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Lessons and Carols — Scholarship Reception
Read Bochacki’s remarks:
"I’d like to think that my experience at Holy Cross has come full circle. This year, I have found myself in the once unfamiliar role of senior interviewer to prospective students. 'Jesuit identity,' 'strong sense of community,' and 'liberal arts education' are catch phrases often heard in the halls of admissions, as eager applicants respond to the question 'Why Holy Cross?' Any student who has had the opportunity to spend four years on Mount. St. James will tell you that these are not simply intangible phrases, but rather, become realities in the sights and sounds of Holy Cross. And I am incredibly lucky to say that they are a constant in my life. Many prospective students, uncertain about what life is truly like on The Hill, often turn the question around and ask, 'So what did you like about Holy Cross?' I am usually overwhelmed with the thought of having to answer this question in each student’s allotted interview time slot of an hour.
If you had asked my mother this question, she has a go-to 'Why I love Holy Cross' story, which I have undoubtedly heard her tell at multiple family functions, grocery store checkout lines, and basically anywhere that she has the opportunity to do some HC recruiting in our hometown of Buffalo, NY. At this point, let’s just say she could probably be on the payroll at HC for the amount of PR she does. Nonetheless, she always recounts a particular story from my first day at Holy Cross. As we drove up College Street with a van packed full of every college-appropriate necessity that Bed, Bath, & Beyond had to offer, we were greeted by students clad in purple and white on every corner. When we made our way down to the infamous 'Easy Street,' students were everywhere, all on hand to give us a unique Crusader welcome at our car. While my parents had already been devising ways to unpack all of things for the last hour of our road trip, all plans were no longer needed when we saw a pack of Crusaders rush the car and unpack everything in a matter of seconds. All of my boxes and bags had been neatly placed in my dorm room four flights of stairs up. At this point, my mom started crying and said 'That’s it Cae—you are exactly where you should be. This is going to be an amazing four years.' I had believed her at the time, but as a nervous and awkward freshman, it was hard to see that she couldn’t be more right.
This first encounter with Holy Cross is only one of the many manifestations of the wonderful community we are all a part of. And my next four years were marked by similar experiences that to me are characteristically '“Holy Cross.' These experiences are ones that have shaped the person I am today, and my education here has armed me with the tools necessary to continue my growth beyond the gates of the college. As a freshman, I began to get my feet wet in the laboratories of the science complex as I started the pre-med curriculum. A bit overwhelmed by the seemingly endless formulas and difficult new scientific concepts, I struggled with the idea of continuing with the program. But through the support of professors and peers, and countless days spent in office hours or study groups with friends, I kept going. I believe many students would agree that the endless support of peers and a remarkable faculty makes the Holy Cross experience an incredible one. During the next three years, I began to take advantage of the opportunities Holy Cross offered beyond the classroom. As a junior, I took part in the D.C. Semester program and worked as an intern at the Administration on Developmental Disabilities at Health and Human Services Headquarters. As a self-proclaimed lover of science, I felt like a fish out of water in the intense political atmosphere of Washington D.C. However, I absolutely loved it. Challenged in new ways, I was forced to think outside of my comfort zone and look at health from a public policy perspective instead of a biological one. All of a sudden I found myself returning to Holy Cross as a senior. This year I have had the opportunity to work with a professor in the psychology department on an independent research project on eating disorders, an area I hope to pursue in the future. These are the experiences I could not have imagined myself having as an anxious freshman pulling up to the gates of Holy Cross. I now find myself sharing these stories at family parties, and grocery store check out lines, and let’s be honest, anywhere people are willing to listen. I am proud to say I think I have surpassed my own mother in the Holy Cross PR department.
Of course, none of these stories and experiences would have been possible without the generosity of the alumni donors, who have selflessly given back so that students could have similar opportunities and experiences to the ones they once had on the Hill. Reflecting on my time here, I am incredibly grateful for the professors that have challenged me to think in new ways, eye-opening internship opportunities, and the gift of a liberal arts education. For these things, I cannot say thank you enough to the alumni whose kindness has given me the opportunity to have a Holy Cross education. However, some of my most memorable and vivid learning experiences at Holy Cross have gone outside of the walls of the classroom. I am forever grateful for the late night study sessions with friends in Dinand, when you learn that studying can only go on for so long before you start making DNA jokes… or finding out that the morning preparation of painting purple “HCs” on our faces before a football game at Fitton Field is a necessary ritual…and of course, realizing that your parents will not have to lift a finger on move-in day. These are the memories I am incredibly grateful for. These are the ones that I can take away with me as I graduate and say… 'Only at Holy Cross.' Now as I have sat on the other side of the interview and have spoken to excited students looking to spend their next four years at HC, I have to say I am a little jealous that their experience is just starting. But of course, I am nothing but thankful for what Holy Cross has given me."