Homecoming at Jesuit

Jesuit High School capped off a fabulous Homecoming week on Friday (Oct. 13) with traditional festive Homecoming activities, including the football team's 13-10 District win over Robinson and two special halftime ceremonies.

First, with his family and a horde of classmates on hand to celebrate with him, Dr. Hector Vila '75 was recognized as Jesuit's Alumnus of the Year. Dr. Vila, who is pictured on the homepage with his family, has distinguished himself through the years with the generous giving of his time, talent, and treasure to Jesuit High School (see below).

Then came the Homecoming Court and the announcement of Sophia Doussan of the Academy of the Holy Names as Homecoming Queen. She was crowned by Jesuit president Fr. Richard C. Hermes, S.J.

The Homecoming Court included Jesuit's James Bencivenga '19, Carter Collins '18, Noah Kurtz '18, Gunther Mosesmann '18,  and Tyler Peterson '18, and AHN's Gretchen Swenson, McKenna Weathers, Feraby Hoffman, and Isabella Sebeck.

For the first part of the day, Jesuit students reveled in traditional Homecoming Fun Day activities such as dodge ball, ping pong, bocce, frisbee, music in the Student Commons, and video games. Fun Day culminated in the student-faculty dodge ball game in the Tiger Palace before the entire student body. The championship student team of Jake Crowther '19, Brandon Incardona '19, Andrew Kynes '19, Chris Yount '19, Alex Orr '19, and Jackson Fanaro '19 easily prevailed over the faculty squad.  

At 5:00pm, hundreds of alumni and Jesuit families began to fill the cafeteria and Student Commons for the Homecoming BBQ, featuring photos with the Tiger mascot, a great meal served up by the Jesuit Dads' Club, fellowship, and live music provided by Jordan Vivero '18 and Inkblot.

Prior to the game, the football team celebrated Senior Night, as all of the seniors and their parents were introduced. The seniors then helped Jesuit remain unbeaten in District play with a hard-fought, come-from-behind win. The Tigers fell behind 10-3 on a Robinson fumble return touchdown, but with three minutes remaining Matthew Pittman '19 scored the go-ahead TD on a 5-yard run. The defense sealed it when A.J. Bryant '18 forced a fumble and Braden Gilby '18 recovered.

Click below to view photo slideshows from the various Homecoming activities, and below that is the Alumnus of the Year halftime recognition script of Vila.

PHOTOS

Homecoming Week Student Activities

Homecoming Day BBQ and Festivities

Halftime Alumnus of Year and Homecoming Court

Senior Night and Football Game

 

2017-18 ALUMNUS OF THE YEAR - Dr. Hector Vila '75

Since graduating in 1975, Dr. Hector Vila has been a lifelong advocate of Jesuit, donating his time, talent, and treasure to supporting his alma mater and the Jesuit High School Alumni Association.

Throughout the years, he has served Jesuit in many capacities, including as a member of the Alumni Council and President's Steering Committee. He was also a team physician for the Tigers and is an annual supporter of the school's Pro-Life Club.

Professionally, Dr. Vila is an internationally recognized anesthesiologist. He is the founding partner of Pediatric Dental Anesthesia Associates, a group of 10 Pediatric Anesthesiologists, serving nearly 150 Pediatric Dental Offices in 6 states. He is past Chair of the American Society of Anesthesiologist's Subspecialties Section, Ambulatory Surgery Committee, and Board of Directors. And he has served on the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee for the American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgical Facilities and was Vice-President of Standards. In 2016, Dr. Vila was appointed by Gov. Rick Scott to the Florida Board of Medicine. He is also past president of the South Carolina Society of Anesthesiologists and Past Chairman of the South Carolina Medical Association Taskforce for Office Surgery Guidelines.

Dr. Vila is an active parishioner of Christ the King Church. In 2016, he was a recipient of the prestigious Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice medal, the highest award a layperson can receive from the Papacy.

For his many years of outstanding leadership and dedicated support to the school and our Tampa Bay community, Jesuit High School is proud to recognize Dr. Hector Vila as the 2017-18 Alumnus of the Year!