This is a special week at Mendoza. On Thursday from 3:30–4:30 p.m., we will gather together in the Basilica to celebrate the College’s 100th anniversary during a special Centennial Mass presided over by Father John. The Mass will be followed by a reception from 4:30-6 p.m. ET at the Wind Family Fireside Terrace and outdoor tent at the Morris Inn.
I hope you will be able to attend to join us for this special time of remembrance and appreciation for a century of the College’s following of John Cardinal O’Hara’s charge: “The primary function of commerce is service to mankind.”
Please RSVP here by tomorrow (Tuesday) so we can provide updated COVID-19 protocols to those attending. The Centennial Mass will be livestreamed to Mendoza's Century Mark website.
During the Mass, Father John also will bless a special icon created for the Centennial, “Our Lady of Sorrows.” The title is a reference to Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ, where the sorrows refer to the “Seven Sorrows of Mary” — seven events during the life of Christ when Mary willingly suffered alongside her Divine Son as He gave His life to save the world.
The icon’s main panel depicts Mary, with seven insets illustrating the seven sorrows. Iconographer Vivian Imbruglia, who created the piece, will be on hand during the reception so you can hear about her work and the sacred art of “writing” icons (which are said to be “written” instead of painted because they present the Word of God. You can learn more about Vivian and Our Lady of Sorrows in this story, “The Art of the Divine”). The icon will be permanently installed in the St. Matthew Chapel in the Stayer Center.
During the Cincinnati game weekend, we also will host the annual fall meeting of our Business Advisory Council, a special group of business leaders composed of Notre Dame alumni, parents and friends who serve as ambassadors for the University, provide counsel and feedback to me as dean, leverage their networks for the benefit of our students, and support the College philanthropically.
As we seek to keep them informed and engaged about the many exciting things we are accomplishing and planning at Mendoza, the two-day meeting will include a State of the College update delivered by me, as well as breakout sessions featuring updates on the undergraduate curriculum, the MBA program, the new Ph.D. program and the Meyer Business on the Frontlines program.
So it’s a big week! I’ll close with a special thanks to the individuals who have been working on the arrangements for the Mass and the BAC meetings for many weeks — Jean Meade, Natalie Sargent, Beth Smith, Maggie Neenan-Michel and Carol Elliott. I also want to thank all of you as Mendoza faculty and staff members, whose service to the College day in and day out, through a great many challenges and changes, is an essential part of Mendoza’s 100-year-and-counting legacy.
In Notre Dame,
Martijn