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My Perspective JESUIT PERSPECTIVES • WINTER 2016-17 39 I Steve Matesich ’91 didn’t want to go to Jesuit. 13-year-old, 8th grade Steve Matesich would have gone anywhere else. Maybe, for him, the thought of a rigorous academic program was too daunting. Maybe he didn’t want to wait his turn to earn a Varsity roster spot. Or maybe imagining classes without a girl sitting next to him was nothing short of torturous. It’s funny, in an ironic way, to think of that 13-year-old now. It’s funny as I sit in the Straz Center, watching the curtain rise for Jesuit’s Commencement Exercises for the Class of 2016. It’s funny to think of the heated conversations that I had with my parents and middle school teachers as they had to urge me to deeply and honestly consider my future as I chose which high school to attend. It’s funny, looking at these young men, sharp in their tuxedos. It’s funny, listening to all the awards and distinctions that they’ve achieved, the universities they’ve been accepted to, and the scholarships they’ve earned. It’s funny to remember that I almost went somewhere, anywhere else. It’s funny because, now, looking at the example that these young men—and the young men before them—have set, “anywhere else” doesn’t seem to exist. I still remember what my own parents said to 13-year-old me. They sat me down at the kitchen table and they told me how important it was to be a part of something larger than yourself. And how at Jesuit, more than any of the other options, that’s where the focus would be. Looking at the young men on this stage today, those words come to mind again. Like everyone else in the audience, I’m proud of these newest graduates. I’m proud because I got to meet and spend time with the uncertain, undecided, 13-year-old versions of themselves. I’m proud because I get to see that their hard work, their generosity, their brotherhood and their ambition for a bright future has paid off. Of course I’m proud. But I’m also extremely grateful. I’m grateful these students did more than become a part of Jesuit’s 117-year tradition and history. They’ve taken that tradition and made it stronger. They’ve set an example of excellence that shows every 13-year-old that it doesn’t have to be “anywhere else.” That there is a place where you can contribute to something larger than yourself. Where you can be a leader and leave a legacy that others will follow. As I watch these young men walk across this stage, I wonder if they realize the impact that they make on the Tampa Bay community. I wonder if they realize the inspiration and the courage that they give to the uncertain 13-year-olds that will come after them. I get to see their legacy every time I visit a middle school, every time I give a tour and read a prospective application. At the Straz, now, everyone is standing in applause—teachers, families, loved-ones, and friends. In this moment of great pride and anticipation, I wonder if these young men, too, look back at the other paths they could have taken and fi nd it funny. Funny, because now the decision seems so clear. Because the path ahead of them is so bright, and the future Tigers behind them – because of them – are so tenacious and fi lled with passion: “I know I want to go to Jesuit.”


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