Bishop Hendricken High School will add six individuals and one marching band to its Hall of Fame at an on-campus induction ceremony Sunday, Oct. 5.

“Through achievement, service and prayer, all of this year’s inductees have made significant contributions to the growth of Bishop Hendricken and the school’s pursuit of its mission: to bring each member of its community closer to God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – by educating the total person – heart, mind, body and soul,” said Hendricken President John A. Jackson, ‘71.

Tickets to the induction ceremony are available for $40 per person and can be purchased by calling Bishop Hendricken Director of Alumni Relations Michele King at 738-6971, ext. 131. The ceremony begins at 10 a.m. with Mass in Harrop Theater, and an awards presentation and reception will follow.

Bishop Hendricken Hall of Fame inductees are: 

The 1960-61 Marching Band will be inducted in the Legends category. The band is believed widely to be the first such group in Bishop Hendricken history. With more than 50 members, the band played at football games and local parades, entertaining crowds and spreading Hendricken spirit through the community. Perhaps as importantly, the band began a decades-long legacy that continues today. Future marching bands played at the inaugurations of Presidents Johnson and Carter, as well as dozens of St. Patrick’s Day Parades in New York City. Today, Bishop Hendricken employs a full-time Director of Bands to guide several instrumental music ensembles, many of which have won state and regional awards. 

Br. Stephen Casey, CFC, will be inducted in the Honorary Alumnus category. Br. Casey taught History and Theology at Bishop Hendricken before transitioning to become the school’s Director of Student Activities. His strongest legacy came through his work in Campus Ministry and Christian Service, where he introduced annual student mission trips to Lima, Peru, and Bonita Springs, Fla. With degrees from Iona College and St. Michael’s (Vermont) College, Br. Casey has ministered in New York City, Boston and South Africa. He now splits time between coordinating volunteer service programs in Peru and traveling throughout North America to educate students about the Christian Brothers’ mission work. 

Susan Charbonneau will be inducted in the Distinguished Faculty category. Charbonneau spent 25 years on the Bishop Hendricken faculty, teaching Theology and English and later serving as English Department Chair. Her warm, generous and caring personality influenced thousands of students to appreciate literature and consider issues of social justice through a Catholic prism. A graduate of St. Mary’s Academy - Bay View, Salve Regina University and Rhode Island College, Charbonneau and her husband Gerry live in North Kingstown and have three sons, including Hendricken alumni Timothy, ‘95, and David, ‘96, as well as three grandchildren. 

Mr. Carmine (posthumously) and Mrs. Grace Gambardella will be inducted in the Volunteer Service category. The Gambardellas enrolled their son Vincent at Bishop Hendricken in 1969, beginning a more than four decades-long relationship with the school community. The couple served on the “Save Hendricken” committee in 1971 that kept BHHS open and helped set up its future success. They also served on several Parents Councils. Grace Gambardella spent 13 years working with Br. Mark Maus, CFC, in Hendricken’s treasurer’s office. Carmine Gambardella supported the school with maintenance work, including the construction of the original Hungry Hawk concession stand. The Gambardellas count three sons (Vincent, ‘73, Thomas, ‘76, and Robert, ‘78) and three grandsons (Michael, ‘03, Matthew, ‘04, and Mark, ‘09) as BHHS graduates. 

Francis J. Kernan, ‘71, will be inducted in the Alumni Service category. Kernan, an active member of Bishop Hendricken’s Board of Directors, also has served on the school’s Alumni Board, has volunteered as an Open House Alumni Ambassador and has helped with Special Olympics Rhode Island Regional Games hosted each May at BHHS. A gifted writer and storyteller, Kernan has a collection of stories from his memory and his classmates, and some of the stories have brought overdue honor to Hendricken alumni and teachers. A Bryant University graduate, Kernan is an account manager with M & G Materials Handling. He and his wife Nancy have three children, including Hendricken graduates Charles, ‘98, and Bradley,’00, and two grandchildren. 

Matthew Masseur, ‘86, also will be inducted in the Alumni Service category. Masseur followed his father Don, ‘62, as a Hawk, and he has served for more than a decade as the president of Bishop Hendricken’s New York City Area Alumni Chapter. Each March, he hosts an alumni reception for the school in midtown Manhattan. Masseur was a National Merit Scholar and Providence Journal Honor Roll Boy as a Hendricken student, and he owns degrees from Cornell University and The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. Masseur works as a Partner with IBM, and he also mentors youth through the company’s P-TECH program. He, his wife Ellen and their three daughters live in New York City. 

Sen. Michael McCaffrey, ‘81, will be inducted in the Distinguished Alumnus category. A partner with McCaffrey & McCaffrey since 1989, and a Rhode Island state senator since his first election victory in 1994, McCaffrey has made adherence to Catholic Church teachings a core value of his life and career. That dedication was recognized earlier this year, when he received the St. Thomas More Medal of Virtue from Most Rev. Daniel E. Thomas, D.D., S.T.L., V.G., Archbishop of Philadelphia. The award gives special credence to his work as God’s servant while holding public office. McCaffrey has three younger brothers who have graduated from Bishop Hendricken – John, ‘83, Eugene, ‘87, and William, ‘89. He and his wife Deidre have four children, including Michael, ‘15.

Bishop Hendricken this year also will welcome five alumni into its Athletic Hall of Fame. Kevin Brewster, ‘86, Matthew Giardina, ‘76, Edward McEntee, ‘62, Ronald Mosca, ‘73, and Robert Reitz, ‘79, will be inducted in the same Oct. 5 ceremony.