On Senior Day, Jesuit hosted its 22nd annual Commencement Luncheon at the Ritz-Carlton, formally welcoming the Class of 2025 into the Alumni Association. Seniors processed into the ballroom and arranged themselves around the perimeter as alumni offered warm applause, a testament to the enduring bond among generations of Blue Jays.

James Linn ’06, Jesuit’s newly appointed alumni director, began the program with remarks that combined gratitude and anticipation. Drawing on experiences from his time at Jesuit and in the professional arena, Linn expressed his commitment to guiding the association and invited alumni and seniors to share the luncheon together. He then presented each graduate with a commemorative keychain, symbolizing their new membership in the alumni community.

Fr. John Brown, S.J., led a prayer for the Class of 2025, invoking blessings for their journey beyond Carrollton and Banks. Jeremy Reuther ’01, principal, followed with reflections on the class’s accomplishments, noting its state championship victories, National Merit honorees, and gains in Advanced Placement and standardized testing.

Senior class president Kacey Cognevich introduced Michael McGarry ’76 as guest speaker. McGarry has provided invaluable advice to several Jesuit High School presidents, and is currently a member of Jesuit’s National Advisory Board. Following his latest commitment to the Chapel of the North American Martyrs through a challenge grant to his own Class of 1976, he joined the ranks of Jesuit’s Prevost Society, which recognizes benefactors who have contributed over $1 million in their lifetime.

After graduating from the University of Texas with a degree in mechanical engineering, McGarry began his career at PPG’s Lake Charles chemical complex and rose through leadership positions across four continents, ultimately serving as Chairman and CEO.

Yet, as he told the audience, the roots of that journey trace back to Carrollton and Banks.

Emphasizing values like humility, teamwork, and diligence, he traced these roots’ origins to his time as a student in the Blue Jay Band, MCJROTC, wrestling team, and bowling team. Recalling his time as the drum captain of the Blue Jay Band and the captain of the bowling team, McGarry highlighted the importance of unity and rhythm—of not stepping out of line and learning how to move as one.

“When you get into the real world,” he noted, “you want to be part of a team. Hire somebody who has a runway. Hire somebody who can do two or three jobs more… hire somebody that is smarter than you. Because if you hire somebody smarter than you, your team will get better.”

Reflecting vividly on his Jesuit education, McGarry recalled foundational lessons from his MCJROTC experience, emphasizing discipline and responsibility. “If you were three minutes early to one of my meetings, you were late,” he recounted. He added, with a smile thinking back to his ROTC days, “You didn’t pass inspection if you didn’t shine your shoes. Details matter.” That same attention to detail, he explained, followed him into boardrooms at BlackRock, Vanguard, and Fidelity—places where, as he put it, “they are always investigating you, everything you say and do.”

McGarry candidly recounted intra-squad wrestling matchups at Jesuit, recalling repeated Friday practice losses against teammate Arthur Dupré [of the Class of 1976] during team wrestle-offs.

After one particularly tough defeat, his mother quietly asked him what Dupré did differently. McGarry remembered his own reluctant admission: “He runs further. He lifts more weights. He does more dips on the parallel bars. He always seeks out better wrestlers to wrestle in practice. He studies wrestling, but not much, not much.” Without needing to say more, she offered him comfort—a hug—and a lifelong lesson.

“Ask the right question and then shut up,” he summarized, emphasizing attentive leadership and empathy. He extolled student and alumni to ask questions of all kinds to people across all levels of their own businesses and companies.

“Privilege was a big discussion for the last eight or ten years,” McGarry said, after relaying several more anecdotes and pieces of advice. “People would say, ‘Oh, you’ve got to be privileged. You grew up in a really nice area in New Orleans.'” In the traditional sense, he emphasized: “I was not privileged.”

He recounted how, during his senior year at the University of Texas, he proposed to his future wife, Wanda, with borrowed money: “Sweetheart, if you will lend me $1,000, I’ll buy you a diamond ring and ask you to marry me, and it’ll be the best decision of your life.” After she said yes, they packed everything they owned into her Toyota Corolla. “We were 60 miles outside of Austin—boom, flat tire… Two Michelin tires, $250… Now it’s $1,250 in debt.”

Yet, he acknowledged with conviction, “I was very privileged. I was very privileged to go to Jesuit High School. It taught me everything I knew.”

McGarry’s vivid stories and sincere reflections reminded alumni and graduating seniors alike of the timeless values that bind generations of Blue Jays together. His parting message to the Class of 2025 resonated clearly: “Always be someone who makes things happen…and go Blue Jays.”

As the luncheon concluded, alumni and the newly inducted soon-to-be-graduates rose to sing the Alma Mater, reaffirming their shared commitment to Jesuit’s mission and to one another.