Alumni Dinner Honorees 2008

Dorothy Mendes

Like many who have worked at Brother Rice High School, recently retired Alumni Secretary Dorothy Mendes took a pay cut to work here, when she left Holy Cross Hospital to work exclusively as the Alumni Association Secretary. She was paid to work mornings at Rice and then evenings at the hospital from 1991 to 1994, until she realized that the she was devoting more time at Rice than just her mornings. Since she had already contracted an incurable case of Rice Pride, she opted to quit the hospital in order to do what she loved at Brother Rice.

Rice Pride first entered Dorothy’s spirit when her son, Michael ’85, enrolled in 1981. She joined the Mother’s Club that year, and then the Alumni Mother’s Club in 1985, becoming president in the mid-90’s.

Alumni Director Jim Casey ’70 said, “I remember hiring Dorothy because she had the skills necessary, but also because she worked at St. Linus and at Holy Cross. I liked that she knew the drill when it comes to working for a Catholic institution, i.e., lots of rewards, not much of which is financial. I also liked that she was already a devoted volunteer whose son was a graduate, so she already knew and liked many people around here.”

“What I didn’t yet know and like about her, vastly exceeded what I knew,” Casey added. “I never knew anyone, male or female, so naturally and completely uninterested in gossip or in even discussing another person in a negative way. Not realizing until working with her for awhile that I was not as naturally strong as she in this regard, she taught me that it really is possible to have people rub you the wrong way without ever saying a word about it. And she taught me this without ever saying a word about it. I never anticipated how such quiet strength would serve as such a valuable quality in gaining the trust of alumni.”

Everybody loves Dorothy. Softly, she tells self-deprecating stories about personal mishaps that make listeners laugh hysterically. Quietly, she would go about her busy day, non-stop, always keeping a full jar of cookies and pretzels and licorice for welcome visitors. Steadfastly and cheerfully, she would make hundreds of timely calls or send thousands of timely letters to ensure the success of an alumni event. Pleasantly, she would meet and greet hundreds of alumni at dinners, career days, and golf outings, even though when she first started at Rice she thought we were reserving “tea” times rather than “tee” times. She innocently wondered if guys from Chicago took time out for a spot of tea in the middle of their rounds of golf. Also innocently, she would pass along for publication an alumni update submitted as a prank. (an example of which we deliberately withhold so that you don’t get any ideas).

During her 17 years as Alumni Secretary, she assisted the Alumni Board during a phenomenal period of growth. Her salary never came close to catching up to her ever-expanding duties, “and she never complained,” according to Casey. The Alumni Association went from reserving 100 to over 200 tee times, while adding corporate sponsors to the annual golf outing. We also added a pre-game and post-game receptions, perhaps the most successful Career Day of any high school, and STAT (Seniors Today Alumni Tomorrow) to her already full plate. In the meantime, Dorothy not only maintained the data base as it was, she went through every yearbook in order to add every graduate’s extra-curricular activity, so that we could better serve and promote individual reunions.

“I’m not exaggerating!” Casey exclaimed. “In 17 years of working together, I don’t recall ever hearing a single complaint, and it’s not because I was anywhere close to being a perfect guy to work with,” added Casey while acknowledging that he would have no trouble convincing anyone of that.

Instead, Dorothy just remembers how nice everyone was to her and how generous all the volunteers and donors are to the school. She loved the view from her spotless office, where she could see the everyday comings and goings to and from Brother Rice. She cherishes her relationships with and memories of everyone, singling out the great rapport she shared with Casey, and the deep and painful sense of loss from the sudden deaths this year of two of Brother Rice’s best friends, Tom Carmody ’69 and Jim Cannon ’63, who called her after every meeting to make sure she got home OK.

Dorothy’s Rice Pride is deep and abiding, expressed with unwavering loyalty. And for anyone who has ever had a conversation with her, we feel a distinctly quiet pleasantness that has been enduringly infused into the school’s spirit, thanks to her. Alumni who worked closely with Dorothy are better men for the experience. For that and more than can be said here, we are proud to honor Dorothy Mendes as the 2008 Woman of the Year.