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Increasingly, Holy Cross alumni/ae are directing their support
to the sports and facilities that speak to their passions
or their past. On the
heels of a gift from Park Smith '54 to the Park and Carol Smith Wellness Center
on campus and an athletic scholarship that John Glowik '73 endowed,
Richard "Dick" Ahern '51 has made a gift to the Holy Cross track program. Ahern
hopes to transform the cross-country, and track and field programs at the College
by directing his support to their coaching component.
"With all the demands Title IX and fielding a wide variety of sports have had
on athletic funding over the years, my aim was to do something for track, especially
in the area of recruiting," Ahern said. "Track meant a lot to me at the time
I was involved. It helped
me grow up and find myself. Also, my daughter, Keelin '95, ran at Holy Cross.
I hope to inspire someone else."
Ahern, whose other two children, Brendan '97
and Ashling '99, both graduated from The Cross, made the gesture to help support
the full array of coaching activities.
"I'm excited about the prospect of full-time
coaches," he said. "It's difficult to do all they need to do on a part-time basis.
In addition to coaching, they need to be out there scouting, recruiting and meeting
with the Admissions Office to build the program."
The building already has begun. Former men's track coach Jim Kavanaugh, has been
named director of track with Egetta Alphonso now the full-time head coach for
women's track.
"This gift has allowed us to combine these additional funds with existing funds
to elevate the men's and women's head
coach positions from part- to full-time," according to Holy Cross Athletic Director
Dick Regan '76. "This allows us to do a much better job recruiting for and administering
the program."
As a high school runner, Ahern was just the kind of recruit college coaches look
for-smart and fast. He ran in New
York at a time when the exploits of the city's Catholic secondary schools' track
teams generated great excitement and headlines on the sports pages
of The New York Times and other prominent newspapers in the
city. His outstanding achievements on the run were well-known before
he got
to Holy Cross
where he became co-captain of the team in his senior year.
Even if alumni gifts do not result in headline grabbing by the Holy Cross track
program and other teams, Ahern hopes that
his, Smith's and Glowik's gestures will help increase alumni support for Holy
Cross athletics.
"I hope this will light some fires for alumni
to support nonrevenue sports," Ahern said. "Our peer schools are way ahead of
us in this regard."
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