Alumni Appreciation Award
On October 9, 2025, Fr. John Hagemann was selected by the Mount Michael Alumni Association as the recipient of this year’s Alumni Appreciation Award. He, in addition to the Athletic Hall of Fame inductee Jim Mayberger ’84 and Alumnus of the Year Mark Lanspa ’80, were honored at an event at the Relevant Center in Elkhorn.
Here is Fr. John’s acceptance speech for his award.
Qu’est-ce que-c’est?
A French fur trader, Pasquinel by name, in the 1800s, came upon a scene where the Ponca tribe were about to torture and kill a Scottish fur trader, McKeag by name.
Pasquinel, a man bigger than life character and already well respected by most Native American tribes, didn’t miss a beat.
“That man is my Bruder! Don’t touch him, my Bruder, my Bruder!”
Pasquinel saved McKeag’s life that day and from this day forward they were bonded forever. And even though a beautiful Native American woman would be a source of division, they would come together at the rendezvous and dance the “yellow apron” together. He is my Bruder!
How do you get teenage boys to read literature, to read, to really read— to ponder — to think about what they read — to fall in love with a character in literature.
Perhaps a story about Cowboys and Indians, perhaps lots of action, perhaps sensationalism or exaggeration.
John Steinbeck was all over sensationalism. Rosasharn, a young mother who lost her baby but was full breasted and yet the Joad family was so willing to survive and help others that Rosasharn would actually breast fed a starving old man, unshaven and emaciated – his rough face on her tender and soft breast.
Or say — Lee, the Chinese servant in East of Eden would help Samuel Hamiliton discern the word Timshel from the passage of Genesis that deals with the story of Cain and Abel — timshel — thou mayst. Steinbeck weighs in on one single word. East of Eden is a novel near 1000 pages summed up in one word — TIMSHEL — thou mayst. It is about choice. We all have a choice. And what choice do we make?
How do you get high school boys to read Literature — especially William Shakespeare ? Maybe you choose a novel of Ray Bradbury’s — something like Something Wicked This Way Comes. Allow the students to enjoy a story of two friends — one prone to trouble and the other prone to goodness. And observe their path of experiencing — by the pricking of my thumbs something wicked this way comes.
War stories and fighting and wrestling are always good as boys. They love to fight! Our dear Ernest Hemingway loved lots of action and the bull pen and in numerous wars, but he was a teddy bear in many ways when he created a character, like Jake Barnes in the Sun Also Rises. And then the real mystery of it all is when he takes his own life. This will always be a mystery for me and makes me want to understand him better and read everything that he wrote.
Kurt Vonnegut —- what a man! All young boys should study and read the stories of this man. An American soldier who experienced his own country bombing Dresden. Vonnegut was so creative that he gave life to Billy Pilgrim — himself really — but who could come unstuck in time and move wherever he wanted in time and escape the trauma of it all. Vonnegut was not a linear man — move like convoluted better describes him.
Or Walt Whitman — who could empathize with what Abraham Lincoln was trying to do as a president, bringing the nation together. So sad to be shot down when trying to bring unity. Lilacs — with heart shaped leaves — blooming in the yard when he was killed — what a beautiful image — When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloomed.
Or maybe you create elective classes and teach themes of literature — Plain Literature – Catholic novels — Literature of the 1920 — the roaring twenties – or Southern writers — with all the glory of a Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald. And you mix juniors and seniors together — sometimes the juniors challenging the seniors to read better to understand the nuances of the images. B J Wilson (class of 1984) as the little fyce in Willam Faulkner’s The Bear. Or Dan Mulhall defending Willa Cather as a great writer in the midst of scorning seniors.
Or I found that music and drama are good ways to get high school boys to read. Going to the Omaha Play House always caught the attention of the boys. We could lean on Marlene Jamrog, a member of the board, for tickets and such characters as Lenny in Mice and Men became embedded in the students mind. And Jean Val Jean became a huge hero for the students experiencing the drama and story of Les Misérables at the Orpheum in Omaha.
Brian Osborne emailed me the other day to congratulate me and he add, “I wish I had a dime for every time I heard alums mention Flannery O’Connor or identify people in current events as Christ figures.” Christ figures — Randle Patrick McMurphy in One Few Over the Cuckoo’s Nest — RPM — one of my favorite unconventional Christ figures of all times. About about being fishers of men! He’s my Burder!
And then something sort of wild happened at MM — they started coming from the East— Korea — Viet Nam – China — Japan. I remember Br. Jerome being reluctant to start 7 day boarders again.
We older monks were all 7 day boarders and deans of 7 day boarders years ago. Br. Jerome voiced that these boys need their parents at this time of their lives. We need to be parents to them. Are we really willing to do that? But we soon realized they were an incredible asset to us. And they came love pumpkin bars and apple crisp as well as the Americans. Most were very, very talented, enhancing the school and abbey — especially in a musical way. Muxuan Tang a precious gift to liturgical music at not only Mount Michael but St. John’s at Creighton University as well and still is to this day.
He is my Buder! He is my Bruder!
Years ago when I was a high school student, there were students from all over Nebraska — the little towns, Dodge, Creighton, Osmond, Petersburg, Albion, Spaudling. And of course, Abbot Michael was from Kansas — Offerle to be exact — a very small town.
There is a wonderful hymn that we sing on occasion.
In Christ there is no East or West —
Abbot Theodore always taught me to substitute words in the psalms — let me suggest the same here.
At Mount Michael there is no East or West — no North or South — but only one great brotherhood — uniting to one another to make the world a better place.
He is my Bruder — let all of us read and read and read — it causes us to think and to ponder to be open and to welcome all as brothers.
And we can only hope that Mount Michael students will come again from all over Nebraska (Laurel, Beatrice, Lincoln, Albion, Petersburg, Raeville) and globally as well. He is my Bruder!
Amen — Alelluia!