Awards Ceremony
The 2026 ceremony is scheduled for June 6 at 12 p.m. It will be held in the Luth Concert Hall at the Prior Performing Arts Center.
Sanctae Crucis Award Winners 2026
The Sanctae Crucis Award is the highest non-degree accolade that the College awards alumni.
Those who earn the distinction have distinguished themselves professionally and in the service of justice, embodying the Jesuit ideals outlined in the College’s mission.
This Year's Winners
Thomas O’Brien '86 and Sheila Cavanaugh '81 have earned the award for Outstanding Community Service. Maryclaire Dale ‘84 and John Klofas ‘77 have earned the award for Distinguished Professional Achievement.
This week, we're highlighting Tom O'Brien. O’Brien has been a figure in the Cleveland area for years as a community organizer. His work has helped distribute over $20 million in grants and built connections between neighborhoods and the people who live in them. Learn more about Tom below.
Tom O'Brien's Legacy of Outstanding Community Service
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Neighborhood Connections
Tom O’Brien has been the Director of Neighborhood Connections since 2007. During his tenure, Neighborhood Connections has distributed over $20 million in grants to grassroots groups and organizations throughout Cleveland and East Cleveland, Ohio.
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Building Bridges
Before working at Neighborhood Connections, Tom was a community organizer in Cleveland’s Broadway-Slavic Village neighborhood for five years, working with residents to effect change in their neighborhood and bridge relationships across racial lines.
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Cleveland Clinic and the Community
One of Tom’s initiatives connected medical administrators at the Cleveland Clinic with community members, resulting in a program providing employment preferences to local residents whose neighborhoods were impacted by the Clinic’s growth.
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Jesuit Volunteer Corps
Tom served as an Area Director with the Jesuit Volunteer Corps for three years in Portland, Oregon, and also taught and coached at the high school and junior high school levels in Connecticut and Texas.
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A Holy Cross Family
Tom is the third generation of his family to attend Holy Cross, and the father of Elle O’Brien, Class of 2027.
Tom carries Holy Cross values into all aspects of his life, and in his single-minded dedication to community service. Tom’s entire career has been spent in service to underprivileged people. He has internalized the message he learned in Liberation Theology class from Father Manning, of Jesus’ preferential option for the poor, and the Jesuit values of compassion, openness, and seeing God in all things.
