The Alumni in the World Crescite Week trip continues as an annual tradition at The Heights. This year, current students traveled out to Southern California to meet a wide variety of alumni studying and working in the Los Angeles and San Diego metro areas. This was the second Alumni in the World trip to California, the last trip in 2018 covered San Francisco and Los Angeles. As always, the trip included a mix of visits to homes, campuses, offices, as well as historical and cultural sites. Here are some highlights: 

We flew into LAX on Sunday evening and went to the famous In-N-Out Burger for dinner before heading to our lodgings in the San Fernando Valley. 

Monday morning we drove north into Ventura County and had breakfast with James Royals ‘07. He and his wife, Sophia hosted us for a wonderful breakfast in their home. James is a pilot for United Airlines and is involved in starting a school modeled after The Heights for families in Ventura County called Pacific Oaks Academy. Afterwards, we visited Tomas Diaz-Bonilla ‘22 at Thomas Aquinas College in Ojai. We had lunch in the dining commons with the students, had a tour of campus, and played basketball in their gym. Tomas is in his junior year at TAC. We headed back to LA County for dinner at Highland Park Brewery, where alumnus Morgan Maher ‘05 works. He gave us a tour of the brewery and restaurant. We were joined by Andrzej Toczek ‘79, who shared his path to and experiences in Hollywood. To wrap up the day, we visited the famed Griffith Observatory with a great view overlooking the city. 

On Tuesday, our first stop was breakfast with Sean Conaty ‘02 in Robert Burns Park where we enjoyed Yum Yum Donuts for Mardi Gras. Sean is an accomplished cinematographer in Hollywood; our current students enjoyed hearing about his experience inside the film industry. Next, we went to the Tilden Study Center (an educational center similar to the Tenley Study Center) where several former Heights chaplains, faculty, and students have worked over the years. Fr. Paul Donlon, a priest who lived with St. Josemaria and was a close friend of the founders of The Heights, heard confessions as we prepared for Lent. Then we toured UCLA with a current political science student who is familiar with The Heights through The Heights Forum. After some great tacos at Tacos Por Favor, we met up with David Krohn ‘13, at the Santa Monica Pier. David is a Trader and Risk Manager for a hedge fund who recently relocated from New York City to the West Coast. Our final stop for the day was dinner in West Hollywood with Christian Esherick ‘17, who works in the art industry, and Tom Longano ‘11, a writer and former Heights teacher. A few of the students on the trip had Tom as a homeroom teacher in the valley. 

We drove from LA to San Diego on Tuesday night. Our first stop in San Diego was Ash Wednesday Mass at a parish named St. Ann’s. The Mass was in the old Latin form and the parishioners were excited to meet our group. We had a quick breakfast before heading to the University of San Diego where Aiden Young ‘22 is studying finance. He gave us a tour of one of the most beautiful campuses in the country. Aiden shared his experience transferring schools and finding the best program of study. Then we visited La Jolla cove on the coast where we saw wild seals and sea lions. This was a highlight of the trip for many guys. Next, we visited the museum and church of the first California mission, Mission San Diego de Alcala. It was established by St. Junipero Serra in 1769. Our last stop was dinner at The Fish Market with Eric Schaumburg ‘10, a Technical Product Owner, Francisco Melendez ‘06, a U.S. Marine, and Wyatt Vance ‘18, an officer in the U.S. Navy. 

On Thursday, we went to Mass in the morning and met up with Thomas Love ‘24 for breakfast at a bagel cafe. Thomas is a student at John Paul the Great University, a small film and art Catholic college in Escondido, a small town north of San Diego. Thomas showed us the buildings and studio space of the University. He talked about his experience choosing the right college and making connections in the film industry. After lunch, we visited the headquarters of Catholic Answers in El Cajon, where Chris Check ‘83 is the President. Chris and his team explained their work and showed around the entire office. A special opportunity was watching the airing of Catholic Answers Live in their studio, where anyone can call in live to ask a question about the Catholic faith. Two of our students were able to ask questions live in the studio booth. Lastly, we had dinner back in Escondido with Michael Delaney ‘84, a doctor who served in the U.S. Navy for many years, and Tom Kilmer ‘20, a senior at John Paul the Great University, who also works for the Steeping Giant, a fast growing local cold brew coffee company. 

On Friday, we headed into Orange County and had breakfast with Jack McGwire ‘75, one of the earliest students to graduate from The Heights as part of the second graduating class. He shared stories of taking the city bus to the campus on Garrison Street. He also shared his experience working in Silicon Valley during the dot-com boom and beyond. After a scenic drive back into Los Angeles, we met up with alums Willie Belk ‘98 and Hooman Bargrizan ‘98. The students were able to play 3v3 basketball against some local kids at a recreation center. Then we went to the brand new SoFi Stadium in Englewood, where we had a tour with Dylan Salmon ‘16, who works in group ticket sales for the LA Chargers. He talked about working on the business side of pro sports. Our final stop was dinner with Carlos Amselle ‘90, an actor, and Zach Yazdani ‘16, who works for Creative Arts Agency helping connect producers, directors, and talent to film and TV projects. We left Los Angeles that night and returned to Washington DC after a packed week. We are looking forward to the next trip!