All the stars came out on Tuesday night at Mercy Home’s annual Academy Awards banquet, held in Tully Dining Hall at St. Ignatius College Prep.
Mercy Home co-workers Liz Mulligan and Bradford Newquist, along with Mercy Home youth Terry, emceed the event and kept the crowd on their toes with musical numbers and comedy acts. The evening also featured performances by Mercy Home’s Vision Dance Troupe, the Cooke Home Band, musical guests Deja and Francisco, and poetry readings by Lindsey, Biodun and Keisha.
But it was an unplanned act that was perhaps the highlight of the entertainment lineup. Beforehand, Fr. Scott had been tipped off that Terry and another youth, Travon, had been regaling their peers with convincing impressions of Mercy Home’s eighth president. So, during his remarks, Fr. Scott asked Travon to join him and Terry on stage, at which point he offered them the chance to do their best Fr. Scott. The pair obliged with convincing portrayals to the delight of the audience of youth, coworkers and donors.
Fr. Scott recognized the accomplishments of all youth who have graduated, or have moved on to the next grade level, as well as the coworkers who helped them achieve and donors who support this mission. After telling the story of one faithful donor he recently visited who thinks of Mercy Home’s youth like her grandchildren, he went on to thank those in the room and donors around the country who support education for our young men and women. Fr. Scott told the youth, “As we celebrate you, I would like to honor the many donors who believe in you, who pray for you, who truly want you to succeed in life.”
Darryl Schimeck, chairman of Mercy Home’s Board of Regents, offered his congratulations to the youth saying that their accomplishments are the return on the substantial investment that donors continue to make in education at Mercy Home. “If you keep doing what you’re doing, we’ll keep doing what we’re doing.”
And now, friends and supporters of Mercy Home have a unique opportunity to have their generosity go even further for these bright, young scholars. Through our summer education match, every gift Mercy Home receives will be doubled—going twice as far to enhance these academic programs that bring confidence, success and hope for the future to our kids.
After walking down the red carpet, Mercy Home youth were awarded for their achievements in education, vocation and after school activities. Awards included the Academy VIP, given to Mohamed and Destiny for showing commitment and investment in all three areas of the Academy throughout the year, the Academy Graduates award, recognizing the 38 recent graduates for their achievement, the Academic Scholar award, identifying youth who received a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher, and 3.0 or higher, and the Jimmy Brown Scholarship, which, in its first year, was awarded to Rita, Azairain, Anthony, Pedro and Joanne to support their college endeavors.
Other awards included Most Improved in School, S.T.A.R.(Students Taking Academic Responsibility), Dedicated Employee, Vocational Leadership, Dream Believe Achieve! award, Let’s Go Learn Superstar, After School Achievement, Executive Function Excellence, Courage, Citizenship, and Spirit of Mercy.
The setting for the event was both elegant and fittingly academic, as it was graciously hosted once again at St. Ignatius’ beautiful West Side campus. John Chandler, St. Ignatius Vice President and Mercy Home Board of Regents member, also reflected on the meaning of the celebration and why so many support education at Mercy Home. He said the youth’s academic successes and the evening’s performances show how the investment in Mercy Home “truly transforms the lives of young people, not just academically, but personally. It’s a true blossoming of talent and gifts that each has that the staff brings out.”
Congratulations to all of Mercy Home’s youth on another successful school year and thank you for making this year better than the last.
Share a gift today to help ensure more hurting kids academic opportunity and success. When you give through our summer education match, your generosity—and your impact on our kids—will be doubled and go twice as far to enhance their classroom experience.
