Mission-Driven

College of the Holy Cross

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EDUCATION

The Mission-Driven Podcast features conversations with alumni who are leveraging their Holy Cross education to make a meaningful difference in the world around them. Produced by the Office of Alumni Relations at the College of the Holy Cross. Learn more at holycross.edu/alumni.

04/12/2023

Mary Beth Sheridan ‘83

As we wrap up this series, Maura Sweeney ‘07 speaks with Mary Beth Sheridan ‘83. After studying abroad in England during her junior year at Holy Cross, Mary Beth caught the travel bug and discovered a passion for international affairs. Thanks to a well-timed question from Professor Helen Whall during her senior year, she embarked on a career in journalism that would take her around the world. Beginning in Spain as a freelance journalist, Mary Beth would go on to serve as a foreign correspondent for the Associated Press, Miami Herald, and Los Angeles Times before joining The Washington Post, where she’s worked for the past 22 years and currently serves as the Mexico City Bureau Chief. Every day, Mary Beth lives the mission by uncovering stories that have a real impact on the lives of others. Thanks to her dogged commitment to the pursuit of justice and truth, Mary Beth is lighting the way for others to follow. About the Lighting the Way Series: In September 1972, the first women enrolled at the College of the Holy Cross, lighting the way for generations to follow, women who would advance to create lives of personal and professional impact across all vocations across the globe, inspired by the foundation of a Jesuit, Catholic liberal arts education. The Mission-Driven: Lighting the Way podcast features College of the Holy Cross alumnae who are lighting the way for others today. Through their service, professional and personal pursuits, these women are living the Holy Cross mission and leaving a lasting impact on the lives of others. Interview originally recorded in August 2023.

34 min
27/11/2023

Cymetra Williams ‘03

In this episode, Maura Sweeney speaks with Cymetra Williams ‘03. The conversation follows Cymetra’s winding path from the Pacific Northwest, to Worcester, Japan, NYC, New Jersey, and finally, landing in Oklahoma, where, at the time of the podcast recording, she worked as the Assistant U.S. Attorney for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Oklahoma. Cymetra recently relocated to Washington, D.C., and now works as legal counsel for Booz Allen Hamilton. While her path has not been straight, the mission and purpose that drive her work have been unwavering. As a student at Holy Cross, Cymetra found support and inspiration from many different areas, with a particular appreciation for the programs run by the Chaplain’s Office. Today, she continues to live a life of service as she fights for the rights of the victims she represents. Thanks to her dedication to advocacy, care for others and care for self, Cymetra is lighting the way for others to follow. About the Lighting the Way Series: In September 1972, the first women enrolled at the College of the Holy Cross, lighting the way for generations to follow, women who would advance to create lives of personal and professional impact across all vocations across the globe, inspired by the foundation of a Jesuit, Catholic liberal arts education. The Mission-Driven: Lighting the Way podcast features College of the Holy Cross alumnae who are lighting the way for others today. Through their service, professional and personal pursuits, these women are living the Holy Cross mission and leaving a lasting impact on the lives of others. Interview originally recorded in August 2023.

37 min
20/11/2023

Annie Long Sullivan ‘94

In this episode, Maura Sweeney ‘07 speaks with Annie Long Sullivan ‘94. A native of Long Island, Annie ended up applying early decision to Holy Cross thanks to a friend from summer camp and never looked back. An English and French double-major, Annie served as a features editor of the Crusader and studied abroad in France her junior year. She continued to leverage her combination of writing and interpersonal skills after Holy Cross as she pursued roles in advertising. After a period at home to raise her young family, Annie embraced her inner entrepreneur by joining a startup and eventually founding a company of her own. Today, Annie runs soThis, an online book club that helps women connect over a love of reading. Thanks to her commitment to spreading the love of books and learning with others, Annie is lighting the way for others to follow. About the Lighting the Way Series: In September 1972, the first women enrolled at the College of the Holy Cross, lighting the way for generations to follow, women who would advance to create lives of personal and professional impact across all vocations across the globe, inspired by the foundation of a Jesuit, Catholic liberal arts education. The Mission-Driven: Lighting the Way podcast features College of the Holy Cross alumnae who are lighting the way for others today. Through their service, professional and personal pursuits, these women are living the Holy Cross mission and leaving a lasting impact on the lives of others. Interview originally recorded in July 2023.

32 min
13/11/2023

Nalani Ramos Ruiz ‘21

In this episode, Maura Sweeney ‘07 speaks with Nalani Ramos Ruiz ‘21. A recent graduate of Holy Cross, Nalani has wasted no time making her mark on the future of Holy Cross. A member of the Holy Cross Board of Trustees, Nalani uses her voice to spread awareness about the importance of diverse people and perspectives among the Holy Cross community. Through her work at Raytheon Technologies, she continues to advocate for others and ensure that access to education and meaningful employment are available to all. Thanks to her care and compassion for championing the voices of others, Nalani is lighting the way for others to follow. About the Lighting the Way Series: In September 1972, the first women enrolled at the College of the Holy Cross, lighting the way for generations to follow, women who would advance to create lives of personal and professional impact across all vocations across the globe, inspired by the foundation of a Jesuit, Catholic liberal arts education. The Mission-Driven: Lighting the Way podcast features College of the Holy Cross alumnae who are lighting the way for others today. Through their service, professional and personal pursuits, these women are living the Holy Cross mission and leaving a lasting impact on the lives of others. Interview originally recorded in June 2023.

39 min
06/11/2023

Kerry Sullivan ‘78

In this episode, Maura Sweeney ‘07 speaks with Kerry Sullivan ‘78. Former president of the Bank of America Charitable Foundation, Kerry spent her career forging a path in corporate philanthropy. Early on, she was instrumental in developing Philanthropic Management Foundation Advisory Services — a team responsible for providing philanthropic counsel and grants management to high-net worth clients. As the field of corporate philanthropy grew, so did Kerry’s role and impact. Today, she sits on numerous boards where she continues to use her talents to serve others. Thanks to her professional work in service of others around the globe, Kerry is lighting the way for others to follow. About the Lighting the Way Series: In September 1972, the first women enrolled at the College of the Holy Cross, lighting the way for generations to follow, women who would advance to create lives of personal and professional impact across all vocations across the globe, inspired by the foundation of a Jesuit, Catholic liberal arts education. The Mission-Driven: Lighting the Way podcast features College of the Holy Cross alumnae who are lighting the way for others today. Through their service, professional and personal pursuits, these women are living the Holy Cross mission and leaving a lasting impact on the lives of others. Interview originally recorded in May 2023.

33 min
30/10/2023

Quinn Fitzgerald ‘11

In the first episode of the Lighting the Way series, Maura Sweeney ‘07 speaks with Quinn Fitzgerald ‘11. A mission-driven entrepreneur, Quinn co-founded a company in 2016 focused on creating products that provide a discreet lifeline to people in emergency situations. Her company, Flare, was sold in March 2023. In our conversation, we speak about Quinn’s journey to becoming the co-founder of Flare and all of the impactful moments along the way. As someone committed to championing founders, survivors, entrepreneurs and students, Quinn is lighting the way for others to follow. About the Lighting the Way Series: In September 1972, the first women enrolled at the College of the Holy Cross, lighting the way for generations to follow, women who would advance to create lives of personal and professional impact across all vocations across the globe, inspired by the foundation of a Jesuit, Catholic liberal arts education. The Mission-Driven: Lighting the Way podcast features College of the Holy Cross alumnae who are lighting the way for others today. Through their service, professional and personal pursuits, these women are living the Holy Cross mission and leaving a lasting impact on the lives of others. Interview originally recorded in May 2023.

55 min
07/06/2023

Sean O'Connor '92

In this final episode of Season three, Siobhan Kiernan from the class of 2021 speaks with Sean O'Connor from the class of 1992. As a fundraiser and member of the Holy Cross Annual Fund Team, Siobhan talks with Sean about his accomplished career in fundraising. Today, he continues to make a difference as the Chief Development Officer at the National Audubon Society. Their conversation gives you a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to support the nonprofit organizations that we love. The Holy Cross mission of serving others is central to the work that they do. As people foreign with others, their careers modeled the idea of doing well while doing good. Interview originally recorded in August 2022. --- Sean: When I'm being reflective of the relationship between the effort and the work that I've applied my daily profession to the outcome, it completely aligns with my worldview of actually helping other people and helping organizations and helping the world. Whether it's through art, or healthcare or science or human rights or conservation, I feel pretty good about that. Maura: Welcome to Mission Driven, where we speak with alumni who are leveraging their Holy Cross education to make a meaningful difference in the world around them. I'm your host, Maura Sweeney, from the class of 2007, Director of Alumni Career Development at Holy Cross. I'm delighted to welcome you to today's show. In this final episode of Season three, Siobhan Kiernan from the class of 2021 speaks with Sean O'Connor from the class of 1992. As a fundraiser and member of the Holy Cross Annual Fund Team, Siobhan talks with Sean about his accomplished career in fundraising. After a year in the Jesuit Volunteer Corps, Sean accepted a role raising funds for a small Catholic school on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Thanks to the support and encouragement of some Holy Cross alumni, he accepted a position with CCS fundraising, which brought his fundraising overseas and greatly expanded the scope of his work. Today, he continues to make a difference as the Chief Development Officer at the National Audubon Society. Their conversation gives you a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to support the nonprofit organizations that we love. The Holy Cross mission of serving others is central to the work that they do. As people foreign with others, their careers modeled the idea of doing well while doing good. Siobhan: Hello everyone. My name is Siobhan Kiernan and I am a 2021 Holy Cross grad, and current member of the Holy Cross Fund Team. And I'm joined here with Sean O'Connor. Hello, how are you? Sean: Hi Siobhan. Good to see you again. Siobhan: Yeah, you too. Where are you zooming from? Sean: I'm zooming from Goldens Bridge, New York, which is Northern Westchester County near Bedford and North Salem. Siobhan: Nice. Oh my gosh. I'm zooming from New York City, so... Sean: Oh wow. Whereabouts? Siobhan: In like little... I'm on the Upper East Side right now. It's where I grew up. Sean: Oh, that's right. I grew... For a while. I lived on 83rd and third when I did all this. Siobhan: Oh yes, we talked about this. Sean: Yeah, right. Siobhan: Oh, that's awesome. Are you from New York? Sean: No, I actually grew up in Worcester, Massachusetts where there's a school called Holy Cross, is there I think. And I in that way was born at St. Vincent Hospital and then grew up really in Holden, Massachusetts, which is just north of Worcester. And I went to Wachusett Regional High School. And I know your next question is why I don't have an accent, but for some reason I dropped the Worcester accent. When I went to Holy Cross, actually, ironically, I think my accent started to go away. Siobhan: They ironed it out of you. Sean: They must have ironed it out of me, yes. I could put on the Worcester accent, but only under severe pressure. Siobhan: That's so funny. I've been told that I don't have a New York accent e

53 min
04/05/2023

James Scott '95

In this episode, Colman Benson from the class of 2024 speaks with James Scott from the class of 1995. They connected back in the fall of 2022 to speak about James' path from Ohio to Holy Cross to the Marine Corps, culminating in his current career in banking. They speak about how a clever marketing commercial changed the course of James's career path and how you're never too old to reinvent yourself. What's even better, the friends you make on the Hill and the Holy Cross Alumni Network will always be there to support you on your journey. Interview originally recorded in December 2022. --- James: Two skill sets there will never be a shortage of, at least not in our country, and that's storytelling and problem solving. Those are the two skill sets that you'll never have a shortage of in terms of the workforce. You can do those two things, you can do them well. You can do just about anything you want in the industry that you want. And sky's the limit. Maura: Welcome to Mission Driven, where we speak with alumni who are leveraging their Holy Cross education to make a meaningful difference in the world around them. I'm your host, Maura Sweeney, from the class of 2007, Director of Alumni Career Development at Holy Cross. I'm delighted to welcome you to today's show. In this episode, Colman Benson from the class of 2024 speaks with James Scott from the class of 1995. They connected back in the fall of 2022 to speak about James' path from Ohio to Holy Cross to the Marine Corps, culminating in his current career in banking. They speak about how a clever marketing commercial changed the course of James's career path and how you're never too old to reinvent yourself. After 20 years of service in the Marine Corps, James chose to try something new and tackle a different challenge in his career. He landed in banking, first with Santander Bank and now as Vice President, Business Relationship Manager at Bank of America. The good news is that no matter what you choose to do, the core skills you learn at Holy Cross remain relevant. What's even better, the friends you make on the Hill and the Holy Cross Alumni Network will always be there to support you on your journey. Colman: Thank you for joining us. James: Yeah, absolutely. Thanks for having me, Colman. So once you reached out to me, it was one of those callings where I felt like, hey, any conversation helps anybody, my words, my journey, give somebody some type of inspiration, I'm all for it, right? So anyway to give back to the Hill, I do what I can, whether it's small or medium or as big as it can be. Colman: Very excited to be interviewing today. Just a little bit about your Holy Cross experience. I know that you were part of the football and the track team, and I think that was the last undefeated football team until this year, the team of 1991. So can you just describe your time as a student on the Hill and what you enjoyed in some of your extracurricular activities? James: I'm a graduate of 1995 Holy Cross, not Catholic, not from New England, certainly not from Massachusetts. So my journey began out in the Midwest in Ohio, and then my connection quickly with Holy Cross became through a coach who was recruiting out in Ohio, recruiting football players. And I happened to be on the radar and took a flight out to Boston. Now, this is where it gets kind of a little interesting because I actually thought Holy Cross was in Boston the way they gave me the tour, kind of showed me along the Charles River and all through downtown. So I got super excited and then I guess I got distracted. I fell asleep on the ride from Boston to Worcester. Next thing you know, I'm on this beautiful campus. So right away, I just had a connection with players at that time. Met a couple of professors. Very good friend of mine at the time was Margaret Freije. And so that was almost instantaneous connection. I flew back home, excited to tell my dad that I think I found the colleg

27 min

See All (34)

Creator

College of the Holy Cross
Years Active

2020 - 2023
Episodes

34
Rating

Clean
Show Website

Mission-Driven

Mission-Driven

Episodes

Mary Beth Sheridan ‘83

Cymetra Williams ‘03

Annie Long Sullivan ‘94

Nalani Ramos Ruiz ‘21

Kerry Sullivan ‘78

Quinn Fitzgerald ‘11

Sean O'Connor '92

James Scott '95

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