Los Angeles Loyolan
Loyola Mary mount University \
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'mu. 23 Mar <**87
Coelho to deliver commencement address
By HUGH CURRAN
Staff Writer
For some, the name Tony Coelhc
conjures up images of bare-
knuckled politics and shrewd political
savvy. For those of us less schooled in
the fast lane of state and national
politics, a brief biography of the mar
chosen as this year’s commencemen
speaker is due.
Coelho is a 45 year old Congressman
from Merced, CA, described by some as
‘‘the savior of the Democratic Party,’’
and by others as “ruthless/’
Coelho has been very much in the
public eye recently. Articles about this
15th district congressman have appeared
in California Journal and California
magazine; he was also the subject of a
recent cover story in Los Angeles Times
Magazine .
Coelho’s story begins in a small farm¬
ing community 25 miles from Modesto,
CA. His Portuguese-immigrant family
fan a dairy farm that Coelho worked
full-time at while going to school. Get*
ting to bed at midnight and rising at 2:30
a.m., he learned how to organize his
time.
Coelho became a student at Loyola
Marymount in 1960, while it was still
Loyola University. By 1963, he had |
elected student body president.
After the assasination of his hero.
President John F. Kennedy, C ;Hhc
decided to enter the priesthood, and
abaondoned plans to attend law school.
Sthortly after graduating from Loyola in
1964, however, he was diagnosed as
epileptic.
When the seminary learned of his
epilepsy, they invoked a medieval canon
law that banned epileptics or “those
'
' у
; Coelho, Loyola Unive *•
possessed of the devil” from studies fo*
the priesthood. When told of his son’s
epilepsy, Coelho’s father’s response
was, “No son of mine is an epi ,>tic.”
At this low point in his life, Coelho
was asked to tutor the younger son of
comedian Bob Hope. It was the oppor¬
tunity he needed. As Coelho began to
regain his confidence, Hope suggested
graduate and 15th District
that a way for him to help many people
would be to enter politics. Coelho
became an aide to San Joaquin
Democratic congressman B.F. Sisk.
During his 14 years as an aide Coelho
acquired an in-depth knowledge of the
inner workings of life in Washington,
D.C. Coelho succeeded the retiring Sisk
in 1978.
Cot gre >man, will speak at Commencement
Coelho’s ability to solicit money, the
lifeblood of political campaigns, soon
thrust him into the limelight. He assum¬
ed leadership of the then-ineffectua'
Democratic Congressional Campaign
Committee, and rebuilt it into a tough
competitor with its Republican conn
с»
part. In one * ‘*-<ear p. Coelho
conunue* on page 12
Leadership Awards Ceremony Honorees
From the Student Leadership and
Service Awards Ceremony on May
1, 1987:
Awards were given by ASLMU to
faculty members from each college who
had been voted “Faculty of the Year”
by students from their colleges. The win¬
ners:
Business: Fred Kiesner
Science and Engineering: Mike
Mulvehill
Liberal Arts (tie): Frank Carothers and
Michael Genovese
Communications and Fine Arts:
Marilyn Becker
Pat Oliver (Communications and Fine
Arts) was voted University Faculty
Member of the Year.
In the student awards categories,
David Urich and Andrea Fort were
recognized as LMU’s male and female
athletes of the year. Patti Dugan was
given the Frank Sullivan Social Justice
Award.
The Greeks recognized Ron Hodges
and Kris Giannini as Greek man and
woman of the year. Delta Gamma
sorority was recognized as having the
highest scholastic achievement of any,
sorority.
The Parents’ Advisory Board
Association’s Saint Ignatius Award for
service to students was won by Sr. Mary
David Collins, RSHM. Patrick-Sean
O’Hannigan was awarded the Charles
C. Conroy Journalism Award.
The “Organization of the Year”
award, given in past years to the best
large organization and the best small
organization, was subdivided this year.
The LMU chapter of the American
Marketing Association won in the
Department/Professional catregory .
The Peace Studies Society won in the In¬
ternational/Political category. Na
Kolea, the Hawaiian club, won in the
Cultural category. Gryphon Circle was
recognized as best Service Organization.
The Rugby and Lacrosse clubs tied for
the award in the Sports/Recreation
category. The Del Rey Players were
recognized as best in the Special Interest
category, and best small organization.
The overall award for Organization of
the Year went to ASLMU.
Fernando Moreno of Peace Studies
tied with Fr. Clarence Wallen, S.J., and
Mary Catherine Fitzgerald of the Igna-
tians for “moderator of the year.”
Riordan/Epic Awards had been
previously announced, but were
reiterated at the ceremony on May 1.
Marie DiBernardo won the Joseph
Baldwin Award. Ellen Ensher won the
Andrew Bogan Award. Coleen Fafeita
won the Hildur Gredin Award. Kimber¬
ly Simon won the Charles Maxwell
Award. David Urich won the Richard
Riordan Award.
Service Organizations recognized their
outstanding members:
Belle of the Year — Annie Schmitz
Crimson of the Year — Paul Hauser
Gryphon of the Year — Lisa Piumetti
Gryphon Rookie of the Year-— Molly
McDonald
Ignatian Man of the Year — James
Granoski
Ignatian Woman of the Year-— Janet
Albers
Ignatian Rookie of the Year — Tom An-
cheta
The next awards, the most prestigious
of the evening, were delivered after an
address by Fr. Herb DeSouza, S.J.
Kilp A wards were given to:
Julianne Barry, Erin Braegger, Scott
Brown, Tracey Carrillo, Ralph Consola,
Marie Crawford, Patti Dugan. Brian
continued on page 9
Papal visit
Шп
information meeting for those
wishing to become volunteers dur¬
ing Pope John Paul II’s visit to Los
Angeles in September will be held
tomorrow, May 7, at 7:00 p.m. in Seaver
100.
Representatives from the Papal Vish
Office will be available to answer ques
tions and distribute information. A
myriad of tasks are available to in¬
terested volunteers. The Archdiocese of
Los Angeles will be hosting the visit,
which begins with John Paul’s arrival ai
LAX on Tuesday, September 15.
Volunteers will be needed to staff the
downtown office during the summer
months. “It seems early to start worry¬
ing about the details yet, but a trip of
this magnitude involves many hours of
planning,” states Michelle Askari,
Papal Visit Administrator. Askari, a
graduate of the LMU class of 1980, is
particularly interested in recruiting
volunteers from the University.
There will be thousands of positions
assigned, including jobs for ushers for
the Masses at Dodger Stadium and the
Coliseum, jobs for assistants at the
welcoming parade, and jobs for hosts at
the different event sites. m
