Brogan: Saluting Brady!

It was in September of 1963 that Bishop Brady High School on Columbus Avenue in Concord, first opened its doors to hundreds of eager students.

For some years, St. John's High School had been bursting at the seams due to the demand for the education it provided. It had justly earned a sterling reputation for both the quality of education the school provided but also for the other academic activities, especially sports. For students making the transfer from the small and more quaint St. John's campus to the shiny and new as well as expansive Brady campus, it was a bit unnerving. Without months, however, Brady became home.

In the 60 years since, Bishop Brady High School has earned an international reputation for the quality of education it provides and for the lessons learned both within and outside of the classroom. On the website it sums up what Brady has been and continues to be:

Bishop Brady High School, a Catholic, co-educational secondary school located in Concord, New Hampshire, is celebrating 60 years of providing opportunities for Faith, Learning, and Service to students. We believe learning occurs as much outside of the classroom as within the classroom as evidenced by our extensive academic offerings as well as the plethora of options to participate in the arts, athletics, and co-curricular activities. Our 25-year history of serving international populations creates a multicultural community, and our faith-based program reinforces Christian values in a small, caring community.

I was not there in the beginning, but I would soon join the ranks as a freshman and would spend the four best years of my schooling, learning from the best. It was about far more than learning within the confines of a classroom. It was the life lessons you gathered from a brilliant mix of staff and teachers as well as from those who also attended the school. In those early years, the staff was comprised of a great many nuns from the Order of the Sisters of Mercy, as well as some priests. The number of lay staff increased through the years with several like Frank Monahan and Harvey Smith, sharing coaching duties ("Go Giants!") with teaching.

Our spiffy uniforms were purchased from the Silverman's who owned the downtown Varsity Shop, Youth Center and Junior Deb. While we may have all dressed the same, our individual personalities were encouraged to blossom and grow. All were welcomed and within two years of opening, Brady was enrolling students who were not Catholic. I never found there to be any kind of a clique. An education at Brady was an all-encompassing experience.

Brady has always been at the forefront, striving for excellence and amassing deserved honors for educational, sports and artistic achievements. They also introduced a Veteran's Wall to honor students who had proudly served their country. Like many others, I enlisted in the service because at Brady I learned the value of sacrifice, doing what is right, and unselfish devotion and dedication to making a difference. Each November, the school holds an event at which those who served are honored, those we have lost are remembered and there is time to pause and reflect.

Six decades later, Brady continues to provide a brilliant education, thanks to a staff led by Andrea Isaak Elliot, as well as outstanding faculty, coaches and other staff members who are there to help, encourage and inspire the student body by example.

I frequently return to Brady, not just out of a sense of nostalgia but because I come away enthused and inspired by what I see happening at the school. It just feels right to walk those familiar corridors and remind myself what really matters.

Tonight (April 13) the school will mark its Diamond Jubilee with a celebration to be held at the school. Hall of Fame Honorees will be saluted as will new inductees from the school's celebrated sports' history. The school values and treasures its past with the same enthusiasm that it looks forward.

My feelings about Brady are best summed up by something I wrote two years ago in my most recent book:

"My four years at Bishop Brady High School could be best summarized by something that happened only weeks prior to my graduation.

I went to the office one morning and was greeted, warmly, by Mrs. Geary. She was the Office Manager, secretary and the first face you usually saw. I told her I wanted to see the Principal, Sister Mary Alfred.

“Let me see if Sister’s available”, she replied as she hurried off to check for me.

She was back in about a minute, telling me that Sister would be very happy to talk with me and to go on in.

I really liked Sister Alfred. During my freshman and sophomore years she had been my French teacher. While I wasn’t extraordinarily good at the subject, I worked very hard. I wanted to perfect my French pronunciation since I had learned several operas by Gounod including “Romeo et Juliette” and “Faust”.

When I walked into her office, Sister Alfred stood and smiled as she greeted me and shook my hand.

“Good morning, Mr. Brogan. What can I do for you?”

Sister Alfred was always very respectful to the senior boys, and usually called us mister, as a sign of that respect.

She motioned for me to sit down, and I did before I launched into my well-rehearsed speech.

"Sister, I would really like you to flunk me. I’d like to fail.”

To say that Sister Alfred looked surprised would be an understatement. She almost appeared to be waiting for the punchline or for me to say I was only kidding. I was not.

“Sister, I need to stay here for one more year. In the past two years I have learned so much. In fact, during my senior year, I have grown in many ways. I need one more year to perfect that, so that I am ready to find a place that works for me in this world.”

To her credit, Sister Alfred did not laugh or try to dismiss my concerns. Instead, she asked me, with grave sincerity, what I had learned.

“I’ve learned to not be selfish. I’ve learned the importance of doing for others and considering others when I make decisions. I’ve learned the satisfaction of a job well done as well as the role that Faith can play in how we live.”

“Then we have done our job and you have been open to what we have been teaching you. You are ready for the next step,” she said, conveying a generosity of spirit and warmth that made her the perfect Principal.

It was not what I wanted to hear, of course, and I was fighting back tears as she walked me to the door and said, softly, “Remember your Brady years and never forget us.”

Congrats to Brady! Go Giants!!