maryland

On two occasions - Cathy's birthday and Easter Sunday - family members gathered at Oak Crest Village in Maryland to celebrate with Dolores and Hugh. This photo was taken at the birthday gathering. We failed to get a picture from Easter brunch, but the group was the same except for the absence of Stephanie's friend Abe (far left above). 

On Easter Morning, Julie and Dan brought Dolores and Hugh to their parish church, Trinity Episcopal in Towson, where they enjoyed greeting in person many of the friends they typically see only from behind as they watch the video stream of Trinity's Sunday services.

Taking in the beautiful sights of springtime in Newark, NJ (Yes!)

As they've done the past few Springs, Dan and Julie visited Newark's Branch Brook Park in early April to see its cherry blossom trees in full bloom.

The 360-acre park, designed by Frederick Law Olmstead, contains some 5,300 cherry trees in 18 varieties. 

On this visit, D&J also visited the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart, which overlooks the park. It's a spectacular building in French Gothic style, constructed in the first half of the 20th Century. 

The cathedral covers 45,000 square feet, an area equal to that of London’s Westminster Abbey, and is longer and taller than St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City, according to its website.

Although it doesn't have centuries of history like the Medieval cathedrals of Europe, it rivals them in beauty with its rose windows, statuary and woodwork. Pope John Paul II visited the cathedral in 1985 and presided over an evening prayer service. It was on that visit that he designated Sacred Heart as a basilica.

Julie greets a friendly lion across Branch Brook Lake from the cathedral.