DEVELOPMENT NEWS
THE (GORGEOUS)
SPACE BETWEEN
34 JESUIT PERSPECTIVES • WINTER 2018-19
The opening of Gonzmart Hall
and the Chapel of the Holy
Cross in 2018 transformed
Jesuit High School.
As has the space between them.
On November 20 during a
special morning ceremony, the
stately Oliva Family Courtyard
was blessed and dedicated by
Jesuit president Fr. Richard C.
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It is named in honor of John
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student body at Convocation on
that morning, and then convened
outside the chapel with his family
for the ceremony.
The beautiful courtyard
connects Holy Cross Chapel with
Gonzmart Hall, the school’s new
administration and student center.
All were completed this year as
part of Phase I of the school’s
Campus Master Plan, and were
made possible by Jesuit’s $50
million ‘For Greater Glory’ capital
campaign, which closed in August.
Oliva donated $1 million to the
campaign.
Among the features of Oliva
Courtyard are the cobblestones at
the center, encircling the fountain,
that have the names of deceased
The stately
Oliva Family
Courtyard
ties Phase
I together
at Jesuit,
connecting
Gonzmart Hall
with the Chapel
of the Holy
Cross
Jesuit alumni. Each year the newly
engraved cobblestones are blessed
and dedicated at the Alumni
Memorial Mass (see p. 33).
As the roots of a family-tree
representing three generations of
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Oliva, is a 1984 graduate, and he
has three grandsons who also are
Tigers, including current student
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graduate of and former football
player for the University of Florida.
Through the years Oliva has served
Jesuit in many capacities, including
as a member of the school’s
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President’s Steering Committee,
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the ‘For Greater Glory’ campaign,
1899 Bequest Society, and the Jesuit
Hall of Fame.
Oliva is recognized as one of
the world’s foremost tobacco
farmers, but his true calling is his
passion for helping others. He is
an active member of St. Patrick’s
Catholic Church and a dedicated
supporter of Catholic education in
Tampa, including the Academy of
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Incarnation Catholic School,
Sacred Heart, St. Joseph’s, St.
Lawrence, and Villa Madonna
School.