R.I.P. Mike Spang

 

His obituary:

Webster: Friday, May 1st, 2026 at the age of 89. Mike is predeceased by his parents, Michael Sr. and Ruth Spang; in-laws, Gerald and Marguerite Morris; brothers-in-law, Robert Morris and Robert Leahy. He is survived by his wife of 64 years, Marilyn (Morris); sons, Kevin (Jennifer), James (Rachael) and Daniel (Erin); grandsons, Tristen Peterson, Teagan, Zachary, Matthew and Ethan Spang; sisters, Karen (Bill) Ives and Linda (Bill) Bennion; sister-in-law, Joanne Leahy and several nieces and nephews.

 Mike was a proud graduate of Aquinas Institute, class of 1954 and was inducted into the Aquinas Hall of Fame as a member of the 1954 undefeated basketball team. A graduate of Assumption University of Windsor, Ontario, class of 1958, he was a scholarship basketball player and a member of the first championship basketball team at Assumption in 1956-57.

 Mike served in the National Guard and the Army Reserves attaining the rank of 2nd Lieutenant after attending Officer Candidate School at Fort Sill Oklahoma. He was a teacher, coach and athletic director at Bishop Kearney High School from 1962-1966. From 1972-1976 served on the Irondequoit Town Board and in 1979 began a distinguished career as Irondequoit's Director of Parks and Recreation from which he retired after 32 years of service.

 An avid sports fan, he particularly enjoyed watching and coaching his sons as they participated in various youth sports programs through the years. His sons and grandsons, next to his wife Marilyn were his greatest source of joy and support. He was supportive and proud of their many accomplishments in school, sports and their other activities. 

Family and friends are welcome Thursday, May 7th from 3-7pm at the Profetta Funeral Chapel 1650 Empire Blvd. Mike's Funeral Mass will be celebrated Friday, May 8th, 11am at Holy Spirit Church 1355 Hatch Rd. Interment will follow at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Aquinas Institute, c/o Jay Polston or to the School of the Holy Childhood in Mike's name.

R.I.P. Marty LaFica

"Marty the Mountain": business teacher, baseball coach, and all-around good guy.

Obit here.

A mentor has left us

Walt Teike was Kearney's first wrestling coach, the boys' first phys ed instructor and our first football coach.

 

We remember Mr. Teike fondly. He was supremely competent and an indefatigable workhorse who considered twelve hours of labor to be a cheat day. He exuded an aura of gravitas one would not expect from a sports figure. He knew how to get boys to perform better as individuals and as a team. He had an uncanny ability to spot undeveloped and sometimes even unsuspected talent, and he knew how to develop it. 

He got the BK wrestling team started on the way toward becoming a major player in Monroe County athletics, then left Kearney and did even better, turning nearby Spencerport High into a nationally respected powerhouse. In the two years before he took over, Spencerport's wrestling team had been 4-11 and 7-9. He turned that around to 10-3 in his first year, and by 1971 he had achieved back-to-back undefeated seasons. By 1975 Spencerport was the state champion.

More important, he knew how to help boys become men. 

Upon his death, the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle honored his achievements with a lengthy tribute, which you can read here.

Sad news about a former teacher

Karen Czarnowsky Castellano, class of '66, informed us that Brother Barry (Aloysius James Barry) passed away November 10, 2019.

After 20 years as an Irish Christian Brother, Jim Barry left the order, becoming a father and grandfather.

His obituary reads:

Passed peacefully surrounded by the love of family & friends November 10, 2019 at the age of 85.

Predeceased by his parents, Stephen & Margaret; son, Ryan; brothers, John, Ted, Stephen"Jerry", & Thomas; sister, Ann Curtin.

Survived by children, Kiera (Bill) Swan, Gavin (Mariana), Maura(Rome) Barry; grandchildren, Olivia, Ryan, Brenna, Ella, & Finnegan; sister, Eileen McGloin; & many nieces, nephews, cousins & friends.

Jim was born in the Bronx, to a first generation Irish American family. He lived a life dedicated to service to his family & his Catholic faith. Served as a Christian Brother for 20 years & a teacher for 50 years.

R.I.P. (teacher) Mike Fitzpatrick

Our former teacher, Mike Fitzpatrick, has passed away. He was my history teacher in freshman year, as well as my first debate coach. I'm not sure when he left BK, but I got to know him again after college, when he managed a bank across from Eastridge H.S. We became good friends for two years, 1970-72, during which time we occasionally hung out with our wives, so I guess he forgave or forgot all the pranks I played on him when he was our teacher.

I moved to Florida at the end of that period and lost track of him, but I remember above all that he was a good guy, fair and honest, with a good sense of humor.

This is his Facebook page.

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Because Roger Palma's comment is so informative, I am adding it below:

Thanks for the update, Greg. I also am sorry to learn of Mike’s passing. I was in that same Freshman history class with Mike Critelli and Greg, though unlike Mike, I was not an avid student, so it was one more missed opportunity for learning. But, it was clear that he was one of the good guys on the faculty.

On the subject of faculty, I thought I’d pass on a few brief updates. As a few of you know, after graduating from college, I returned to BK as a teacher for three years. I made many lasting friendships during that time, some of whom you will remember as teachers when we were there, and some who, sadly are no longer with us. Recently, I attended a small party of ex-teachers at Jean Sellitto Massare’s home. Jean had been a mentor for me in the Social Studies Department. Her husband, Ed, has been a close friend for many years, and also a mentor during the summers when I was in law school. Sadly, Ed now has Alzheimer’s. Jean, however, is doing very well, even amidst these challenges, and is as full of life as ever.

Also in attendance were Don Griffin and Frank Sementino. Both Don and Frank were in the front end of their teaching careers, and probably had minimal overlap with the class of ’66. They are both retired, and have remained in the area. Over the years, I've seen Marty LaFica frequently as we were both members of the Blue Heron Hills Golf Club. Marty has moved to Florida and then the Carolinas. I don’t know where he lives now, but I’ll probably see his son at the golf course this summer, and learn more. I never saw Marc Zicari after he left BK, but I recently met his cousin Craig, a retired lawyer who is a neighbor in our new residence and we shared some fond memories of Marc. I made friendships with quite a few of the brothers, but had no contact with them after I left Kearney. I had very little contact with the nuns while I was there, other than Sr. Judith (Weber, now Judy Shaw) whom I see occasionally as she is a cousin of a close friend.

On a very separate note, I recently had the pleasure of seeing classmate Phil Dollard perform at the Little Theater Cafe. Phil, who just returned to Rochester recently, is a very accomplished guitarist, and can sing some folksy blues. He has an interesting and eclectic repertoire. I hadn’t seen him since we graduated from college, and in fact, we had gone through sixteen years of school together. Phil will be back at the Little at the end of September, and I urge anyone living in the area to consider checking it out. He may also be performing elsewhere before that, so keep an eye on the local music calendars.

R.I.P. Marc Zicari

The following was written by Ron Adams, '66

In today's (well, yesterday's now) newspaper is an obit for C. Marc Zicari, born 8/18/38. I would never recognize him: white hair, white beard, white mustache. He had 10 kids and something like 24 grandkids. It says he graduated from St. Bernard's Seminary, and after BKHS he taught for 29 years in Webster high schools. Death last Sunday, visitation Friday (tomorrow), funeral Saturday. No cause of death noted, but it looks like he had been in hospice, so maybe cancer.

The obit has a quote from Sainte-Exupery's novel The Little Prince, which I remember reading in French in college. I satisfied my foreign language requirement with three courses in French. In case you are in contact with Brian Goonan, I also satisfied the foreign language requirement twice more in Spanish, and here I was a math major. Satisfying the foreign language requirement thrice over drew some snide remarks from my math advisor.

I believe it was in Mr. Zicari's English class that we had to read a book and then give a book review in front of the class. I remember I chose the book Is Paris Burning, about the Nazi invasion of Paris. It just so happened that Reader's Digest was running a 3-month abridged version of the book at the time (which I didn't know when I chose the book), so I read the three issues. Well, I would have, had the third and final issue arrived in the mail on time! But it didn't, so I reviewed the first two-thirds and then ended my talk by saying something like, "And then the Nazis entered Paris." There was one question from a student, which I answered.

Oh wait, here is the newspaper photo and the entire obit I lifted:

Webster - Passed away on November 18, 2018, surrounded by his beloved and devoted wife of 54 years, Judy (Boyle) Zicari; his children, Emily (Ken McClenathan), Charlie (Maura Curtin), Meg Palmer (David), Marc (Kathleen), Michael (Suzanne), Dan (Marcy), Peter (Jeanine), Kathleen Moczarski (Curt), John (Krista) and Mary; his grandchildren: Jane; Shannon, Donny, Reese; Samantha, Brendan; Rachel, Laney; Haley, Charley, Bailey, Kiley; Alice, Patrick, Thomas, Elizabeth, Lawrence; Anthony, Jonathan; Anna, Alex; Isabella, Isaac, Elliot, and longtime family friend, Karen Donahue. He is also survived by his three great-grandchildren, numerous loving nieces, nephews, cousins, and many special friends.

Born August 18, 1938 to Charles and Margaret Zicari. The oldest sibling of Maria Bernadette Weaver (deceased) (Jack), Jane Cala (Gerry), Margaret Czerwiec (Tom, deceased), Patricia Cocquyt (Ron), Rosemary Guchone (Bill), Kitty Stappenbeck (Don), and John Zicari (Kerry). He graduated from St. Bernard's Seminary and embarked upon his teaching career at Bishop Kearney High School, followed by 29 years at the Webster High Schools. He inspired students as English Department Chair and Speech & Debate Coach and developed countless life-long friendships with cherished colleagues.

He had an affinity for superheroes and sweets. Superman was his idol; ice cream was his kryptonite.

He would want us to remember the words of the Little Prince, "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly."

Visitation Friday November 23 from 5-8 pm at Falvo Funeral Home 1295 Fairport Nine Mile Pt. Rd. (Rte. 250) Webster. Funeral will be held at St. Ambrose Church on November 24 at 11 am. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to St. Joseph's House of Hospitality of Rochester, 402 South Ave., Rochester, New York 14620.

Published in Rochester Democrat And Chronicle from Nov. 21 to Nov. 22, 2018

A friend remembers Brother Clark

BROTHER JOSEPH MARK CLARK

(1929-1986)

In the early part of the New Year, 1974, Brother Edward Ignatius Duggan ("Doug") and Brother Daniel Bernard McIlmurray ("Bernie"), two Brothers teaching at Iona College in New Rochelle, New York, took a brief holiday in the Caribbean on a discount cruise originating in Miami, Florida. The very low fare included air travel from New York but since Doug was planning to drive to Miami he posted a notice on the Brothers' Community Room bulletin board: "Any monk who wants a free round trip ticket to Florida for next week, please see me."

Mrs. Margaret Clark, then in her mid-70's and widowed since 1965, was living in Florida. It is warmer there than in the Bronx, New York, where she had lived all her life and raised her family, and, as we all know, the heat of the sun feels especially good as you get older. Over the years she had buried not only her husband, John, an engineer, but three of her five children, all in early middle life. Her married daughter, Marge, and her only remaining son, Joseph, the subject of this memorial, encouraged her to move to Florida, and they all visited back and forth when they could.

A free ticket to Florida during the winter holiday was a great boon to Joseph Mark Clark, then forty-four years old, a member of the student recruitment and admissions team at Iona College. It was a perfect chance for Mark to see Mom and to get a brief respite from New York's cold and slush.

Bernie traveled on the flight from New York to Miami with Mark, and Bernie says it was three hours of pure showmanship! Bernie sat quietly smoking and smiling as Mark quickly became the toast of the flight shortly after the plane leveled out at its cruising altitude and the hostesses began serving the complimentary beverages.

R.I.P. Brother Leavy

Rev. Brother Patrick Clement Leavy C.F.C. passed away on September 26, 2013.

(Obit)

Brian Goonan update

Written by Mike Moffatt, class of '66.

My wife, Mary Anne, and I were in Baltimore on business this week, and we had dinner with former Brother Brian Goonan and his wife Anna Maria.

I've been in touch with Brian for the past dozen years or so via e-mail, but this is the first time we've gotten together since Brother J.M. Clark's funeral. We had a great time reminiscing about our years in the Brothers and especially the Kearney years. Brian even informed his wife that the BK students called him "sugar bear." 

A lot of names came up. He specifically mentioned Pat Shatzel, Walt Szarlacki, Phil Smith, Greg Wroblewski, Mike Critelli, & Ray Jesien. Unfortunately, since my folks moved from Rochester to Bloomfield Hills, MI while I was in the Novitiate, I've lost touch with my BK classmates and couldn't give Brian much news.

During the evening I realized how special this man was and how lucky we were to have him as a teacher. Brian entered the Irish Christian Brothers at the age of 15 after completing only 2 years at Power Memorial High School. Brian took the religious name "Kevin", so I guess it was fate that BK Goonan would be assigned to Bishop Kearney someday. He was sent from Iona College to teach at All Hallows Institute before he finished his under-graduate degree. We had that in common. The Provincial also sent me to All Hallows to teach before I graduated from Iona College. I was only 4 credits short and finished my requirements with an independent study course, Brian was a full year and a half short.  Brian who was only 18 at the time he arrived at All Hallows was teaching some seniors that were older than he.  I only had to worry about Freshman. I left the Brothers after my 6 months at All Hallows, Brian left All Hallows and came to Bishop Kearney in January 1964. He was only 5 1/2 years older most of us. He still didn't have his degree. He taught 5 Spanish classes, coached JV sports, took a class at St. John Fisher College in the morning and also went to school at night.

In 1966 after we graduated from Bishop Kearney, Brother BK Goonan was one of 3 Irish Christian Brothers sent to open up a new mission in Peru. He was 23 years old and knew that he probably would not see his family again for maybe 7 years. Brian spent most of the next 32 years working in the Brothers' schools in Peru. He took some time off to get a Masters degree from Columbia University.

In 1998 after being a Brother for nearly 40 years, he left the Congregation. He was 55. No Social Security credits, no pension, no medical coverage. Right away he went to work for Catholic Relief Services. He was assigned to several positions in Central America, Cuba and South America. He ended his 16 year career at CRS this past August after serving as Regional Director in Bolivia for the last 4 or 5 years. While with CRS, Brian married Anna Maria. They knew each other in Peru and have now been married for 12 years.

Brian, who turns 72 in a few days, is currently waiting to hear from World Vision. He is a strong candidate to become their Director in Guatemala. Brian told me he has "a few years left in the tank" and wants to continue with his vocation as a Christian and Humanitarian servicing the poor and disadvantaged peoples of Central and South America. He says if World Vision doesn't work out, he find another group doing the same work.

He looks great and says he's in good health. He doesn't play the guitar any more but still loves his Irish music.

If anyone wants to get in touch with Brian, his e-mail address is: b.goonan@yahoo.com

R.I.P. Brother Tracey

Edward J. Tracey, 80, of 14 Larchmont St., passed away on Wednesday (March 3, 2010) at Geneva General Hospital.

(Obit)