After graduating from a high school in the Catholic League himself, Mr. George Vrechek knows what Catholic education is all about.

Vrechek, a 1963 graduate of Fenwick High School, went on to the University of Michigan from which he graduated in 1968. Later, he went on to a career in the architectural field, handling the business side of things.

One of his firm’s projects in the ’80s was to design the Graham Center at Mount Carmel.  Spending as much time as he did on campus and around the Mount Carmel community, he grew to admire the school.  As a result, after retirement, Vrechek approached the school with an offer to help out in any way he could.  In his first year, he was mainly a sub for the art and architecture classes. Now for the past three years, he has been a writing coach for the Journalism class.

“His help was a big part of why we made a successful transition from a printed newspaper to the online Caravan,” says Mr. John Haggerty, Vice President for Mission Effectiveness and teacher of the Journalism class at MC.

Although Vrechek isn’t available to help year round, he makes his presence known in the fall and spring trimesters, emphasizing the importance of good grammar and the value of regularly consulting a writing handbook like “Strunk & White’s Elements of Style.”

Even during the winter trimester, which he spends in California visiting his two daughters, Vrechek keeps in touch with the progress of the Caravan staff.

“He is always helping me on my capitalization, and even when he isn’t here, he monitors our work and offers suggestions helping us change our articles around to make them the best they can be,” says junior Matt McKay, a member of the Journalism class at MC.

Vrechek not only helps out in the classroom, but he has organized fields trips (to the Chicago Tribune) and has arranged for guest speakers, including Lester Munson of ESPN, to address the class.

With his life-long passion for baseball cards, Vrechek often writes about the hobby for Sports Collectors Digest.  He also keeps in shape by playing in men’s ice hockey leagues as much as he can.

A school like Mount Carmel, or any Catholic school, depends on the dedication of faculty and the generosity of benefactors in order to thrive. People like Mr. Vrechek are a big reason why MC continues to be successful year in and year out.