During his introduction of the Clergy of the Year Award winner at the Catholic Business Network – DC Gala on Oct. 10, Msgr. W. Ronald Jameson paid tribute to his friend of 50 years, Msgr. Peter J. Vaghi.
The longtime pastor of the Church of the Little Flower in Bethesda, Msgr. Vaghi is the kind of friend who calls Msgr. Jameson at 5 p.m. to say hello and to inquire if he has any plans for dinner. During the impromptu dinner conversations that followed over the years, Msgr. Vaghi and Msgr. Jameson would talk about “the people we love,” their families, the Church and their parishioners, according to Msgr. Jameson, who is the rector of the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington, where he initially got to know Msgr. Vaghi when the future cleric was a layperson, a young lawyer who worshipped at St. Matthew’s.
At the 10th annual CBN–DC Gala at the Four Seasons Hotel in Georgetown, the attendees at the packed ballroom honored Msgr. Vaghi, in addition to John Butler (Founder’s Award) and Pat Clancy and his late wife, Mary Anne Clancy (Business Persons of the Year).
Msgr. Vaghi – who also serves as the chaplain of the John Carroll Society, a group of Catholic professionals in The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington – recognizes parents are the first teachers of their children. His support of Catholic education is strong, from helping to run Little Flower School and through supporting the Agnes & Joseph Vaghi Scholarship Fund, in memory of his parents, at Archbishop Carroll High School in Washington through the John Carroll Society.
Msgr. Jameson, who serves as the chaplain of the Catholic Business Network of Washington, D.C., said his priest friend also does not hesitate to advocate, loudly if necessary, for Catholic education.
“One soul at a time,” is how Msgr. Vaghi describes the work of Catholic education.
Butler, the Vice President for Development & Mission Advancement at Trinity Missions, is a longtime CBN-DC board member. His sister, Mary Butler, paid tribute to John Butler and his work with CBN-DC as a “counselor, advisor, and servant-leader.”
During his acceptance speech, Butler said he received the award on behalf of those with whom he has worked. Butler paid tribute to the priests that he has known well over the years, including Father John Mudd and Father Raymond Kemp, former pastors at his parish in Washington, St. Augustine, as well as the current pastor, Father Patrick Smith.
While Butler spoke at the event of his being able to attend Catholic schools in his youth through the generosity of unknown benefactors, Msgr. Vaghi said that he understands that not all parents can afford a Catholic education and that many non-Catholic families benefit from the academic, moral and spiritual formation offered in Catholic schools. Under the leadership of Justin Silvers, its founder and president, CBN-DC has tried to be a part of the solution through providing hundreds of thousands of financial aid funds to Catholic schools in the city.
Proceeds from the event are going to support 10 Catholic schools in Washington, D.C. The same institutions honored Volunteers of the Year and Businesses of the Year for their schools at the CBN-DC Gala.
Pat Clancy and his late wife, Mary Anne Clancy, won the Business Persons of the Year Award from CBN-DC, with Father John Mudd, his former classmate from Archbishop Carroll High School, giving the introductory speech. Pat Clancy is the former executive vice president and chief lending officer for Riggs National Bank, later holding a similar role with Chevy Chase Bank.
Clancy’s talk featured self-deprecating references to his class rank at Carroll, as well as a moving testimony to his late wife, who passed away more than three years ago, after 54 years of marriage. Clancy, who served as the chair for the Archdiocese of Washington’s Forward in Faith capital campaign, called her “smart, with a great work ethic, (and) tremendous organizational skills.”
The three-hour event also featured a talk by Joseu Ochaita, a graduate of San Miguel School in Washington who is attending George Washington University. He spoke about “a lot of fond memories” he had of attending the all-boys middle school, which is nearly tuition free and is run by the Christian Brothers. Getting up at 6 a.m. from his family home in Bowie was a challenge, as was getting used to wearing a uniform, he said. Over time, the values that the school reinforced, as well as the repetition of prayers – before class, before meals, and before games – helped to build his spiritual life, Ochaita said.
Washington Auxiliary Bishop Evelio Menjivar offered a blessing at the CBN-DC Gala before the chicken dinner was served in the ballroom.
In appreciation for Silvers’ leadership of CBN-DC, board member Anita Segreti interrupted his closing remarks to present him with monogrammed silver plates, as a token of appreciation from the CBN-DC board of directors.
